Memories Beside the Fireplace

I'm itching to show you all our Christmas decorations, but I feel like it may still be too soon for such posts, so I hunted around for some fall-appropriate blog inspiration. This one just seemed to fit for today!

When Ryan and I were house hunting, we had a list of non-negotiables and a secondary general wish list. On my general wish list? A fireplace. I grew up in a house with a fireplace and found it to be neither here nor there, but in in my adult life, I think they're just so cozy and delightful.

As it turned out, the house we fell in love with did not have a fireplace, so we still have our little portable electric fireplace that sits under the TV and creates artificial ambience. It works!

But I do have some awfully fond memories of life by the fireplace at home. My parents' fireplace was actually one of two main heat sources in our house, so when cold weather came, it ran nonstop. My dad spent his free time cutting and splitting wood so we'd have plenty to get us through even the coldest winter, and for all of my childhood, the stockpile of wood was big enough to last two winters.

Our television wasn't in the living room, so in our house, the fireplace really was the focal point of the room, and in the off season, it also served as my personal stage. Want to see a vintage Bekah photo?

That's me, with all my dolls lined up by the fireplace. They were in story hour and I was the librarian - reading them a book.

When the fireplace was in use, we kept the doll hair far from it, but I loved cuddling up on the floor next to it, feeling its warmth while I read books to myself.

And on the coldest winter mornings, when no one wanted to get out of bed and face the frigid air, Mom would carry my clothes into the living room and spread them out in front of the fireplace so they would be toasty warm when I got up and was ready to get dressed. I'd stay under the covers until the final warning and then sprint into the living room to warm up and exchange the jammies for freshly warmed clothes. (Please note that the ONLY sprinting I did as a child was to the fireplace or the table.)

Sometimes, on the weekends, we'd roast hot dogs in the fireplace and have a picnic in the living room - complete with toasted marshmallows for dessert. (Some things can't be replicated in an electric fireplace.)

We may not have the big lovely fireplace in our house, but I have big memories of life beside the fireplace that served many purposes. And though we have no plans or desire to move, if we ever do, I might move that whole fireplace thing up to a non-negotiable.