Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Trans Siberian Orchestra
On December 9, Jason and I took a chance to go see Trans Siberian Orchestra while they were here in Little Rock. I have always wanted to go and it always seems to fall on a night that we are busy and/or I'm on call. Not so much this year, so Jason got us some tickets and we took the opportunity to go. It was a super cool experience and I loved seeing all of the lights! I did, however, wish that we had gotten better seats instead of pretty much hanging from the rafters of Verizon Arena, but oh well! Better luck next time! And so glad that I got to experience the music and light show! Those people are extremely talented and I was definitely impressed!
Monday, December 12, 2011
Happy 5th Birthday Brady!!!
5 years ago...
5 years ago today we were waiting. Waiting on our lives to change, waiting to welcome a brand new baby into our family for the first time ever, waiting to see our family shift and find out just what it would be like to love this little thing more than we could imagine. I was waiting to become an aunt, my mother waiting to become a grandmother for the first time, my sister waiting to be a mother in the flesh. In a nutshell, we were waiting on Brady. And at 5:12 on 12-12-06, he made his arrival! He was more precious than I could have imagined! I couldn't believe that my sister got to take him home to keep and that we were going to get to watch him grow and change from a baby to a toddler to a little boy more full of life than a baby bird just learning to fly...or a better analogy, more full of life than me walking into any Juicy Couture store in the country!
This little man has changed my life in so many ways for the better and I can not imagine what life would be like without him. When Brady was just a baby, my sister kept a baby book for him and of course, me being the nosy little sister I am, couldn't resist thumbing through and it catching up on her latest posts whenever I was lucky enough to find it sitting out. One day I found a letter she had written to Brady, maybe when she was pregnant, maybe right after he was born. Anyway, the most significant part to me was a portion where she explained everything she hoped for Brady and everything she hoped his life would be. A very popular song that year was "My Wish" by Rascal Flatts and my sister dedicated this song to Brady and told him it was her song to him because everything she wanted for him could be described in that song. Talk about MOVING!! Geeez I think my heart skipped a little beat. Of course I had heard the song PLENTY of times, belted it out in horrible tones in my car, even had it downloaded to my ipod, but I had never really paid attention to the words before. The next time I heard that song play I was in tears. Thinking of all that it meant and thinking of that sweet little face and what all he would see in his life good and bad. There was no doubt that that would be the song I would put on his DVD of his first year slideshow and nothing could have been more perfect. That song is FOREVER in my heart as "Brady's Song" and I am being 100% honest in saying that even now, 5 years later, there is not one time I have heard that song at any place, any time of the day, that I wasn't moved to tears. Sometimes it's just a solo tear or two and there have been times I have had to really pat at my eyes trying to keep my eye makeup in tact before strolling into work in the morning.
I don't know why but I felt like the 5th birthday was the most appropriate time to resurface this dusty old memory. The first milestone birthday counts for something right?! I totally think 5 is a milestone. This year I realize he's no longer a baby, he's no longer a toddler, he's a little boy who is going to morph into a big boy in what I'm sure will feel like lightening speed! At any rate, this was an important post for me to share and I hope someday, maybe 15 years from now, he still wants to sit on the couch with his Aunt Nay and let me share this with him.
"I hope the days come easy and the moments pass slow
And each road leads you where you want to go
And if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.
And if one door opens to another door closed
I hope you keep on walkin' till you find the window
If it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile
"I hope you never look back, but ya never forget
All the ones who love you, in the place you left
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret
And you help somebody every chance you get
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake
And always give more than you take."
"My wish for you is that this life becomes all that you want it to, your dreams stay big, your worries stay small. You never need to carry more than you can hold. And while your out there getting where your getting to, I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too. Yeah this, is my wish"
Happy 5th birthday sweet boy! We pray this life becomes all that you want it to!
Love,
Aunt Nay
5 years ago today we were waiting. Waiting on our lives to change, waiting to welcome a brand new baby into our family for the first time ever, waiting to see our family shift and find out just what it would be like to love this little thing more than we could imagine. I was waiting to become an aunt, my mother waiting to become a grandmother for the first time, my sister waiting to be a mother in the flesh. In a nutshell, we were waiting on Brady. And at 5:12 on 12-12-06, he made his arrival! He was more precious than I could have imagined! I couldn't believe that my sister got to take him home to keep and that we were going to get to watch him grow and change from a baby to a toddler to a little boy more full of life than a baby bird just learning to fly...or a better analogy, more full of life than me walking into any Juicy Couture store in the country!
This little man has changed my life in so many ways for the better and I can not imagine what life would be like without him. When Brady was just a baby, my sister kept a baby book for him and of course, me being the nosy little sister I am, couldn't resist thumbing through and it catching up on her latest posts whenever I was lucky enough to find it sitting out. One day I found a letter she had written to Brady, maybe when she was pregnant, maybe right after he was born. Anyway, the most significant part to me was a portion where she explained everything she hoped for Brady and everything she hoped his life would be. A very popular song that year was "My Wish" by Rascal Flatts and my sister dedicated this song to Brady and told him it was her song to him because everything she wanted for him could be described in that song. Talk about MOVING!! Geeez I think my heart skipped a little beat. Of course I had heard the song PLENTY of times, belted it out in horrible tones in my car, even had it downloaded to my ipod, but I had never really paid attention to the words before. The next time I heard that song play I was in tears. Thinking of all that it meant and thinking of that sweet little face and what all he would see in his life good and bad. There was no doubt that that would be the song I would put on his DVD of his first year slideshow and nothing could have been more perfect. That song is FOREVER in my heart as "Brady's Song" and I am being 100% honest in saying that even now, 5 years later, there is not one time I have heard that song at any place, any time of the day, that I wasn't moved to tears. Sometimes it's just a solo tear or two and there have been times I have had to really pat at my eyes trying to keep my eye makeup in tact before strolling into work in the morning.
I don't know why but I felt like the 5th birthday was the most appropriate time to resurface this dusty old memory. The first milestone birthday counts for something right?! I totally think 5 is a milestone. This year I realize he's no longer a baby, he's no longer a toddler, he's a little boy who is going to morph into a big boy in what I'm sure will feel like lightening speed! At any rate, this was an important post for me to share and I hope someday, maybe 15 years from now, he still wants to sit on the couch with his Aunt Nay and let me share this with him.
"I hope the days come easy and the moments pass slow
And each road leads you where you want to go
And if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.
And if one door opens to another door closed
I hope you keep on walkin' till you find the window
If it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile
"I hope you never look back, but ya never forget
All the ones who love you, in the place you left
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret
And you help somebody every chance you get
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake
And always give more than you take."
"My wish for you is that this life becomes all that you want it to, your dreams stay big, your worries stay small. You never need to carry more than you can hold. And while your out there getting where your getting to, I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too. Yeah this, is my wish"
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| Brady 2 years old-since all my early pics got wiped on my old crashed hard drive |
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| Best pic I could ask for of me and the busy body at his 5th bday party! |
Love,
Aunt Nay
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Baby Cam is on the way!
Recently I helped host a shower for my dear little bestie Ms. Jessie Winn Copeland. Ok, ok her name is Jessica Copeland but I call her Jessie because she hates it more than anything and Winn is her maiden name which has been IMPOSSIBLE for me to drop every since she got married...in 2008! haha Anyhow, Jess is expecting her second little bundle of joy, another baby boy Cam August Copeland! We are all very excited for him to make his debut!
Here is a sampling of the super cute shower we gave her. The colors are representative of Cash and Cam's room which also has accents of little baby owls! Too cute!
We all had a great afternoon at the shower and Cam got lots of great little things to get him started! Can't wait for the little sweetie to arrive and relieve his mommy from her discomfort!
Here is a sampling of the super cute shower we gave her. The colors are representative of Cash and Cam's room which also has accents of little baby owls! Too cute!
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| Cash's gift from Nan |
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| Cash helping mommy open a gift from Ashley |
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| One of the outfits for Cam from me! |
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| Baby bathtub from Megan! |
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Careful what you ask for!
Well this weekend has been so super busy...so surprised! Friday night we went to Searcy to pick up my new piece of furniture for the entry way! And I am totally in love with it by the way. Here is a picture of my new lovely
Pretty perfect for the area I was wanting! I had a girl custom paint it for me just how I wanted it. It is actually an old 70s style dresser and here is the before photo
I think she did a great job! I can't wait to start staging it up! So after we picked that up we grabbed a late dinner from Olive Garden. And because the Shopaholic is also a thrifty spender, we had a coupon! WOOO! Saturday we had our usual Razorback watch party with the gang and cooked lots of snack and appetizers. I wasn't feeling well at all so I didn't enjoy the food and fellowship as much as normal but I tried to push through and be a good hostess. Even though I barely ate anything it was still nice to have the gang together to watch the Hogs claim another W! We definitely didn't look as good as we should against Ol' Miss but a win is a win right?! Im sure Bobby P would disagree! Next week Vanderbilt and another early game! These early games are about to kill me, there is never enough time to get everything prepared and going at 11am. After the game, everyone left and I had two showers to attend at the very same time 4 pm. Feeling terribly, I still wanted to at least go and drop off the gifts to their respective guests of honor. So after all that, I was homeward bound and in bed!
Today we were supposed to go to the pumpkin patch and take pictures of the kiddos but the weather was looking awfully crappy! Bummer! So I switched some spring/summer clothes to the other closet and brought out a few more fall/winter things, did laundry, picked up on the extra bedroom, and finally got ready.
I went over to see the munchkins (my nephews) and hug on them and visit with my sister. Little A had just woken up from a nap and he was being so funny! I love his little bozo the clown hair but sister says it's about to have it's first introduction to Mr.Scissors! : ( Can't wait to see what his first haircut looks like and his curly lock to save will definitely be precious! So, Brady was telling his mama he wanted to go somewhere fun today, even though he had just been to Nettie's the night before for dinner and visiting. I told him he could come with me and Uncle Jason to run our errands in Little Rock to get some stuff for our halloween costumes and maybe we could get something to eat! He was ALLL on board. I reminded him that sometimes errands aren't fun and we would be "shopping" so if he wasn't interested, speak now! Nope, I wanna go Aunt Nay! Ok dude! Let's hit the road! We told him if he was really good through shopping maybe we could do something fun or get him a small present. So we went to a store looking for some halloween stuff and he found a small inexpensive toy he wanted. Ok, that's fine. Then he says, as he walks to the checkout, "and since I've been good maybe we can go somewhere fun?"...Whoa whoa whoa hold the phone, back up! "Ok, Brady, you can get a toy and we can go eat or no toy and go somewhere fun. Not both!" He had no problem laying down the toy he spent 20 minutes looking for as he said, "Let's go somewhere fun, I can get that for my birthday!" Oh geez...So as Jason and I racked our brain for fun things to do for a 4 year old..on a Sunday...in Little Rock...at 5:30 pm....we were lost! We finally decided to go to Cheeburger Cheeburger because, wait for it....I had a coupon!!! LOL and after that we would run over to Chuck E Cheese and play a few games and head home.....LIKE I SAID.......Be careful what you ask for! LOL seriously Chuck E wasnt all that bad and he had a blast! But man that place can suck a kid in for hours. Out the window goes our 30 min time limit! Here are some pics from our night
Brady took his winnings of 167 tickets and got some very small little boy toys he hand selected! He had a blast and we did too! It was nice to get out and do something different. Obviously my special boy has me wrapped around his finger when he says Aunt Nay, I wanna go with you! And I comply with Chuck E Cheese! So that was Sunday Funday! Still feeling a little off but hopefully tomorrow will be better! Hope everyone else had a nice weekend!
Happy Monday Eve
Shopaholic
Pretty perfect for the area I was wanting! I had a girl custom paint it for me just how I wanted it. It is actually an old 70s style dresser and here is the before photo
I think she did a great job! I can't wait to start staging it up! So after we picked that up we grabbed a late dinner from Olive Garden. And because the Shopaholic is also a thrifty spender, we had a coupon! WOOO! Saturday we had our usual Razorback watch party with the gang and cooked lots of snack and appetizers. I wasn't feeling well at all so I didn't enjoy the food and fellowship as much as normal but I tried to push through and be a good hostess. Even though I barely ate anything it was still nice to have the gang together to watch the Hogs claim another W! We definitely didn't look as good as we should against Ol' Miss but a win is a win right?! Im sure Bobby P would disagree! Next week Vanderbilt and another early game! These early games are about to kill me, there is never enough time to get everything prepared and going at 11am. After the game, everyone left and I had two showers to attend at the very same time 4 pm. Feeling terribly, I still wanted to at least go and drop off the gifts to their respective guests of honor. So after all that, I was homeward bound and in bed!
Today we were supposed to go to the pumpkin patch and take pictures of the kiddos but the weather was looking awfully crappy! Bummer! So I switched some spring/summer clothes to the other closet and brought out a few more fall/winter things, did laundry, picked up on the extra bedroom, and finally got ready.
I went over to see the munchkins (my nephews) and hug on them and visit with my sister. Little A had just woken up from a nap and he was being so funny! I love his little bozo the clown hair but sister says it's about to have it's first introduction to Mr.Scissors! : ( Can't wait to see what his first haircut looks like and his curly lock to save will definitely be precious! So, Brady was telling his mama he wanted to go somewhere fun today, even though he had just been to Nettie's the night before for dinner and visiting. I told him he could come with me and Uncle Jason to run our errands in Little Rock to get some stuff for our halloween costumes and maybe we could get something to eat! He was ALLL on board. I reminded him that sometimes errands aren't fun and we would be "shopping" so if he wasn't interested, speak now! Nope, I wanna go Aunt Nay! Ok dude! Let's hit the road! We told him if he was really good through shopping maybe we could do something fun or get him a small present. So we went to a store looking for some halloween stuff and he found a small inexpensive toy he wanted. Ok, that's fine. Then he says, as he walks to the checkout, "and since I've been good maybe we can go somewhere fun?"...Whoa whoa whoa hold the phone, back up! "Ok, Brady, you can get a toy and we can go eat or no toy and go somewhere fun. Not both!" He had no problem laying down the toy he spent 20 minutes looking for as he said, "Let's go somewhere fun, I can get that for my birthday!" Oh geez...So as Jason and I racked our brain for fun things to do for a 4 year old..on a Sunday...in Little Rock...at 5:30 pm....we were lost! We finally decided to go to Cheeburger Cheeburger because, wait for it....I had a coupon!!! LOL and after that we would run over to Chuck E Cheese and play a few games and head home.....LIKE I SAID.......Be careful what you ask for! LOL seriously Chuck E wasnt all that bad and he had a blast! But man that place can suck a kid in for hours. Out the window goes our 30 min time limit! Here are some pics from our night
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| Loves his Aunt Nay |
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Making a happy plate : ) |
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| WINNING!! |
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| Cashing in our moneys! |
Happy Monday Eve
Shopaholic
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
We came, We saw, We won!!
This weekend was a big one for us Otwells. We made plans to head to Fayetteville to watch the Hogs take on the Auburn Tigers! Jason went to school in Fayetteville and absolutely loves it up there. He was grinning ear to ear pumped with excitement to get back in all of the school spirit. I was also really excited because it had been so long since I had been to a game up there that I probably never got the full effect! We drove up on Saturday and met up with a couple of Jason's friends from school and also my friends Rebekah and Neil. We spent a good amount of time walking around the campus and just taking in what all was going on! The atmosphere was definitely electric and hog fans were ready for this big game. Auburn is the reigning National champ and last time we played them, they beat us! Here are some pics from our trip!
We got to park in Jeff Long's parking spot..Spaaayshul!
Sweet lil tusk!
Me and Rebekah
He just cracks me up!
And it's game time!!!!! Can you tell we're excited?!
Let's go Hogs!!!
We WON!!!!! WOO-HOO!!!
After the game we headed out to Dickson to celebrate the big win! The atmosphere was awesome and everyone was certainly feeling "high on the hog". On Dickson we went to Hog Haus Brewery to eat dinner and enjoy the crowd. Initially there was a 45 minute wait for the 5 of us but luckily we noticed a sign that mentioned balcony seating, see hostess upstairs. We inquired about availability on the balcony and found out that they had a 4 top table that they could turn into a 5 top for us! Score! With the amazing weather that night, this worked out perfectly to eat outside and enjoy all the crowds on Dickson!
On the balcony at Hog Haus
The food was amazing and we had a really great time! If you are ever in the Fayetteville area I definitely recommend Hog Haus for great food and fun times!
All in all we had an excellent weekend and were so proud of our hogs! We would love to get back to Fayetteville for another game this year but I doubt our schedules will allow it. As with everyone else I'm sure, this time of year starts our crazy busy season! We have tons planned coming up and between football games, hunting season, holidays, covering call, baby showers, and birthdays...there's hardly a weekend where you will catch us at home with nothing on the agenda. Whew, I'm already a little worn out and stressed just thinking about it but we will manage just like we always do!
This week I am enjoying having a couple extra days off work and trying to work on my house, finish up some fall projects, and getting ready to head back to NWA for our girls weekend at War Eagle!! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Every year for the past probably 5-6 years, my mom, sister, and myself head up to NWA for a weekend of crafting shopping! A shopaholic's heaven! And if you think I'm bad, you've never met my mother (grand shopaholic). I look forward to this trip every single year and can't imagine us missing it! It's become such a tradition and we always find such neat treasures to bring home. After trying many different strategies each year we always come up with something new and change it up to make the experience better. This year we are dropping one fair and adding a new one to our stops. I'm excited to see how it works out and we are hoping to do the big daddy on Friday this year to avoid the massive crowds that visit on Saturday! I'm crossing my fingers!
I'm hoping for rain today and enjoying the morning with my coffee and a pumpkin caramel latte candle burning! Mmmm! But I will leave you with a photo of my yummy breakfast!
Egg in a hole! Yummy and so easy! Kids would definitely love this!
Happy Wednesday everyone!
Cheers,
Shopaholic
Thursday, September 29, 2011
My favorite grilled chicken recipe
With so many unfinished projects that I would love to blog about, I've been left at a loss of topic! So I thought I would blog and share my favorite grilled chicken recipe for anyone who would like to try it! I love sharing great recipes! This is excellent to have in the summer time when the grill is our go-to cooking tool! All you have to do us buy the amount of boneless skinless chicken breasts you will need and prepare this marinade:
1 C. Finely chopped cilantro
1 C. Mayo
1/2 C. Extra virgin olive oil
1/4 C. Lime juice
2 t. ground cumin (I don't like a whole lot of cumin so I substitute cavenders seasoning for this and leave out the salt below)
1 t. salt
Mix all the ingredients in a reasealable bag and add the chicken breasts.
Yummy!!
Now place in the refrigerator to marinade for at least 4 hours but up to 8!
After it has marinaded just throw on the grill to cook! I like it to get a little charred on the edges and the marinade gives it a really great flavor which reminds me of summer! And here is the finished product
Mmmm! My fav!
Also wanted to share with you all a little trick I found in the kitchen that you may all already know. If you have ever needed brown sugar for something and find that it has dried and clumped up on you, there is an easy fix for that! Just take your opened bag of brown sugar and a cup of water
And pop it in the microwave side by side for about a minute! Your brown sugar will come out soft and grainy just as it should be!
And while Im blogging about really nothing in particular, I wanted to share a couple of the crafts I have been working on lately. I've recently taken an interest in crafting really just to see if I was actually capable. Bear with me as these are a little rough and I am definitely a crafting newbie! So far I have tried a couple different razorback wreaths. Here is the one I made for my mom.
And here is the one I made for myself
I have been having a lot of fun trying things out and getting to know the personal details of all the staff at hobby lobby ; ) Hopefully with time and practice I can improve! If love to be able to create lots of pretties someday! Happy Thursday to you all!
Love,
Kell
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
1 C. Finely chopped cilantro
1 C. Mayo
1/2 C. Extra virgin olive oil
1/4 C. Lime juice
2 t. ground cumin (I don't like a whole lot of cumin so I substitute cavenders seasoning for this and leave out the salt below)
1 t. salt
Mix all the ingredients in a reasealable bag and add the chicken breasts.
Yummy!!
Now place in the refrigerator to marinade for at least 4 hours but up to 8!
After it has marinaded just throw on the grill to cook! I like it to get a little charred on the edges and the marinade gives it a really great flavor which reminds me of summer! And here is the finished product
Mmmm! My fav!
Also wanted to share with you all a little trick I found in the kitchen that you may all already know. If you have ever needed brown sugar for something and find that it has dried and clumped up on you, there is an easy fix for that! Just take your opened bag of brown sugar and a cup of water
And pop it in the microwave side by side for about a minute! Your brown sugar will come out soft and grainy just as it should be!
And while Im blogging about really nothing in particular, I wanted to share a couple of the crafts I have been working on lately. I've recently taken an interest in crafting really just to see if I was actually capable. Bear with me as these are a little rough and I am definitely a crafting newbie! So far I have tried a couple different razorback wreaths. Here is the one I made for my mom.
And here is the one I made for myself
I have been having a lot of fun trying things out and getting to know the personal details of all the staff at hobby lobby ; ) Hopefully with time and practice I can improve! If love to be able to create lots of pretties someday! Happy Thursday to you all!
Love,
Kell
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Hush yo' Mouth
So lately I have been trying to do a little light reading and when I say light, I mean as in SUPER light...my attention span is literally that of a 2 year olds! With that being said, I'm notorious for starting a book, putting it down, getting busy with who knows what else and finally picking it back up days, weeks, sometimes even months later! But lately I have been hearing a lot of fuss and review of the book The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Seen it? Heard it? Of course you have! It got made into a movie and recently came out at the box office! A couple of women I work with have read it and one of them lent her copy to me so I got a little intrigued. One night when I was so sleepy and just wanted to lay in bed and not be concentrating on 2 million things via surfing the internet (planning baby showers, grocery lists, looking for new recipes, online shopping...the list goes on and on), so I picked it up and got started. Now, I am seriously barely into it, only as far as chapter 5 but I can already tell that I have been pulled in. The story is loosely based on the lifestyles of southern black maids and the families they cater to in the 1960s.
Obviously, I'm not deep enough in to give a review but what I can tell you is that something about this book has really tickled my southern tongue. From the start of this book, my favorite part was the dialect in which it was written. All straight from the mouth of the maids themselves. You can imagine some of the jargon involved. Phrases such as "I don't look at her. I'm not trying to make no trouble. But she done made her point." Or "Tonight I'm going to fry up that okra in cornmeal and eat like my mama never let me" You can almost hear these women talking right next to you as you read
So naturally my southern verbage has been somewhat exaggerated as I read more of this book. I've been finding myself saying, "Oh lordy me" and "You ol' fool." All phrases I must note are reminiscent of my grandmother. I had to smile to myself when the maids in the book talk about watching their "stories" on the "tee-vee", reminding me of my own grandmother who had to constantly shush us kids with "Now you kids hush up now, it's time for my stories." I bet you couldn't find one soul today that would refer to their favorite soap opera as their "stories." Reading this book makes me think so much of my childhood. I swear to my soul both of my grandmother's talked/still talk in the same way that the maids in the book do. Using some of the exact same words even. Also, something that not many people know about me, is that Randi and I also had a nanny when we were little. Her name was Geraldine. Geraldine was around mostly when I was a baby and Randi was about 4 or 5 so she remembers so much more than I do but the stories I have heard make me wish I could find that woman today and give her a big ol' hug! Mama says that Geraldine would come in in the mornings and after mama had been up the entire night with her colicky darling (me : D), she would pass me over to Geraldine and try to get a little rest while Geraldine tended to Randi and I and all of my screaming terror. My family tells me that Geraldine was an awesome woman and I so wish I knew more about her or remembered our times together. If the tales are true that I really was that fussy of an infant, I know that woman had to be a saint to do all she did!
This book has also got me to thinking, not only about our Southern verbage, but just our way of life in general. I mean, honestly, don't you just love living in the South. I love to travel and see different places, think of what life would be like in some unknown place, but it is always so nice to come back home and get back comfortable with "comfortable" I have to just totally crack up when Jason and I travel and meet different people and the way that they are in sheer awe of our accents. Obviously, I really don't think my accent is that deep but putting it in perspective with someone from say, California or Maryland, then yeah I guess it is. When we went to New York, the locals thought we were from Texas...close but no cigar, and please don't ever associate us with that terrible shade of Longhorn orange...thank you very much! When we went to Jamaica, we met a couple from San Francisco. We were talking in a group one night and San Fran girl looks at Georgia girl as they are discussing mine and Jason's accents and says, "You know who she sounds JUST LIKE? Sandra Bullock on....what's that movie?...The Blind Side". Ok, first of all Pssshhhhh....seriously? Anyone who is Southern knows Sandra Bullock portrays the cutest little sassy southern woman any of us have ever seen and I can really only hope that my country words would roll off the tongue nearly as sweet as ol' Sandra Bullock's did portraying precious little Leigh Anne Tuohy! But thanks for the compliment anyway San Fran girl. I knew right then she hadn't been exposed to many southerns. Oddly enough, to me at least, even the Georgian's thought we sounded really Southern...well, I guess I could understand that one the more that i think about it! At any rate, all I can say is, too bad for those people and all they're missing out on in these here parts ; )
So in the spirit of all things southern, I decided to cook up a homestyle country meal this week. I absolutely love chicken fried steak and it has been months and months since I have had one! So Monday night I made chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes with gravy, rolls, and green beans! Here is the work in progress...this ones for you Crystal.
And since I was so ready to dig in and forgot to take a pretty plated photo, here's the finished product...half devoured
It was great! Well I need to tackle this reading. I would like to finish by this weekend and I promise to update some Otwell happenings soon. I have several mental posts such as Jamaica, what we have been into lately, and just the general everyday rat race. I'm on call this weekend so maybe that will be a good time to catch up! But until then, I'll sum this up with Thank you lord for raising me in a region where tea is always sweet, accents are deep, college football is not just a sport but a way of life, and chicken fried steak is always well received. Amen!
Obviously, I'm not deep enough in to give a review but what I can tell you is that something about this book has really tickled my southern tongue. From the start of this book, my favorite part was the dialect in which it was written. All straight from the mouth of the maids themselves. You can imagine some of the jargon involved. Phrases such as "I don't look at her. I'm not trying to make no trouble. But she done made her point." Or "Tonight I'm going to fry up that okra in cornmeal and eat like my mama never let me" You can almost hear these women talking right next to you as you read
So naturally my southern verbage has been somewhat exaggerated as I read more of this book. I've been finding myself saying, "Oh lordy me" and "You ol' fool." All phrases I must note are reminiscent of my grandmother. I had to smile to myself when the maids in the book talk about watching their "stories" on the "tee-vee", reminding me of my own grandmother who had to constantly shush us kids with "Now you kids hush up now, it's time for my stories." I bet you couldn't find one soul today that would refer to their favorite soap opera as their "stories." Reading this book makes me think so much of my childhood. I swear to my soul both of my grandmother's talked/still talk in the same way that the maids in the book do. Using some of the exact same words even. Also, something that not many people know about me, is that Randi and I also had a nanny when we were little. Her name was Geraldine. Geraldine was around mostly when I was a baby and Randi was about 4 or 5 so she remembers so much more than I do but the stories I have heard make me wish I could find that woman today and give her a big ol' hug! Mama says that Geraldine would come in in the mornings and after mama had been up the entire night with her colicky darling (me : D), she would pass me over to Geraldine and try to get a little rest while Geraldine tended to Randi and I and all of my screaming terror. My family tells me that Geraldine was an awesome woman and I so wish I knew more about her or remembered our times together. If the tales are true that I really was that fussy of an infant, I know that woman had to be a saint to do all she did!
This book has also got me to thinking, not only about our Southern verbage, but just our way of life in general. I mean, honestly, don't you just love living in the South. I love to travel and see different places, think of what life would be like in some unknown place, but it is always so nice to come back home and get back comfortable with "comfortable" I have to just totally crack up when Jason and I travel and meet different people and the way that they are in sheer awe of our accents. Obviously, I really don't think my accent is that deep but putting it in perspective with someone from say, California or Maryland, then yeah I guess it is. When we went to New York, the locals thought we were from Texas...close but no cigar, and please don't ever associate us with that terrible shade of Longhorn orange...thank you very much! When we went to Jamaica, we met a couple from San Francisco. We were talking in a group one night and San Fran girl looks at Georgia girl as they are discussing mine and Jason's accents and says, "You know who she sounds JUST LIKE? Sandra Bullock on....what's that movie?...The Blind Side". Ok, first of all Pssshhhhh....seriously? Anyone who is Southern knows Sandra Bullock portrays the cutest little sassy southern woman any of us have ever seen and I can really only hope that my country words would roll off the tongue nearly as sweet as ol' Sandra Bullock's did portraying precious little Leigh Anne Tuohy! But thanks for the compliment anyway San Fran girl. I knew right then she hadn't been exposed to many southerns. Oddly enough, to me at least, even the Georgian's thought we sounded really Southern...well, I guess I could understand that one the more that i think about it! At any rate, all I can say is, too bad for those people and all they're missing out on in these here parts ; )
So in the spirit of all things southern, I decided to cook up a homestyle country meal this week. I absolutely love chicken fried steak and it has been months and months since I have had one! So Monday night I made chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes with gravy, rolls, and green beans! Here is the work in progress...this ones for you Crystal.
And since I was so ready to dig in and forgot to take a pretty plated photo, here's the finished product...half devoured
It was great! Well I need to tackle this reading. I would like to finish by this weekend and I promise to update some Otwell happenings soon. I have several mental posts such as Jamaica, what we have been into lately, and just the general everyday rat race. I'm on call this weekend so maybe that will be a good time to catch up! But until then, I'll sum this up with Thank you lord for raising me in a region where tea is always sweet, accents are deep, college football is not just a sport but a way of life, and chicken fried steak is always well received. Amen!
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