In answer to the question of my previous post, here is Theo with his striped shirt. (Though in this photo he is not holding the glass.) This photo was taken by Phoebe, by the way.
You can also see here that the other striped surface was a placemat. (Since you asked, Sally.)
And here are Phoebe and John, toasting with the sparkling apple cider.
Can you see what we had for Phoebe’s special birthday dinner? Here’s a hint.
Looking at these photos, as I am about to publicly share them here, I am reminded of several things: 1) I am not a big fan of wallpaper. However, having removed wallpaper from one of the rooms after we moved in, I decided that I could live with the wallpaper in the other rooms 2) It is hard to find an angle to take pictures in our house that does not involve piles of clutter and 3) We still haven’t had our “new” deck doors finished that we had to have put in after the old ones rotted…about 4 years ago.
collecting tokens 
These are great photos of your family. Artichokes are definitely a worthy special birthday food. (and I guessed before clicking on the hint)
So, happy birthday Phoebe, and yay for stripes, sparkling apple cider, and artichokes!
Houses are definitely a lot of work… but nobody’s going to blame you for prioritizing your children and your actual work over silly things like wallpaper and finishing doors and tidying up. I’d say you have your priorities straight.
sweet family of yours!
1). Same here. Our previous house was COVERED in wallpaper which we slowly removed over the course of a year. Nasty business wallpaper. 2). I believe that clutter is my friend. It follows me everywhere I go. Perhaps you have a friend, too. 3). When I saw your door I thought: such pretty hardware. Our door’s hardware is ratty. So to me your door looks perfect! It’s all in the context.
I have a photo of my just -teenaged daughter taking down the wallpaper – finally. My plan involved not doing it myself. It cost me, though.
I love Phoebe’s wonderful smile. And the shirt. Lovely.
This real life at its best. Remember, I posted a shameful photo of my desk two weeks ago, so your clutter is NOTHING to me. ; )