grace grits and gardening - ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

Writing a book. Ignoring everything else.

June 25, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

I have big plans. Things I intend to accomplish around the house and beyond. Really, I do. Like the empty flower pots on the front porch and the planter boxes overgrown with mint. This is the first summer those pots have been ignored. Yesterday I thought about planting red and white flowers for 4th of July, that’s what I envision anyway, and maybe caladiums for height. This morning those pots look the same. Ignored. I’m surprised my neighbors haven’t intervened.

I also plan to get back to yoga regularly. And the messy bookcase in our bedroom needs attention. I want to help cook lunch for the VBS kids this week. Really, I do.

Yet all I do is write. All.I.Do.

For those of you who occasionally ask when can we buy your book, I offer this excuse/explanation.

I’m rewriting my entire manuscript, changing it from memoir to fiction, novella to novel, 125 pages to 300. This has taken a while, but I’m at the editing stage. At least I think I am. When I began this book writing journey, I had no idea what I was in for, but I am obsessed, and I love it. Manipulating sentencing, choosing words, bringing something ordinary to life. Except when I want to pull out my hair.

What’s my timeline? I’m still not sure, but I’m writing as fast as I can, and I’m getting closer (I think). My neglected flower pots out front are certain proof.

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

“E.L. Doctorow said once said that ‘Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.’ You don’t have to see where you’re going, you don’t have to see your destination or everything you will pass along the way. You just have to see two or three feet ahead of you. This is right up there with the best advice on writing, or life, I have ever heard.”
― Anne Lamott

Crop Dusters, Porch Swings and Home

June 23, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

Arkansas…

sister-cousins

Sunrise

over rice fields,

crop dusters soar and dip,

cousins down the road, memories,

sunsets.

Texas…

porch swing days

Porch swing

days, early blooms,

margaritas and Mavs,

cowboys and music, neighbors who

gather.

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

Musical Pairing:

Back Down South, Kings of Leon

Top six favorites: Moss Mountain Farm

June 21, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

I was fortunate enough to snag an invite to Moss Mountain Farm last week. P. Allen Smith and Arkansas Grown hosted Farm2Home14 at his extraordinary farm on the banks of the Arkansas River. Nothing I can write will possibly do justice to my Moss Mountain Farm experience. No way.

I have managed to narrow down my top six favorite things about the day in no particular order because that’s expecting too much.

1. Poultry. P. Allen Smith raises heritage breeds and has made it his mission to create interest in poultry farming among Arkansas children. His Poultry Palace is the Ritz-Carlton of chicken coops. Impressive!

Poultry Palace

2. Porches. When you are blessed with a sweeping view of the Arkansas River, you must create a spectacular porch, right? The entire back of P. Allen Smith’s home is devoted to porches, a downstairs dining and sitting porch and an upstairs sleeping porch complete with copper bathtub.

Downstairs Dining Porch

Most Perfect Sleeping Porch Ever

3. Farmers. Meeting and talking with local Arkansas farmers was a highlight for me. These farmers are passionate, committed, hard-working and dedicated to educating the people of Arkansas about the benefits of growing and eating local.

Scott Heritage Farms – fashionable farmer:)

Take a look at the beautiful baked goods from Ethan’s Heirloom Gardens. Ethan’s Heirloom Gardens is a natural/sustainable grower of both heirloom plants and produce. Even their recipes are heirloom, many dating back to the 1800s. If you live in Central Arkansas, be sure to check them out.

4. Gardens. The flower gardens were as gorgeous as any botanical garden I’ve visited.

Gigantic Lilies…

And the vegetable garden? I could only dream of growing such a bounty. The air smelled fresh and green. It was all I could do not to drop to my knees and begin working in the dirt. Or cry. I almost cried several times. It was one of those experiences. I picked warm berries fresh from the vine.

Vegetable Garden at Moss Mountain Farm

5. Food. The food provided was enough for an entire weekend. Maybe a week! It goes without saying that everything was fresh and local and make-your-eyes-roll-back delicious. Lunch included US Foods 2013 Next Top Product Winner—the black bean burger created by Chef Jerrmy of Greenhouse Grille in Fayetteville. Love.That.Restaurant. Don’t you? (Chef Jerrmy and his family sat at my table for lunch. I tried to finagle the Greenhouse Grille quinoa recipe from him… I’m still hopeful.)

Black Bean Burger created by Chef Jerrmy, Greenhouse Grille

Award winning Black Bean Burger on Greek Yogurt Bun with Citrus Slaw, Pepper Jack and Avocado Aioli.

Following a huge lunch which included the incredible dessert you see below, local farmers brought tasty samples of their goodies (salsa, bread, wine, beer, ice cream, fruit, veggies, cookies, fried pies, everything). And if that wasn’t enough grazing, the day ended with appetizers, cocktails, and live music beneath a 300-year-old Post Oak. Heaven in Arkansas, people.

6. Friends. I loved hanging out with all my Arkansas Women Blogger friends and new friends from Moss Mountain Farm and Arkansas Grown. Such fun! How did I get so lucky?

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

Musical Pairing:

Song of Arkansas Official Music Video

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Food. Farm. Garden. Life.