What About When It's Over?

Folks are starting to ask about January. It's coming soon, after all, and our close friends know that we're waiting for 1.1.2011 to bust loose and buy all the things we've been missing for the last year. So they are starting to ask... "What are you going to buy first?"

I wish I could say honestly that we haven't started thinking about that. I wish I could say we've been completely transformed and will never think about shopping the same way again, but this would be a lie. We've learned a lot - a whole lot. But we're ready.

Actually we're so ready that we realize we're in a danger zone. In some ways, not shopping has become a way of life. I imagine it will feel a little weird to have new clothes or shoes hanging in my closet, or new earrings to wear to work. It might actually take me awhile to ease back into that kind of shopping. But the one area we've waited patiently to reinstate is Home Improvement, and we can't wait to get started.

We have a long list... a dangerously long list of things we'd like to do to the house starting- quite possibly- January 3rd (we'll be home in RI until the 2nd). This list includes ripping up our back porch and building a new one, renovating both bathrooms, taking on a massive closet re-do, painting just about every room in the house, and some very labor-intensive landscaping in the front yard. We've been daydreaming and planning for these renovations for months, but only in our fantasy-land. We have not adequately prepared for these projects by, say, setting aside money for them or being sure that we know what we're doing enough to not trip into even more projects and spending.

Fortunately, as January approaches we can start to put the brakes on just a bit. I think we realize how careful we'll have to be, and the last thing we want is to have to do another Stuff Stand-off in 2012 to recover from 2011. We can take on some projects around the house, but not all, and we have to decide carefully what is worth it for us to take on.

So the big word around our house starting in the new year will be restraint. Yes, we'll want to dive right in. Yes, we miss Lowe's like we miss our family members. Yes, we're desperate to go all sledgehammer on a wall or sink or porch. But we have to remember what we've learned, and instead try to be moderate, sensible, and thoughtful about what comes first.

So what about when it's over? Well, in the end we might start with new sneakers for Jonathan, which at the moment are higher priority than a new deck, bathroom, closet, front yard, etc. Novel idea - buy what you really need, instead of what you really want. And then, well, we might just have to wait another month or two before we can make a decision...