Grace at Home this special week

Friends, do I ever have good news to share!

Many of you know that my oldest son, Will, is an aviator with the U.S. Navy. And some of you know that he has been deployed since last October. 

Not only has Will been gone since October, but his wife had their first baby on December 31—and because of COVID-19 restrictions, he wasn't allowed to go home for the birth of the baby. 

Well, this week is the time our whole family has been anxiously awaiting. Will's squadron made it safely home, and Will got to meet his firstborn. If you follow me on Instagram (and I would so love to connect with you there—please say hi!), you might have seen this photo:

I knew, of course, that my heart would melt when I saw my "baby" hold his baby for the first time. But I'll confess that I burst into a torrent of tears the moment I saw this photo. 

You can imagine how hard it has been for me to concentrate this week. But I'm so glad to welcome you to the Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes places of grace and beauty. Here are some features from last week's party.

If remodeling a bathroom is in your future, you'll want to see the master bathroom renovation from Renae at Peacock Ridge Farm. Just wait 'til you see the "before" pictures!

If you're considering building a bunk room in your house, you really should see this space from Andrea at Living on Cloud Nine. Just think of how much fun kids would have in a room like this!

If you're planning to have overnight guests in your home sometime soon (thank God for vaccines that will allow more people to travel!), you'll be interested to see how Marty from A Stroll thru Life gave her guest room a refresh.

And for some wonderful ways to make your guest room a truly welcoming space, check out these easy tips from Denise at My Home of All Seasons.

If you're like me, you're always on the lookout for new recipes. Lately my husband and I have been trying to limit our carbohydrate intake, so I was tickled to find this low-carb chicken casserole recipe from LouLou Girls. (Confession: I'm not a fan of broccoli, so I'd leave that out, but otherwise this sounds delicious!)

If you're looking for some really good marriage advice, I highly recommend this post from Linda Stoll, who just celebrated her 45th anniversary. I have to confess that I giggled a little when I recently saw a marriage book written by authors who confided that they'd been married almost 20 years. I have two rules for marriage advice: I only take it from people who have made it through at least 30 years together, and I only take it from people who have been through some really tough times. Marriage is wonderful, but it's not easy!

Finally, if you're needing some encouragement for your soul as we continue to struggle through these long days of a global pandemic, read this post from Michele Morin at Living Our Days. 

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 own home 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 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, and during these difficult times, it can really make someone's day! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Grace at Home No. 421

Hello friends! I hope all is well with you on this April day. Can you believe we're already well into spring? 2021 has been a trying year, but it's surely going fast.

We've been having beautiful springtime weather here, but I've been keeping myself holed up inside. Why? Because I've taken on a home improvement project that turned out to be much more time-consuming than I bargained for! My husband snapped this photo of me in the act:

I am stenciling our powder room. I think I'm going to love the way it looks when I'm finished, but as I work in the corners I now understand why people often stencil only one accent wall. Whew!

Many of y'all have been busy in your homes, too, which is why I'm so grateful to host the Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes places of grace. Here are a few highlights from last week's party.

If you're working on your outdoor spaces, you'll want to see this post from Penny from Penny's Vintage Treasures. Just look at the beautiful back porch she's created.

If you'd like to tackle a smaller project, you'll be inspired by the kitchen table refresh done by MaryJo at Master"pieces" of My Life.

Want to create a vignette using vintage items? Debbie from Debbie-Dabble shows us her display of vintage sewing items.

If you're living in a rented space, Julie from My Wee Abode is your source for great wisdom on making a lovely home. Here she explains how she dealt with the problem of ugly carpeting. Nothing stops her!

If you're trying to get more organized this spring (I'm raising my hand!), you'll find lots of practical tips from Chas at Chas' Crazy Creations. I love the way she organized her bathroom using just a few things she picked up at the dollar store.

Trying to decide whether you might be able to stay at home with your kids? Karla from The Happy Mustard Seed offers some great advice.

Last but not least, I think you'll be inspired by this post from Cami from InstaEncouragements on how to love like Jesus loves. 

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 own home 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 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, and during these difficult times, it can really make someone's day! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Grace at Home No. 420

Hello, friends! I am so grateful you're here for the Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes places of grace.

I don't know about you, but all of a sudden I've gotten really busy! Or maybe I just feel busy because I started this week by attending a (small, carefully health-conscious) wedding! If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen one of these photos:

Look! I'm dressed up! My husband is wearing a tie! We hardly knew what to do with ourselves. But you know what's really funny? We've been exhausted this week. I guess our "social muscles" are just not in shape! I pray that we'll all be able to exercise these "muscles" as we are able be with other people more and and more in the coming weeks.

Now for some features from last week's party.

Are you ready to take on a big DIY project? Check out this upholstered bed frame made by Hannah from Handmade Weekly. She made it herself and shares a full tutorial!

Doing some home renovations? I think a lot of us have been working on our homes throughout the pandemic—staying at home constantly has shown us what needs to be done, right? Kathryn at The Dedicated House offers all kinds of advice for home renovations, such as this post about basement lighting. 

Want to try some small projects instead? The internet offers some wonderful things you can print at home, and Carol from Comfort Spring Station shares great advice for HOW to print at home with beautiful results.

If you're like me, you're working on some spring cleaning! Here are a couple of helpful posts for you:

How to organize a cluttered garage from Julie at Filling the Jars

How to keep your home in order from Amy at Heritage Home Ec

And for some calm assurance for your soul, check out this post from Beth Willis Miller.

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 own home 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 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, and during these difficult times, it can really make someone's day! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Grace at Home No. 419

Hello friends! Happy Eastertide to you!

I hope you had a wonderful Easter. I was grateful that our church was able meet via Zoom on Sunday morning, but I must admit that it was a little depressing to still be meeting electronically instead of in person. 

It's times like this when I find myself especially grateful for the psalms of lament, when the writers are so honest with God about their losses, their disappointments, their heartbreak. It's helpful to remember that I can be completely, gut-level honest with God about my feelings. I used to think I had to "adjust my attitude" before I could talk with God, but that's simply not true. Do you know what I mean?

Now, once again, I am reminded of the need to count my blessings, and one of those is certainly the fact that you're here for the Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes places of grace and beauty. How grateful I am for this community! Here are some highlights from last week's party I think you'll enjoy.

Now that it's springtime, are you hoping to freshen up your home? I surely am; I have several projects lining up for my attention. So I was glad to see these posts:

"How to Paint a Checkerboard Floor" from Renae at Peacock Ridge Farm

"10 Pretty Ways to Use Green Plants in Your Home" by Carol from Bluesky at Home

"Best Sewing YouTube Channels" from Helen at Hello Sewing (I'm so excited about these—my sister gave me a sewing machine, and I really want to learn more about sewing!)

Looking forward to having friends gather at your home once again now that we can gather outdoors or when we're all vaccinated? Then you might enjoy learning to create a charcuterie board from Jennifer at Wanderlust and Wellness. 

Looking for some good books to read this spring? Lisa from Lisa Notes on Seeing God shares a list of book recommendations, including a one-minute video review of one of the books (definitely worth watching!).

And here's another list of good books from Rebecca Hastings. I just love the fact that bloggers are sharing their book recommendations (and as an author, I have a special appreciation for this!).

If you need a good reminder of how to combat negative thoughts, you'll appreciate this post from Dr. Michelle Bengtson at Hope Prevails.

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 own home 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 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, and during these difficult times, it can really make someone's day! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Grace at Home No. 418

Friends, what a joy it is to welcome you to this little corner of the internet.

I am writing this during Holy Week. I don't know about you, but I'm feeling nearly overwhelmed with emotion. The heaviness of Maundy Thursday, the darkness of Good Friday, the bleakness of Holy Saturday threaten to swamp me. 

In order to be awakened and astounded rather than engulfed and crushed by my emotions, I find myself consulting some old friends: the hymns of the church. I've put together a little booklet of some of these, and I'm delighted to be able to give it to you. 

Simply head to my author website, richellajparham.com, to download the collection.  I pray it's a blessing to you!

And now I'm so pleased to welcome you to this week's Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes places of grace and beauty. Here are some highlights from last week's party.

Looking for some inspiration for freshening up your home for spring? Check out these home tours!

Niky from The House on Silverado shows us her lovely home all decked out for springtime.

Paula from Sweet Pea is a master at mixing new items, treasured antiques, and DIY projects.

Pam from Everyday Living shares the lovely Easter decorations in her Sunshine Cottage.

But if checking out all this lovely decor tempts you to comparison, check out this post from Julie at My Wee Abode.

And if you need even more help with comparison, I've got you covered. Comparison was the huge struggle of my life, and my journey away from it was arduous. I share what I learned in my book, Mythical Me: Finding Freedom from Constant Comparison. You can click here to read the first chapter for free. 

Looking for a small project to help you brighten things up this spring? Check out these cute fabric-covered pots created by Carol from Blue Sky at Home.

Need a quick treat or dessert for Easter? Kelly from 3 Boys and a Dog shares the recipe for this yummy-looking "puppy chow"!

If you're in need of some soul nourishment today, I highly recommend this post from Amy at Wasteland to Graceland.

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 own home 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 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, and during these difficult times, it can really make someone's day! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter