Pippi Party success

Hip HiPippi Hooray, Karalyn's 9th Birthday party was a success.  We had 18 girls running in and out of the house.  The girls made cookies on the kitchen floor, played 'don't touch the floor' in the family room, ate snacks in the dining room and ran all around the yard.  I've vacuumed, mopped, picked up and wiped up signs of a good time. 

Practicing hospitality doesn't always have to been neat and tidy.  In fact, it was quite fun spreading flour on the floor and watching the girls jump on furniture.   Pippi would have been proud of this 42 year old!  If only I had put my feet on my pillow and my head under the covers when I finally went to bed!

So, have fun practicing hospitality this weekend, even if it's out of your comfort zone.  (I hope it is.)You know you'll make someone happy ;-)

3rd graders rule!

 

making Swedish Pepparkakors

 

strongest girl, lifting "Old Man" 

Karalyn leading the girls in "Pippi Says"

Pippi Longstocking

My Karalyn turns 9 on Wednesday!!  We invited all the girls from the 3rd Grade (19) and 2 neighborhood friends to help her celebrate after school on Thursday.  We are going to practice hospitality Pippi Longstocking style.  I am really excited about this birthday party.  It's a little out of my comfort zone because Pippi is more of a free spirit than I am.  In other words, she's messy.  That's probably why Karalyn and I enjoyed reading her book so much.  If you haven't introduced your kids to this series by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren, do so, today!!  There are movies too ;-)  You'll laugh and shake your grown-up head at all the crazy things she does.  Practicing hospitality sometimes stretches us, or even gets us to act like kids again.

So, Karalyn and I have lots of fun planned for Thursday based on the adventures of Pippi Longstocking. I hope to follow up with some photos...

Confession

I have a confession.  I am not very sweet towards my kids when they wake up in the morning.  I have this expectation that they should sleep until a certain time and when they don't, I am not very nice... which is practically every morning!  Isn't that crazy!!  Seriously?!  I don't even know where it came from or when it started!?!  I only know that it's been ruining our mornings. 

Expectations can be dangerous.  In my case, they are a set-up for disappointment.  I don't want to make my kids feel like I am disappointed in them every morning just because they woke up!  Good grief!!  I'm finally letting this one go!  I want and need to enjoy the start of each new day and my kids need to know how happy I am to see them, no matter what time it is.  I still can have rules, like no TV before such and such a time or I won't start to help with breakfast until 7 AM, but enough with all the tiptoeing around and all the "shushing." 

There, I feel better now that I got that out.  I want to practice hospitality in the morning, meaning I want to greet my kids with a smile and show them love.  More and more I am realizing how precious each new day is and just how much I have to be thankful for.  How selfish of me to be grumpy because some one woke up when I thought he or she should still be sleeping.  Being gracious isn't the result of an accepted invitation, but it's what prompted the invitation in the first place.  Hospitality comes from a heart of love.  I love my children, therefore, I must show them, even if it's only 6:15 in the morning :-)

Do what it says...

"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says." (James 1: 22) 

This is the verse that keeps running through my head.  Even though  I was a total 'Martha' this Easter, busy doing many things, I learned that good does come from actually doing things.  For example, when the kids and I made unleavened bread I noticed the smell that filled the kitchen.  It was a sweet aroma.  As we broke the bread and drank the juice we remembered Jesus' words and they become more meaningful.  And when I washed the kids feet after reading from John 13, I saw how they reacted and we were able to picture the scene from the Bible better.  When you 'do' something your senses and emotions get involved.  It's a richer experience than just reading something or being told about something.  Experience is valuable.  When you actually 'do' something, you remember it better because it leaves an impression on you.  Another example of this is hammering nails into a wooden cross at our Good Friday service at The Plant.  My girls said they almost cried when they did this.  It was meaningful and memorable. 

our first foot washing

So, Easter ended well with practicing hospitality.  We had a nice meal with family and Judd (our neighbor friend who was without his lovely wife and kids).  I was able to sit and enjoy the company of great people and we laughed a little bit at my 'busyness.'

The Hosiers and Judd :-)

Happy Easter

"But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it -- he will be blessed in what he does." (Js 1:25)

Practice Hospitality.... and be blessed :-)

Easter is coming

In just a few days we will be celebrating Easter.  This is my favorite holiday.  For me it is more manageable to tame than Christmas.  Consumerism hasn't taken its grip and I can fight the Easter Bunny better than St. Nicholas. 

Last year I used a devotional from Ann VosKamp called Trail To The Tree.  It's a free download.  (www.aholyexperience.com )  We also had our first family Passover Seder days before Easter Sunday.  Both of these experiences brought focus and vision.  This year I'm tweaking an idea from the blog Babe of my Heart to enrich our season of remembrance, repentance and rejoicing.  This idea is kid-friendly and uses plastic eggs to tell some significant events of Holy Week.  (Not the same as Resurrection Eggs which  are a great tool too.)

Easter story eggs

Each night I plan to gather my kids together to discuss 1 egg, read scripture and hopefully talk and then pray.  Monday night they all talked while I was talking and the gathering time ended quickly with everyone being sent to their rooms!  Last night we made unleavened bread and talked about the Last Supper.  It was a little crazy to do at 7:30 PM, but by 8:05 we were breaking bread and passing a glass of Fruitables.  On the lighter side, Jacob's sisters wanted a sip before he did because his germs are worse than theirs?!  Meanwhile, Caleb was up in the night for 2 hours with a headache, fever and even threw up!  And he drank first!!  Ugg.  All I could think about was the Hosier family sick for Easter... Please God, no!! 

making our unleavened bread

finished product. smelled sweet and tasted so good!

So, I hope you are taking this Holy Holiday into your own hands and are doing all you can to make it about Jesus.  I hope you have wonderful plans to practice hospitality this week.  I hope you are up to fight the Easter Bunny because you can win.  My way of fighting is by doing the things I'm writing about.  I do it all just as much for me as I do for my kids.  I want/need to keep my focus!

If you need more strength, check out Easter post by Jen Hatmaker at www.jenhatmaker.com.  She has an excerpt from "7" that will mess with your Easter outfits, plans and thoughts about the day!  And if you've never made Easter about Jesus I hope you will find some time to visit the events of Holy Week recorded in the Gospels.  Read about Jesus riding on the donkey into Jerusalem; about Mary pouring perfume on His feet; about Passover and how His body represents the bread and His blood the wine; about His agony in the garden of Gethsemane; about His cruel death on the cross; and about the empty tomb!  He lives and He loves us all so much.  Please don't let any past experiences get in the way of your future.  Jesus would do for 1 what He did for all! 

Finally, please don't think that in order to practice hospitality this Easter you need to have an elaborate menu.  Magazines and traditions are helpful, but also can cause us to give-up before we've even started.  If your heart is telling you to make a meal for someone, do it.  If your heart is telling you to grill hot dogs for homeless people (Jen Hatmaker's blogpost), do it.  If you know a widow or someone who is alone and want to invite them in, do it.  Whatever you do, may LOVE lead you...  because hospitality comes from the heart 1st and then the kitchen! 

the calendar

April?!  Already?!  If you consider Birthdays and Holidays as opportunities to practice hospitality you may find that the months fly by.  For us, March came in like a lion with Caleb's birthday (he turned a roaring 5) and went out like a lamb with Scott's birthday (Baa, Ha he's 41).  Add St. Patty's Day in the middle and Sunday night Community Group gatherings and mix it all together for a busy, fun-filled month!  No wonder April has snuck up me! :-) 

Mario Kart for the Birthday Boy

Caleb lights up in front of friends and family!

Happy Birthday Scott

chocolate fondue with our community group

If one used the calendar to dictate when to practice hospitality, one could practice every month!  Try it!!  Let Birthdays and Holidays motivate you to welcome people in...