Happy happy Monday friends!! Today we are kicking off the chapter on hospitality in The Finishing School! (Join our book club group here as we read through the whole book!)
After watching enough episodes of Fixer Upper and House Hunters, I have learned that EVERYONE is looking for a space where they can entertain people. We love the idea of filling our homes with people we love, but many times we don’t actually make this happen.
I started thinking about this and probably over thought it a bit but I wanted to give this challenge as we read this week:
WHY do we want to invite people into our homes?
I am refreshed, challenged and stretched from time with friends. I am an introvert so honestly, I can’t hang out every night like my husband probably could BUT the times I do get with friends do me so good!
What do we want them to feel when they leave?
Even as we were looking to buy our home, I thought about the feel I wanted for our family and our guests. The words peace and joy (which are the heart and soul of my mission when sharing content here or on Instagram) are the things I wanted people to feel.
I also have to give this disclaimer:
Don’t over think hospitality friends. You don’t need to be Martha Stewart. If you set up those expectations, you will fail and miss out on opportunities to love and serve your friends. My definition of hospitality has gotten very simple. You’ll learn in this chapter how much I over thought things in the past and how I wasn’t really the best hostess I could be for guests. Starting with these questions above has really helped me make better decisions when it comes to hospitality. Last night my sister and friend came over after dinner. It had been a long day and truthfully, if I had tried to even make snacks or offer to cook dinner for them, I would have probably bailed or overstressed myself and fallen asleep on the couch as my closest friends know I’m in the habit of doing. Instead, I offered them water and tossed a bag full of dark chocolate kisses on the coffee table. It was simple, I didn’t doze off from exhaustion even with a month old’s sleep schedule and the conversation was good, and that’s what mattered most!
I’d love to hear, what do you want people to feel when they leave your home?
This is perfect timing! I’m in the VBC for The Finishing School, but as of late had gotten off of schedule. I’ve been wanting to jump back in and I’m anticipating that this chapter will be uber helpful to me this week because I’m hosting my first ever monthly small group meeting at my home! We’re going to read through Wild & Free together and this is the first time I’ve ever hosted something like this at my house. I’ve been wanting to make it pinterest worthy because I really want people to enjoy gathering in my home. As a single gal in her 30’s it brings me joy to have the opportunity to open my home to others and invite them in. However, I’m not super crafty and so I’ve been stressing because I don’t really know how to pull out all the decor stops and I’m on a limited budget! Looking forward to reading this chapter today to help get some perspective as I prepare to invite my friends into my home this Thursday.
Oh Tiffany! Perfect timing! I feel like I always here the stuff doesn’t matter but in my heart I’m still like “buuuuut I still want to make it cute” ; ). It’s been a total mind shift though when I think about the things that other people do that make me feel loved and comfortable in their home. It’s rarely the cute stuff and usually how easy they make conversation or how attentive they are! Good luck hosting! I can’t wait to read Wild & Free myself!!