Moving is a universal experience. In our lifetime it has become rare for any person to spend their entire adult life in one home. Whether it's a new apartment or a new house, we have all looked at an unfamiliar space and imagined how we will set about making it feel like our own. We picture what will go where, what will fit where, and what we will leave behind. We picture what we'd like to change and are thrilled with the parts we love. Each new house is a vehicle for our imagination; it represents all of the possibilities of a new beginning and holds all of the potential for making us feel comfortable and content. Living in a new space is an exciting and often liberating experience, as we get the chance to redefine ourselves through what we create. We also get to experience the unfamiliar (think of the first night you sleep in a new house!); which can be both a comfort and discomfort at the same time.

So, the furniture is in, the pictures are hung, yet the house still has that brand new, not-worn feeling. The process of creating that feeling of 'home' in a new house actually happens after we move all of our stuff' in and feng shui until our backs ache from moving the couch. It is when we invite in the sounds of friends and family that those new rooms come together to create a home.

An important way we customarily mark our passage into a new house is by having a Housewarming party. The Housewarming is one of the greatest rituals of all time-a tradition where friends, family, and neighbors help us celebrate a new beginning. There are some crucial variables to a successful housewarming: good people, good food and lots of laughter. It doesn't matter if there are five or fifty friends celebrating your move; the sounds of their laughter and yours will warm every room and transform a house into your home.