grace grits and gardening - ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

Leaving the Lake. Leaving Munger Place…

July 26, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

This is our last morning at the lake. The early sun breaks pink through the fog, and the entire view from our porch is ethereal. We’ve enjoyed a great week with family in one of our favorite places. Lots of laughter. Too much food and drink, but that’s part of the fun. I’m ready to be home.

Home.

The word has a different meaning to us right now. Worth Street, our beautiful historic home in Munger Place, won’t be ours much longer. John and I have decided the time is right to sell. Our plan has always been to move home to Arkansas, and this will get us one step closer.

I am excited about this change, yet I will miss Worth Street and Munger Place. The house, neighborhood, friends, the convenience of fabulous grocery stores and Tex-Mex around the corner, my Promise of Peace garden.

The magic of Home Ec class…

July 24, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

The last time I was home on the farm, I found this black and white photo of my mother. On the back she had written made brown dog in Home Ec. junior high 1954. Ahhh, the magic of Home Ec.

See the brown dog on the shelf behind her bed?

Then I noticed the brown dog in the guest bedroom (the room my sister and I once shared). I don’t remember ever having seen it before.

The Bat Cave contains many treasures.

Sweet!

This reminded me of my own Home Ec class in the 1970s. At the time, I thought it was pointless and even tried to take shop class with the boys, but Momma and Daddy wouldn’t hear of it. Home Ec turned out to be one of the most enjoyable classes at Keiser Junior High. During that one hour a day, we learned a bit about cooking and sewing and a lot about ourselves. In a room full of girls without the distraction of cute boys, the hour felt safe and easy. Our young teacher was approachable. There was nothing we couldn’t ask; no topic off limit.

I never learned to sew, nothing more than a straight seam anyway, but I still remember the special time we spent together in the Home Ec kitchen and classroom.

Home Ec is now considered passé. Like cursive writing and hot cafeteria food and the Pledge of Allegiance, so many things have disappeared in favor of progress or technology or political correctness. Gradually. No big deal. Until it makes a big difference in our society.

I say bring back Home Ec.

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

Musical Pairing:
Tim McGraw – Back When

DIY Notepads

July 22, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

A month or so ago, I spent the day with my blogger friend Gina. “You should do a guest post for me sometime,” I said. “I’d love too!” she said. And drum roll… Here she is! Please welcome Gina and show her some Grace Grits love. Yay!

Hey, y’all! I’m Gina from Desperately Seeking {Gina} and I am so thrilled to be here in Talya’s space today.

If there’s one thing to know about me, it’s that I love to craft. And also, I love paper. Currently, there are no less than fifteen decorative blank notebooks and decorative journals sitting in a drawer waiting to be journal-ed, or filled with grocery lists, hopes, dreams-well, you get the idea. I love them all. Imagine my delight when I figured out how to craft my own adorable and useful notepads. Today, I want to show you how to make your own DIY notepads. I hope you enjoy, and I’d love to see your creations.

Gather:
paper
cardboard (or pieces of cut-out cereal boxes)
decorative scrapbook paper
decorative tape
PVA glue (special glue for bookbinding-dries clear and stays flexible)
Decoupage glue (I use Mod Podge)
ink pads in matching colors (optional)
foam brushes
razor knife
2 paint stirrers or 2 narrow rulers
assorted clamps (clips or C-clamps) or heavy objects to use as weights

The How-to:

1. Gather supplies
2. Cut paper and cardboard to desired proportions.
3. Optional: You may add a paper-covered cardboard cover to the top (use Mod Podge to glue)or just use the decorative scrapbook paper as the cover.
4. Assemble the cover, papers, and the cardboard backing. Place paint stirrers or rulers on either side of your notepad and secure with clamps. I love these handy plastic C-clamps.
5. Apply PVA glue liberally along the top of the notepad being sure to cover the entire edge of paper, cover, and cardboard backing.
6. Allow to dry according to PVA directions, normally around 10 minutes. I added extra clamps to the middle to ensure the entire length of paper and covers were squeezed together tightly.
7. Repeat steps 5 & 6 three or four more times drying thoroughly each time.
8. For added cuteness, apply decorative tape (I used Washi Tape) to the top edge covering the clear-dried glue.
9. Ink edges in a coordinating color using stamp ink pads to finish off your notepad.

These are so fun to make! Addictive, even. Make assorted sizes with coordinating covers and stack together. Tie with pretty ribbons. These make excellent gifts for writer friends-just be sure to make plenty for yourself!

I’d love to see what you create. Connect with me at my blog Desperately Seeking {Gina} or on Facebook and see what I’m currently up to over at Instagram. Thanks so much to Talya for having me over!

Aren’t these notepads adorable? Thanks Gina!!

#Palsies

Grace Grits and Gardening

Food. Farm. Garden. Life.

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