You’ve been waiting a looooooong  time for your missionary to get home. Moments like these are once in a lifetime. So you want to welcome your missionary home with style without stressing yourself out. Well, I’ve got the solution.

I don’t have kids who are old enough to serve a mission. But my neighbor just welcomed her first missionary home. So I offered to decorate her front yard for the exciting occasion. 

Buy A LOT of yellow ribbon and balloons

The yellow ribbon— has long been a symbol of support for absent or missing loved ones. So, hanging yellow ribbon and balloons are perfect since two years (year and a half for girls) is a really long time to be away from home. 

Buy helium balloons with hi float which allows them to float for 2-3 days. They are a little bit more expensive but definitely worth it. I bought 25 balloons but you can buy as many as you want. The more the better.

Attach balloons to skewers

Wrap a small rubber band around the dull end of a wooden skewer. Then tie the end of the ribbon attached to each balloon just below the rubber band. This will prevent the ribbon from slipping off the skewer and the balloon floating away.

Cover your lawn with balloons

Carefully push the sharp end of the skewer into the grass. Be careful because you might get a sliver or snap the skewer in half. Scatter the balloons randomly across the yard or you can line them in an organized way. Whatever you want. The more balloons the better.

Tie your yellow ribbon everywhere and anywhere. All of the yellow balloons and ribbons will make your missionary’s eyes light up when they come home for the first time. 

Here’s some other fun welcome home ideas for your missionary. 

• Ten awesome ideas for welcoming home a missionary
• Missionary Tag welcome home poster
• Returned missionary survival kit
• How to make a welcome back homecoming basket

Who are missionaries?

More than 70,000 full-time missionaries are serving missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Most missionaries are young people under the age of 25, serving in more than 400 missions throughout the world. If you would like to know more about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and our beliefs, contact a missionary near you by visiting mormon.org.

What other ideas do you have to welcome home your missionary? Leave your comments below.

Related link: 16 memorable mission call opening ideas

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In the Mormon culture, opening your mission call is one of the most exciting times in your life. At only 18 years old (19 for girls), you could be called to serve as a missionary anywhere in the world for 18-24 months! Why not make this a memorable event that you can share with your friends and family? Here’s 16 LDS mission call opening ideas to make opening your mission call a moment you will never forget:

When I opened my mission call 15 years ago, it was a scaled back event that I shared with just a few of my friends and immediate family. Fortunately, my brother was smart enough to get it on video.

Times have change a bit now and opening your mission call has become, in some cases, a huge event. Here’s my nephew opening his call:

So, whether you are looking for a more personal event with just a few friends and family or share it with everyone, here’s some ideas that will make it memorable.

#1: Decide who you want to be there

Many might argue that inviting tons of people to watch you open your call takes away from the significance of the event. In that case, try opening it by yourself. If you do want others to be there, it’s your mission call. You get to decide who you want to be there.

#2: Consider the location

Most people open their mission calls at home, however, if you have a lot of people coming, you could do it at a park or outside somewhere. Or you may have somewhere in mind with sentimental significance. For example, where were you when you decided that you wanted to go on a mission?

#3: Send invites

Most of the time, when you get your mission call, you don’t really want to wait very long to open it.  However, if you have the patience, you can email or even mail invitations to those you would like to attend.

#4: Tell everyone to come early

If you’re going to have a crowd, make sure you tell everyone to arrive at least 30 minutes early.  That way, you’re not waiting for 30 EXTRA minutes for those stragglers to arrive.

#5: Decorate your front door

This would work for a missionary farewell and/or homecoming too but you could decorate your front door to look like a missionary’s suit. Cute idea.

Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/421227371369635450/

#6: Start with a prayer

Regardless if you are opening your call with a huge group, just immediate family members or even by yourself, I would recommend saying a prayer before you open it. It will bring the spirit into your heart and prepare you mentally.

#7: Have a guessing contest

Grab a large map of the world and let everyone place their guess with a post-it note. Whoever gets the closest, wins a prize. Tip: Take a picture of all the guesses before you open the call in case people try to move their guess once they find out where you’re going.

#8: Make a globe guestbook

If you want to remember everyone who came to watch you open your call, instead of a guestbook, grab a globe and have everyone sign it! Tip: Have them sign it after you open your call so you can circle where you’re going.

If you don’t want to do a globe, just have everyone sign or put their guesses on the mission call envelope.

#9: Make a mission advice jar

As your guests arrive, have an advice jar set out for them to give some tips to being a successful missionary. Basically put a ribbon on a mason jar and put some blank advice cards next to it.

#10: Capture some mission call photos

Get a photographer to capture some images of your loved ones guesses and when you open the call.

#11: Feed the masses

More than 100 people came to watch my nephew open his mission call.  Although it’s definitely not expected to feed all of those people, if you feel so inclined, make it easy. My sister-in-law did a cute dessert buffet so we had something to snack on while we were waiting for my nephew to open his call.

#12: Pull out your inner Martha Stewart

If you’re up for the challenge, there are some way cute treats you can make for your mission call opening audience.

Here’s some other ideas:

Sister Missionary Cake

Missionary cookies

#13: Let your family open your call first

Here’s a different approach that one missionary took when opening his call. Instead of opening his call, he let his family open it and then he asked questions to guess where he was going.

#14: Consider using a video calling app

If you don’t have a big house or aren’t fond of crowds, you use a video calling app such as FaceTime, Marco Polo or Google Duo. Everyone can enjoy the moment with you, just not in person.

#15: Open multiple calls at once

My brother got his mission call at the same time as his best friend.  So both of our families got together and we watched both of them open their calls.  It was double the excitement and double the fun!

#16: Dress for the occasion

My nephew wore his suit when he opened his call. He happened to go to the temple earlier that day and decided to keep his suit on. It added a surprisingly nice touch to the event and helped everyone envision him as the missionary he was about to become.

Who are LDS missionaries?

More than 70,000 full-time missionaries are serving missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Most missionaries are young people under the age of 25, serving in more than 400 missions throughout the world. If you would like to know more about the Mormon church and our beliefs, contact a missionary near you by visiting mormon.org.

What ideas do you have for opening your mission call?  Leave your comments below.

More from My Silly Squirts: Missionary gift idea: missionary treat pocket

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