Show and Tell

I know I've promised not to craft on this blog. Or pressure you into organizing anything, or painting anything, or planting anything. Please do not misconstrue this post as craft-like pressure.



Because heaven knows Back to School season (can we go ahead and call it a season? Because it is. And I swear it pretty much starts before I've gotten the kids home from the last day of the previous school year) is already uber stressful. There's registration, purchasing the right back pack, gathering school supplies, returning school supplies after meeting teachers and discovering they want completely different supplies, and of the utmost importance: procuring the perfect first-day-of-school outfit.



Also, you have to find the perfect lunch box. I suggested my husband might want to upgrade his mode of transportation for his midday meal a few years ago, as perhaps it could be misconstrued as unprofessional to tote one's sammy and banana in a torn Wal-Mart plastic bag to a Fortune 500 company. As a joke I purchased this lovely 1940s era lunch pail at Scott's Antique Market in Atlanta and offered to pack his lunch for him. He said he'd only take his lunch in this when he wanted to catch himself a little tetanus, so we have called this the Tetanus Lunchbox ever since.


The Tetanus Lunchbox is enjoying its day in the sun, y'all.



Anywho, my sister introduced me to this lovely blog called Talk of the House. There are a million kazillion blogs about lovely homes, but this one's my new fave. She does all this fun and creative decorating around the seasons, which inspired my little Back to School entry table. So thanks, Kelly, for the fabulous idea. And giving me the excuse to pull out the Tetanus Lunchbox, along with the girls' elementary school yearbooks and other school-themed books.

Which of course led to digging out pictures of the girls in preschool. Which made me sit in amazement at the many ways they have changed, and the many ways they have stayed the same. Which led to a bizarre mix of exaltation and melancholy, which may or may not have led to me eating some of those Smarties candies. (By the way, my sister suggested mixing in some Dum Dum lollipops to see if anyone caught it. Genius idea which I sadly never implemented.)

The best part is 95 percent of this stuff I had around the house. Which is good, because it left time for me to take care of other Back to School emergencies, like:




XOXO ---

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Learning About Laundry (and Other Fun Summer Activities)

When my girls were younger, there were many things they had to be taught to do versus just soaking it in from bearing witness.

For example, tying their shoes. I don't know about you, but my kids didn't learn to tie their shoes just by living in a house where shoes were being tied. We had to show them repeatedly, and patiently, giving them tricks to remember the exact steps and praising their success.

I would like very much to not talk about the fact my children -- both officially middle school students -- will wander around with their shoelaces flapping in the wind. (In fact, just the other day, I noticed the 13-year-old had shoe strings untied, so I stood on one of them while she wasn't paying attention. When she started to walk away and was abruptly snatched back to my side, do you know I didn't even have to say "TIE YOUR SHOES" ?!!  She instinctively understood the message. Parenting can be so rewarding.)

What's that phrase about leading a horse to water? Yeah.

So this may be a giant waste of my time, but this summer, I am spending a little extra time teaching them things that to me seem intuitive, but really aren't. Things like:

How to clean out and organize a junky drawer.
How to clean a bathroom.
How to dust and vacuum a living room.
How to organize your time so you get to the fun stuff ... while making sure you get chores done, too.
How to make a bet for maximum return without losing your pants. (The three of us played this game last night while Jake is out of town. We love it. I did a fantastic job teaching them, obviously, since one of them beat me handily. Look out Vegas, here we come.)

As evidenced by the photo above, there are some common-sensical items that are to be covered, too.

Anywho, if I'm not posting quite as often this summer, please do forgive me. I'm trying to teach the future generation that very often, that missing swimsuit can be located in the suitcase you forgot to unpack. It's very time consuming.

XO --

Owl Would You Like Some Coffee?

Ah, February. Sometimes you just wear me out with the rain, and the cold, and the way you trick the weather professionals into thinking it will be a sunny afternoon and then MWHAHAHAHA you twist your mustache and it stays wet and cold.

So today, instead of playing tennis as I'd planned, I'm stuck inside with my friend the owl, the host of a piping hot latte for moi.

Which in retrospect is probably a good thing, since I've been playing Carnival Cruise director (except without the electrical fire and raw sewage - watch a hilarious SNL skit here) since the kids were out of school for two days and I got essentially zero work done, but did manage to host multiple slumber parties and go to mall several times.

As much as I like to have a plan and stick to it, I must grudgingly admit most of the time I end up spending time exactly where I need to spend it most.

Yesterday, with my kids. Today, with my work. Tomorrow (hopefully), with my serve.

That is, if February will concede. Or at least pretend to be March.

XO--

Is It Illegal to Bring Wine to the Polls?

As a work-from-home mother of two pre-teen/teen daughters, I am constantly looking for ways to save time. Also for ways to convince all the adolescent boys within my daughters’ social circles my daughters' are not to be trifled with, but this article will focus just on the time management thing.

One of my favorite time management tips is...

Do One Thing Today to Make Tomorrow Easier

Which seems a little counterintuitive, I’ll admit. As in “why would I do something for tomorrow when I still have 11 things I have to do TODAY?” At least that’s what I thought when I decided to give this a try.

I discovered that in the midst of feeling frazzled trying to meet work deadlines, throwing something into the slow cooker for dinner, filling out permission slips and mediating tooth-gnashing battles over raw hide bones (between the dogs, not the children) … doing just one thing for tomorrow, no matter how seemingly insignificant, gave me a sliver of control.

You know, it's that same feeling of having prepared well in advance for an exam, thus giving you a sense of superiority over those who were cramming through the night and arrived bleary-eyed and muddled on exam day. (Incidentally, I was almost always the crammer. If I bothered to study at all, but do NOT blow my cover with my children, who assume I was as on top of my studies as I require them to be.)

So some days I just jot down my to-do list for the next day, or set out tomorrow's outfit, or make a phone call I could put off but choose to knock out today. Sometimes I just scoot the throw pillows out of the way right before I go to bed so I don’t tear off my toe when I trip over them first thing in the morning.

You’re welcome, me. I just saved your toe.

This brings me around to tomorrow. Election Day 2012. I’m trying to think of ways to make the brutal lines a little more fun. I am thinking of bringing a lawn chair, a cheese tray, and loading a bunch of funny videos to watch while I wait in line for the privilege to vote.

My only question: Is it wrong to drink at a fire station (my polling site) at 10 a.m. (is this the right time or the wrong time to go?) Will I be mobbed, my chair and treats stolen while some kid watches Will Ferrell on technology stolen from me?

My parting words of advice: do one tiny thing to make tomorrow better, and remember every vote does, in fact, count (hello, 2000!)

What's one thing you can do to make tomorrow easier? What suggestions do you have for me to pass the time in Election Day lines?

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Independence Day from the Inbox

Does the sheer influx to your email inbox make you want to delete your account and assume a new identity? Maybe that of a 102-year-old lady from Bellville, Texas who hasn't a clue about email? (It's possible I was watching Willard Scott's birthday wishes as I wrote this post.)

I get anywhere from 50 to 150 emails a day. Sometimes it's people hitting the "reply all" button much like children given $100 and a parent-free trip to a candy store -- that is, with wild and manic abandon. (Reply all people slay me. It's very likely that if one day I finally snap, it will be at someone who has written "I'll bring the Capri Suns" and sent it to 160 people. I apologize in advance to the bringer of the Capri Suns.)

But another email issue is one I brought down upon myself like the electronic plague. People will send me links and say "you will love this flash sale/writing/coffee/wine/purse-of-the-month website/newsletter/blog" and then I'd sign up and, 95 percent of the time, delete the emails before I even read them.

This seemed like an appropriate week to declare independence. Independence from a bunch of email that didn't enhance my life even one tiny bit, but did suck up a bunch of time better spent elsewhere. Not to mention the stress of staring down a kazillion emails in your to-do box, and the general sensation I could be missing something important (like a client request or writing assignment or notification I won a generous settlement from a lawsuit in which I wasn't even involved) among the emails from Gilt Group and Daily Candy.

So, I zipped through my list and kept only the subscriptions that I actually use -- a couple of sites that send me coupons for overpriced clothes for my fashion-conscious pre-teens, a few blogs that either make me laugh, give great advice, or tell me something I didn't already know. (Hopefully this blog falls into that category for you, otherwise I've just written the most terrifically self-defeating blog post ever.)

After several days of my new-found independence, I'm proud to be an American ... where at least I know I'm free ... Wait. Sorry. What I meant to say is I no longer try to drown my iPhone because I notice I have 47 new emails.

Join me in the land of unsubscribe, won't you? (Except from this blog. Do not unsubscribe from this blog, please. In fact, encourage all your friends to subscribe by emailing them this link. Then we can all join forces to find the "reply all" people and make them pay. Probably by singing patriotic songs to them.)

Friends

Something interesting has happened since my last post about middle school. I have received texts, emails, phone calls, Facebook posts and had real-live, face-to-face conversations (remember those?!) about one topic:


Mean girls. 


Though this topic isn't for girls only. Girls can be mean to other girls, they can be mean to boys, boys can be mean to girls and other boys, too. And it starts early these days -- well before middle school. Sometimes as early as second grade, sometimes even earlier.


This was supposed to be a quick, short post (ha! haha!), so I'll throw out a few things I've told my girls when they've come home upset:

• There are just people out there (children and adults alike) who just aren't very nice. I remind them this isn't about them, it's about whatever that person is dealing with that day, or in their lives in general. Sometimes that manifests as not playing nice with others. 
• Be kind without being a victim. 
• Know the difference between tattling and making an adult aware of bullying, whether the bullying is physical or verbal, or both.
• Understand that kindness breeds kindness, and the folks who are breeding the other stuff ... well, it catches up to them eventually.
• Not long ago someone said to me that a true friend makes you feel better about yourself, not the other way around. Be the kind of person who makes others feel better about themselves ... that catches up to you eventually, too.
• Remember, this too shall pass.

I know my kids aren't perfect. I am sure they have hurt other kids feelings, left other kids out, or stood by when they should have stood up for a friend. But I hope most of the time they think of how it feels to be on the other side and do the right thing.


What are your strategies for teaching your kids to deal with the not-so-nice kids? How do you teach your kids to be kind? 


The above photo is from the little house my husband built for the girls a few years ago. The "Friends" plaque was their decorative addition. 

I Could Really Use a Wish Right Now

Wow. The last couple of months have been something else. This email I sent to a relative in Seattle sums it up:

Sorry it took so long to respond. Generally I loathe excuses, but feel it would be appropriate for me to recap:

Since Feb. 1, 2011:

Hadley has tested positive for strep throat five times, Callie twice.

Hadley has had mono for the last 6 or so weeks. She's missed 30 days of school this year, and has only been cleared to attend 1/2 days the last three weeks.

My dog died.

I keep throwing food on the floor, then having to pick it back up. (See above.)

I have had a sinus infection (and bronchitis, though that got better about a week ago) since Feb. 12. Am currently on my third antibiotic, which is nearly 1000 mg and I will take for 20 days. I hope it doesn't make my skin fall off or make my intestines fall out.

Out of the last 6 weeks, Jake has either been out of town on business or working on a major product roll-out (ie, at work early, back home late) for four of those weeks.

Do they still make Calgon? Because I need something to come take my a#% away.

Everyone has those days - or months - where they are just looking for the sunset. Because the sun will come out ... well, y'all know the words.

Make me feel better. Give me a recap of your day, week, month from H-E-double-hockey-sticks.

Music I Love

I’m always listening to music when I’m writing. Here’s what I’m listening to right now.

Pride (In the Name of Love) {Dierks Bentley}

I don’t usually like country music, and I’m not usually a fan of remakes. Something about Dierks Bentley’s cover of U2’s class Pride is nothing short of perfection.

Dog Days Are Over {Florence + The Machine}

I liked it before, then the Glee cast covered it … and it magically uploaded to my iPod. Now I love it.

Don’t Change {INXS} and Fall Down {Toad the Wet Sprocket}

Perennial faves. These songs remind me of coming home from college and going to the Poplar Lounge in Memphis to see local favorite singer Todd Snider.

Little Lion Man {Mumford & Sons}

A divine recipe of great lyrics and a moody melody that somehow remains upbeat. Is it an apology, or not? I’m not sure, but I really like it.

Where the Streets Have No Name – Live from Boston {U2}

My favorite song of all time.

What Part of Forever {Cee Lo Green}

Cee Lo. How could you not be fantastic with a name like Cee Lo? And to be able to pull off a song on The Twilight Saga: Eclipse soundtrack and be nominated for a Grammy for a song called F**K You – impressive.

Gloria {Van Morrison}

Was this song in the movie The Outsiders? Because that’s what I think of when I hear this song. Not that I remember much more than Rob Lowe and Patrick Swayze from that movie, but anywho….

Reptilia {The Strokes} The Calculation {Regina Spektor} Uprising {Muse}

These are just current favorites that defy description. Not really. It’s just getting late so you’ll just have to take my word for it without explanation.

Cooler Than Me {Mike Posner}

I just think this song is kind of funny. And my girls love to sing it, and I love to sing it with them.

Forget You {Glee Cast}

As mentioned before, Cee Lo Green has a version of this song not fit for little ears, so this Glee version does in a pinch.

A Little Less Conversation and Memphis Tennessee {Elvis Presley}

After Elvis died, my mom and dad had to put away the Elvis albums for a spell because I would burst into tears every time I heard them. Luckily listening to Elvis makes me nothing but happy these days, so I listen frequently. Long Live Elvis.

Do you like to listen to music when you're working? If so, what are some of your favorite artists?

An Apple A Day

If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, we must start eating more of these apples. Two (out of two) children have strep throat, and I have a cold, so today the girls and I had an official sick day. We spent it making chicken noodle soup and smoothies … and I tried to figure out some of the bells and whistles on our snazzy camera that I have no idea how to use.

Sadly, I may have permanently set our camera to take five quick pictures – with flash - right in a row every single time you take a picture. Which is alarming when under the influence of cold medication.

Anywho, Amazon.com is going to really appreciate all of you who commented with your favorite book since I’ll be downloading many of your suggestions right to my Kindle. Karen B. – you might consider asking for a Kindle from Santa this year …. then you can use your $25 gift certificate to download a few new books, too. Either way, congrats!

XO – Amy Mac

The Real Secret to Staying Sane During Back to School Chaos

In the rush to get school supplies (and complete the ten million other necessary tasks to get ready for a new school year), I feel it would be helpful to have a back-to-school list to keep mothers sane. I write about it here, and would love to hear ideas from you – real and imagined – that might help moms through the first few weeks of school without losing our minds.

And, hey – who says the kids should be the only ones with the cute notebooks, folders and writing pads? The folks at Carolina Pad make some of the cutest school and office supplies around, and they’re going to give a little bundle away to Amy Mac readers! Leave a comment by August 31 to be entered.

The photo in this blog entry was taken with my iPhone with a very groovy application called Hipstamatic which allows you to create retro photographs with your iPhone camera – check it out!

XO-Amy Mac

The Greatest Snack Giveaway

Everyone has a favorite snack. You know, the one that makes your mouth water and calls your name if it’s in your pantry or fridge. One of my favorite snacks is salsa and chips. More specifically, Remember Alamo Salsa – which is home made by my friend and neighbor Jane. Jane hails from Texas, and I tell ya, those folks know how to whip up some tasty salsa. Combined with Hint of Lime Tostitos, Remember Alamo Salsa makes me happy.

Another favorite is Cambozola cheese with roasted garlic on baguette. All you do is cut off the top of a head of garlic, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, wrap in foil and bake at 400 degrees for about an hour. Cut the baguette into slices, toast, and then spread the roasted garlic and Cambozola on top. Mmm-mmm.

What’s your favorite snack? Leave a comment, and you’ll be entered to win two free jars of salsa (one mild, one spicy), compliments of Remember Alamo Salsa! You have until April 23 to leave a comment. If you're the winner, I'll get them in the mail to you in time for Cinco de Mayo!

PS-You must leave a comment to be entered, but you get extra credit of you sign up for e-mail updates, too!

Lucky Finds: A Spring Purse Giveaway

I’ve always loved to sew. My grandmother, Nanny, taught me to sew when I visited the thriving metropolis of Pinson, Tenn. (trust me, it is way, way out in the country) when I was a young girl. Pinson was full of delightful adventures for a girl who grew up in the suburbs of Memphis. You might start the day by picking strawberries from huge fields, then head home to whip up a cake from strawberries so fresh they were still warm from the sun.

Next up, lunch. No sandwiches and chips at Nanny’s. Nope, there was always a table full of vegetables from the garden out back (cooked in loads of butter and salt, but never mind the health aspect), meat fresh from my uncle’s real working farm, biscuits from scratch, and sweet iced tea.

We’d spend the afternoons hiding from the unforgiving Tennessee summer sun by sewing. You’ve never seen a woman who could sew full outfits as quickly as my Nanny. I think she outfitted entire towns of children in places where my Uncle Joe would take mission trips, like the Honduras. She was a very patient teacher, and I still get a thrill to this day when the perfect textile in just the right hue meets a well-designed pattern to form something that I made with my own hands (or really, a quick-stitching sewing machine.)

When my girls were babies, I sewed lots for fun. Then before I knew it, a business sewing purses sprung from my hobby. It was loads of fun, and lots and lots of purses were made and sold. But a few years ago I decided I better get back to writing. So I sold off most of my inventory, and my sewing machine started getting a little dusty … only getting used when a pair of pants needed hemming or someone needed a costume sewed for a school play.

I was cleaning out my sewing room this weekend, and look what I found! A few of my purses, just hanging out, waiting on someone to throw in their wallet, cell phone and sunglasses and take them out for a spin on their shoulder.

What better place to find a happy home for this little gem than right here with my blog buddies? All you have to do is leave a comment on this post, and you’ll be entered into the giveaway! If you sign up for my emails (over on the right column), you’ll be entered, too! (If you are on my email list and comment – you get entered twice!) St. Patrick's Day, 5 p.m. EDT is when we'll decide the winner, so be sure to weigh in before then.

Tell me … what’s your favorite memory of your grandmother?

XO – Amy Mac

Where's Your Home Office?

During my office hours - when the girls are safely tucked away at school, Louis the trusty Corgi is napping, and my husband is at his office - I have a respectable office (well, a spare bedroom on the main floor set up as a respectable office) where I work.

But once I've picked the girls up from school, this little corner of the kitchen becomes my office. Sometimes it's rather tricky managing homework (when did they start doing multiplication in second grade?), laundry (who is bringing their laundry to my house - because we can NOT be doing this much damage weekly!) and other household tasks like dinner (yes, that's the edge of a slow cooker you see to the left) while finishing work projects ... but it's one way I've found to actually stay on top of my to-do list.

How do you keep projects moving ahead when you have a thousand things to do and not enough office time to get it all done?

I Heart Magazines (Especially Ones With Hearts on the Cover)

This being February, the month of love and whatnot, I thought I'd confess - I love, love, love magazines. Love them. Love the waterfall of colors jumping out from each page, love the way a funky font can set the tone for a whole story, love the inspiration from well-written editorial.



That giant stack you see above? Those are just the magazines in the family room by the fireplace ... there's another stack on my bedside table, yet another in a basket in the living room, and a couple in the front seat of the car to entertain me while waiting in the carpool line.

Magazines are also a wonderful spot to get a little inspiration for stories to pitch. It's like a little focus group, free of charge, about what your target audience is reading.

What's your favorite magazine for inspiration?

Creativity, Cape Cod, and Clean Clothes

A good friend emails me and asks “do you have any organizational tips for creative people?”

What she really means is “when I am working on a critical task with a deadline, how do I resist the urge to pick up my knitting needles and knit a sweater, particularly when I have just purchased the most beautiful Angora sage green yarn – and there are people in my house who want to eat and wear clean clothes?”

It’s the bane of every creative person I know – how do we achieve focus during our day when there are a thousand things to do, and we’d much rather be making something pretty? I certainly do not claim to be a time management or organizational expert. In fact, the only reason I am organized at all is if I weren’t, I would accomplish precisely zero tasks. Ever. I swear I’d just watch re-runs of Friends and eat Cape Cod Salt and Vinegar chips while my house fell down around my ankles.

Obviously that existence is unacceptable on many different levels (though I am not opposed to living off those chips for the rest of my days.) So I’ve come up with a system that helps me scratch items off my to-do list, and arrive at appointments on time - without squashing my creativity. Maybe one or two will work for you.

Mix the fun-to-do with the have-to-do. If I am staring at a list of mundane tasks from dawn until dusk, I know I will procrastinate and get essentially nothing accomplished. Therefore, I inject fun tasks (shop for new shoes, lunch with friends, purchase mums for porch) with the tedious (doctor’s appointments, grocery shopping, throwing out the mums I killed because they were never watered because that was boring.)

Create a system and segment your day. If I have to figure out what to do when every single day, I’ll spend an hour vacillating on whether or not to exercise, or write that proposal, or vacuum the baseboards. So, I exercise first thing in the morning. Then I work for a few hours. Then I do a couple of household tasks or run errands. Then I get the kids…..you get the picture.

Pleasing environments encourage task completion. My planner is cute and organized. My desk is relatively clear. I listen to upbeat music when I’m writing. I try to keep pretty flowers, or a favorite picture of the girls, or a bulletin board full of tear sheets I love. For me, if my surroundings are pretty, I’ll stick with the task longer and be distracted less.

Make “I’ll do that when I’m done with this” your new mantra. On days when I am running in a million different directions and trying to get a thousand things done, I keep paper and pen with me at all times. That way, when I’m, say, folding a load of laundry and I think of a unique idea for this year’s Christmas cards, I jot the idea down and keep folding the laundry. This keeps me from jumping from task to task and never actually getting any one thing finished.

So there you have it. The reasons I am able to walk around every day as an apparently fully functional human, showered, dressed and ready to go most days by 9 a.m. Of course, I’ve created a little list while I’ve been writing.

Since I’m done here, I’ll get to that next task.

XO – Amy Mac

This Little Piggy Stayed Home

"Mom, I don’t feel good.”


“You’ll feel better once you get to school.”


“I don’t think so. My stomach’s been hurting really bad since last night.”


“Hmmmm. Let’s try some Tums!”


“Mom, four people are out in my class with Swine Flu.”


“Okay, go back to bed!”


Usually I’m not such a pushover. Especially when I have a business meeting that’s been on the books for weeks. Around our house, if you are not aflame with fever or having some very serious intestinal distress you’re not staying home.


Except of course when H1N1 (who comes up with these names? H1N1 sounds like an algebraic equation I never learned in school) is alive and well in the schools. The fact that my daughter’s friend who was at our house late last week is out with the swine flu was enough for me – I caved and let my daughter stay home.


The nightly news reports the economic impact of H1N1 (maybe we could call it Porky’s Pandemic– that has a nice ring) could be serious. Companies are preparing crisis plans for significant numbers of absentee staff.


No matter the size of our business – or if we’re simply running a household – it's time to get our crisis plan ready. Discover your email program’s auto reply function. Find a colleague who can step in to cover your urgent tasks. Become an expert at determining what absolutely must be done in a given day (for example, getting an important business proposal out the door … or feeding your family) and what can be delayed until you’re feeling better (web site updates, cooking intricate gourmet-type meals.)


It’s lunchtime, so I’m going to check if my little piggy wants roast beef, or if my little piggy wants none. But if anybody tries to go “wee-wee-wee” all the way home, I’m taking them straight to the doctor.

Just May Feel Like Singing Autumn Song

I love Autumn. Everything about it makes me happy– the smell of cinnamon and nutmeg, the nip in the air, the glorious colors of the changing leaves, fall festivals, carving pumpkins, red and gold mums placed carefully around the front porch and the back deck.

So yesterday when I needed a light jacket while playing tennis (on the first day of Sept. in Atlanta, trust me – that’s unusual) I realized it was time to pack away summer things and prepare to usher in the sights and smells of fall.

Which meant coming straight home and lighting every single summer-smelling candle that I own. Out with the “Bob’s Flower Shoppe” and in with the “Pumpkin Spice.” I spent much of my afternoon shouting out warnings – “Don’t get too close to that candle!”

I am a big believer in every season having its’ own distinct “environment.” I do not like to see bathing suit displays in January (unless of course I am packing for a tropical vacation.) Heart-shaped cookies in October take away from such confections in February. Christmas music in July is akin to wearing your clothes backwards – you can do it, but it just isn’t right.

So whether you create wonderful jewelry, concoct art-museum-quality pottery, or just endeavor to create a certain atmosphere in your home … now is the time to decide how to use the season to your advantage.

With college football kicking-off this weekend, Halloween around the corner, and Thanksgiving and Christmas just beyond … opportunities abound for small business owners. I’m thinking of using the “It’s a Treat to Work With You!” theme and sending an assortment of candies to potential and current clients.

The trick will be to package the treats and get them out the door before they are gobbled up by the turkeys at my house!

As we like to say south of the Mason-Dixon line … Happy Fall, Y’all!

You Know I Like My Chicken Fried

Yesterday, I started my day with a business meeting at the Buckhead Club, went straight to another meeting with a favorite client, immediately to the PTA office at the girls’ school, zoomed home for a quick snack, swim practice, the library, then back home again to pull together dinner by 6 p.m.

So there I am in heels and suit pants (I shed the suit jacket at noon when the temp hit about 90-something degrees) -- frying chicken. Only in the South would you catch somebody – after a really, really long day – throwing together a dinner involving fried chicken, biscuits and gravy.

Don’t get me wrong – there are lots of days when a frozen pre-made lasagna and bagged salad passes as the evening meal. There are also days when I say “I am too tired to make dinner, or for that matter, clean up afterwards. Let’s eat out!”

But sometimes, ya gotta have biscuits. With gravy. And if it happens to be at the end of a long day – well, you just have to go with it.

And have your chicken-fried.

The Ten-Year Learning Curve

Anyone who has a child (whether a brand-new baby or one old enough for college) has read a parenting book. Lots of them are full of sound advice, and some of them are ... not. I recently wrote an article for Northside Woman about a few things I wish I'd read in a book when my girls were tiny babies. What advice do you have for new moms that they'll never read in a book?

No Comment

In my last post I wrote about being “published” in Peter Bowerman’s Well-Fed Writer book. Peter sent me a nice thank you note via email for plugging the book on my blog, and mentioned trying to post the thank you as a comment under the blog post. He gave up when he was asked to set up an account or “sign in.” Emailing ensued, and the ever-helpful Peter suggested I check the settings for commenting on my blog.


Lo and behold, the settings (which I’d never considered until the very moment Peter emailed me) are extremely stringent. To comment on this blog you essentially had to provide me with your PIN number, your bank account number and carte blanche to purchase whatever I wanted at Sephora. (Which I encourage you to do anyway if you are so inclined.)


Perhaps it wasn’t that bad, but it was pretty ridiculous - completely by accident, I assure you. So if any of you have avoided commenting because it was going to take too much time, I have unchained the shackles and hope you’ll write, suggest, question… delight me with your creative commentary.


However, I recommend you send your bank account and pin numbers directly to my email. We wouldn’t want just anyone having that information.