Episode 116
I’m sure I’m not the only one who is feeling ready for get togethers and bbqs and celebrations with friends and family. I personally love celebrating and eating together as much as possible…but I do know there is sometimes some trepidation when it comes to planning these kinds of events. Modern pressure tells us we need to host a Pinterst worthy celebration and nothing less. I think in our heart of hearts we know that’s not true, but that doesn’t always make the stress of party or meal prepping any easier.
But Abby Turner of A Tabletop Affair is with us today to provide encouragement, help us understand why celebrating in community is so important and worthy of our time, and share ideas from her new book The Living Table.
Abby’s Bio: Abby Turner is a young professional who is single and loving life as a food blogger, speaker, and writer. Born into a large family, she grew up in Central Arkansas, where she learned the importance of community and Biblical hospitality at a young age. After completing undergraduate degrees at Ouachita Baptist University and obtaining her Master’s from Baylor, Abby lived in 6 states in 5 years, learning that community is essential to a healthy relationship with Christ. Over the last few years, Abby has spoken at college/universities, churches, companies and has been featured on regional TV shows and podcasts. Abby’s passion is to encourage women to stop wasting time waiting for the perfect family, house, or table and to start opening their homes, cooking for friends and building community. You can learn more about Abby and enjoy even more recipes by visiting her website at atabletopaffair.com.
In this episode, Abby & I talk about:
- Recipes and devotions for the everyday get together
- Feeling intimidated about hosting
- 6 different tables we see in stories in scripture: serves, welcomes, celebrates, etc.
- Having a “why” behind our gatherings
- Service vs. servitude
- Celebrating people in our lives
- The importance of walking through life with our community
- Entertaining and celebrating can be easy
- Living in an “all about me” culture
- Selfishness is the thief of joy
- The loss of the dining room and how it’s affected us
- If girls eat at least one meal at the table every day they are 98% less likely to have an eating disorder
- The table as an opportunity
- Mom guilt and grace
- We don’t need to go 0 to 100 overnight
- Hospitality and discipline
- Hospitality as a spiritual gift
- Invite people into the mess
- Perfect pins or a perfect house isn’t the whole story
- Giving people space to do what’s best for their family
- Distinguishing artful pictures from real life
- How everyday gatherings are different than holiday gatherings
- Showing up for others and allowing others to show up for us
- Hosting can be fun and not just another obligation
- Keeping people at the forefront of our minds
- What Abby takes to potlucks
- God did not intend for us to live life alone
Abby’s Links: Website, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest
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SPONSOR
Blossom & Root: Today’s episode of Elevating Motherhood is sponsored by Blossom & Root a nature-based, Charlotte Mason inspired homeschool curriculum company that has been gently guiding and supporting families for years! This thoughtful, age appropriate curriculum begins at the preschool level with options all the way up to 4th grade with more grade levels being released each year.
Blossom & Root is the homeschool curriculum my family uses and loves! The information and ideas are easy to follow, fun, and engaging. If you’re new to homeschool or looking for an inspired homeschool curriculum to help you lovingly teach and guide your children, I highly recommend Blossom & Root. Using this curriculum has brought so much connection and joy to our homeschool days—I love it! Blossom & Root has generously offered a discount for listeners of Elevating Motherhood: use the code LORIBETH10 at checkout for 10% off your order.
For more information about Blossom & Root, head over to www.elevatingmotherhood.com/homeschool
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