MND

It's Monday.

Honestly, Mondays are one of my favorite days.  There are lots of reasons I typically enjoy Mondays, but one of the best is Monday Night Dinner (MND).  MND is a long-standing tradition at ChezMK where Miranda and I host 10-15 of our closest friends for an evening of dinner and fun.  I think we've been doing it for something like four years, just about every Monday night with very few exceptions.

I love traditions like this because it's one of the reasons our group of friends feels more like a family.  We watch Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy and see how many questions we can get right.  We try a bunch of different kinds of food but have a few favorites that we keep coming back to.  The evening activities vary...trivia night, a TV show, Monday Night Football, games, just chatting and hanging out.

We've seen wonderful friends join the MND crew, and sadly, we've seen some move away.  I think we've even had up to 18 people on a Monday night.  And if you've ever seen ChezMK, it is certainly should not be able to fit that many people, but we make a way, and we make it fun.

I love all the memories ChezMK holds, but the ones made at MND are some of my favorites.  

Love. my. friends.  

This was a special, birthday edition of MND a couple years ago when we went out instead of eating at home, but it's still most of the crew and some of my most favorite people.

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Red, White, Blue, & Gold

To say I'm an Olympics enthusiast may be an understatement.

This biannual meeting of the best athletes in the world may be one of my favorite couple weeks every couple years.  This year's winter games in Sochi, Russia were no exception!

Before watching hours of skiing, ice skating, bobsledding (I mean bobsleighing), snowboarding, biathlon, ice dancing, and curling (we can't forget curling!) and tracking each medal won and each disappointing loss, we welcomed the games in typical ChezMK fashion!

Miranda and I threw a pretty sizable shindig for the Opening Ceremonies, more sizable than ChezMK can easily accommodate.  Our par-tay was complete with themed snacks, photo backdrop, medals to win, a winter wonderland, Team USA pride, and lots of Olympic spirit.  Check out some of the highlights!

Olympic Ring-Themed Chip Dips

Torches to Carry the Olympic Flame

Bobsleds (4 Man, of course!)

Ski Slope Cake!

Winter Wonderland!  There may have been more snow hanging from our ceiling than there was at the games!

Suspended O-Games Rings

Medals for the Game Winners

Ring-Themed Candy Favors

Team USA Gear for Party Guests Who Didn't Bring Their Own

Photo Backdrop!

Medal Tracker!  USA ended up in 2nd, but we'll look forward to first place next time!

What can I say? Chez MK loves the Olympics!  Can't wait for Rio 2016!!

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Come on Over!

It's one of my favorite phrases. I like saying it, and I like hearing it.  I love spending time with people I love.  I especially love spending time in their homes or having them spend time in my home.  Someone's home says a lot about them, so sharing these environments help you know people better.  My closest friends are the ones with whom I feel most at home, and I hope they feel at home with me.

I think this has a lot to do with the ministry of hospitality, which I feel like is a topic that I have come across over and over lately.  I've found that when there is a theme that becomes recurring in my life, I need to push pause and pay it some mind.  

I think this recurring concept of hospitality is related to my border-line obsession with the concept of home.  I love home.  I love my home (all of them).  I love visiting other people's homes.  I want a big house someday to make into a home.  

I've lived in a bunch of different places, so all of them have become home to some extent.  Clarion, Pennsylvania was the first place where I got to really settle down long enough to love a place and the people there, so it gets home status.  My parents live in Fort Myers, Florida, and if "Home is where your mom is," then it gets called home.  I have lived in Lynchburg, Virginia since I was a freshman in college (with the exceptions of a few summers), and now I've lived in the same house here for going on five years (shout out to ChezMK!), so this place is home.  Saying "I'm going home" could easily indication me going to any one of these three locations.

ChezMK - Home with my wonderful roommate

I have dreams of a future home.  Something I really, really want is a house.  A big, old farm house that I get to make my own and share with people I love.  And decorate it really cute and comfortable.  With lots of white furniture.  And tons of pictures.  And my little brother's paintings.  And my mom's quilts.  And plenty of purple.  But not too much.  And at least one window seat.  And sunshine in the windows.  With white, flowing curtains.  And a big dining room table.  With lots of chairs.  And a china cabinet full of white dishes that don't match.  And a front porch.  With rocking chairs.  And a porch swing.  I haven't thought about this or anything. 

All that to say, the place you call home matters.  But what you do with it matters more.  Home is an opportunity for ministry, the ministry of hospitality.  When we show hospitality, we have a chance to live the Gospel.  John Piper says:

Our homes need to be open.  Because our hearts are open.  And our hearts are open because God's heart is open to us.

As a lady, I think I have a unique opportunity to show hospitality. At least, I should make it a priority to ensure that my home is a welcoming place for guests.  Not just because I'm a girl but because I love Jesus.  Maybe it's just a little easier because I'm a girl.  In her book on biblical femininity Radical Womanhood, Carolyn McCulley says, as she discusses how our culture debates a woman's role at home:

The point of being a keeper at home is to provide a haven for a godly family to thrive, to offer hospitality to fellow Christians and non-Christians alike, and to provide a place for the church to meet. (p. 104)

She goes on to say:

No one will find fulfillment in the latest applications or gadgets that run a home. Nor will one find lasting fulfillment in attempting to decorate and entertain like the lastest hospitality doyenne.  Material goods and self-glorifying domestic perfection are definitely not the heart of the home.  The heart of the home is found in the relationships nurtured there and the comfort offered to one another--comfort we have first received from God, the Father of compassion, and then share with one another. (p. 115)

Ouch.  I can often get caught up in the desire for domestic perfection that I can forget that what I have in hostessing is an opportunity to love like Jesus loves not show off my latest crock pot recipe or apron-wearing cuteness.  It's less about a perfect-smelling candle or appropriately coordinating serving dishes than it is about sharing the comfort of home with people I love.  

I'm abundantly thankful for the people who continuously open their homes to me and the chances I have to open my home to others.  I desire to be someone who not only welcomes people into her home, but also takes advantage of these times to serve as Gospel-ministry.  

So, come on over! 

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Tis the Season

Something about the Christmas season is magical.  I don't know what it is, but I like it.  It has been pretty warm the past couple weeks, so it hasn't really felt like it's Christmas time.  But somehow there's still some Christmas magic in the air.  This year, Miranda and I are determined to do something Christmas-y every day.  You just can't be too festive! 

Here are a few of the festivities that have made the list (and have been checked off) so far:

Choose a beautiful Christmas tree.

Decorate and name our Christmas tree  - This year, she is named Belle and is as beautiful as she sounds.

Make swags out of extra tree branches 

Put up lights on Chez MK (the affectionate nickname for our house)  Aside:  We actually get some of our wonderful friends to help out with this one.

Bake gingerbread cookies

Decorate at our offices

Line a fireplace with stockings for our friends

Attend the annual Lynchburg Christmas Parade

...and there are still 19 days till Christmas!

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