Most unconventionally, and despite all of the head shaking of everyone around me (except for Steve who trusted my vision and of building in general, basically told me to do as I pleased and not listen to anyone else, no matter how many houses they had built or what guidelines they knew), when I designed this house, I made the master bedroom the smallest bedroom. It’s the counter part to the playroom on the floor below.

I wanted a true bedroom. It’s really just the right size for our bed and the co-sleeper and not much else. It’s adjacent to another “room” that’s something of a central meeting point for the second floor. All the rooms open out into this area and I envisioned it as kind of the communal living area of the upstairs. A place where I could go to rock a fussy babe, or read to one child without disturbing the sleeping sibling that they share a room with. A spot to do yoga in the morning and a place for any dressers or bookcases or anything that might typically go in a bedroom. Our closets were framed out in this space as well; one for Steve, one for me, and one for linens. That was the plan anyhow, though we never really got far enough to use the space that way.

The whole idea was to allow us to leave our bedroom as uncluttered and peaceful as possible. We tacked up unbleached muslin on the walls to keep little fingers out of the insulation. The fabric is actually very close to the color that I had planned on painting the room someday. The cathedral ceiling would have been wood though, tongue and groove.

Apart from our beds, this room holds Galen’s star mobile, made from the stars of his starry path and a little pine shelf that Steve made for me. After Màiri Rose was born I felt like I temporarily needed a small space for some diapers and burp clothes, that kind of thing. Once the little ones were older, and sleeping on their own, I figured a nightstand would be sufficient for Steve and I. The little bookshelf holds some diapers and covers and a couple of favorite books for bedtime reading. There is a space underneath for tucking slippers. On top lives my journal, the special birch bark basket that Galen was given at his blessing and the lantern that provides the only light in the room (apart from the windows, there is no wiring run in that section of the house).

I love this room. Even unfinished, it is by far my favorite bedroom that I’ve ever had. I’ve been meaning to take some pictures of it, to have, for a little while now. I kept thinking that I would make the beds up nicely and photograph it in the afternoon, when the slant of the sun fills it with golden light.

When I woke up this morning and laid in bed looking at the snow covered trees…it has large windows on all three sides and from bed you can watch the forest all around you… and it really struck me that I’ll only be waking up to this view three more times in my life.

I took these pictures in the early morning light. The sun doesn’t make it over the trees here until much later in the day. At this time of year it barely makes it over at all. There is a tiny boy sleeping in that rumpled bed. It’s fitting I think. I wanted to remember this home, in all it’s nuances, for the way we lived in it, and it doesn’t get much more lived in then that.