Be warned: this is a wordy post with little to no images.  YIKES!This is the very first post in my second ever 31 Days Series Challenge!  Want to see them all?  Go right here.

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Remember a little while back when I wrote about keeping it real?  Well, it happened to be one of my favourite posts ever.  It seems that I'm pretty good at being opinionated, and after my husband suggested I write more like I talk, I think there has been a huge improvement (at least in my own opinion) in my writing because it's more free, and more, well, me!!  It feels more authentic, and when Amy said to me at Blog Podium that I talk just like I write (or vice versa), it was like the coolest, bestest, most amazing compliment ever!  And it got me thinking... if I can keep it real in every aspect of my life, wouldn't I live a better life?Ok, so that's pretty broad, and we're talking about a 31 day series here, and this blog is somewhat based on DIY, decor and design, right?  So here's what I'm thinking...Start with the home.I instantly thought of this quote:

(source)

Sure, that quote is based on education in the academic sense, and as an educator I take it seriously.  But I thought of this quote in relation to our home, ourselves and the world.  Here's my take:

And where do we keep most of "ourselves"?

Right here at home!Our things are here.  Our family is here.  Our memories are made here.  Our most prized, most treasured possessions are here (and this was a difficult sentence for me to come up with because we don't possess people, but in a way we belong to those we love in the same way they belong to us, because we hold each other's hearts.  That's a big thing to give and to be given.)Where do we learn to take out first steps (a lesson in falling and getting back up again, and again, and again)?  Where do we learn to speak our first words (a lesson in learning to love your own voice and be proud of it)?  Where do we learn how to love (a lesson that never ends, that always gets better and bigger)?Right here at home.We learn a lot here.  We spend a lot of time here.  We invest so much here.  And, at least for me, it's so easy to get caught up in just how it looks all the time.  It's so easy to go out and pick up another throw pillow because "it's going to look fab on the couch."  It's so easy to stop at IKEA on my way somewhere and pick up a new rug!What the what!?!?!She just said a new rug?  Again?Yeah!  I did!  I did that, okay!?!?  And that's why I need this challenge!I want to keep it real and get to the heart of the home.  A home is not made by the stuff we put into it. It's made by the memories we make in it, the people we live with, and how comfortable we feel in it.  When Sarah Richardson told us at Blog Podium that “If you're not comfortable in your home, nobody else will be comfortable in your home.” I thought "YEAH!!!! THAT's that I've been needing to hear!"  It's not JUST about how pretty it is!Last year my 31 Day Series was about making a house a home, and it basically consisted of bringing STUFF into our house.  We needed things, being newlyweds and all, and hey, you guys all KNOW how I love me some IKEA and Target and Home Sense and Anthro... and I'm gonna go ahead and stop now.  As if my rug story wasn't enough.This year, for 31 days, I'm going to challenge myself not only to focus on what happens in my home and with the people that are in it, but also I'm challenging myself in another way.  I'm going to invest in myself and my family - in our home.  Okay, here it is...I haven't even told my husband yet.  He's going to be so happy.I'm not going to buy anything for my house for the entire month of October.Oh my gosh.  My heart just sank...Did I really type out those words?Oh crap.I did.I feel sick.Can I just delete them and pretend this never happened?  Can I go back?NO!It's not called a challenge for nothin'!  And with Christmas just around the corner, this is QUITE the challenge.Yes, I am being a drama queen.Oh, and groceries don't count.  Just wanted to get that out there in case any of you thought I was going to take up hunting in my backyard (like that's possible) or growing my own veggies (also not possible because of my black thumb and hi, I live in Canada! It's October.  Enough said.).  No.  Groceries are allowed!  Just no IKEA, and Home Sense, and ... you know the drift.So, over 700 words later, I have finally gotten to the point.  This year's 31 Day Series is

I have a feeling I know where this is going, but I can't be too sure.  I'm still going to show you stuff I love. STUFF is still going to be part of this blog.  It's still going to be part of my house.  But at least for this one month, I want to focus on what's already in it.  Including the stuff.  And maybe even getting rid of some of it?  Crazy eh?

Did any of this make sense?

If your answer to that is "NO", then please just try to stick around this month and see how my experiment/challenge/torture month goes.  It promises to be at least mildly entertaining.

If your answer to it was "YES", bless your heart.  I love you.  And thank you.

If you have any suggestions, maybe something you struggle with, maybe something you've done in your home that you might think is fitting for this theme over the next month, just let me know.  It's not like I have all 31 posts planned!  HA!  Wouldn't that have been brilliant?!?

Now, let's do this thing!

1 day down...