photo credit Lindsay Hanna Photos
“We are a hosting house,” says the best-selling poet kate bear. “Our family culture is, ‘Let’s have people over!'” She lives in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, with her husband, four children, three cats, and a dog named Maybe (meaning “maybe have a dog”). Here, Kate reflects on marriage, parenting, writing, and talks about the toys kids still fight over…
library
Wall paint color: benjamin moore. Ceiling fixture: home depot. Rags: West Elm (“12 years ago!”) via Facebook Marketplace; resemble. Entry table: Facebook Marketplace.
About finding your dream home: My friend’s mom has lived in this house for many years and actually raised her four children here. I never thought it would be my home! However, I bought it from my family in 2021 and gradually made it my own.
Bookshelf paint color: benjamin moore. The table, chairs, and rug are hand-me-downs from relatives.
About books I’ve liked recently: i was thrown into the bowl correspondenta warm and exquisite novel by Virginia Evans. beauty land Marie-Hélène Bertino’s work was truly amazing. and I inhaled Heart the Lover Very quickly it went through my nose and out of my eyeball.
Flower photos: jamie beck. sofa: Poli & Bark. stool: household goods, resemble.
About beloved works of art: of jamie beck The photo on the left is my most treasured work of art. She said she remembered it so she sent it to me. my first book cover.
board games: There are a lot of memes about people not wanting to play games, but I actually don’t want to play games. You don’t have to play games the whole time you’re hanging out. spoon Adults have a lot of fun while kids watch movies. Other games that are popular in our household include: goldfish bowl, mafiaand code name.
living room
paint: benjamin moore. Sofa: Interior Home, resemble.
A very beautiful piano: The piano was attached to the house. It belonged to my friend’s grandmother, Lucille, so we call this piano Lucille in her honor. When I sit down to play, I feel like Elton John. Some of my children are taking lessons, and it is my dream that they all be able to play at least one song.
printing: Etsy. Chair: Interior Home; resemble.
About plant invasion: Choosing the interior is difficult, so just put some plants here and there. They bring so much life and beauty to a space. I secretly collect them and hope my husband Austin doesn’t kill me. Because he is the one who takes care of them all.
the best place in the house: Children are drawn to this chair to do their homework. I love reading here at night. Everyone is fighting over that chair, but it’s mine.
kitchen
Table: Made by Kate’s husband, Austin. Chair: “My parents gave it to me on the street 10 years ago for $40.”
About the joy of hosting: Bringing people together and fostering community is something I work hard at. We hosted fall fests and held movie nights in our basement. We invite people every year on Independence Day and New Year’s Eve. There is a misconception that you need the perfect home to host. But I was doing this when our family of 6 lived in 1,200 square feet. When I’m invited somewhere, I don’t really care what the kitchen backsplash looks like or what I’m having for dinner. It’s such a joy to be welcomed into someone else’s home.
on a swinging stool: They’re super squeamish because they’re about 30 years old, but that’s… So It’s easy to clean under them. More people need stools like this.
About country life: After dinner, my husband and I put down our phones and decided to walk our dog in a nearby field. On warm days, drag a chair up to the hill in your front yard and look out over the valley. It’s fun just to be together, even if we just sit in silence.
About special souvenirs: We take a trip to Florida as a family every year. hunting for shark teeth. I got a large shadow box and my husband glued it together. He put one sneaky shell in there. We tell the kids who come here, “There’s one thing in there that isn’t a shark tooth.” It takes forever to find out.
About playlists: We play the same way every night. dinner playlist. The atmosphere is similar to that of a French cafe, and the atmosphere is very relaxing. The music tells everyone it’s time to come to the table. i have saturday morning playlist Turn it on when you finish your chores to enjoy the rest of your weekend. i have Create a playlist and A playlist to motivate yourself before going out on the town. Every routine comes with a playlist. Playlists are a great way to let us know where we are in our day.
stairs
About controversial prints:My friend’s mother, who is the former owner, chose a leopard print runner for me. Everyone called her crazy and said she would regret it, but she never did. We’ve changed a lot since we bought the house, so this carpet is a great reminder of who lived here before us.
About the family cat:One day, a cat appeared on our property. My youngest first grader named it Hot Dog. We welcomed George and Kimberly a year ago. Since my soul cat passed away, we were looking to add a new friend to our lives.
master bedroom
Bed and bedside table: Uguisu woodworking shop.
at the oasis: I’ve longed for a bedroom that makes me feel like I’m sleeping on a cloud, and I feel a deep sense of peace when I’m in this room. I kept it very minimalistic and mostly white. It feels very different from the rest of the house.
Chair: Facebook Marketplace.
For sweet memories: When I was young, I started dating this guy. It seemed so casual that I put him on my phone as my boyfriend. And on the wedding day, one of my friends grabbed my phone and tried to change it to my husband, and I said, “Oh, don’t do that!” There’s something about boyfriends. It makes you feel a little bit sexy and cute. I will never change it.
Office (bedroom closet)
About narrowing down jobs: I dropped out of my MFA program when I got pregnant. My husband was in medical school, so realistically he couldn’t pursue both at the same time. Only one of them is guaranteed to make you money, so it was very easy to decide which one to prioritize when discussing finances and family. Still, I wrote when I could.
About self-motivation: I always say this to young writers. “No one else cares whether you write a book or not. You have to. No one is going to make you sit down and write. It’s up to you.”
in my room: In our previous house, every corner of the house was occupied, so there was no room for an office or desk in the corner. So I wrote my first book and much of my second book at a nearby Panera Bread. The staff there were very helpful. When the pandemic hit, I stole their WiFi in their parking lot and wrote them letters while turning the car heater on and off.
bathroom
About raising four children: It turns out that having four kids has two effects. One is that it makes you feel very organized and at the same time very relaxed. There are so many of them that you need to let things go, but at the same time you need to focus on what is most important. So, although there was no pick-up, we all ate dinner together.
About toys: I don’t buy many toys, and I haven’t bought them for a long time. Yet they are everywhere. I don’t know where they came from. I don’t know how they get into my house.
underground
About Knockout Gift: My daughter got an aerial silk for Christmas last year, and my kids fight over it more than anything. The girls do tricks, but the boys just swing and bump into each other. kit They are easy to find online, but the tricky part is securing them to the ceiling. Must be very secure.
About timeless toys: My youngest son is in 1st grade and my oldest son is in 9th grade. There aren’t many things that all the kids want to do together, but Lego definitely improves bonding skills. I try to make time for my family to get together at least once or twice a week. That might be sitting down to dinner, playing a round of cards, or talking while building Legos.
Thank you very much, kate! And congratulations how about now.
PS Kate’s beautiful uniform, a fun evening with Kate and Joanna, and Kate’s Big Salad Rules for Over 40s.
(Photo provided by: Lindsay Hanna Photos (for joe cup)
Source: Cup of Jo – cupofjo.com
