If you have read Fieldstone Hill for any amount of time, you may have figured out that I think we should set the bar high for the amount of beauty we add to our homes.

I believe we should surround ourselves with much beauty….. not necessarily things {sometimes!}, but always beauty.

I believe we should weed out the junk, and give away the unused.

and for my own home, I dream of creating gorgeous rooms and flowing spaces, filled with comfort and style.

Yes. I dream.

But I also have a reality.

And if your reality-home does not quite match up with your dream-home, be encouraged. You don’t have to wallow in seemingly unattainable dreams until you are shaken out of it. You can have a change of heart, and your home will be more beautiful for it, today!

More and more, each day, it is my daily aim to be fully present in my beautiful reality, and not waste it away wishing things were otherwise. I don’t always reach that aim, but I know where to look to get there. I continue to run the race set before me. And fortunately, I don’t have to go at it alone. I also have friends. Good friends who remind me.

One of these friends that has encouraged me along the way to love my home in the present is Melissa Michaels of the amazing blog, The Inspired Room.

And, guess what? Melissa wrote a book! I just think that is so wonderful {you know how much I love it when women go for their dreams without quitting}!!

Yesterday, I had the joy of curling up with her hot-off-the-e-presses eBook. I practically shouted “Yes!” to every single word of wisdom that she shared. And you will too, goodness knows!

{click here to learn more about this book, and to purchase your eCopy}

Hmm. Does that title remind you of anything? I just about fell off my seat when I read it, knowing that this was a book meant for me!

I soaked in every word, and let it minister to my spirit and to my home. By the end of reading the book, my home was more beautiful. What other book can do that?

I was honored to write an endorsement of “Not a DIY Diva:”

“Melissa, with her warm and empathetic voice in NOT a DIY Diva, invites us to take a look at the reality of living authentically as a means to free us from our self-created snares of home beautification. She speaks with a wisdom and candor that immediately allows you to take a deep breath and start enjoying your home and your family TODAY. If you find yourself stuck in the cycle of wanting “more” for your home, but you keep running into “but, if only’s…,” you will find freedom by reading this book; A freedom that will ultimately lead to a more beautiful home.”

{darlene}, founder of the Fieldstone Hill blog and interior designer at Fieldstone Hill Design

So, if you are thinking you need a psychiatrist to help you sort through all of your home-perfection-angst, skip the $300/hr. bill and spend $3.99 instead, okay? You will be so glad that you have added this to your “bookshelf,” and to your life.