So, I’ve received some e-mails from people commenting on how amazing my kitchen is, and how they would be cooking all the time if they lived in a kitchen like that, etc. etc. I could sense some resentment in some of the e-mails, and felt convicted to share something with you all. Here is the picture that sparked the comments:
I’d like to say that I have a kitchen like that. Oh, to have a 6-burner stove, an island with a sink, Rocky Mountain Forest Products blue pine siding, and beautiful natural light flowing in through the windows.
Alas, the above photo, friends, is not my kitchen.
HERE is my kitchen:
Yup. That’s it. And this is how it looks on a good day. Nothing to complain about, to be sure. When more than 60% of people in the world don’t have access to flush toilets, my kitchen looks pretty dang good.
You see, we all play the “compare and share” game. Compare ourselves to others, and then share that misery with others around us…whether we do it intentionally or not. Live with an ungrateful heart, and it’s bound to leak out at some point. I have those moments all the time. Our stupid dishwasher squeals when I open its door, and the sound is like nails on a chalkboard. I hate that dishwasher. But wait, I have a dishwasher. All I have to do is rinse my dishes, and put them in a little magic box and voila! They come out sanitized and shiny.
And my oven? The bottom drawer doesn’t roll out correctly. So every time I pull it out, I have to gingerly roll it back in so it doesn’t turn on its side. But hey, the stove works fine, the oven works fine, and gosh darn it, I can cook food with electricity!
We live in a manufactured home, and the walls are paper thin. Seriously, once a kid ran into the wall and a huge hole enveloped him. So the freakin’ what? We have walls around us, and a roof over our heads. When it rains, we’re dry and when it’s cold, we’re warm. Thanks to the company that provides insulation near me.
If it’s hot, I turn a little switch and cold air comes pumping out of vents, keeping us comfortable at a cool 78 degrees, if you also want to achieve like this you can get more info here.
So, so many things I complain about. Don’t get me wrong–I love my life. But I have “ungrateful” days just like anyone else. I’m just trying to be better about thanking God for the many, many blessings He’s given us instead of focusing on what appears to be greener grass on the other side.
I wanted to share these photos with you to show you a glimpse of reality. It’s easy on the interweb to peek into someone’s life and think they live perfection. In reality, a good camera, nice lighting and some fancy editing can go a long way. So don’t believe everything you see.
When we moved back in in July, we had gaping holes in the laundry/bathroom areas and no furnace. A service like this HVAC company Clackamas, OR or Home Heating and Air Conditioning for Furnace Repairs and Installations helped us to add one since October.
This unit should be maintained with the help of a residential heating repair service like Air Care Heating and Cooling and this Isle of Palms HVAC company. This HVAC company can also provide services like furnace maintenance & tune ups in Snohomish, WA, furnace installation in Portsmouth, VA, or upgrade furnace system in Lakeway, TX. Experts like these HVAC services in Springdale were also such a huge help in helping us choose the right type of boiler. So, if you want to replace your old boiler in Bondville, IL, call professionals.
We actually are close to painting in the bedroom and just one wall to finish in the bathroom and we’ll be ready to paint there. Still a long way to go in the bathrooms, but we have some walls now and we didn’t have those for a while.
I didn’t intend to misrepresent myself in the top photo (which, by the way, was taken in my dear friend Leigh’s kitchen). Truth is, she just has such a beautiful setting for a photo!
So, there you have it. A look into the real Landon kitchen.
May your day today be filled with gratefulness for the things in your life that are way more important than material things.
Ashley says
THANK YOU! So needed to hear this!
erin @ blue yurt farms says
Great reminder that you never know the full story, AND to appreciate what you have!!! Oh, and to make use of friends that have beautiful kitchens. 🙂
Laura B says
In the words of my pastor Steven Furtick, “don’t compare your behind-the-scenes with someone else’s highlight reel”. And “complaining only gives negative experiences (or thoughts) a second life”. Let ’em go. I love your attitude, Shanti. Thanks for your blog!
Emma says
Shanti, in one of your posts I saw your kitchen and thought it was a normal typical kitchen 🙂 next,this truly melted my heart because I’m far from even having that haha.I’m grateful just for having a roof over my head and food to feed our family 🙂 bless your heart and thanks for sharing!
Bill Staley says
I love that you posted this. Our kitchen looks remarkably similar. I’m sure people think otherwise sometimes.
Jess says
Adorable picture- adorable family- no matter the back drop!!!! =D
sarah says
Rats. No complaining today huh?? :). I live in a remodel~ turning two houses into one with 4 kids…. i didnt have a dishwasher for a year. But i only put out 6 of all dishes and cups, so it wasnt that bad. I ended up getting a kitchen aid. It was cheap on craigs list and wow. Best dish washer ever. My little foster gal climbs and sits on it. The door is still going strong!! Any way, I wanted to ask how you handle breakfast in the morning. With honeschooling i am having a hard time cooking 3 full meals, cleaning, and educating. Any suggestions?? Thanks. 🙂
radlandon says
How old is your oldest? I sometimes have my oldest make breakfast (usually eggs and some fruit) when I’m pressed for time. All my kids have chores in the morning before we start school, too. I also do oatmeal twice a week when I go to yoga in the morning, so when I come back, it’s already done (I put it in the oven at 300 for about an hour, and hubby takes it out when it’s done). Hope that helps!
sarah says
My oldest is 11, and he cooks fine. Its just the 1 hr cook time (pancakes, eggs, french toast… ect ) and the eat time 30 min then clean up 45 min that I end up half way through the morning without even starting school. I miss oatmeal horribly but it makes my kids sick. Thank you for the suggestions. 🙂
Tabatha says
Great post! We are trying to be more grateful around here as well! Compared to so many around the world we are living like kings! We are richly blessed 🙂
Sarah says
Our dishwasher squeaks, too! Sounds like there’s a wookie in there… But it gives me am excuse not to do dishes while the kids are napping! I love your perspective!
Allison Jordan says
My oven drawer does the same thing! My husband has to bang it back in with a hammer sometimes. Ha! 🙂 Thanks for sharing your kitchen and your heart :).
Captured by Jess says
I hope this isn’t the reason you’re not using that pic as your blog header anymore!
I loved it.
radlandon says
No, I just decided to go with something different! lol
Kalika @ The Mother Tribe says
Great post! I really appreciate this. I try not to take things like clean running water and dishwashers for granted! 🙂
Brenda Helvie says
I like your kitchen, right now we are living in three rooms of our house that had a fire and trying to remodel the entire house (not all at once, just one or two rooms at a time the insurance dropped us and did not pay for the repairs.) We are currently actively working on our bedroom and bathrooms. They had the most damage. In doing so we are making a different closet and putting in the second bathroom adjacent to our bedroom that used to be a place we stored everything. My kitchen had the paneling and paint beneath the paneling peeling from the walls, so we scraped the edges the best we could and it has some paint in some areas, the rest is old plaster with drywall covering any holes. The cabinets are a mismatched mess of cabinets that mostly came from our laundry area because those held up from the water damage better than the kitchen ones. While I’m extremely frustrated with the kitchen. I have a new stove because a community program gave it to us. It isn’t what I want in my kitchen, but it is new and it works so I’m not complaining. There is absolutely no area in my house right now that is pretty. But we will get there. It has just been slowed way down by my injuring my shoulder in August, making it so I can’t work even still. Mine was the main income for our family. So, we are living on 1/4 of our normal income and trying to remodel, so it is going extremely slow. But I am seeing some progress. I know it will be what we want eventually. God is good and he has continued to provide beyond our wildest dreams, so I am truly thankful for all that we have. I would like to get the broken windows we have upstairs repaired so that we can expand out of the few rooms we are in, but it looks like we will finish the winter before we get those done. That wasn’t in my plan, but we have been living in God’s plan, so there are surprises at every turn. When we moved back in in July, we had gaping holes in the laundry/bathroom areas and no furnace, so we have had a furnace since October and the walls have been closed up since October, we actually are close to painting in the bedroom and just one wall to finish in the bathroom and we’ll be ready to paint there. Still a long way to go in the bathrooms, but we have some walls now and we didn’t have those for a while.
Willie says
I have so much to be thankful for. We have a house (paid for). It is old and needs a lot of work and we are on a fixed income but God will supply the need. Going to start painting and doing some minor repairs inside, and that will go a long ways in the appearance of the inside. The outside repairs will have to wait a while longer. Thanking God for His many blessings!
Laura A says
Thanks Shanti for posting this. Gratefulness to our dear Lord is something we ALL need to cultivate more of. Our lives would be so much fuller. We also live in a double-wide. I am the teacher in the house and we have no little ones. I have not gone to see if I have Celiec, but I know that I have a leaky gut. Had a huge histamine flare last Saturday and was convinced I was going to die as I was having
trouble breathing when I lay down. So I stayed up from 10PM to 5AM scouring the internet for help. I now have an appointment with an integrative physician on our health plan—SHOCK! After losing 3 days with my little ones at school and not having a concrete diagnosis because most MDs don’t believe in Leaky Gut, my issues have multiplied 10 fold. On a blessing note, God is answering my prayers and helping me to lose weight. 10 pounds in 5 days. But I need to lose 80, though I am a six foot person as well. Thanks for your website.
Bettie says
Oh my!!! I loved reading about the REAL you and family! Been there, done that and rejoice that you have truly hit the nail on the head. HEALTH, FAMILY, and the love and care of both are the most desired elements for true happiness. Every day, we should all open our eyes and minds and be THANKFUL for what we have and do whatever is necessary to protect and cherish both. Thank you for being so honest about LIFE….and sharing it with others! Healthier foods make healthier bodies and minds.