Seating trials...

The deliberation was heated. The jury was out for weeks, changing from one verdict to another. It was nearly a hung jury. Then, finally, a verdict. Microfiber!

My husband and I get along almost too good. We're like twins, born within two weeks of each other, we like the same music, have the same taste in food and style, etc. We hardly ever argue. But, for some reason, try and get us to make a decision on purchases and we totally clash. Consider something as trivial as the grocery store. I go in with a list, I stick to my list, put the stuff in my cart and I'm out in 20 minutes. He, on the other hand, takes up to an hour. He carefully does the math and figures out what's the best buy, he compares brands and thumps the melons. But, I've gotta admit, when he does the shopping, we spend less and we end up with more. So, I trust his judgment. I am an emotional buyer and he is a smart buyer.

We've had the same living room furniture now for nine years. For the past three years, the debate has been "should we buy new furniture now or to wait until the kids are older, potty trained, etc.?" But, as time went on, it was obvious we had no choice other than to replace it with something more durable, more comfortable and more kid-friendly and cat-friendly. So, then the debate was over what to buy. I wanted leather, my husband wasn't so sure. Eventually, I worked on him and talked him into leather. Then, there was a new kind of microfiber out there, and he talked me out of leather. It was weeks of going back and forth. Finally we both realized that either way, our furniture is at risk. We have two kids who love to jump and climb and eat and smear, and we have two cats who love to shed hair and cough hairballs and scratch. With microfiber, you're covered as far as stain resistance. Leather's pretty good too - unless it's scratched. With microfiber, it used to be that it was a cat hair magnet, but there is a new kind now which is more pet friendly. Sit on leather with shorts in the heat of a Carolina summer, you will stick, but your body sweat will not penetrate and stink up the cushion. It was a tough call.

We finally agreed on a sofa that has the new microfiber, and we agreed to replace it in five years, as opposed to almost 10, if need be. It's not cheap furniture, but it's practical... and maybe after that, we'll get something that's supposed to last a lifetime.