With Memorial Day, Labor Day, and summer right around the corner, it’s time to think picnic! On Sunday afternoon our homeschool group held its annual year-end shindig with a homey, old-fashioned theme. I helped coordinated the event, and a lot of thought went into the details.

Hopefully this will help you plan an event this summer!

Decorations

Mason Jars with Daisies, Ribbon, and Dollar Store Pinwheels (see top photo)
You’ve probably got a few Mason jars floating around your house. We do. Our pretty centerpieces consisted of Mason jars filled with yellow daisies and red, white, and blue pinwheels from the dollar store (3 per package) and tied with red and white ribbon.

Dollar Store Disposable Checkered Tablecloths
Our tablecloths were colorful, inexpensive, and disposable—perfect for a picnic!

Red, White, and Blue Paper Chains
Did you know that building paper chains can entertain children for long periods of time? I purchased individual packages of red and blue construction paper at Staples for $1.99 each and used printer paper for the white. The strips were 1-1/2″ wide and I recommend stapling them together; we tried tape and some of it came apart later.

The Menu

Because our picnic served such a large number of people, there was a $5 per family fee. We provided fried chicken and dessert and everyone brought a side item. Watermelon wedges (see dessert table picture two above) provide a naturally sweet treat and can be eaten with your hands. Just keep a bottle of hand sanitizer on the table and plenty of napkins for the juice!

{Isn’t the cake glorious? One of the girls on the committee made it.}

If you need recipes for a more modest crowd, on Wednesday I’ll link you to a virtual barbecue on Jen’s blog. Jen invited me and a few other bloggers to participate; we’ll each create an original recipe using one of the new Philadelphia Cooking Cremes. The blogger who gets the most comments on her recipe wins $500 and a year’s supply of Philadelphia Cooking Creme, so if you think mine sounds fabulous, leave a comment on Wednesday and help me win!

Tomorrow I’ll prepare an original recipe that I’ve only made in my head and take lots of photos. Then I’ll write it up and post it here on Wednesday. I don’t concoct a lot of original recipes so I’m a little nervous, but excited, too. My kids are ready to taste test! I bought all the ingredients today, including the Santa Fe Blend Cooking Creme.

Face Painting

A picnic isn’t a picnic without face painting! It’s fun whether you’re doing the painting or being painted on, ensures great photos, and just makes people happy.

Sometimes it branches out (no pun intended) beyond faces . . .

Get paints made especially for faces and don’t forget brushes. Print out a few sample designs to narrow the choices and give your artists something to follow.

Enjoy Yourself

Keep it simple: checkers, bubbles, frisbee, foursquare, face paint. Food and friends—that’s what it’s all about, right? Don’t bring stress to your picnic!

Do you picnic in the summer? What are your best tips for food, decorating, or activities?

Tips for an Old-Fashioned Picnic is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

I‘ll never forget the day my mother told me that she worried about me because “you’re only as happy as your least happy child.” I could have lived a lifetime without learning that phrase. As any mom knows, children aren’t always happy, and the chances of having eight contented children at the same time? Let’s just say the chances are slim unless maybe you’re all in a happy place in the middle of Disney World. Except we’ve never been to Disney World.

Parenting a pre-teen or teen can feel like mothering Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde at the same time, and goodness knows you’re never quite sure which one you’re going to get. If hormones could make me vomit, sleep all the time, and other behaviors associated with pregnancy, it’s no wonder they produce dramatic results in my kids at this age. Sometimes it’s this thought alone that has spared the life of a wayward child.

Kidding.

Maybe.

My pre-teen daughter and I head-butt a lot; from her point-of-view, everything I say or do is designed to persecute her. I know it’s the age, but that doesn’t make it any easier or less discouraging and I’m sure that how I’m feeling rarely enters her mind.

But on those rare occasions when it does . . . 

Last summer she wrote me a letter that I call the Sorry letter. It begins, “Dear Mom, i’m so sorry for allways being so rude and mean,” and ends with “all I’m saying is i’m sorry, and i hope you will forgive me!” followed by two checkboxes, one for yes and one for no. The two page letter contains the word sorry twelve times. Twelve. Sorry for being a bad sister, lazy in school, whining, being disrespectful; she even says she’s sorry for not always eating the food I put in front of her.

On those days when motherhood is rough, when I want to toss in the proverbial towel and quit, this letter makes a difference. I don’t have to open and read it anymore; just seeing it is enough because I know what’s in it: evidence of a contrite heart and a repentant spirit. 

Knowing it’s there—no matter how deeply buried—enables me to push through the muck. I’ve glimpsed what shines beneath, waiting to emerge someday on the other side of puberty and hormones and mother/daughter clashes.

And it’s worth the wait.

For Those Days When Parenting is Hard is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

A day devoted—at least in theory—to honoring mom {me} sounded like a good excuse to plan big. Two years ago I requested a family outing to the High Museum and I seriously considered the same this year, until a conversation with a friend on Saturday night made me stop and think . . .

Iris asked what we’d planned for Mother’s Day and I told her my big museum idea. Then she pointed to the recliner behind her and said, “I want to sit in that chair and read my book while everyone cleans the house,” and I knew in that moment that she was the wiser.

Saturday we’d bounced from birthday party to ballpark to another birthday to a class party before that visit with my friend. Was it really necessary to head downtown after church and continue the same level of activity on Sunday?

Her words challenged me to think smaller, and so I printed the map of a new greenway that our family hasn’t walked, imagining a leisurely stroll with plenty of adult conversation and photographic moments.

But rain in the forecast forced me to think smaller still . . .

All ten of us attended church together—truly, that was the gift of the day—and then we ate Mexican with my dad and stepmom. The rest of my afternoon consisted of a nap followed by a walk with my husband and kids.

Before bedtime I curled up in my reading nook playing Words With Friends with Holley, and spoke my wish that Barnes and Noble stayed open 24/7. What’s not to love about books, hot tea, comfy chairs, and free wi-fi?

My husband pointed to the chair where I sat and said, “Let this spot be your Barnes and Noble.” Sure enough, all of the things I desire are right here, although the wi-fi isn’t exactly free since we pay the bill.

I’m not saying I’ll never runaway to B&N again, but should I always yearn for an oasis that requires a 25 minute drive when I can create one at home? It took all day for the message to sink in: sometimes I need to think small.

Sometimes I Need to Think Small is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

Is it just me, or do birthdays and holidays have a way sneaking up on you? I tried to be ready this year and got our Mother’s Day gifts ready early. Unfortunately, because of work and sleep schedules it took two days to get everyone in the house to sign the cards, and then I forgot to tell my husband (a.k.a. my own personal postman) that they were ready to mail. And then he forgot they were in his car until Friday . . .

Even with good intentions, things go wrong.

Well, I’ve got good news for you if you’re still searching for a thoughtful gift. Perfect for any day and any mom, the Mother Letters ebook features a collection of letters written to mothers by mothers. It’s filled to the brim with encouragement, one of the greatest gifts you can give a mom.

I downloaded Mother Letters to my iPad and what I’ve read so far has blessed my socks off. The letter from Ann alone was worth it, gently encouraging a change in my attitude about the work I do in my home.

{One of my photos was chosen as a winner in the Mother Letters camera phone photo contest and is featured in the book! That’s it on the right.}

Guess what? Right now you can buy one copy of the ebook PDF and get a second free to give to someone else when you enter code Buy1Give1 at checkout. That way you’re guaranteed to get something you’ll like for Mother’s Day!

If you’re looking for more in-the-trenches-of-motherhood encouragement, check out Lisa-Jo’s new ebook, The Cheerleader for Tired Moms!

[I'm a Mother Letters affiliate and will receive commission on sales generated from my links.]

In Case Mother’s Day Sneaked Up on You is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

Imagine my surprise when I couldn’t post a Camera Phone Friday this week because there were no new Instagram photos!

Am I tired of the app? No. Unfortunately, I’ve just been too busy to stop and savor the moments.

And so today I used both my phone and my camera.

Treasures everywhere: health, sunshine, happy kids, baseball. If I don’t capture it, will I remember? Will they?

Will an image hold special meaning for one of my children . . .

a hidden gift that’s mine alone to give?

Have you used your camera lately? Do you print your photos or share them digitally?

Remember the Days is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.

Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the LORD out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him.

Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre.

So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre.

And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in.

Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie,

And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.

Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed.

For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead.

Then the disciples went away again unto their own home.

But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre,

And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.

And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my LORD, and I know not where they have laid him.

And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.

Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.

Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.

Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.

Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her.

~John 20:1-18

Wishing You a Blessed Easter! is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

One year when I was a child we went to an Easter egg hunt in a shopping mall parking lot. It was divided into younger and older kids, and I’d just had a birthday in March that bumped me up to the older kids’ group. Although I’m not certain, my guess is that I was around six years old, the same as my youngest daughter.

I remember being the smallest one. The bigger kids raced around filling their baskets with colored plastic eggs, but I only managed to grab three, maybe four. Afterwards, we were instructed to open our eggs. Most contained candy, but one held a ticket for the grand prize, and I held that egg.

It wasn’t a big bag of candy or a picture with the Easter Bunny—it was a new bike! To this day, it still amazes me when I think about it.

I’m sure God understood what a powerful life lesson it would be, although I didn’t at the time. Smallest, least of all, but I was blessed to win the prize.

Do you have a similar story, when against the odds you or someone you know was surprisingly blessed? I’d love to hear it!

My Most Memorable Easter Egg Hunt is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

At what point does a new habit stick and become routine? Google it and you’ll get a variety of answers and maybe some helpful hints. Last month my family agreed to participate in the Listerine and Reach Healthy Habits for a Lifetime Oral Care Challenge, which involved brushing, flossing, and rinsing twice a day for three weeks.

The kids agreed to it or I wouldn’t have accepted the challenge. Flossing my own teeth is enough, thankyouverymuch. I expected to do a lot of nagging—the usual when it comes to brushing, much less flossing and rinsing, too—but I haven’t needed to.

I ask the kids all the time if they’ve “done their teeth,” or whatever I happen to call the three-step process, and the answer is a surprising “yes” almost all of the time. Occasionally I get an “Oops! I forgot” or even a “Sorry!” and then the child heads for the bathroom.

I have noticed that they’re becoming rinse hoarders. My fifteen-year-old told me that she’s rationing her rinse and needs her own personal bottle. I considered rolling my eyes, but then I remembered the bottle of Listerine Total Care Zero placed back out of reach on my bathroom counter and I understood.

The kids aren’t the only ones whose habits have improved. I’ve always been an evening flosser, not morning, however now I’m in the habit of doing both.

The last day of the three weeks quietly passed last week; we’re actually well into week five at this point. I’m certainly not going to point out that we’ve fulfilled the agreed upon time limit of the challenge. This has been a wonderful thing for my family. I think the most important things I’ve learned are the importance of rinsing—brushing misses 75% of the germs in your mouth, but rinses reach 100%—and the process of establishing a habit. In this case the three-week challenge has been very effective.

What has been your experience when trying to establish good habits in your children and yourself? Could your family benefit from the Oral Care Challenge?

Disclosure: I received products and compensation from Johnson & Johnson and The Motherhood as part of my participation in the Oral Care Challenge. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

Turning a Challenge into a Habit is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

Today I’m taking the torch from Jessica in the (in)RL blog hop and telling you a little bit about what real life means to me.

Real life is girlfriends of like, precious faith who dream big with me, but are willing to grapple with the small stuff.

Real life is taking the time to relax and connect and breathe with friends I see often as we spin along in the frantic daily dance.

Real life is getting to meet local readers of (in)courage and my blog, finding out who you are and what makes you tick.

(Can you find me twice in this video? Where’s Waldo?!)

What is (in)RL?

(in)RL is a 2-day global event on April 27-28 kicking off with a webcast on Friday to watch in your own home and then meetups in homes, coffee shops, churches—wherever!—on Saturday. There are more webcasts available on Saturday. Your group might watch one or more, or just do your own thing. Connect. Make new friendships. Have fun!

To search locations and find out how you can be a part of (in)RL and build local community, click here. Register here, and remember—if there isn’t currently a meetup in your area, host your own!

Are you registered for an (in)RL meetup? What does real life mean to you?

Join Nester for tomorrow’s post!

What Real Life Means to Me is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

I‘ve studied Gary Chapman’s 5 Love Languages (separate link for children) enough to know that my 10-year-old son’s primary language is Quality Time. He wants to run errands with me—even boring ones. Last week he surprised me in such a sweet way.

I’d said goodbye to the kids when I said goodnight, since I had to get up at 4:15 a.m. for an early morning flight. Nobody gets up that early unless they have to, right? In the morning when I tried to open our bedroom door, at first it wouldn’t give. I pushed it open and found a rope tied around the knob. I followed the rope across our living room and over the couch until it ended in the floor.

A couple of minutes later my 10-year-old son walked into the kitchen. Apparently there was string tied to the end of that rope, which continued through the hall and into his bedroom, where he’d tied it to his hand.

That sweet boy concocted an elaborate scheme so that he’d wake up when I did and we could spend some time together before I left.

Teen boys can be difficult, but it can also be a sweet time for a mother and son. The birth order of our children goes like this: boy, boy, boy, girl, girl, boy, girl, girl; someday the other boys will be gone and this one will be here with just a bunch of sisters.

I look forward to seeing what kind of young man he’ll become.

My Quality Time Lovin’ 10-Year-Old Son is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved