Sandy Coughlin loves hospitality, cooking, and opening her home to others with her husband and three growing teenagers. She’s the author of The Reluctant Entertainer (Aug. 2010) and co-author (with her husband Paul) of Married…But Not Engaged. She’s been featured on numerous media outlets including Moody’s Midday Connection, Focus on the Family, The 700 Club, and Library Journal. You can find Sandy’s blog about simple but savvy entertaining, as well as the benefits to imperfect living, at ReluctantEntertainer.com.

You can find Sandy on Twitter and Facebook: Sandy Coughlin.

Sandy Coughlin is the author of The Reluctant Entertainer:

Hospitality can be a blessing to both the host and her guests, but for many women today, it simply doesn’t happen. Feelings of inadequacy, unrealistic expectations, fear of failure, lack of time–all conspire to steal the joy that comes from opening one’s home and sharing fellowship with others. In The Reluctant Entertainer, Sandy Coughlin relates to people in real ways about real meals that mortals cook, during which real conversations draw people together. Would-be hostesses will discover that true hospitality is not about being perfect, cooking a fancy meal, or spending a lot of money. Rather, it’s about an open door and an open heart.

Sandy and Meredith from Like Merchant Ships will be speaking on: Entertaining on a Budget

Why practice hospitality when it seems like it takes so much work and sometimes costs so much money to make it happen? Sandy and Meredith are 2 friends who’ve reaped the benefits of hospitality and want to show you why it’s important to live an efficient life. Let them help you give of yourselves to others by entertaining in your home – even when you’re on a budget! They’ll be sharing their different approaches and even hit on the discouraging emphasis that our society puts on “how things have to look.” This message will be full of good information and freeing to the women who want to live a more efficient, creative life when it comes to hospitality.