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8 Quick Entertaining Must-Haves for the Impromptu Guest

Always be prepared for the unexpected guest. Whether it is a friend stopping by after work or neighbors gathering on the front porch for an impromptu drink, here are a few tips so you are always party ready.

15 Items Every

Powder Room

Needs

Whether you are entertaining overnight guests or friends just dropping by, the powder room is the one area all will ask to visit. Have you taken inventory of this part of your home lately? Make your bathroom boutique beautiful by implementing our top points below. 

Gifts Ideas for
the Mom in Your Life

May can be a crazy month with the chaos of end of school activities, home projects, and travel plans. But we need to hit pause for one day to celebrate the special mom in our life. With hearts of gold and putting others before themselves, we have gathered a list of ideas to help you honor the special lady in your life.

Gather Around the Table this Easter

A few years back my husband and I attended a play that was an adaptation of the classical movie Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, which originally starred Sidney Poitier, Katharine Hepburn, and Spencer Tracy. It was a beautifully written, and quite comical, story based on the difficulties families faced in the 1960s with inter-racial marriage. The scene that stood out the most to me was when the son was trying to bring both families together for dinner. In the last line of the last act, he turns to his father and says, “Dad, we need you at the table.” With that, the father joined the others, and the audience was left with the understanding that healing had begun.

My 10 Favorite 
Hostess Gifts

Giving a party requires a great deal of work. If you have been fortunate enough to be included in a festive soiree, it is nice to arrive with a gift for the hostess. The typical present will cost anywhere from $15-$100. What you spend will be determined by your relationship and the type of event. Is it a formal dinner? A backyard BBQ? Also, when possible, know the likes and dislikes of your hostess. If she is allergic to flowers, you probably will not arrive with a bouquet in hand.

How to Create
a Tablescape
in 8 Steps

1. Choose the table. Will you use a round that seats four or a rectangle that seats twelve? This decision will determine your centerpiece.

12 Tips on Dog
Etiquette

Warmer weather will be arriving soon, and I am seeing more of our four-legged members making an appearance in the dog parks and on walking trails. With pets taking more prominent roles in our lives, I thought it would be good to brush up on basic dog etiquette and ownership responsibilities.

Let's Celebrate

Meeting friends for dinner after work, grabbing coffee with your girlfriend or just ordering pizza on a Friday night with neighbors. We all have a deep desire to be connected in a world that often forgets the importance of relationships. Many of us have the desire to entertain, but we let our circumstances keep us from extending hospitality. Often it revolves around our lack of confidence in our ability to host events. I get this!

The Art of
Toasting

A toast may be offered in any setting and made to an individual or a group. Increase your confidence at your next social gathering by learning the ins and outs of this ancient tradition.

A Party Idea
for Each
Month of the
Year

A perfect entertaining year for me would be hosting a different themed party each month! Will I do that? No. Will I dream about it? Yes! If I cannot have a party every 4 weeks, I can at least help my Lisa Lou family with ideas so hopefully a few of you can carry the torch of hospitality for the rest of us.

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  • Writer's pictureAlina Gersib
    • Jul 16, 2020
    • 2 min read

Challenge Your Mind


The world feels especially scary and divided right now. Copious amounts of negativity are being thrown around in the media and it can be all too easy to simply become frozen. It feels like everyone is walking on eggshells, not quite sure what to believe let alone what to share with others out of fear of judgment or condemnation. Instead of building each other up and opening up conversations for the purpose of mutual growth, challenge, and insight, there is a spirit of judgment, separation, and anger.

In the midst of this, I charge you to not resign yourself to a bleak pessimism over the state of the world. I know it’s all too easy to simply say nothing because it feels like it doesn’t matter. But it does matter, it is crucial not only to yourself but to the wellbeing of all humanity. Take responsibility and accountability of the mind you have and use it for good. Ideas are shared, refined, and changed when we use our abilities of reason to converse and grow together.

Do not let fear keep you from speaking your mind. The information that you have within your head could be exactly what someone else needs to understand a crucially important thought within their own. I’ve also found that when you approach conversations out of a place of wanting to listen to and learn something from the person you are speaking with, your outlook on the world will widen and the conversation will be far more productive and life giving.

With that said, now more than ever it is important to educate yourself and learn everything you can. Read books from all sorts of authors, nonfiction, fiction, biography’s, it doesn’t matter. The more you learn about topics from all over the map the more you are able to refine your own beliefs and outlooks on the world.

We are truly all in this together and when we bring judgment or lump certain schools of thought, people, or teachings into specific categories we negate the ability to connect completely. Humanity would be better for it if we listened to others more, had less judgment for everyone, ourselves included, and were not held back by fear. Don’t be afraid to try new things because you never know what might work for you. Above all, be kind to yourself in the process. The world is changing, and we are all changing too, give yourself space to develop and become. With much hope and excitement for change and the future,

Alina Gersib

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