jerusalem greer - the adventures of jolly goode gal

where i rested my weary bones

2013-05-23T10:41:00.000-05:00

I am experiencing a bit of radio silence syndrome this week.

Feeling the need to retreat inside myself a bit, to hold my words close, to carrying them with me a little longer. To take a little respite for my heart and mind.

But I did want to share with you pictures from the amazing little cottage retreat that we stayed in last weekend. I cannot truly convey how lovely the weekend was without including our stay at Elk Street Cottage.

Every now and then I stumble upon a physical space that seems to have been made just for me. A place that seems to provide a spiritual oasis for my fuzz-filled brain, and healing rest for my over-tired body. Elk St. Cottage was just that sort of place, and I am still carrying a bit of it's magic with me.

monday musings

2013-05-20T11:11:00.000-05:00

Here are all the things I know for sure after this weekend:

*I am way more introverted than I think- at least with strangers.

*I really am blessed to have the sorts of friends that I have. The sort that will go along on your escapades, get sunburned and be sleep deprived just to help you out (more on this to come...)

*I really did a good thing by marrying Nathaniel Wayne Greer almost 16 years ago. I think we will be good empty-nesters as my friend Alison says.

*I will be yarn (or doily) bombing the trees in my front yard.

*I am infinitely interested in the education of women over the course of history

* I really miss researching.

*Hats really do look best on curly headed gals.

*Vacationing in an all-white house really is as dreamy as I always imagined (more on this to come...)

* I am not an Energizer Bunny. And I no longer aspire to be one.

* Prodigal Summer is a great book. It may be a favorite.

*I can go three days without opening my laptop.

Here are somethings I am considering after this weekend:

* I think I might be ready to downsize from a King bed to a Queen...

* Hanging all white curtains in every room during the summer months

* I think maybe the idea of how to make authentic friendships as adult women is something that needs to be explored further. Thoughts?

*Is anyone an extrovert around strangers?

OK that is all for today.

I am still in the re-entry phase from our lovely weekend away, but I did want to say hello.

More in depth discussions of many of these topics, and more answers to your questions to come soon!

just a lovely time

2013-05-16T05:30:00.000-05:00

Tuesday night my friend Christen Byrd (far right) threw me and A Homemade Year a Living Room Tour party in her backyard.

The night was amazing.

The weather was perfect, warmish, breezy, fluffy clouds overhead.

The decor absolutely sumptuous.

Christen is an amazing party thrower and no detail was spared for this little shin-dig. Seriously. This gal

Party guest Amara (on the left) even made a recipe from the book- Summer Pineapple Pasta Salad (found in the Ordinary Time chapter) for us all to sample.

Christen's kids played several games of Memory using the Old Joseph Cards (the printable can be found here) and other bits and pieces from the book made their way into the party scene-including lots of gingham and vintage sheets.

Learning to juggle family, work, book promotion and speaking engagements has been a bit of a challenge over the past two months, but nights like these makes it all worth it.

The ladies who came were delightful, sweet and so welcoming.

I loved getting to share part of my story and hear part of theirs.

Every time I get to speak to a group I have to pinch myself a little bit. I am beyond blessed, and I am so grateful to be asked. Pouring out hope, tender truth, and light into the hearts of others is no small thing and I try my best to handle the responsibility gently, respectfully, and humbly.

No one in this world has to listen to a word I say, or read a line I write, so each time someone chooses to do so is a huge honor.

And each time one of my friends invites me to share my book and story and heart with their friends, I am doubly honored, because they know me and if what I was sharing was bs, they would be the first ones to say so. They would not hang handmade buntings and make lemon bars and invite their friends over to meet me.

Which is why I have to pinch myself.

+++++++++++++++++++

Speaking of listening and reading....

I taped my very first ever radio interview last week and you can now listen to it here (of course it is so weird to hear my own voice. And I sort of sound like a grown-up. How did that happen??)

I am confessing a bit about motherhood over at the Little Rock Family blog with a small excerpt from A Homemade Year

And I am reinventing a garage sale find over on the At Home blog

PS-If you like the look of this party, and the idea of having a little get-together filled with crafts, yummy food and blessings, stay tuned... Something LOVELY is coming soon....

PPS- Have a good weekend! I am off to Eureka Springs, AR for most of mine. See you all here next week.

Going to Moss Mountain and such things

2013-05-15T06:00:00.000-05:00

Hello friends.

How are you??
Me? I am good but a bit worn out, I cannot lie.
These are busy days for me.
But busy with good stuff.
Today I am particularly happy about the following:
Today someone is coming to clean my house.
Today I am hoping to set up our very fancy (ha!) blow-up pool.
Today I am listening to To Kill A Mockingbird on YouTube. Did you know that you can find audio books on YouTube? I didn't either until recently. So handy.
Today the sun is shining and I am embracing it.

I will be posting more answers to your questions soon, but not today. Instead I wanted to share a little bit about what the rest of my month looks like, as I am doing a lot of traveling, and I hope some of it leads me to you!

{A little fashion inspiration board for my Bean2Blog day}
Apron, Shirt, Similar Pants, Boot, Hat, Necklace

First of all, I am SO excited about going back to Moss Mountain Farm to see P. Allen Smith, his gardens, his AMAZING house and his sweet animals. Last year was so much fun, and I can't believe I get to go again. We will be learning all about Soybeans again, and how to grow, prepare, and get the most use from them. If you have any questions -of any kind - for Allen, please leave a comment on this post and I will be sure and ask him for you!

In addition to going to Moss Mountain, I have many other speaking engagements and events happening over the next few weeks. Here is a breakdown of when and where I will be from now till June 8-if you live in an area close to these events I hope you will come out and see me!

May 17 - Eureka Thyme, Eureka Springs, Arkansas 5-8 PM, book signing and readings http://www.eurekathyme.com/

May 19 - Books In Bloom Literary Festival, Eureka Springs Arkansas http://www.booksinbloom.org/

May 21- Going to Bean2Blog at Moss Mountain Farm with P. Allen Smith

May 25 - The Culinary District, Hot Springs, AR 1-3PM, Book Signing and Demo Event

June 1 - Women's Institute, Arkansas Episcopal Church Women Retreat, Petite Jean, Arkansas Contact Wanda Dudley -wandadunwoody@yahoo.com

June 7, 8 - Hobnob Market, Danville, IL. Will be doing craft demo's, reading from book, and selling/signing books as wellat this pop-up style vintage & handmade market at The Barn at Bunker Hill - inside Kennekuk County Park near Danville, IL. Contact hobnobmarket@comcast.net

answering your questions- Raising Hennie Pennies

2013-05-13T14:18:00.001-05:00

One of the questions I get a lot is about our chickens.
How do I like raising them? Is it easy? Do we name them?
I am by no means a chicken raising expert, but I will share with you what I do know.

What is the most important thing that you must know about raising chickens?
The number one thing about raising chickens that you must be comfortable with if you are going to take on this project is the shit.
And there is no other way to say it.
Chicken shit is chicken shit. No point in trying to say it in a nicer way.
So, if you are particularly adverse to poopy things- especially animal poop- then chicken raising will not be for you.

Secondly, caring for chickens is a daily chore. And I mean daily.
No matter what the weather or your other plans.
Chickens need to be put up in their coop with their door firmly locked each night to be safe from predators and then they need to be let out every morning to scratch and stretch their legs.
They need feed, scratch, scraps and fresh water daily.
These needs make going away for the weekend interesting, as you have to find people in your life -who also do not mind chicken shit - to come twice a day to care for your chickens.
Luckily, we live in a chicken friendly neighborhood and have neighbors who don't mind helping out from time to time.
But this may not be the case for you.

What is your set up like? Your coop and such?

This is a view of our coop and our feeding station. We have six hens and we have two feeders.

Over to the side is a medium size galvanized bucket that we keep filled with water.

We used to keep the feed in the coop, but with six gals there was just no room. We would find a hen sleeping on the top of one of the feeders, or all the grain would be knocked out onto the floor of the coop-attracting varmints or other critters.

Both the feeder and the coop are made from a mixture of reclaimed and new parts.

Sweet man designed and built both, with some input here and there from me on how to cute-en them up.

I mean if you are going to have a coop and a feeding station, shouldn't they be cute? That's what I thought.

Because our dog Maizy likes to chase the gals we built them a run that is about 45ft long x 15ft deep.

Our run does not have a top covering. The coop is high enough off the ground that if the chickens want shelter, but do not want to get in the coop they can go underneath instead.

In addition to the feed and scraps, we also throw kitchen scraps, oak tree leaves, grass clippings, weeds, poke salad and all the earth worms we find in there for them to eat.

When the weather is warm the gals produce 4-5 eggs a day. In the winter it goes down to 2-3.

You can see a full tour of our coop here.

Do you have to name your chickens?

Well no, I guess not. But we do name our girls in general. The first hens we ever had we raised from baby chicks and we were very attached to them- especially Wylie who is the main chicken-care-giver. They all had names and personalities and we each claimed certain ones as our favorites.

But after losing that flock in such a shocking way, we have gone a little slower with this crew.

Two of our current gals came to us already named, and then there are " The Reds" that P. Allen Smith gave us. I think the boys have named a couple of The Reds, but I am not sure what their names are. The other two are Rosie and Henny Penny (aka Long Neck.)

Over time all of our current hennies have grown accustomed to us even though we did not raise them from birth (from hatch?) and they will all let us pick them up and hold them now. A few have even become snugly.

Do you give them antibiotics etc as some books suggest?

Currently, no. So far {knock on wood} our gals have been healthy and hearty and we have not seen the need.

Do they ever make it to your table? (thanks to my dad for asking this blunt question!)

Once. Where we live we are not allowed to raise roosters, and unfortunately one of our baby chicks, Stuckup, turned out to be a rooster. Once he begin crowing we knew it was his time to go. Wylie was very brave and offered to take care of this chore since they were "his chickens." After a good cry of course.

I have to say, as sad as it was, Stuckup made a very yummy pot of broth for chicken and dumplings.

Do you have to do anything different when it is really cold or snows?

Yes. When temperatures get really low we rig up a heat lamp in safe spot inside their coop and cover half the window screens with plastic sheets. We don't seal up the coop entirely because the chickens would asphyxiate, but we try to protect them as best we can. They are also covered in down feathers and like to huddle together, so that helps keep them warm. They other thing we do is keep their water broken up, as it tends to turn to ice overnight. And we still open their door, and close it up each day and night, because even with snow on the ground, they still like getting some fresh air and digging for worms.

So that is a bit about hen raising from our little urban cottage farm. Want to see more about what is inspiring our Urban Cottage Farm and what changes we are making? Follow my Pinterest board on the topic.

Do you have any questions about raising chickens that I didn't answer? Leave me a comment below and I will do my best to reply soon~

babies don't keep

2013-05-12T09:18:00.001-05:00

The last stanza of this poem, written by Ruth Hulburt Hamilton,

hung on the wall of my home growing up, and therefore has also hung on the fringes of my heart forever.

My mother could have written this poem.

It was a sort of mantra of our home..

Not that the laundry and the dishes and the dust never got taken care of. They did, often with the help of me and my siblings.

But the laundry and the dishes and the dust were not the products my mother was creating. They were not the point or the goal or the standard.

Instead they were the byproducts of what was the point-our family life, our childhoods.

And knowing that as a child was huge.

Happy Mother's Day to all you mommas of all kinds today.

And Happy Mother's Day most of all to my momma, Tanya Beverly Jackson.

I couldn't ask or dream up a better momma for me if I tried.

St. Maria goes moooo

2013-05-10T21:49:00.001-05:00

There is a new girl in the house and her name is Maria, or St. Maria, depending on how the wind blows my mood.

Jeanetta painted her for me, and I am head-over-heels in-love.

I guess if I can't have an actual farm -yet- I will just keep finding ways to bring the farm to the city.

Not too shabby a solution wouldn't you say?

Jeanetta recently moved her father's drafting table into her bedroom and all I can say is, this girl is on fire! So proud to see her doing her art thing again. And more than happy to benefit from this bout of inspiration :)

Speaking of being proud of my IRL friends...

My friend Alison won Yarnells for a YEAR! See how HERE and check out all the other fun she and her family are having of late. Things are never boring at Chino House : )

My friend Sarabeth recently wrote a sweet and funny post for the Little Rock Family Blog and will be reading a piece she wrote at the Northwest Arkansas Performance of Listen to Your Mother. I am truly sad that I will not be able to make that road trip with the gals, but luckily I get to know SB in real life and therefore get to experience her fabness regularly.

My friend Liz has been writing up a storm lately about all sorts of topics; from boobs to Voldermort noses. I love watching her blog -and her - grow and change.

and lastly I have to ask if you are planning on coming to the Arkansas Women Bloggers Conference? I hope so, because a) I will be there and I would love to see you, and 2) It is at one of my most favorite Camp and Retreat Centers - Ferncliff {which is where my parents were married of few dozen years ago...}

I learned so much at the 2012 gathering and met so many great women. I found the entire experience to be encouraging, low-stress and helpful. If you are a blogger or thinking of becoming a blogger then I think you might just enjoy this gathering. I will probably talk about this again from time to time, but I wanted to give you a heads up so you could start saving your pennies!

OK, I have been reading your questions and hope to start on them first thing Monday.

This week has been a dozy and the blogging break was helpful, thanks for sticking around.

bokeh and some questions

2013-05-06T11:11:00.000-05:00

Want to know how much I love bokeh filters? So much that I would put bokeh circles (like the ones all over my face in this picture) over my entire world if I could. If I was going back in time I would name this blog House of Bokeh or some such silly thing.

Seriously.

Want to know why the Kardashian's always look amazing during there confessional interviews on their show? Bokeh. Well, bokeh in their eyes anyway. Those big, beautiful brown eyes of theirs are reflecting HUGE MEGA WATT lights that are pointing straight at them. And it creates a bokeh like effect in that area. Which is hypnotizing. And why we cannot look away despite the obvious cray-cray happening there.

Bokeh is like a bottle of fairy dust being magically poured out over everything.

It makes me beyond happy and I have to resist processing ever single picture I have through this filter.

You can keep your rose-tinted glasses, give me bokeh for life. Bokeh looks to me how grace feels. How joy feels. How carefreeness feels.

But enough about bokeh...

Over the next 6 weeks I have 8 speaking engagements of some sort, work is at it's peak busy season, and I may or may not be tossing around another book idea.

Needless to say my brain is already feeling a little fuzzy.

So I need your help. If you want to help. Which I wouldn't blame you if you didn't, you are probably busy too!

But if you do want to help here is what I could use: Ideas and questions. I am afraid that this blog is in jeopardy of just lying around like a wet noodle for a few weeks unless I get some content help...

SO, here it goes:

What would you like me to write more about on the blog?

Decorating? Faith? Friendship? Family raising? Crafting? Gardening? Chickens? Something else all together?

Are there any questions you would like me to answer here on the blog?

About anything? My family? About our life? About myself? About writing? About??? You tell me! What is something you have always wanted to ask me? I will do my best to answer everything honestly and be as forthright as possible.

(of course I have to confess that I am super nervous that no one will ask questions or give suggestions. Throwing this out into Blogland is a little bit like throwing a party - what if no one shows up???)

Ready?

Set!

Ask away!

sunday's challenge- awhile

2013-05-05T07:00:00.000-05:00

the tale of the garden bunting

2013-05-02T15:56:00.001-05:00

Once upon a time there was a family who wanted to have a little garden...
This ~~was~~ is their fearless leader.

This is his willing assistant.

And this is was their foe.
A large lovable pup who found the newly tilled and piled dirt, a most lovely place to do her -ahem- (sorry Maw,) business. Ahem.

But was the Farmer Daddoe and his assistant worried?

Nah! Never! They ~~were~~ are men of action! They had a plan.

A nice little white picket fence just like Cottage Momma had always wanted to have would do the trick!

But even as nice as the fence was, it was not enough for the rascally pup.
She was not to be deterred by a simple little fence, oh no!
What to do?
Neither Farmer Daddoe or Cottage Momma wanted to spend too much money.
And they hated to undue all the work already done.
So they did the only thing they could think of.
They went out for fish tacos.

And it was there, at the little restaurant, half a taco in her mouth, that Cottage Momma had an idea
Garden Bunting!
"Why not?" said Farmer Daddoe.

So off to Wal-Mart she went, to buy vinyl tablecloths (oilcloth being hard to come by in her town,) white duct tape and rope, while Farmer Daddoe went off to buy wooden stakes at the hardware store.

And before the sun was set that day, there was garden bunting all around that fresh garden spot.

A solution to their woes that turned out to be both pretty and effective.

Which is really how things should always be, don't you think?

The end.

Wordy Wednesday-Please Don't Eat the Daisies!

2013-05-01T11:11:00.000-05:00

I thought the blog {and I} could use a little levity today to balance out the universe a bit. In fact I needed a little levity last night, which led me to watch a bit of one of my favorite old movies- Please Don't Eat the Daisies, starring Doris Day and Davin Niven. I have not watched this movie in years and I was more than a little surprised to find so many similarities between this old favorite and my own real life {which seems to be happening more and more lately when I watch old movies or read favorite books. I wonder if this is life imitating art or art imitating life or if it just means that I am old. I think it is the latter.}

The movie is based on the book by the same title, which is a best-selling collection of humorous essays by American humorist and playwright Jean Kerr about suburban living and raising four boys. I have yet to read the book, but it is on order from Amazon as I type. I will let you know what I think once I get my hands on it. I bet it is funny. And I tend to like humorous essays. Levity and brevity-that's a winning combination.

Here are few things I noticed this time, that mattered not the last time I watched this movie (sad to say, probably over a decade ago.)

1) Boys, boys, boys. This is a home full of boys and their adventures, pranks, and noise. I may only have two, but I swear they do the damage of 4.

2) Old English Sheep Dog who thinks it's a lap dog. Yep, I have one of those.

3) Chenille Bedspreads. OK, those may not have been in the movie but aren't they great? I love seeing vintage things I love so much now, back when they were new and modern.

4) Doris' character wants to move to the country and fix up an old country house. Hmm... that sounds familiar, no?

Of course I also love Doris' wardrobe throughout the whole movie-especially all the shirtwaist dresses, and her party dress at the very beginning of the movie. So classic American chic, but not very reflective of my style. Sadly the shirtwaist is neither flattering nor easy to come by for me, and long, tight black evening gowns have no place to go beyond my closet.

But oh how I love Doris's kitchen, it is my favorite room in the whole movie.

I love all the mix-n-match shelving, and the great farmhouse sink, a vintage "armoire" fridge, the aqua stand mixer in the back, the red accents in the fabric and the stainless peculator...

I want to move in tomorrow.

I also love the old school Italian restaurant they eat in. There is one very similar in a nearby town and every time we eat there I feel as if I have landed in a 1950's, Hollywood version of New York, right down to the candles in old wine jugs .

If you have never watched Please Don't Eat the Daisies, check out the trailer- which itself is campy, and fun, and silly. All nice things to interject into your life if you feel yourself becoming to serious about most everything else. I promise.

all the little flowlers say pick me! a little rambling...

2013-04-30T12:15:00.000-05:00

Spring is finally here. Hurrah!

Our yard is beginning to bloom.

I find that I am so much more content with our little city plot when it is green and lush.

It is so much easier to see the potential for a little cottage farm life in the city.

As with most things, perspective is key.

What I am looking at and how I am looking at it (whatever IT may be,) matter.

My yard is always my yard. The potential is always there.

I just get impatient.

(It is almost always impatience with me isn't it?)

And that is the lens I look through.

That is how I see it. I do not see it for for what it is, or even what it could be, but instead I see it only for what it is not. And oh, how I zoom in on those little nuggets, magnifying them until they cloud all my vision.

I think maybe that is a little bit how it is when trying to form friendships and tribes.

Sometimes I am too busy looking longingly at the person I want to be my friend, that I cannot see the person who is looking longingly at me, who wants to be mine.

All too often I look through the lens of what I don't have - the friendship, the house, the yard, the body type, - for so long, that I forget there are other lenses I can choose to put on.

There are other ways to see things.

That what is not can be beside the point.

Instead, I have to ask myself again: what is?

There are just two pretty blooms on the little rose bush that grows by my bedroom window, and a whole lot of empty thorny branches.

I see both.

Which one do I pick to take inside with me? The blooms or the thorns?

Again, and again, it is up to me to choose.

Folkcation

2013-04-29T16:10:00.002-05:00

Let me begin by saying that having pie everyday makes for a lovely vacation.
This includes fried pie. Which is the kind of pie you eat when you go on a Folkcation.
So what is a Folkcation? Well, in our case, it was a mini- vacation spent at the Ozark Folk Center and on the square in Mountain View, Arkansas.

Now why would we want to do that sort of thing for a getaway? (Some of you more city-minded gals might be wondering this, I know.)
Well, first of all our little family likes old fashioned things. It is one of our quirks. We tend to work history lessons into most of our vacations.
Secondly, I didn't grow up in Arkansas and the time I did spend here was spent in the city with my city grandparents. I knew nothing of Bluegrass or the Ozarks or folk culture until college. So I find it all very interesting and curious.
Thirdly, I had briefly stayed at the Ozark Folk Center back in August for the Arkansas Women's Blogger Conference (are you coming this year?? You must! So much fun!) but because I was sick I missed a whole chunk of the Folk-center-experience. I pretty much only saw my cabin and the conference center.
And lastly-and most importantly- my sweet friend Stephanie and her family had invited me and my family to come stay with them on the Folk Center grounds (Stephanie's husband is the Folk Center's Park Superintendent.)

After several failed attempts, we finally settled on a date for our visit, taking advantage of our long weekend to load up the car and head for the hills.

When you first arrive at the Folk Center, you might be caught off guard- and wonder "where is everything?" Because that is what I thought last year at the conference (but remember, I was sick and heavily medicated.)

But behind the conference center, there is the cutest little "Crafters Village" filled with shops and other structures where real craftsmen and women are hard at work.

I immediately liked this version of Main Street better than Disney's, because the shops are all actually what they look like, instead of one long tourist trap housed behind a facade.

The Crafts Village is currently undergoing some renovations (which are looking great btw,) so there were a few shops that were closed to the public. But some folks made do by combining shops- for instance Linda Odom, who is the Soap Maker, was sharing space with her husband Troy Odom who runs the Print Shop. Their combination was by far my favorite workshop/store in the whole village.

Because we were hanging out with Stephanie and her family, we got to get in on a little commerical-making action for the Folk Center. That is my boys and her boys trying out the letterpress while a cameraman looks on.

This is what I love about staying with other bloggers- you never know what sort of hijinks's are going to occur!

The Art Guild was another favorite stop for the boys. The shop is run by members of the Mountain View Art Guild, whose work is also on display and for sale. Each time we visited the boys were invited to jump in and take a mini-water color lesson, which of course Miles ate up.
Many of the artist offer workshops for all ages during the busy season- and I already have plans to go back for Pottery and Candle Making lessons later this summer.

A lot of the artist and craftsmen will make you custom items such as embossed stationary, custom belts or guitar straps, and even brooms. Shawn Hoefer makes the brooms (you can see more at his website) and he also weaves quite the story. Sweet Man said he could have listened to Shawn tell stories all day long.

For Christmas Miles had asked for a Blacksmith Forge and Anvil. Unfortunately Santa could not fit those in his sleigh.

Even though the blacksmith was not at his post the day we were there, Stephanie's husband Joe was able to help Miles and the other boys scrounge up pieces of iron and metal left behind on the ground from previous demonstrations. I honestly think that collecting these scraps were almost more fun than seeing a real blacksmith in action would have been.

Our trip also included: fun on the zipline (the boys,) bluegrass pickin' (Sweet Man and some amazing local musicians including Clancy Ferguson,) autoharp lesson (me,) fiddle buying (Miles apparently is a natural,) flea market shopping (me again,) and more yummy pie (all of us.)

Even though the trip was a bit of a whirlwind, it was so worth taking the time away from our to-do list to go and unwind, to be together, and spend time with friends (and in the boys case-make new friends.)

We had so much fun, we are all already trying to figure out how soon we can go back for another Folkcation getaway, and maybe even stay a little longer (now that we know how much fun it can be.)

life of brian

2013-04-26T07:00:00.000-05:00

This is Brian. He is the newest member to our family.

I like him and his snazzy peebles.

In the next 6 weeks I have exactly one entire weekend free.

This one. And it happens to be a four day-er.

So as a family we are unplugging a bit.

We are taking a cue from B here and going the mellow route for a few days.

Taking a little road trip

Laying low.

Being chill.

I will see you on the flip side!

Much love-

PS:

Here are a few things you might want to check out during my little escape:

*Mother's Day Special! Purchase A Homemade Year for only $12 from Paraclete using the code JERUSALEM at checkout {this price is currently cheaper than Amazon!}

*Check out the interview with me over at Urban and Proud

*Read my recent mini-series on finding a tribe -

Passion for a Tribe

Start a Tribe

*Follow me on Facebook or GoodReads!

start a tribe: the intersection of bravery and tenderness

2013-04-25T11:00:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week I wrote a bit about found communities and chosen families over at Relyn's blog.
And I wrote about it from my experience of finding community and friendship, sometimes in unlikely places, and at unlikely times.
But I realize that not everyones experience of friendship and community is like mine.

I realized it again while having pie Saturday night with 6 lovely, funny, kind ladies.
We ate pie and french fries and spoke truth, and listened gently and laughed until we cried.
Our waitress kept asking if we were part of an official group. Were we in town for a conference? Were we part of a club? Did we work together?
"No, we are just all friends" we said.
To which she replied "I wish I had this many friends. I just have my mom and my kids."

I wanted to take her home right then.
Or move to her town and be her friend.
Or at least drive the 3 hours to her town once a month for pie.
It broke my heart.

But it is not the first time I have heard this sort of statement recently.
Not the first time I have wanted to scoop someone up and adopt them into my tribe.

When I was in my early twenties I met a gal named Amy at church.
We had few coffees, shared some fries (yes, I am seeing a trend here..,) and attended a conference together.
In the beginning it was awkward. I thought we had nothing in common. I was pregnant, she was starting her doctorate. He life was fairly corporate and mine was highly domestic. Her hair was always perfectly coiffed, mine was always a mess. We should have never become friends.

But circumstances pushed us together enough that there was the slightest spark of friendship. Our lives looked very different, but on the inside we were very similar. We had a lot of the same questions about faith, the same interest in books, coffee and learning. But still we were just "church friends."

Until she sent me the card.
And in the card it said this: Will you be my real friend? Check Yes or No.
I checked yes. And the deal was sealed. We were now real friends.

I have longed admired Amy's bravery and vulnerability in sending me that card.
For taking a chance, for opening her hand to show me her heart, for taking the risk of letting me break it, on the slim chance that instead I would help her care for it.
She didn't have to ask me. She could have just let things be as they were- casual, gliding on the surface. In fact everything in our culture tells us that tenderness is the enemy, and that vulnerability is for suckers, so who could blame her if she had?

The growth of my tribe, over the years between college and now, is full of moments like this. Moments where I, or the other person, has held out a hand and opened it up, revealing a tender part of ourselves to the other for care.

For a year and a half in college I lived in a private room. I was on the same hallway as several good friends, but I spent many, many evenings alone in that room, waiting on someone to call. To say "why are you alone? Come down to our room!" I kept waiting to be wanted.

It wasn't until Sweet Man and I moved to a new town, joined a new church, and I became friends with Amy that I realized how I had played a part in my loneliness.
It was only then that I realized that most people are waiting to be wanted.

These days I try not to sit around waiting to be wanted.
Instead, I try to be brave and tender, like Amy was all those years ago.

I try to see that need in others and meet it.
I try to erase their aloneness as much as I can.

But in order to do this authentically, in order to do this in a way that doesn't feel like I am trying to earn holiness points, I have to also allow them to erase parts of my aloneness as well.
I have to open my hand and share some tender bits of my heart with the understanding that no one owes me kindness in return.
Otherwise it is all works and no love.
Otherwise, "Concern" turns to judgement and "truth" turns to condemnation. And I am just an annoying, goody-two-shoes, gonging mess, wrecking havoc in the name of "loving my neighbor."

For me, if I am going to love honestly, if I am going to actively choose to be in relationship with others, I have to remain vulnerable, authentic, transparent. I must be willing to be chosen as well.
I must live from a place of humility and gratefulness for each and every person that chooses to check my YES box, every person who chooses me back.*

So, if you do not have a tribe yet, and you would like one, perhaps you could think and pray on how to start one. How to be the one to stop waiting, to gather all your bravery and tenderness, and step out to say "will you be my friend?"

*(I feel like I need to say somewhere, somehow, that I am not in any way addressing abusive relationships, or advocating that people stay in them because "it is what Jesus would do." What I am talking about here has to do with safe people and safe relationships. Initially awkward friendships, with potentially awkward people? Yes. Abusive friendships with abusive people? NO. )

** All these pictures were taken at the St Scholastica Monastery

french- inspired tea towel apron diy

2013-04-23T11:00:00.000-05:00

So book promoting is kicking my tail a little bit. But in a good way.

This week I have two events, two nights in a row.

Last night I got to speak the most lovely group of women at First United Methodist Church in Little Rock, and tonight I am continuing on the Homemade Living Room Tour at a friends house.

The Homeamde Living Room Tour is a little bit like a Tupperware Party for A Homeamde Year.

But instead of Tupperware, I am sharing my story, reading a chapter, and serving a few simple sample recipes and craft ideas from the book, and answering questions about how all of this came to be. I am also selling/signing the book as well.

I adore meeting new women and hearing their stories, and getting to share my story and the book with them.

But I am not going to lie. 2 events in 2 days on top of work is stretching me.

(We have been test driving them around town at friends homes to see how they go over. If you would like to know more about my upcoming events or if you are interested in hosting a Living Room Tour party, please check out my Events page. for details and contact info)

But enough about all of that-what we are really all here to do today is talk about cute aprons. That you can make.

Not a master seamstress? Trust me. It will be okay. This one is EASY. I did it, after all.

With Mother's Day, Weddings and Graduations just around the corner, this can be the time of year where easy-but-unique gifts can be in high demand. I thought this might be a good time to show you this pretty simple apron that I designed this past December. Because I only dabble in sewing (I am a fan of things with straight edges, no armholes for me please) I designed an apron that was easy to make, required almost no measuring or cutting, and could be easily customized. I made my aprons to give out at Christmas, but I think that they are going to be a go-to gift for all sorts of events and holidays for me going forward.

I have done my best to explain my process below.
I have to give a huge shout-out to all those sewing writers out there because for me, writing sewing directions is ten times as hard as writing a craft project or recipe. I promise.
There are three sewing projects in A Homemade Year and I had to help getting the directions straight on all three (thank you Mom, Jeanetta and Jemimah!)

I am visual and tactile learner, so I liked to be able to see a finished product and then work backwards when I am following DIY instructions.
I tried to make the directions for this apron simple and clear, but they may be more like mud.
If so, please feel free to ask me a question or suggest a better to explain what I mean.

To make this apron I used:

2 generous in size flour sack towels

2 large grommets

5 yards of 5/8" Cotton Twill Tape

Sewing Machine

Coordinating Thread (I used red)

This first thing I did was wash, dry and iron my towels. This last bit-the ironing- is a tip from my mother who is a master seamstress.Even in my limited sewing experience, I have become true believer in washing and ironing first.

Next, I stitched down the middle of your 1 1/2 yards of twill table using a zigzag setting on my sewing machine to make the neck tie.

(Now here is why I am not ever going to actually make these aprons to sell. I stink at all the finishing details. Don't look too closely at the ends of my twill tape ties, or you will see a bit of folded,stitched, mess. )

With the exception of finishing the ends, making the stitched twill tape (which I bought in bulk from Amazon,) was super simple. I love the simple detail of the red against the white- and the zigzag just adds a hint of whimsy.

To create the shape, I laid one towel horizontal and then laid the other towel on top of the first vertically. I then pinned my remaining plain white twill tape across the middle of the vertical towel where it met the horizontal towel, thus securing all three elements together and creating a waistband.

To sew them together, I started at one of end of the twill tape (the part that was for tying in a bow) and stitched down the center of the the twill tape and then the two towels together, using the zigzag stitch again, running the stitch all the way to the other end of the twill tape.

I made the tie extremely long because I like the be able to wrap around and tie my aprons in the front. Feel free to adjust your length as needed.

For the neck ties, I added two large grommets about 2 1/2 inches in from the edge of the vertical towel, and about 3/4 an inch from the top. I used silver grommets and a grommet punch.

Next, I ran my neck tie through each grommet and then knotted the ends. This created the neck loop.

The only thing that could improve this apron is a pocket on the bust area. I might have to add one when I make the next batch. My favorite thing about this apron, is the "hand towel" that is created by the bottom half of the vertical apron. I am forever wiping my hands on towels and my apron when I am working in the kitchen and I like having this little flap so close at hand. Also, it is good for gathering eggs.

I love that his apron is fairly unisex, a good fit for most sizes, and the neck strap is easily adjustable. It is easy to make and easy on the budget.

So there you have it! A little DIY apron for your Tuesday. I hope between the pictures and my less-than perfect instructions you can figure this one out and make it your own. And please let me know if I need to make something clearer!

and then we had pie. and I saw a pink toilet.

2013-04-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

Let's just get this fabulousness out of the way shall we?
You will never guess who I had pie with.
Yup, the lovely, talented, extremely funny, and down-to-earth, Rachel Held Evans.

This past weekend I took a little road trip with some pals to go hear Rachel speak Saturday night and Sunday morning.
We may have been a little stalkerish in the beginning:
blowing up RHE's Twitter feed on Friday night, sitting on the front row Saturday morning, kidnapping her after her talk for a dinner of salad, coffee, fries and pie.
(Okay, okay, she had the salad and I had the fries.)

But in the end we were all the very best of friends.
Despite the kidnapping and our over use of the hashtag #FtVegas.

Meeting someone from the interwebs in real life always has that sort of "what will they really be like?" question hanging around. But Rachel was warm, friendly, open, and exceedingly gracious. A true kindred spirit as Anne Shirley would say.

One thing I love about girl trips is all the attention to getting gussied up.
Living in a house full of absent minded professor males, means that getting ready to "go out' is a very solitary endeavor.
No one cares what I wear.
No one can tell me which shoes go better, if I should wear my hair curly or straight, up or down.
If I should wear two necklaces or just one.
No one understands taking make-up off, just to put it back on again.
This sort of shared experience was one of my favorite parts of dorm life:-music playing, multiple hair dryers blowing, the aroma of Final Net, Vanilla Sugar body wash and Clinique's happy, hanging in the air.
Going on road trips with my girlfriends is important to my well being as a fairly girly-girl who lives with boys.

Of course life with boys is far from awful.
How can you not love these two?
Weirdos.
Where are these children's parents?
Seriously.

In addition to pie and french fries, we also ate some amazing Central American food on Saturday.
Golly I love to go to an ethnic restaurant with someone who knows how to order, who speaks the language, and can translate all of my questions.
This meal resulted in a food coma that required a nap in a cold, dark, hotel room.
So. Good.

Here are a few other random bits from last week:

I hung some of the signs from the Hootenanny on the wall in the art room/office.

I picked the two which I thought would be most inspiring as I work.

I also changed out the slipcovers on the back cushions, and hung a bunch of the paper chain garlands (also from the party,) in the corner. I think they overall look is homey and cheerful, and homemade. The perfect place for me to sit and write and mull things over.

Also last week I found A Homemade Year in some brick and mortar stores here in town.
I have to confess that both the Annes were already on the this display shelf, and I was on the bottom row across the way.
But I couldn't resist staging the photo anyway.
I love my Anne's and I am always a little overwhelmed to realize that my little book is even in the same building, let alone on the same aisle as their books.

On the way to the store last week I saw these two lovelies sitting on the side of the road, waiting for the bus.

They seemed to be in a heated discussion.

I imagine that she was scolding him for picking out a bad toupee.

I mean really.

Who picks out a faux wood grain to go with aqua porcelain?

I really loved these toilets and it makes me wonder why we are all so dedicated to white toilets.

Are they really that much better?

sunday's challenge-to notice

2013-04-21T06:30:00.000-05:00

I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it.

Alice Walker

a friday hodgepodge round up

2013-04-19T11:30:00.000-05:00

It has been a while since I posted a round-up, and I thought going into the weekend might be a good time to do so.

On the Pinterest:

Love this mixture

It fits in my farm-one-room-school-house-industrial style sensibilities.

House of Belonging House Tour

I just love Tif.

And her house. OMG.

To die for.

For instance, this dresser makes me soooo happy.

Camping Cute

There are some things in the works in regards to camping cute and craft retreats and A Homemade Year.

Once everything is ready to go, you will be the first to know all the details!

Stay tuned!

Magic Corn- this really works
Seriously. It's magic. We did this last night.
My only notes would be to roll the corn over halfway through cooking.

On the nightstand:

So here is the thing. Sometimes I just need books that are fun. That are not too serious or too thought provoking or too real. For that reason, I love Sarah-Lynch Kate. Her books are full of colorful characters, always have a hint of whimsy, generally take place in a lovely foreign location, have a hint of romance, and often feature some sort of food as a main character (bread, cheese, wine, biscotti...) and the theme of "found family." And though they are light and entertaining reads, I do not feel as if I am losing brain cells with every page turn.

I am soon going to run out of Sarah-Kate's books, so I am giving a few books that were "readers who liked those like these" picks a try. The first up is this book- The Secret Lives of Dresses. I will keep you posted.

On the interwebs:

My C Word

I cannot even count the ways I love this post.

Happy in My Shoes

My friend shares her heart and I adore it.

What Christians Need to Know About Mental Health

Having suffered from depression, and having loved ones in my life who suffer from mental health issues, I am continually amazed by the stigma associated with mental health and the options for intervention and treatment among the Christian community. I am proud of each and every person who works to remove shame and secrecy from this issue.

So these are the things that I have been reading, checking out, mulling over recently.
What about you?

Lucky Number 7: A Blogiversary

2013-04-17T22:07:00.002-05:00

This is the very picture I posted on this blog.

I didn't even write a post.

I just posted this picture with the following question for the title:

Wishes or weeds? What do you see?

That was 7 years ago.

And so very, very much has changed.

But not the things I thought would change.

Which continues to be the pattern of my life.

The same question is asked daily of me:

What do you see?

Wishes or weeds?

Hope or disappointment?

Laughter or tears?

Both.

I see both.

I took this picture last week.

In our front yard, around each of our huge oak trees, there is a small ring of daffodils.

Daffodils that the boys and I planted with the help of my friend Andrea and her girls.

Andrea is a gardener.

I am not.

When Andrea looks at a map of the USA she sees gardening zones.

When I look at a map of the USA I see Ikea locations.

These flowers are the first things, in my 38 years, that I remember ever having planted,

And they lived.

They pushed through the very cold earth and sprouted and bloomed. And they are lovely.

This is no small thing.

We planted these flowers last fall, before winter, but after the temperatures had changed.

We planted them when I was having a low day, or week, or month, about having not sold our house the previous summer.

About having not bought the farm we had dreamed of for two years.

So Andrea helped me plant these flowers in good faith.

Faith that I would still be in this house to see them bloom, and that in seeing them bloom, I would see a little bit of beauty in our remaining here, despite all my plans to be elsewhere.

For the most part it worked. I have loved seeing the flowers bloom, I love the color and the cheerfulness they bring.

But life is not all daffodils

And from time to time, I still have, what I now refer to as, "farm fever" days.

Especially right now, as we are nearing the anniversary of the sale of our house being called off.

I have moments where my chest is tight and my eyes are leaky.

And it doesn't make a lick of sense, this attachment I have, this affection for someplace I have never lived. But there it is anyway. Hanging out in little hidden parts of my heart, jumping out from behind doors and surprising me with it's ability to reduce me to an irrational puddle after all this time.

But life is not all weeds either.

And I am beyond excited and humbled by every bit of the last 7 days.

Between Ree's post, the Hootenanny and raising money for Gogo's House things have been a bit of a wonderful whirlwind this past week, and I am so grateful for every bit of love and light that has been sent my way. Truly. Walking into a store and seeing my book on the shelf, or reading a blog post or comment from a reader who has found a moment of grace and love because of the book- well those moments are golden! There is nothing better than feeling like your words are making a difference.

So, after 7 years of blogging, and of asking the question over and over, I think maybe this is the answer:

It is both.

It is wishes and weeds.

Beauty and heartache.

Faith and confusion.

Hope and disappointment.

Dandelions and Daffodils.

I can be sad about the farm and excited beyond belief about the book all at once.

And I can hold both in the same hand. They do not cancel each other out-because both are true.

And I can open my hand and offer them both up, over and over, with a grateful heart.

Because neither of them should be the defining thing about me.

They are each part of my story, but they are not my whole story.

My story-like yours- is a continual work in progress.

Which is why I reckon I will keep blogging.

I gotta see how this all shakes out.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Whether you have been here for 7 years, 7 months or 7 minutes, thank you so very much for reading this little experiment. Thank you for showing up, for being interested, for cheering me on, for holding my hand, for laughing, for loving, for helping and for sticking it out. I know some days are like wishes around here and others are full of weeds. Thank you for staying with be despite both.

All my love-

Jerusalem

PS- We sent $520 to Africa today for Gogo's House Fund!! I will keep you posted on the progress!

PSS- For a limited time I am selling autographed copies of A Homemade Year in my online shoppe-they make great Mother's Day Gifts!

hootenanny fun

2013-04-15T18:52:00.001-05:00

Saturday night was the big night for the book. The official book launch party, the Homemade Hootenanny.

I do not think words, or even pictures, can do justice to how fun this night was.

How honored and humbled and excited I felt all evening.

Each hug I received, each book purchase I signed, each time I heard laughter, or heard one of my favorite songs played- each of those moments felt like a thousand tiny blessings being rained down over me.

The night was a crazy rush of faces and signings and stories and I never got to take a single picture - so I asked all my sweet friends who were there to share their favorites, and I have compiled them below.

So without further adieu, here it is in snapshots: The Homemade Hootenanny

With so much going on leading up to the party, I knew that I needed someone else to handle the details- the styling, the setting up and tearing down.

My friend Christen Bufford of Moi et Toi events was the perfect person to make this party happen.

For weeks I pinned ideas to the an secret "launch party" board and then she took all my ideas and made them happen.

The party venue was hosted by my friends at The Shoppes on Woodlawn.

The Shoppes are in a 100 year old house in the shopping district of a historic neighborhood. The lawn is covered with sprawling trees and azalea bushes.

A million years ago, Jeanetta and I had our own little shoppe there in the parlor.

So for all those reasons and more, I knew that this would be the perfect place for a Homemade Hootenanny.

The book made it's presence known through the the entire party - from the menu items, to the much of the decor.

For instance, Christen hung this doily bunting is from Chapter 20, the Michaelmas chapter.

And the candles in the left hand corner are from the Easter chapter.

This cozy spot is where I sat most of the night and signed books and greeted guest.

(How is this my life again?)

Because the party theme was a "church social hijacked by a bootlegger," Christen asked me for my favorite hymns and bluegrass songs. Then she painted three amazing signs from those lyrics.

How perfect is this one? It's my theme song after all!

I have already found resting places in my house for all three signs.

So much fun!

Gingham is one of the common design threads running throughout A Homemade Year, so it was only right that gingham run throughout all the party decor as well.
What is more southern than gingham?
Okay, maybe monogramming is more Southern.
But nothing is more Southern Church Picnic than gingham, so there- Take that, monogramming!

The food was southern, delicious and homemade. Every bit of it.
I have to give my MIL Mary and Sweet Man a big shout-out for all the amazing cooking they did.
GranMary made her world famous Angel Biscuits (which were long gone before I could get a bite of them!) And Nathan made a breakfast casserole, and the Farmers Market Bread Pudding from Chapter 20 (Chapter 20 got a lot of love at this hootenanny, what can I say?)

My now infamous Southern Voodoo Punch was served (thank you Jeanetta for naming it!) for the grown-ups and regular punch was served for the kiddos.

To make this this happy adult punch, mix equal parts chilled:

Champagne

Boones Farm Fuzzy Navel

Pink Grapefruit Juice

So fruity, refreshing and pink. Perfect for spring and summer events.

And it packs quite the little voodoo punch if you are not careful.

After sunset, all the twinkle lights sparkled, and everything was magical.

I loved the combination of fairy lights and paper chain garland.

Christen did a great job at making so many of my ideas come to life.

Sweet Man's band Monkhouse (well, 3/4ths of them,) played a mix of southern hymns, bluegrass, folk and roots music. Plus lots of my favorites including Wild Flower by Tom Petty and Harvest Moon by Neil Young.
And of course Keep on the Sunny Side.
Sweet Man has had several bands in our 17 years together, and I have to say that this is far and away my favorite- especially when they go acoustic. Be still my heart.

Looking back at all the pictures, I cannot believe how many people came out to support me and the book. Every picture I find I see something I missed before.
And it is so great to see all my worlds collide.
Friends from each stage of life, coming together to eat pie and celebrate this book- which really was a community effort.

A couple of people asked me if the Hootenanny would be kid-friendly.
I honestly don't know if I know how to throw any other kind of party anymore.
I think this is how I recreate the large and loud family experience from my childhood.
I love to be in a kitchen cooking with five other people, everyone having to bend, shuffle and climb over each other, while the kids run wild circles in and out of the house, doors slamming, people hollering, laughter ringing loud.
I feel most at home in these moments. I feel as if LIFE is bubbling up all around me.
I want to just stand still and soak it all up- all that crazy, all that laughter, all that community.
So yes, for future reference, our parties are always kid friendly. If you can keep them out of the spiked punch.

Petit Jean Meats donated ham, bacon and sausage to the event. And let me tell you, it was the HIT of the party. Especially that bacon. I don't ever think I can eat another brand ever again.

We served samples of the Spicy Breakfast Casserole, ( featured in Chapter 15, Pentecost Sunday,) that included the Petit Jean sausage and bacon. And we served the ham with Angel Biscuits (Chapter 20.)

Our sweet friends Dan and Camille baked the Mug-o-Pies in tin ramekins (also featured in Chapter 20.) They were a huge hit and the individual portions made it easy to serve a crowd. So yummy, and perfect for warmer months because of the hint of lemon they have.

Also, those gals in that top left hand corner? They are my angels here on earth, angels who helped slay the dragon of isolation and loneliness from my life...

But you will have to read Chapter 20 for more of that story.

Did I mention how great it was to see my friends? New and old?

Like the adorable Sarah Orsborn and Kim Roth.

Sarah is wearing a homemade dress and Kim is wearing a homemade broach- how cute are they to come dressed for the theme??

And did you see preacher lady Ann Russ and her precious daughter before that?
I am pretty sure I could not have pulled that look off at her age even if Rachel Zoe was my stylist!
Adorable!

Here Kim and I in our stripes.

I love road tripping with this gal and can't wait to do it again soon.

She talked me down many a ledge, over sushi and teriyaki lunches, throughout the whole book process.

She is the one who reminded me again and again, that I was enough just as I was, book or no book.

Everyone should have at least one person- if not a truckload-who reminds them of these sorts of truths over and over.

I hope I am this person for Kim and others.

Here I am with Jeanetta, who I roped into being my cashier.

Which I felt bad about.

Sorda.

Mostly I was grateful for the excuse to have her by my side all evening.

Out of everyone at the party, with the exception of my siblings, she has known me the longest, and she still loves me despite it.

I could not have traveled this journey without her willingness to do whatever was needed-from drawing patterns, to making jelly, to sitting for pictures along with her constant assurance that everything would be okay.

She is my sister from another mother and I love her dearly.

I was also so excited to see my friend Christine, who helped edit the very first chapters I ever wrote for the book, the original proposal, and many chapters after that.

Christine and my other editor-in-waiting, Amy Brawner-Bishop, were ruthless and honest and gentle and my very best cheerleaders throughout the entire process.

Christine was there when this idea was born, and she held my hand through all of the beginning months and some of the final ones as well.

I honestly can say, that without her help, I am not sure if this little seed of an idea I had would have ever germinated and blossomed into the book it is now.

After the party she said "authorship suits you."

I think that is the best compliment ever.

This girl right here always believed I had a book in me. That my story and my creativity where worth sharing, and that sharing them was worth pursuing. That I had a voice that needed to be heard.
We have spent many nights and days and weekends dissecting our assumptions about faith, humanity, marriage, relationships, parenting and the myth of balance. Together we learn again and again how to accept and pour out grace for others -and ourselves.
She is the truest kind of friend.

These girls right here are the "Zendejas" as we called ourselves in college, and can be found in Chapter 2.

But this is only 50% of them. Joanne in glasses, Me, Shari in yellow, and Jeanetta.

This August will be our 20 anniversary of having met as college freshman.

Do we look old enough to have been freshman 20 years ago? (I guess we do. But barely, right?)

And how does 20 years fly by so quickly?

Here are some of the Zendeja's children. Mini-Zens we call them. There are more of them running around Seattle, Blytheville AR, Clarksville, TN, Round Rock, TX and South Carolina. One of my great goals is to figure out how to get everyone in the same location sooner rather than later.

Or at least hopefully before the first Mini-Zen enters college.

Which is only 4 years away.

Okay, now I need a good, stiff, sip of Southern Voodoo Punch.

Seriously.

Thank you for letting me show you these snapshots of one of the best nights of my life.

Part of the reason this blog exist is so that I can look back and remember.

And this is definitely a night I never want to forget.

the after-party {ps-YOU DID IT!}

2013-04-14T10:57:00.000-05:00

This morning I said this, and then the always awesome Judea Jackson (aka youngest sister, aka photographer extraordinaire of the book) whipped up this little diddy up.

Today we are taking it easy.

The Homemade Hootenanny was AMAZING.

And now we are recovering.

I will posting pics from the event soon.

I wish you could have been there.

P-Dub did me a solid and my Amazon ranking has been going a little crazy.

I just can't even believe this is my life.

But best of all.

You did it.

You raised enough money to build Gogo her house.

In less than a week.

My friends, you are unbelievably generous and kind and I am so honored to share this little bit of real estate in Blogland with you.

OK. I am going to go drink some more coffee and try to process all the blessings that have been pouring out this weekend.

I love you all.

Homemade Hootenanny & P-Dub

2013-04-12T10:55:00.000-05:00

If you have been following me on the Twitters or Facebook you may have heard something about a little Hootenanny we are having this weekend to celebrate the launch of A Homemade Year.

If you are not from the South you may not know what a hootenanny even is. Well, I like to explain that it is like a church picnic that got hijacked by a bootlegger.

Maybe that isn't your version of a hootenanny, but that is mine.

Which is pretty much the only way to celebrate this book.

Which is also a little bit like a church picnic was highjacked by a bootlegger.

Or at least a tasty bottle of Boones Farm Fuzzy Navel.

We are keeping it classy people!

To celebrate this party weekend (cause you know the celebration will actually last for the whole weekend, right?) I asked Ree Drummond (aka P-Dub, aka The Pioneer Woman) to kick things off for us.
Cause I am pretty sure she is the nationally appointed Master of Ceremonies for all Hootenannys.

I mean look at her and her sweet family goofing it up.

I think she gets where I am coming from- Fuzzy Navel and all.

Today Ree has generously posted about AHY on her blog.

And is GIVING AWAY 10 Copies!

And I am just gobsmacked.

Because she also wrote this amazing blurb endorsing my little book:

"I began reading A Homemade Year one afternoon when I had no fewer than a thousand things going on in my house. Almost immediately, I was drawn into Jerusalem Greer's beautiful writing and became fascinated with her journey through an entire year of liturgical celebrations---some of which (Advent, Epiphany) I celebrate in my own home, but some of which I never knew about before. Two hours later, I was still reading, happily resigned to letting my plans for the day slide. Jerusalem so clearly conveys the significance and beauty of liturgical tradition, and her celebration-specific recipes and crafts are sweet and meaningful, while at the same time completely "do-able" for everyone. This book is an absolute treasure. I want to share it with everyone I know!"

-Ree Drummond, #1 New York Times Bestselling author of The Pioneer Woman Cooks

You don't know how much her blurb means to me. You also don't know how nervous I was to email her about my book in the first place.
Writing this book was a huge jump of faith and adventure.
Maybe more so so was sending each email to each blurber and blog tour host asking them to read and review the book. Myself.

Sending your baby out into the universe to be handled and critique by people you respect...wow. It is slightly nerve wracking at best.

So when I read each blurb that came in, and now reading each post, and I see and hear that people are getting what the book is about- the intersection of faith, mess, beauty, and family - I am beyond amazed and humbled. And I feel grateful to know that I am not alone.

And that is how I feel about Ree.
She gets it. She is one of us.

But of course she gets it.
Look at that cake of hers.
Could there be a better image to show the intersection of messy and beautiful? Of faith and humanity? Of juggling family life and work life and that third life going on in our heads?

If by some chance you have never gotten a chance to know Ree, her Marlboro Man and her adorable, funny kids, then hop on over to her site, or grab one of her books, or even set your DVR for her Food Network show. You will love her, I just know it.

And if you are feeling just a twinge of "how does she do it all?" envy. Please don't.

A few years ago, before she was my P-Dub, I heard Ree speak at the Arkansas Literary Festival.

And someone asked her this quesiton- "How do you do it all?"

And she said, quite frankly,

"I don't. I have help. I am blessed that I have someone who cleans my house for me for instance."

The sigh of relief that flowed over the crowd was audiable.

And I loved her instantly. So much for keeping up the super-woman rep.

See, not even PW can do it all alone. None of us can.

As I get ready to celebrate the launch of A Homemade Year this weekend, I too want to say a huge thanks for all the help I have had over the past two years. This book- and my life- do not happen in a self-contained vacuum. And tomorrow night I am going to celebrate that-and each of the people who have made this adventure possible. I am going to say THANK YOU as loud as I can, and together we are going to celebrate the beauty of doing life in community, and the blessings that come from cooking, crafting and coming together.

See you at the Homemade Hootenanny!

Breakfast Bread Pudding {and a Gogo update!}

2013-04-10T21:19:00.001-05:00

Have I told you lately that I love you?
Well I do!
All of you.
Pinkie swear.

Thanks to all of your generosity, we are over halfway to getting Gogo her house!
In just one day!
If you have not had a chance to get in on the action-no worries. There is still time. Also, I added a Donate button on the original post, so now you can donate any amount you want, from $1-100. There is NO donation too small to help build Gogo's house!
So whether you donate or buy a book to build a house know that your gift will be a HUGE blessing!

Here is an update today from Ian and Jenn for everyone:
We went to see the site yesterday and it is going to be a challenge but the Lord will work it out. Her land is off a dirt road and then for a mile up a cart track in the mountains, so getting the equipment to the site will be an interesting project. Gogo was very excited and explained the land was hers,it had been a long time since she lived there.
Thank you for blessing this lady- through you she will see the love of Jesus.
I will keep you all posted on how things are going!
have a blessed daylove jenn

I may have a bread pudding problem.
In that I keep making it.
In different forms.
Or maybe this is a good thing?
What do you think?

I made this latest concoction for the Easter brunch at our church. I used what I had on hand because Easter weekend was one of those weekends where every time I turned around we had another social engagement that I couldn't turn down.

A blessed problem to have, yes.

But still.

There is only so much time in a day, and I just did not have a grocery store run left in me by Saturday night.

So I did some looking at what I had in my refrigerator and then some looking at various bread pudding recipes on Pinterest and came up with this little diddy.

Which turned out quite yummy if I do say so myself.

Breakfast Bread Pudding

7 cups (about 9 ounces) cubed raisin bread

6 large eggs

¼ cup sugar2 tsp teaspoons vanilla extract1/2 teaspoon cinnamon1/4 teaspoon nutmeg1 teaspoon salt2 cups milk1 cup half and half, cream, or milk1 apple, peeled and finely diced

1 cup chopped walnuts

¼ cup of butter, cubed

Directions

Lightly grease a 9" x 13" baking dish.

Place bread in baking dish.

Whisk the eggs in a large bowl. Add the sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, and whisk until thoroughly combined. Add the milk and half and half, continuing to whisk. Add apples and mix in.

Pour mixture over bread, and make sure all the bread gets covered (you may have to press bread down some.)

Let stand for at least 30 minutes. You can also leave in the fridge overnight.

Before placing in oven, dot top of mixture with cubes of butter and sprinkle walnuts over top of whole dish.

Bake for 45 (for the 9" x 13" pan) to 60 minutes in a 325 degree pre-heated oven, until the pudding is puffed, lightly browned, and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the pudding cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

ENJOY!

Could we- and by we, I mean you and me- build a house?

2013-04-09T12:30:00.000-05:00

Today I had a thought.

I wondered if we-you and me and maybe some of our friends- could build a house. Together.

For someone else.

Someone we have never met.

This is Gogo Mandatshane Masinga and she needs a house, a home, an abode.

And it would cost us $500 American dollars.

That's it.

You can't even buy a decent swing set for that amount a money in the US, let alone a house.

Gogo is a 78 years old woman from Mafucula, Swaziland. She is the age of many of our grandmother's and some of our mother's.

She is unable to workdue to chronic pain in her knees, and must walk everywhere with her cane. The onlyfinancial aid she receives is the $10 elderly grant per month from thegovernment. Her home fell down two years ago and she has been living withneighbors/friends, basically whoever can take her in for a short while, and relies on donations of food and clothes for her basicneeds.

I have learned of Gogo's situation through my friends Ian and Jenn Stephens whose official work in Swaziland is with the orphans and vulnerable children affected by HIV/AIDS. But really, their work is there to love on people. To be the tangible hands and feet of Christ to any and everyone they encounter-including Gogo.

So, Gogo needs a home. But she has no immediate family to care for her.

But she has us.

So here is the plan and the challenge-for all of us:

(photo of Melissa's copy from the Homemade Collection on fb!)

Mother's Day is coming up, as are many weddings,graduations, and baby showers. What better time to give a copy of a personally signed and autographed copy of A Homemade Year and help build Gogo's house at the same time?

For every copy of A Homemade Year, sold through this link-the Gogo's House Paypal Link below- we will donate $5 to Gogo's House. PLUS Free Shipping!

That's 100 books to build a house.

I will sign, pack and mail your books to whom ever you want. You can buy one or ten or twenty.
I will write my name untill my wrist falls off. I will mail them to your cousin, aunt, best friend and your best friends dog. I will include a special note from you to them if you would like.

And I will be honest. I have no idea if this will work. This may be a nutty idea. But what if it isn't?
What if we could build a house together?

UPDATE: WE DID IT! We raised enough money plus some!! Thanks to everyone who donated!

Have I told you how amazing you all are??

PS-If you like this idea, please share it!
*To learn more about the work Ian and Jenn are doing, visit their blog. http://projectinghopeforswaziland.blogspot.com/