Happy Fall, Y'all!...

Currently, my Auburn Tigers are having trouble playing football.  It appears they've forgotten how to play the game.

So, let's talk Fall decorations.

Last year, I decorated for football season first.  Then fall and Thanksgiving.  But this year, I'm hosting my own birthday party and didn't really feel like football decor for that event.  

It's not really a birthday party-birthday party.  It's a Noonday Collection birthday party.  

Last winter, I did an online bible study of Jennie Allen's Restless.  It was awesome.  Jennie Allen and her friend, Jamie Ivey, hosted a weekly "meeting."  We watched them host and asked questions via Twitter or Facebook.  They had guests on each week to share about their journey to their passion and ministry.  Jessica Honegger, the founder of Noonday, was a guest.  She shared her story and how the company came to be.  I was beyond intrigued.  

Then this summer, Jen Hatmaker and several other amazing women traveled with Noonday to Rwanda.  The women blogged and tweeted and posted their stories during the trip.  It was powerful.  

Let's be honest.  I am not a world traveler.  Sure, I've been to Mexico on a mission trip. Worked in an orphanage just over the Texas boarder.  Precious children.  I held one little boy and he flat fell asleep chest to chest, his head under mine.  He then peed all over me.  And I did not care.  One.Bit.

I crossed on over the Canadian boarder once during a summer vacation to visit my dad's cousins in Michigan.  (Right?!?!  Can you believe I have norther cousins??!?!)  Saw Niagara Falls.  And maybe something else but y'all, apart from listening to Wilson Phillips on my Walkman the entire 12 hours there and back, I remember almost nothing else.

I took a trip my sophomore year in high school to Paris to perform with a dance team at EuroDisney.  I literally got "petted."  My blond hair was all the way down my back and apparently, blonds aren't all that common in Paris.  I ate Duck a' la Orange.  Ordered tea and actually got hot tea in a tea cup.  So I then ordered a glass of ice.  Yes, yes, I did.

And that, y'all, is the extent of my world travels.  It's not impressive.  

The worst part about it is...I really don't want to travel anywhere else.  

Oh, sure, Ireland one day.  Maybe Italy with Chris.  He'd like to see Germany again.  But those aren't the places the Christian women I so admire are doing their work.  They're going to Uganda.  Ecuador.  Ethiopia.  Hatti.  There's a group from our area leaving this month to work in Syria.  Setting up humanitarian aid stations and churches.

I'm hosting a party.

Let's just say this is me dipping my pinkie toe in the global community.

If I could change anything about myself...other than my crow's feet...it would be my, almost, fear of travel.  I don't like being places where I am not in control.  You know, like where English isn't at least understood.  Our church does such amazing work in India.  And I soooooo wanna go.  But my stomach gets all queasy just thinking about it.

But for now, I can host a party.  Help these amazing women artisans support their families.  

All that to defend my previous statement that the football decor didn't seem appropriate.  This is definitely more of a "let's the grateful for a God who gave people like Jessica and Jen and Jennie and Jamie to us."  Brave, filled with the Spirit, ordained, lovers of Jesus women.

Thank you, Lord.

So if anyone is still reading this, here are the pictures you thought you would see 14 minutes ago when you accidentally stumbled onto this post:

I need to keep it real here and say, when I climbed up on the ladder to hang the sign, I realized it is highly likely I have not cleaned the mirror since we moved in.  Three years ago.  Or the star.  Heavens.

This summer, we had a brief period where we thought we might be moving.  We didn't.  Clearly.  But I spent $25 on a new mirror.  This wall in my dining room was completely empty.  This isn't the mirror I've been dreaming of for three years but it'll do.  Plus it was $25 and that is awesome.

I love setting the table.  I'm not expecting just a ton of people for the party.  This will give me a chance to use the table!  I can totally see why people are moving away from the formal dining room.  Ours gets used maybe three or four times a year.  But I'm old and so I love it.  Makes things feel special and fancy.  Every now and again, fancy ain't so bad.

 I splurged and bought some new pillow covers too.  The floral ones I've had for probably a decade.  I bought them at Pottery Barn on clearance.  I still like them.  Not love but like them.  I'm getting rid of the denim blue and moving to the turquoise accents.  Those pillow covers do have some turquoise accents in them.  It works.  

The pillow covers...and I got five of them... are Hobby Lobby.  At 50% off.  I love, love, love the navy ones.  

They are the only purchases I've made to update the fall decor this year.  Everything else I had or made with what I had.  I love decorating.  I love creating.  I love crafting.

But, let's be real, I am blessed my family is not depending on my crafting skills to support us.  I cannot imagine.  So I'm gonna spend my birthday celebrating the women in countries I will likely never visit who are doing the UNBELIEVABLE work of supporting their families with the products of their own hands.