grace grits and gardening - ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

Wilson, Arkansas

February 3, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

I’ll admit it. When the Wilson family sold out to Gaylon Lawrence Sr. and Jr. in 2011, I was skeptical. And worried. Lee Wilson & Company was as much a fixture in our little corner of Northeast Arkansas as the Mississippi River. Before my Daddy started farming, he worked as an accountant for Lee Wilson & Company. We lived in Wilson, Arkansas on tree-shaded Washington Street.

How could a total stranger just waltz in and buy up one of our towns? Our cutest town. The town where my high school team played football on Friday nights while I cheered from the sidelines.

Well it happened alright to the tune of $150 million. And so far, from what I’ve seen (and I’ve seen the chocolate chess pie at the Wilson Cafe) the change is a very tasty thing.

The Wilson Cafe (at the former Tavern location which still holds a sweet spot in my heart) is serving up marvelous homestyle food like 3-inch thick meatloaf smothered in cream gravy with sweet potato pie for dessert. And it isn’t just the food that has me blogging. The entire experience was a treat—clean, understated decor, walls lined with original paintings from local artist Norwood Creech, attentive wait staff willing to move us three times as our group continued to grow… Really, for a moment, I forgot I was home in the Delta.

Over one hundred years ago, Robert E. Lee Wilson created a vast empire from Mississippi Delta swampland. The effects of his vision have been far-reaching, affecting the entire region and country, affecting me. Change is often unsettling and difficult, yet Lawrence appears to be enhancing Mr. Wilson’s original vision, breathing life back into the charming town. And he’s only just begun. Additional plans including a private charter school and relocation of the Hampson Archeological Museum which houses a huge collection of pre-Columbian artifacts.

For the first time in a long time, Wilson is attracting first-time visitors, but perhaps more importantly, Wilson is bringing people back home.

Grace Grits and Gardening

How to Make an Altered Book (part two)

February 1, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

Grace Grits and Gardening - Altered Book How To

Grace Grits and Gardening – Altered Book Project

I started working on an altered book several months ago. You can read about it HERE. Since then, I work on it sporadically, often clipping out pictures or jotting down ideas for future pages. Sometimes I actually sit down with my Mod Podge and work for hours. Time has a way of disappearing when I work on my altered book…

I thought I’d let you see a few of my latest pages.

I made two pages from the Christmas cards I received. I love love love the holidays and wanted to have a section in my book devoted to Christmas.

For the next page (below) I cut Christmas cards into circles. As you can see I did it freehanded. The edges aren’t neat and perfect. They don’t need to be. I like the idea of having my cute neighbor kids’ faces in my book.

Below is my “Me” page (front and back). I’m still working on this one. Or maybe it’s finished. I’m not sure.

I also added a calendar insert to my altered book to make it practical as well as inspirational. This year I am planning out my blog posts and other writing three months in advance. As you can see, I change my mind a lot, but I do feel more organized.

I’m working on a few other pages in the garden and kitchen sections of my altered book, but I’ll show you those later.

Grace Grits and Gardening

P.S. I have an Altered Book board on Pinterest. Take a look at the possibilities.

“I dream my painting and I paint my dream.”
― Vincent van Gogh

Last Laugh.

January 31, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

“Where were you today?” Daddy asked me at supper.

Momma shot me a look of whatdya mean where was she today?

“I was at school, the place I go every day. Where did you think I was?”

“I thought you were over by the St. Francis floodway. I followed a yellow corvette all afternoon. It wasn’t you.” He shook his head and grumbled as though bitterly disappointed he didn’t catch me messing up.

“Of course it wasn’t me.”

I knew better than to skip school. In Mississippi County even when you didn’t know what you were doing, everyone else did.