South Beach Grille - St. Augustine, Florida

We headed down from Nashville last Saturday to Crescent Beach in the northwest corner of Florida.  After a long drive and many hours to determine where we wanted to eat dinner once we pulled into the St. A area, we settled on South Beach Grille which was 2 miles from our condo.  Nashville is a major foodie town (according to every major magazine and newspaper in the country and from persona observations).  And I consider myself a fairly skilled home cook, so it has to be great to impress us (especially my husband who I can assure you is quite spoiled by my cooking).

We like to vacation in the off-season and are at the beach in late September (another benefit of homeschooling).  So, there was no wait at 8PM on a Saturday night.  We asked to be seated outside and were quite cozy despite the lower evening temps and storm that blew in that evening.

Sweet teas were ordered all around which were really just okay (sweet teas snobs) and proceeded to order our entrees.   They were as follows:  our 8 year old had the fish bites (fresh and breaded in-house) and apples (which were also sliced fresh btw); 12 year old ordered an adult burger and fries (the burger was hand-patted and substantial and the fried delicious, though probably not hand-cut); my husband had the fish tacos which did indeed have a fresh made salsa (which he loved) and I had the crab cake dinner (crab cakes where house made and though different from a Maryland crab cake and I would definitely order them again).   The entire family thoroughly enjoyed their meals!

The service was great and the meal was only around $65 with tip.  We are hoping to go there again on our final night here.

We Are Not Consumers - Revised

There was a time, not so very long ago, okay, maybe 15 years ago, that Nathan and I decided we would live as simply as we could and take as little as possible from the Earth.  We don't have solar panels, we don't live off the grid (appealing but too much work) and we don't ride walk/bike everywhere.  But, we do live fairly simply.  Our largest expense is our grocery budget because we tend to only buy foods that use sustainable practices and do not not harm our bodies.  Looking around my large den, I can only spot two pieces of furniture that were purchased new.  Bookcases and the parsons chair here at my desk.  Everything else was gifted to us gently used or built for me by my father.  I know, having furniture built counts as "new" but we did not spend hours browsing furniture stores, comparing prices, wondering what our friends would think.....and our entire home is furnished in this fashion.

All of our bedroom suits are heirloom pieces handed down through generations.  All of our dining furniture was gifted or purchased used...same for the kitchen.   It is all recycled, repurposed, refinished!

It's been on my mind - this lifestyle of ours - as I have been thinking of ways to earn extra money - run an at-home business, to sustain our path of homeschooling our children.  For many years, I have tried to make a go of direct-sales and for a while I was even getting somewhat successful, building a down-line and earning about $500 a month.  But, I never could stick with it.  I think it's because so many companies are based around customers purchasing things that do not necessarily enrich their lives. 

What I mean is this:  when I'm selling purses or tote bags or beautiful trinkets for the home, it is purely a consumer mentality.  That's just not me.  I buy a purse when my old one breaks or looks so worn that it is embarrassing.  I buy new tennis shoes when the toes of the old ones find themselves with a hole.  New pants?  We rarely go to the mall, we buy only what we need and when we need it.  There is no room in our lives - for many reasons - to shop for the sake of shopping and some of the companies I have attempted to work with have promoted shopping for the sake of shopping.  Folly on my part to be sure!


Right now, as we have made the move to the path we are on we are looking at our own habits more closely.  How do we have what we need to survive and indeed be happy without taxing the resources around us?  What are our options to bring in extra cash without urging people to shop for the sake of the  moment?  Are there opportunities for me to work with products that truly will enrich my life and the lives of others?  If you have the answer, let me know, meantime, I'll be wandering in the wilderness searching for the answers. 

***Disclaimer:  I am a huge fan of Pampered Chef, Arbonne, Usborne and Barefoot Books.  I do own products from the Utility collection from Thirty-One that I use each and every day.  This is not an attempt to speak ill of direct selling, it is more of a reflection on how to be a healthy consumer and bring additional income into my home. 

The Whisperings of Fall

It's almost here you know.  Fall.  I've heard it everyday for the last week.  When I was getting out of my car in the light of the full moon, I heard the whispers around me as the veil thins.  Our home is surrounded by trees but there is one who speaks when the seasons change.  I can hear her rustling with anticipation, especially now that her leaves are beginning to drop.  Yesterday, my children and I decided to skip church in order to commune with nature and with God as a family at a local nature center.  It reminded me of a previous year when we walked there just as fall was beginning its march toward winter.  And, it reminded me of one of my favorite fall quotes.  Do not endure the wonderful approach of fall inside.  Indeed, be at one with the seasons today!

Harvest Moon

The Benefits of the Garden

The obvious benefits of the family garden:

The not-so-obvious benefits of the family garden:

 

I'm from a small Tennessee town.  My parents live in the country.  These are not new to me but we certainly see more interesting specimens now that we have a lovely garden filled with flowers and vegetables.  Love that feeding ourselves means feeding the bugs, birds and other wildlife as well!

Hoe Cakes on the Horizon

I'm not a food blogger.  There.  I said it.  I've been blogging about food on and off since 2008 but I AM NOT a food blogger.  In fact, far from it.  I'd go so far as to say I suck at it.  I just don't have the perfectionist gene in me and food is typically an organic affair in my home.  No, not in the way that it is grown (okay, that too) but in how I prepare it.  Though I have lovely Williams-Sonoma measuring cups and spoons and handy-dandy Pampered Chef batter bowls (both sizes, thank you), I find it difficult to pull them out with any regularity.  In fact, forgive me if I've told this to you before, until I was about 14 years old I had NO IDEA that measuring cups existed.  My mother had them but she never used them.  Same for a chopping board.  What she had was an instinct about food.  She chopped onions in her hands - with a sharp knife - and so do I.  There was little perfection in the presentation and Gordon Ramsay would have cringed at her plating skills - though I have no doubt she could have run rings around anyone on any cooking show.  This, my friends, was how I learned to cook.

With those things said, it has been my dream for many years to write a cookbook.  I'm in the beginning stages.  The beginning stages look like a series of hand-written recipes of my creation that are going into a book (thank you Becky Higgins and Project Life).  You see, every day I open my spice cabinet to pull out salt or turmeric or garlic or thyme and I see a hand-written recipe for my Mother's yeast rolls.  It was written later in her life when things such as writing had become so difficult for her but it is still her handwriting that I had come to know so well.   My children may not want things in my handwriting.  Who knows?  But, I am giving this gift to them regardless.  The gift of handwritten recipes from their childhood that they can do with what they wish.

 

So what about the hoe cakes?  Tonight I wrote my first recipe in my new cookbook.  It's something I cook ALL OF THE TIME.  Hoe cakes.  A simple bread to go with dried beans and whatever I harvested that day from the garden.  These are a Southern treat though I have no doubt they are found in other parts of the US and greater world (did you read my post on white beans and universal consciousness?) They are also simple and imperfect and there is rarely one left on the table by the end of the meal.


The recipe goes something like this.

 Prep Time:  10 Minutes
Cook Time:  6 Minutes each batch
Serves:  4 (recipe is easily doubled)

1 cup yellow non-gmo corn meal
1/4 cup flour or baking mix (I use Pamela's GF Baking Mix)
1 tbs sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup mayonnaise or 1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 tsp butter

Mix all ingredients together.  Heat 1 tsp butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat.  Drop batter in heaping teaspoons into skillet.  Lightly pat down with spatula to make thin disks.  Cook 3 minutes or until browned (I like golden brown - you may prefer it darker).  Flip cakes and cook an additional 3 minutes.  Remove and place on towel lined plate.  Repeat with remaining batter.

#SYTS Speak Your Truth

I love #TBT.  Don't you?   It's so fun to look back on our lives and think about where we've been, how small our children were, how small we were.  How can we start an effort where we speak out truth and spread something positive?  Today I heard this fantastic song and thought to myself, "I want to spread this around as a great message for our girls" and by "our" I mean all the girls.  So, I came up with #SYTS.  Here it is folks.  Listen to the lyrics Get ready to dance!  And, spread your message for good.

Whose Life Is It Anyway?

In 2010 we celebrated our one year anniversary as a family.  Each of the children received their own Shutterfly book chronicling our magical time in China.  I customized the book for each child.  Noah's had images of our two-day whirlwind tour of Beijing which Arwyn's featured images of herself in the orphanage.  I had every intention of making an actual "life-book" for Arwyn that tells her story, really I did.  But here we are....nearly five years later....and still no life-book.

In the spring of this year I encouraged our FCC board to host a life-book class on our "Moms on Monday" nights. As president of the group, I had an "in" and could make these types of suggestions.   I'll be honest.  I suggested this topic for selfish reasons.  I thought maybe it would prompt me to begin this important task of writing Arwyn's story.  It didn't.  And, then....it did.  Now, I am halfway (okay, 1/3) of the way into this project.

You see, the Shutterfly book I made in 2010 was really a book about OUR time together.  It was not HER story.  It was OUR story.  In the back of my mind I knew this wasn't enough.  I have no excuses really, but now I have something else.  Time.  Not because I have more time.  Okay, I guess I technically do as I have shaved two hours of commuting off my schedule each day.  But I have made time.

How do you begin?  What is important?  How do you tell their story without making it about you?  Where does their story begin?  How do you fill in the blanks?  I had so many questions and like anything I have questions about I do two things.

1. Do the research (talking to BTDT moms, read books, do Google searches and spend ridiculous amounts of time on Pinterest)

2. Jump in with both feet

My research began with the FCC meeting.  BTDT moms brought in completed lifebooks and those of us who (red-faced) admitted we have not worked on this gift to our children.  At the meeting, one mom brought a stack of lifebook guides that she gifted to those of us not in the BTDT category but in the SLACKER mom section.  Armed with examples and my handy book, I promptly came home and began Googling lifebooks and made the above Pinboard for my favorite examples. 




A quick survey of my on-hand supplies and a fun trip to Michael's and I was soon on my way.  I don't mind telling you that pulling out the pictures and the journal pages, playing with the stickers and embellishments and finding other mementos of our journey TO her gave me the desire to carve out the story ABOUT her.    What did I know?  What did the medical reports say?  What were the reports from the ayis?  Is there anything these notes can tell me about who she was before she was mine?  If there is one thing I know about my daughter before she came to us, it is this:

I was told that by Brenda Barker.  Brenda is sort of a legend in these parts.  Mom to 9 internationally adopted children and facilitator of many adoptions in our community, she told Nathan and I this at an adoption workshop.  She knew this from experience.  And, I know it to be true.  Right now I am halfway (1/3) of the way through the book.  It is my work of art, though I suspect there are lifebooks that are much more beautiful and creative.  But those books are for other children.  This is the book for my child.  If you need a little inspiration to start you on your way, check out my images below, make a Pinboard, head to Michaels and get started. 

The first page in this 12x12 book is quite simple.  A map of China (duh) and from Project Life (love this stuff) an index card on which I wrote her given name, birthdate and birthplace.

This page contains photos of her province and region.  It has a very detailed description of where she is from that I pulled from a travel site.  Note the index cards again.  My mother passed away in 2010.  I love ANYTHING with her handwriting.  I wanted to use my own hand in most of the narrative.  The page from the travel site is printed from a document.  Other thoughts about the region were written by me.

Now things get interesting.  You can see our daughter's finding ad on the top left, photos of the orphanage, images of her during that time and a written account of some of what I know about how she came to be there.

More images of life in the social welfare institute and more narrative from me of what I was told about that time in her life.

This is her story.  Her story includes the time when she leaves the SWI and becomes part of our family.  Again, in my script, I actually talk about this, about the challenge of when her story becomes our story.  Also included here is the announcement from our agency that we have been "matched".

Finally, the page with our official acceptance from the Chinese government giving us permission to adopt our daughter.  I say "finally" though this is meant only for this post.  This story goes on and I have several pages remaining to be made.  I have been consistently doing one per day for the last week and it has moved along quite quickly.  She is anxious to see it and I am anxious to sit down with her and with my hubby and son to tell the story. 

I'll write more on this and chronicle my quilt journey as well.  (I guess I forgot to mention I'm making her a quilt.)