Master The Art Of Being A HomeBody
When it comes to home...
My entire universe revolves around being a homebody because simply put –– the joy of being a homebody is absolutely positively w-o-n-d-e-r-ful. But what exactly you ask, is a homebody? Better yet, do you even want to master it?
Well, I’m glad you asked. Because I’m obviously rooting for “Team YES” but let's lean into our inner homebody for a bit, so you can decide for yourself if being a homebody is right for you.
What Does Homebody Mean?
GOOGLE’S DEFINITION
Now if I’m being completely + utterly candid, which I always am, I have to disagree with Google’s definition of a homebody because this definition is fatally flawed. While I definitely agree, a homebody likes being at home (a lot)… “unadventurous?” Excuse me, Mr. + Mrs. Google I think you have some explaining to do! *wink*
You see, I don’t consider myself (you or any other homebody that I’ve ever met) boring, anti-social or seemingly unadventurous. Therefore I’m not willing to accept this underwhelming misrepresentation of a homebody :)
In fact, I’d like to go on record as challenging this notion that a homebody is unadventurous because it’s from first hand experience that there’s a much better way to define a homebody than the one google has presented us with today.
OUR DEFINITION
Whether it’s a fast + furious Friday night or a lazy Sunday morning spent listening to jazz, enjoying breakfast while appreciating all of the opportunities + goodness life has presented us with –– the words “let’s stay at home” are expressed back and forth between John + I routinely. Sometimes it comes up in conversation but every now and again it’s a simple blank face + a silent nod that says “boo, let’s chill.”
Now don’t get me wrong, friend... we’re big time lovers of the outdoors who enjoy nature + challenging hikes. We’re seekers of good ol fashion fun + random adventures. We enjoy laughing with family + friends and look forward to hosting game night dinner parties but to us, home is a place that’s really, really, important to us.
Personally speaking, my love, home is the place we enjoy being the most. It’s where we rest. It’s where we feel comfortable enough being unapologetically ourselves + boo, it’s where we nourish our most important relationships.
Professionally, home is all about creating a place where deep meaningful connections can flourish. It’s about a dinner table that’s filled with nourishing food, incredible company + stimulating conversations.
Home is about your living room, your kitchen, the dining room (heck for that matter, your entire home) that’s designed to feel intuitively conversational for large family gatherings but intimate enough to elongate spending 1-on-1 time together.
That’s the kind of home at Elegant Simplicity we’re focused on creating for clients, everyday.
And, it’s the kind of home we believe every homebody wants + deserves.
A home with everything you need + nothing more.
So, let’s rethink what being a homebody actually means...
Ah… that’s the appropriate definition. And yes, Mr. + Mrs. Google you can borrow it. Ya, welcome!
It’s the whole truth... It’s why Elegant Simplicity exists... because homebodies, like you, and all across the country, never stop dreaming of how their home can make life a little + a lot better.
Benefits Of Being A Homebody
Because I’m obsessed… (correction we’re in this together friend)… because we’re both obsessed with home here are some amazingly cool benefits to being a homebody.
BETTER PRODUCTIVITY
Say, what?!?! Yes, being a homebody means better productivity. Nicholas Bloom, a professor at Stanford University, conducted a study, that you can watch here, where he monitored over the course of two years whether or not employees who worked from home could not only avoid the pitfalls of goofing off (which he defined as sleeping, eating, watching TV) but could they actually be more productive.
And what he found was amazing! The people who worked from home not only took shorter breaks, had fewer sick days + took less time off than employees who worked in an office but they also were 13.5% more productive!
So go on friend + pitch your boss (or spouse in my case, John,) that you should work from home more often *wink*
TAKING BETTER CARE OF YOU, YOUR WELLBEING + THOSE YOU LOVE
No, I’m not merely talking about eating healthier because you’re home + more likely to cook. Or that your routine can have more balance so you exercise or garden more.
What I’m actually talking about is being motivated to listen. Sometimes to listen to your body + yes, exercise or meditate. And other times to listen to others. In fact, I stumbled upon this article in the NY Times from wayyy back when in 2001 called, “The Fine Art Of Being A Homebody.”
And quite honestly, it’s a fun + quick read because 20 years ago the most luxurious and highest caliber celebrities (Michael Kors, Marc Jacobs, etc) who typically were out socializing 5-6 nights a week, were all raving about throwing “at home” dinner parties.
It’s fantastic to hear their quotes about the benefits of being a homebody but I particularly loved this one… ''When people are in your home, they actually talk (and they listen).” “They open up and talk about things that are personal. It's not that kind of mindless conversation you get at those benefit dinners where everyone just recites their recent travel itineraries.'' - Daniel Romualdez
And it’s true.
A common misconception of homebodies is that they’re introverted + they only want to connect with themselves. But the reality is… when home is important to you it’s likely important because it’s the place where you want to really connect with your people.
And when you’re a homebody, when you’re serious about creating a space to call home –– the benefits are endless.
REDUCING YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT… sort of.
This one is pretty obvious but hey it’s worth noting. When you are passionate about your home + you invest in quality, durability, sustainability you’re actually reducing your waste + lessening your carbon footprint on the environment. So, yeah — have at creating home, homebodies!
How To Be A Homebody
There’s a couple simple things that really define what being a homebody looks like.
CONNECT WITH OTHERS
Whether it’s because of our experience with COVID-19 or simply because creating home is about connection, a homebody is always thinking about others.
So, who hasn’t heard your voice in awhile? Who hasn’t seen your face lately?
Something as simple as lending your ear to someone other than those hibernating beneath the same roof as you might be the highlight of their day. It might be the phone call or voice of reason they’ve been needing.
TAKE TIME FOR YOURSELF
When I say home is about creating a place for connection I’m not limiting home to a place for others. Nope. Home is a place for us to reconnect with ourselves.
Sometimes life with those you love but also with ourselves can be downright busy. The hustle. The bustle. Can all eventually feel like two ships passing in the night.
But the key to being a homebody is really about taking a few moments each day to yourself.
If this is hard to do because you’ve got young kids (or like me, you're easily distracted) do it first thing in the morning or even right before bed! Do a self-guided meditation (more on that later). Write down your thoughts. Or if you’re a believer in Christ, pray.
Whatever it is, a moment of silence with yourself can positively impact you in ways you’ve maybe never experienced before.
ORGANIZE YOUR HOME
Decluttering + organizing is high on nearly everyone's priority list come spring but for a homebody home is intentional. It’s purposeful. And so, organizing is always important.
Psst… check out our organizing membership.
DESIGN YOUR HOME
Like life, your home is always evolving — it’s always changing… it my dear is continuous. So, rethinking how your existing home (or the home you’re building) can really serve you is crucial to good design.
So… check out our design membership.
HOW TO BE A HOMEBODY WITH LITTLE KIDS
BE GOOFY
Play “summer!” Grab your robe, your summer beach towel + your flip-flops. Slather on some lotion after slipping into your bathing suit + then have fun building sandcastles out of building blocks while relaxing to the sounds of waves crashing on the beach (complements of youtube of course!) PS Don't forget to pack some yummy snacks.
Clearly, Brooklyn loves imagination play + if you couldn’t, John + I tend to take the experience to the next level. What can we say, he’s well-loved :)
BUILD A STORE
Right now, we’re in the very early stages of teaching Brooklyn about capitalism *wink* by creating fun little pop-up stores. Whether it’s the bottom shelf in our pantry, a row of toy bins in his playroom or even an enchanting bookcase in his bedroom his imagination runs wild (for hours!)
Even as young as ‘Brooks’ is, he experiences an overwhelming sense of pride after handing us a place of green eggs + ham he cooked up and he feels accomplished after taking, Bradie-mae, his four-legged BFF on a walk in exchange for fake “money.”
HOW TO BE A HOMEBODY WITH OLDER KIDS
WATCH A TED TALK TOGETHER
Honestly, playing summer might still be fun on more of an almost adult level :) but I doubt the build a store idea is going to fly with fake money for your older-teenagers. But as many of you know, John is somewhat of a renaissance man.
In addition to being an amazing father + an insanely efficient project coordinator, did you know that he’s also a football coach? Having coached various levels of college + high school ball I’ve seen first handedly his ability to relate with older kids by channeling their interest through fun + unique ways. One of which is by expanding or altering their core beliefs through video.
In fact, when he was the wide receiver coach at Army West Point, he’d send his players Ted Talks to watch that they could talk about as a position group.
Long story short, this is one of our favorite all-time Ted Talks + it’s by Brene Brown on the power of vulnerability.
TALK TO THEM OPENLY
This isn’t an easy time for teenagers or kids who are typically never home. Let's face it, they enjoy being active, playing sports or being with their friends. So being asked to distance yourself from everything you know + uproot your routines around school probably feels like corporal punishment to them.
As we move through this time of uncertainty, take time to lend an ear to those who haven’t heard from you in awhile but also make sure to keep in mind the ones when it comes to your own household. How are they feeling? What are their thoughts? How are they handling change?
THE JOY OF BEING A HOMEBODY + WHAT TO COOK
MAKE A GREEN SMOOTHIE
What?!? Not exactly what you were hoping for after seeing those cookies + apple bread above?
This could have also been filed under “what to do with your kids” because Brooklyn helps make a green smoothie each morning + quite frankly his enthusiasm sometimes makes me feel like it's the highlight of his day! That being said, now is a time where you want to do everything within your power to boost your own immune system along with everyone who’s at home.
My favorite recipe: 4 cups of spinach, 5 cups of water, 2 bananas, 1 cup of frozen pineapple, 1 cup of frozen mango. I promise you’ll love it :)
FOODS THAT YOU CAN FREEZE
If you can, get your hands on as much produce as possible — of course this is ideal but when you’re on lockdown + you can’t go out to eat, making foods that can also feed everyone for another meal is essential to your sanity.
Seriously. Truth be told, I have worked from home for over a decade + have always loved cooking meals from scratch + freezing leftovers because it makes life so much easier on busy days to pull something out of the freezer + reheat it in the oven or on the stovetop. Especially during the week when you’re trying to work as many hours as you can, having a quick easy + healthy solution for meals is paramount.
I just cooked chicken enchiladas topped with black beans, corn, diced tomatoes, fresh avocado, a little bit of cilantro + hot damn it was good!
THE JOY OF BEING A HOMEBODY + WHAT TO LISTEN TO
MUSIC FOR GOOD VIBES
We are inundated 24/7 with information from email, text, social media, websites, tv/movies –– so much so that it’s easy to lose sight of the things in life that make you smile, laugh or simply bring you joy. Challenge yourself + your family to be mindful of the things you’re listening to + try once a day to put a song on that makes everyone want to get up, stretch your legs + dance.
SELF GUIDED MEDITATION
If you’ve never taken the time to meditate before or you haven’t adopted it as a routine practice, you are truly missing out. No seriously! Meditating has become a daily practice in the Monte household for John + I.
While I’m not yet ready to be set free on my own I can absolutely attest to the power of self-guided meditations + the breakthroughs I’ve had by prioritizing a little time for myself have been life changing. Two of my favorite meditational podcasts are: Mindful in Minutes + Purely Being.
Truthfully, there’s no better time than now, when you’re practicing the art of being a homebody, to give yourself this gift.
THE JOY OF BEING A HOMEBODY + WHAT TO READ / WATCH
Everyone has their own set of likes/dislikes when it comes to movies, shows, documentaries + books. But a couple of things I’d encourage you to avoid binge-watching or reading too much of is the news. Absolutely, it’s important to stay informed –– just try to avoid getting consumed by it all + not letting it overtake your mental wellbeing.
READ: YOU’RE A BADASS BY JEN SINCERO
Being a homebody is tough — especially on weekends when you’re not working. Which is why John + I have read this book TWICE just last year + plan to read it again! It’s that good. So in an effort not to spoil it for you I can say whole-heartedly, if you’re looking to manifest change in your life, give You Are A Badass a read.
WATCH: MADAM SECRETARY
Politics, I know right?!?!? This is just a good strong-female lead drama-series with high moral ethics + is worth binging when the kids aren’t clamoring for your attention.
In fact, one of our good friends said, “this is one time we can literally save humanity by sitting on our couch — lets not mess this up.” Some of us are on lockdown + others still have a choice.
Whatever the case may be, for everyone’s sake find some enjoyment in being a homebody + when it is safe for everyone, our lives will resume as they were. But homebody to homebody, we’ve also been changed by these circumstances.
Changed by the bravery of those we know, those we don’t + those we love who day after day tend to the sick + needy with every ounce of energy they can muster together.
I hope when you’ll look back on your life + be happy with how you spent it. At home, together.
And there you have it...everything you need to know about the joys of being a homebody! And don’t forget, if you’re in the preliminary planning stages of your next project, let’s chat.
P.S. If you loved this article then you’re going to really enjoy the 4 Days To A More Beautiful + Functional Home.