A Little Time With Burl

Once a week, Burl and I have a little routine.  We go to women's Bible study at church, where I hang out with other ladies and talk about the Bible while Burl heads to the nursery for play and snacks.  I love going-he loves going-win.win.  Then, we occupy ourselves for about an hour until it's time to meet my dad for lunch at the school where he cooks.  Usually we head to the playground, but today we ran some errands.  

I picked up my eggs, then headed to the bakery for fresh bread to go with our salad tonight.  Right across from the bakery is the district's sculpture garden.  It's big enough for a toddler to roam and small enough for me to follow him with a camera.  He proudly lead the way.

He saw his first butterfly there and I was able to capture the pursuit.  It was about that time that I started to wonder if I would ever be able to do this again.  To slow down, to be quiet, to be calm enough to snap a picture of a small thing chasing a smaller thing.  

While I introduced Burl to the art of dipping his feet in the fountain, I struggled to keep him from diving in, keep my sunglasses from falling , and photograph the cute moment.  Something about adding a second baby in there is going to make things a bit more challenging.  

With one month to go, I'm savoring and starting to miss my days of just one.  I know that I'll keep trying to make life fun, searching for baby adventures, recording them along the way, and maybe one of these days I'll get a decent picture of me being a mom.  Maybe.

But I will never stop the balancing act.

The Farm, 2011

It's that time of year again.  

My dad got a year older and we made the trip to his farm to celebrate.

Everything was about the same as last year...

The birthday boy cooked us a good meal - A Country Breakfast with a focus on pork.  Since he just had a pig slaughtered, we enjoyed smoked bacon, sausage, and the best ham I think that I've ever had.  There were some carbs in there too and one tomato, but we mainly kept to the meat.

We enjoyed the scenery and some slammin' good weather.  No clouds, cooler temps, lots of nature...perfection to a tee.

We threw Burl around like a sack of taters.  (That's a phrase that only comes up after a day in the country.  Yeehaw.)

My brothers acted crazy. And my dad encouraged it.

And we all played farmer for the day.  Whether we knew what we were doing or not.





Happy Burfday, Pops.

This Week's Menu

My dad just had one of his pigs slaughtered.  That sounds a little hillbilly and a little cool all wrapped up into one.  Well, it is.  Hillbilly AND cool.  This week, pork is on the menu.  Twice.

A few of the pigs...for now.

Ham, mashed potatoes, broccoli

Fettuccine Bolognese

Senate bean soup

Caesar Salad with Salmon

Today's Letters Is Fun

When I came across the blog, Today's Letters, I was immediately struck.  

I have quoted their subtitle thingy before, "There are many things that can change a life...a letter is one of them."  Wow.  So very much true.  Many times letters have changed lives and changed history.  See: the Bible, anything exchanged during and before the pony express, and all those letters that we each have saved and tucked away from people we love.  

Tim & Em, the Today's Letters people.

I talk about letters sometimes.  I do this because I think that there are so many important things that are left unsaid.  Cute stationery is great and all, but nothing is better than putting important, encouraging thoughts and feelings down on paper and sending it off to someone that means a lot to you.  

Another thing that immediately struck me was that their About Me section ended with "Holla."  Anyone who knows the correct way to spell holla is solid in my book.  Also, it was sign that being silly and goofy was an element of their blog and their letters.  I love me some silly and goofy.  

Every Friday, they have Fist Pump Friday where people from all over the world give their best fist pumps and leg kicks.  Sometimes they present a challenge: this week fist pumps in front of your favorite local pizza joint.  If you're from Chattanooga, then you know that there was only one option: Lupi's. 

So, my small friend Patty and I did it.  We went there and got our pictures taken with one of the employees who has been working there since I've been eating there-somewhere back in high school-15 years ago.  Lupi's was one of the first cool places in our downtown, they play their music loudly, they used Christmas lights all year round before everyone else did, and they are the home to where John and I fell in love.  Over calzones.  Lurv them.  

So, enjoy this day.  

Write that letter that you want.  

Do something quirky and silly.  

On the streets of your downtown or not.

It'll make ya smile.

Holla!