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david and chad playing guitar.
sunshine and a very cold breeze at the park.
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starbucks break
reading stories on the top bunk
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the most beautiful sandcake i’ve ever seen
shoes and toys and lots of laughing
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the kids had sooo much fun running and playing and pretending. they didn’t want to say goodbye. the adults had lots of time to catch up and talk and dream together. sarah and chad shared their story on sunday and it was real and honest and beautiful.
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i was a little worried about making our guests comfortable. our house is small and i didn’t have a lot of time to clean as well as i would have liked. then i remembered our guests are also our dear friends, and they don’t mind a mattress on the floor or a stack of papers near the phone. i doubt they would notice if i dusted my bookshelves or cleaned out my fridge. and because i didn’t spend a lot of time cleaning and tidying, i didn’t worry about the toys strewn all over the house or the sand and leaves the kids tracked inside. i think our friends were more comfortable in an imperfect home with relaxed hosts. do you enjoy having overnight guests? how do you make friends feel welcome?
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and tomorrow i’ve got a new design to show you!!
I love having guests in my home. We have a small house too…It is full of love though :)…and p.s. Crocs rock! 🙂
Looks like a great time — isn’t there something “freeing” about focusing on people instead of making everything perfect for them?!
Can’t wait to see the new design!
we were soo comfy. =)
so just know that when you come to stay with us there might be piles next to the phone and toys in the hall. no, there WILL be.
also, i think it helps that we actually lived together too. even if we were really young.
=)
love you sweetie. and i miss you. the girls can’t stop talking about matty.
Very sweet! Looks like a VERY enjoyable weekend!
So far our only overnight guests are our parents and I love it! I love planning the meals and going all out for breakfasts and such. We have most of my husband’s family coming to stay for Thanksgiving and I am having such fun planning the menu!!
Practice hospitality because you could be entertaining angels unaware. I think people are genuinely excited to go ANY place, and if you are a warm and welcoming hostess, they find the imperfections cozy and eclectic. Having a special coffee and bread for breakfast makes people feel welcome, and I like to put a little basket together with toiletries and Tylenol, etc. and leave it for them….juices and muffins are good because you can put that kind of stuff out the night before and if they are early risers you have something for them….light candles, pour wine, play music, sit and visit and visit and sit…..
Since we moved to Redondo Beach, I wondered how I would entertain guests (even though we didn’t do it much in SLO anyway). I wanted to be more deliberate in being hospitable. The only thing I could think of, since we always hear about friends who need rides or a place to stay overnight as they get set to travel out of LAX, was to offer our services. We have had several friends and family take us up on this invitation. We have a very, VERY small one bedroom house, but it’s what God has given us and what we can USE for Him. We’ve picked people up from LAX and taken them to the OTHER LAX (train station), had up to THREE people sleep on inflatable mattresses in our tiny living room. We’ve also had times where we drove people to the airport and brought their vehicles home to “car sit” and then pick them up again. We have our own “couch and snack”. And LOVING it. It gives us a chance to see the friends we’ve missed since moving and a way to serve others with nothing expected in return. It’s just fun. So, Lisa, I think your friends (who I think are a lot of people’s friends now because of her blog) enjoyed their time and you could enjoy your time knowing you could just be normal and try to make it “more” than normal. Understand? You done good, Lisa. How fun for you.
i would love to host overnight guests more than we do, because we have the perfect suite setup in our basement–queen bed, attached sitting room and attached bath. unfortunately, we don’t have a lot of friends in a position to travel right now–stage of life–so the room goes unused.
what makes me feel welcome? i love it if someone remembers something i like from the area i’m visiting (i normally only travel to my home state or to the place i lived for 15 years), like a special chocolate or bread from a locally owned bakery. that lets me know they really know me.
can’t wait to see the new design.
you had such a great attitude about your guests and your home. it’s very “maryish” (as opposed to “marthish”) and i know it glorifies God and shows your guests your love and care for them by just hanging out and not being too concerned for the material things. it’s tough to come by sometimes and i often find that i avoid having others over because things are not “perfect”. really all that matters is hanging out together!
looking forward to the new design…with a birthday and Christmas coming up, i have to choose!
I absolutely LOVE the guitar picture. Love love love.
My kids are teaching me how to let go and just roll with the semi-mess. It just doesn’t matter does it? It’s not the spotless kitchen counter that anyone remembers, or the pictures turned *just so,* it’s the reading on the top bunk, and the playing and the fun.
-xo
What a beautiful sand cake. So glad you enjoyed your time with friends, it is much more relaxing when you expect it to not be perfect.
our blog is so beautiful. A restful stop in my hectic day,thank you!