Grace at Home No. 482

Hello, friends.

How glad I am to welcome you today. You might have noticed that there was no Grace at Home gathering last week, and here's why:

These are just three in a long line of Visitor name tags I received last week at Duke Hospital, where my husband was a patient from September 2 through September 11. It's really a miracle that he's alive and well, and he's expected to recover fully. But what a scare we've been through.

You know, the world is full of so much bad that it's easy to forget that God really does care about us. And, of course, none of us understands everything that happens. But I believe that God is at work in ways that we'll never know about. I wonder how many times God has protected each of us and we were never even aware of the danger we were in? 

Research has shown that human minds consistently display a negativity bias: we give more weight to negative events than to positive ones. We remember the bad things that happen, but often we don't even notice the good—for instance, that we and our loved ones have made it safely through another day. 

I'm hoping to become one who searches for evidences of grace rather than gloom, someone who notices the myriad ways that God has provided, protected, and otherwise displayed his great love for me. 

I believe that God continually displays his love for all of us, which is why I am privileged to host the Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes and spheres of influence places of grace and beauty. It's my custom to feature posts from the previous week's party, but our last party had just gotten started before my husband's accident, so this week I don't have any features to share. I'm sorry about that, but I'm so glad to welcome you today!

Here at the Grace at Home party, you can link up any post you've written that demonstrates how you're filling your space with truth, goodness, and beauty. I invite you to link posts about

• DIY projects
• decorating
• recipes
• hospitality
• homemaking tips
• parenting
• marriage
• faith
• self-care
• soul care

Whatever you do to make your home or sphere of influence a place of grace, I'd like to hear about it. Here's what I ask of you.  Please include the permalink to your post, not your blog's home page. Please let people know that you've linked up.  No more than three posts per person, please.  Note that if you link a post here, you are giving me permission to share your post, including a photo.  And visit at least one of the other party participants--that's what really makes it a party!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Grace at Home No. 481

It's September, friends!

If you're from a warm climate, like I am, you might be breathing a sigh of relief right now. But when I lived in the cold North, September brought a different kind of sigh—the beautiful summer was over. 

Whatever feelings today brings to you, I hope it's a day filled with grace. And I'm glad to welcome you to the Grace at Home party, where we celebrate the ways we make our homes places of grace and beauty. Here are a few highlights from last week's party.

Are you ready to transition to Fall(ish) decor? Marty from A Stroll Thru Life can help you get started by adding texture and pattern to your home.

Meredith from Arts and Classy shares five ways to bring neutral fall decor into your home.

Transitioning to Fall decor can also yield some fun craft projects! Take a look at these.

Emily from Hunny I'm Home DIY shows you how to make fabric covered pumpkins using inexpensive materials.

Laura Kelly created this apple decor from a book. She gives complete instructions for you to make your own.

Beth from Creatively Beth made these cute pumpkins from wood slices.

If even the thought of the approaching winter depresses you, you might want to add some light to your home. Carol from Comfort Spring Station can help.

Looking for a new recipe for dinner? Kimberly from LouLou Girls shares one for a yummy-looking Nacho Casserole. 

Need some encouragement for your soul? Read this post from Pam Ecrement about showing love, not just telling about it.

Thank you to everyone who linked up! Now for today's party.

Here at the Grace at Home party, you can link up any post you've written that demonstrates how you're filling your space with truth, goodness, and beauty. I invite you to link posts about

• DIY projects
• decorating
• recipes
• hospitality
• homemaking tips
• parenting
• marriage
• faith
• self-care
• soul care

Whatever you do to make your home or sphere of influence a place of grace, I'd like to hear about it. Here's what I ask of you.  Please include the permalink to your post, not your blog's home page. Please let people know that you've linked up.  No more than three posts per person, please.  Note that if you link a post here, you are giving me permission to share your post, including a photo.  And visit at least one of the other party participants--that's what really makes it a party!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Grace at Home No. 480

Hello, friends! I hope your late summer days and nights have included much beauty and goodness. Here's a little glimpse of one of our evenings this week (I promise this photo is straight out of the camera; no filter!).

I have to admit that my mind automatically thought, "Red sky at night; sailor's delight." We're in the middle of the Blue Ridge Mountains here, so I don't know if any sailors benefited from our gorgeous red sky, but I sure love to soak up God's artistry!

I am glad to welcome you to this week's Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes places of grace. Here are some highlights from last week's party.

Ready to decorate your home for Fall? Carol from Blue Sky at Home shows you how to use Fall Foliage beautifully.

Meagan from Decorative Inspirations shares some affordable, easy-to-do fall decorating ideas.

Want to create some Fall decor on a really tight budget? Steph from Steph Creates shows you how to create a cute vase using a jar from the recycling bin.

Want to jazz up your cooking or create a fun little gift for a friend? Patti from Pandora's Box shows you how to create herbal vinegars.

Looking for ways to slash costs? Lisa from Lazy Budget Chef shares a bunch of ways to save money with easy-to-make laundry products.

Does this busy season leave you with only small snatches of time in which to get things done? Julie from Filling the Jars gives some good advice for ways to be productive in just one hour.

Is this busy season presenting challenges for getting dinner on the table? Check out these quick and easy ideas!

Air Fryer Hamburgers from Lois at Walking on Sunshine Recipes

Crock Pot Chicken Tacos from Melissa at Blessed Simplicity

Crockpot Vegetable Pasta Soup from Arlene at Flour on My Face

Need a bunch of dinner inspiration? Kendra from A Proverbs 31 Wife shares five weeks of menus.

And while we're talking of making dinner, Michele Morin at Living Our Days inspires us by looking at why feeding people makes us happy. 

Thank you to everyone who linked up! Now for today's party.

Here at the Grace at Home party, you can link up any post you've written that demonstrates how you're filling your space with truth, goodness, and beauty. I invite you to link posts about

• DIY projects
• decorating
• recipes
• hospitality
• homemaking tips
• parenting
• marriage
• faith
• self-care
• soul care

Whatever you do to make your home or sphere of influence a place of grace, I'd like to hear about it. Here's what I ask of you.  Please include the permalink to your post, not your blog's home page. Please let people know that you've linked up.  No more than three posts per person, please.  Note that if you link a post here, you are giving me permission to share your post, including a photo.  And visit at least one of the other party participants--that's what really makes it a party!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter