Carrots for Michaelmas

Cultivating a Catholic family through literature, liturgical living, and urban homesteading

Follow Carrots!

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • About
    • About Haley
    • Advertise
    • Privacy
  • My Books
    • The Grace of Enough
    • The Literary Medicine Cabinet
    • Liturgical Year eCookbooks
  • Faith & Liturgical Living
    • Our Conversion Story
    • Catholicism
      • Saints
        • St. Anne
        • St. Anthony of Padua
        • St. Anthony of the Desert
        • St. Benedict of Nursia
        • St. Brigid
        • St. Dominic
        • St. Joachim
        • St. Lucy
        • St. Patrick
        • St. Scholastica
      • Christian Year
        • Advent
        • Christmas
        • Epiphany
        • Lent
        • Mardi Gras
        • Easter
  • Family & Homesteading
    • Birth
    • Children
    • DIY
    • Finances
    • Homeschooling
    • Marriage
    • NFP
    • Our Home
  • Bookishness
    • Blog
    • Book Lists
  • Fashion
  • Podcast
    • Episodes
  • Speaking

Hospitality With No Flushing Toilets: What I’ve Learned

July 12, 2016 By Haley 15 Comments

Welcome to Carrots! I'm so glad you're here. This is where I share thoughts on liturgical living, faith, parenting, culture, and an extra dose of Jane Austen. You can sign up for my email newsletter here to stay in touch, or look me up on Instagram!

Welcome to Carrots! I'm so glad you're back. You can sign up for my email newsletter here to stay in touch, or look me up on Instagram!

bread_salad

Having people over has always been our thing. Daniel loves to cook and I love to talk, so hosting friends for dinner has been part of our family culture ever since we tied the knot.

And after having kids, hospitality became the only way we were going to see our friends because kids have early bedtimes and babysitting is expensive. I firmly believe that other than the Mass, there’s nothing that feels like touching heaven so much as sitting around a table with people you love eating good food and staying up too late talking for hours.

After getting used being homeowners in our late 20s, it was a little weird to move back into tiny apartment living since moving to the farm for Daniel’s internship. And when I say tiny, I mean 650 sq ft (we got rid of half our stuff before we moved) with no flushing toilets. Yes, you heard that right. Composting toilets only. Come to our place for dinner! It’s like primitive camping!

Tiny House Livin'

I almost felt embarrassed to invite friends to our apartment. But we had people over anyway. And it was great. I realized that the people that love us will love us even if we have no flushing toilets to offer. It’s the people that matter. As we get settled in our new house, I love having a little more space for entertaining (and one of those LUXURIOUS flushing toilets), but I miss all the memories we made at the farm.

photo 1-137

(Do NOT miss this bathroom, though. Flushing toilet, I LOVE YOU.)

So this is just a little reminder to open up your home. Whip up a meal, grab a bottle of wine, and have people over. Give somebody who’s lonely a place to land. Make new friends. Listen and talk about what matters with people and bring hope to each other. It really doesn’t matter if your place is fancy or not. It doesn’t matter if it’s tidy or not. Because hospitality isn’t about your ego. Make your home a place of light because this dark world needs it.

photo 2-136

Psst! Just through November 19th my friends at Grove Collaborative are offering my readers a great deal with FREE Mrs. Meyer’s products.

When you place your first order of $20 using my link, you’ll get:

  • Free Holiday Mrs. Meyer’s hand soap
  • Free Holiday Mrs. Meyer’s dish soap
  • Free Holiday Mrs. Meyer’s multi surface spray
  • Free Grove seasonal kitchen towel
  • Free Shipping & 60 Day VIP Trial

“But what if I’m already a Grove customer? Do I get anything special?” Don’t worry, friends, you do. Existing customers can click here to get a free set of Grove walnut scrubber sponges.

Once you submit your first Grove order using my link, you’ll also be signed up for the free 60 day VIP trial. For 60 days, you’ll save even more with free shipping, free gifts, price matching, exclusive sales and personal service — perfect if you’re trying to stretch your holiday budget!

FREE Mrs. Meyer's holiday sets!

I should warn you that last year, Mrs. Meyer’s seasonal scents sold out quickly. This offer is only available through Sunday November 19th or until the sets are gone, so don’t miss out! Here’s how it works:

  1. Sign up for Grove Collaborative here. You will receive the Holiday Set for free when you sign up! (I picked Orange Clove.)
  2. To receive this offer, your order needs to be a minimum of $20. Choose the combination of products and scents you love and receive your first box within a few days. My kids love the strawberry flavored Tom’s toothpaste and I’m a big fan of the Seventh Generation laundry detergent and dishwasher pods.
  3. You made it! Click Finish & Pay and place your order.

Enjoy your free seasonal goodies!

Disclosure: Links to Grove are affiliate links. I only partner with companies I love and products I use myself.

Related Posts

None

Filed Under: Farm Life, Green Living Tagged With: caldrea, grove, hospitality

Comments

  1. Olivia says

    July 12, 2016 at 11:33 am

    I love the Caldrea linen spray. It actually motivates me to make my bed! I so wish Grove was available for us Canadians.

    Reply
    • Haley says

      July 12, 2016 at 11:40 am

      The scents are SO good. I wish it was, too, Olivia! And Stitch Fix! <3

      Reply
  2. Rabia @TheLiebers says

    July 12, 2016 at 12:19 pm

    My house is cluttered and I”m a terrible housekeeper. I have decided not to let that stop us from having people over. If they’re my friends they’ll already know these things about me anyway!

    Reply
    • Haley says

      July 13, 2016 at 9:19 am

      Totally! I’m not a good housekeeper, either 🙂

      Reply
  3. Mary Strecker says

    July 12, 2016 at 9:53 pm

    This is a great reminder to me. We are so bad at having people over, especially this late in my pregnancy, when I just want to introvert all the time. I bet you all make that little apartment a sweet haven of rest for all who enter. Xo

    Reply
    • Haley says

      July 13, 2016 at 9:20 am

      Oh girl, I just want to crawl in bed and watch Netflix for my entire pregnancy. I feel ya!

      Reply
  4. Rosalie says

    July 12, 2016 at 10:52 pm

    You are tempting me!!! Caldrea ❤️ Love the epiphany about the flush-free housing. Moving into your new house is going to seem so modern!

    Reply
    • Haley says

      July 13, 2016 at 9:20 am

      Ha! I know! 21st century living, here we come 😉

      Reply
  5. Laura says

    July 13, 2016 at 12:57 am

    As someone who’s definitely experienced my share of loneliness (who hasn’t?) in this state of life, I just want to say how much it would mean to me if more people would do this. Dinner doesn’t have to be a big deal! Let go of the ego and invite people into your life. And be sure to include people who aren’t in the same stage of life: single, religious, priests, older people, etc. It can mean so much. Thanks for encouraging this!

    Reply
    • Haley says

      July 13, 2016 at 9:21 am

      YES to this! For some reason, spur of the moment having people over seems to be more common with our friends in TX than it was in FL. It really helps keep away those feelings of isolation.

      Reply
  6. Andrea says

    July 13, 2016 at 1:19 am

    Where did you get your Our Lady of LaLeche statue? I love it!!!

    Reply
    • Haley says

      July 13, 2016 at 9:15 am

      From the shrine in St. Augustine, FL!

      Reply
  7. Kaitlyn Mason says

    July 14, 2016 at 10:44 pm

    Super great article, thanks! It’s hard to have friends over when everyone is trying to get their kids to bed early… but it’s really good to get together. Thanks for writing this! Peace!

    Reply
  8. Kerri says

    November 15, 2017 at 10:39 pm

    Great article! I have this exact problem. We live in a wealthy area, but aren’t wealthy people. We are more “working class” I guess. We have a lovely, well-kept little home, but it’s small when compared to the mansions here. We have 3 kids and live in 1250 sq ft. Whereas, so many around here have a bedroom for each kids, a playroom, a storage room, etc. I always feel like I don’t belong and don’t want to invite people over. You’ve inspired me to make it a priority to invite someone over and share a meal. Your posts really are wonderful because you seem to truly understand the everyday “little” fears women can have. You’re doing great work.

    Reply
    • Haley says

      November 16, 2017 at 2:55 pm

      Aw thanks, Kerri!

      Reply

Leave a Reply to Rabia @TheLiebers Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Contact

haley@carrotsformichaelmas.com

Sign Up for My Newsletter!

More ideas about celebrating the liturgical year, free printables, great links I love, and more of the Carrots family in your inbox!



Welcome! I’m Haley Stewart, a bookish mama of four and wife to a beekeeper. Writer, speaker, podcaster, and Catholic convert. Homeschooling, bacon-eating, and bright red lipstick-wearing Jane Austen aficionado. My first book, The Grace of Enough: Pursuing Less and Living More in a Throwaway Culture is available now!

All rights reserved. ©Haley Stewart Unauthorized usage and duplication of text and images without the express permission of Haley and Carrots for Michaelmas is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links to posts may be used as long as clear credit is given to Haley/Carrots for Michaelmas.
Follow on Bloglovin
follow us in feedly

Recent Posts

  • Let’s Support Pregnant Moms and Babies!
  • My New Book! Jane Austen’s Genius Guide to Life
  • Let’s go to the UK this summer!
  • Join me in supporting Haitian women!
  • Big Life Changes for the Stewarts!

Archives

Disclosure

Some links found in my posts are affiliate links. If you make a purchase through an affiliate link, I will receive a percentage of the sale at no additional cost to you. Thank you for helping me support my family and keep the lights on here at Carrots! Haley Stewart is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
Privacy Policy

Copyright Carrots for Michaelmas © 2023 · Design and Development by Santa Clara Design · Log in