keeping a snug winter home with dignify

I’ve said it before, but I love how this season full of early darkness and cold winds brings a slower rhythm to our home. Like the leaves on our tree, our school routine is beginning to fall apart, leaf by leaf. A season of rest is looming. I don’t mean to imply that our days aren’t loud or full of things to do. We have four children under this roof, which means our home always has some amount of bustle and chatter. I know I’ll miss the giggles, the squeals, the squabbles one day, so for now I’m learning to settle in, to pour another cup of coffee and enjoy it.

Although the cold is still new here, we’ve already begun preparing our home for the winter season, stringing up twinkle lights and rolling beeswax candles. The winter linens have been washed and freshened too, as we unfurl down comforters and fold throws into baskets and across beds and chairs. We recently received two beautiful handmade kantha blankets from dignify, a welcome addition this season. Our old home becomes drafty in the winter, and we all enjoy having something warm and soft to wrap up in nearby. The beauty and cause behind them is a bonus.

To add bits of natural color, snips of greenery sit along our mantle and in glass jars or pottery. I’m particularly drawn to the seeded eucalyptus this season, the soft scent and the way the leaves delicately drape. The air now often smells of diffused clove, cinnamon, and orange oils or something delicious in the oven. Although cliche, I can’t tell you how comforting a warm kitchen with roasted veggies, stews, and baked goods is for me. I’m okay with cliche if it means something warm in my belly.

Most afternoons during the week, the kids make hot cocoa or tea, we light candles and read together. Lately, we’ve been reading Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, snippets of poetry, and Scripture for advent. When I have my own free moment, I’ve been reading All the Lights We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, the most beautifully written piece of historical fiction and also this year’s Pulitzer winner; Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert, an encouragement for anyone who wrestles with fear and creativity (which might be everyone), and The Kinkfolk Home, an inspiring birthday gift from my parents. I highly recommend any of them for gifts or for your own cozy reading this season.

When I say a slower rhythm it is simply this: paying attention to details that nurture us in the harsher seasons. 

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This post is sponsored by dignify, a small business providing beautiful, ethically-made goods and  jobs for people who were previously living on the street or working in the sex industry. All thoughts are my own, and thank you for supporting businesses that help keep this space afloat.