Southern In My Heart

Welcome! Pull up a chair and grab a Mint Julep, or maybe a Whiskey Sour depending on the kind of day you have had! Although the title reads “Southern Comfort”, I promise this isn’t a Blog dedicated to the art of concocting those tasty Southern beverages. Rather, it is a dedication of sorts. You see, I’m not actually a Southerner. I live in the beautiful Northwest! I wasn’t even born in a Southern state! So, why, might you ask, would I be dedicating my blog to a portion of our country that I can’t even call my own? Well, I’ll tell you…I don’t really have a place to call “Home”. You know what I’m talking about. That place you conjure up in your mind where people have known you your entire life. Where you run into your Kindergarten teacher at the church pot-luck. And where your roots run deep and you preface something negative you want to say about someone with “bless their heart”. As in, bless their heart, they can’t help it that they can’t make a proper Mint Julep!

The South tugs at the heart and soul of this girl who moved around enough to feel like I need something to belong to that is bigger than me. And, while “Home” will always be wherever my wonderful husband (we’ll call him “Yankee Boy”) and 2 darling children are, there is still that pull towards heritage and tradition. Now lest you think I am completely off my rocker, I do actually have some claim to Southern roots. My Daddy (we do still call him Daddy) was born and raised in Arkansas and my great-grandmother, whom we called Mamaw made the best Biscuits and Gravy south of the Mason-Dixon line! My beautiful sister (you can visit her amazing blog at http://www.gourmetmealsforless.com ) and her VERY Southern husband live with their family in Kentucky. Can you be Southern by your sister’s marriage? I’ll leave that one open for debate. And, well, I have spent summers at family reunions in the backwoods of Arkansas driving ATV’s through the mud and shooting at cans in ponds with a rifle. Am I convincing anyone yet?
What I hope to bring to you through this blog, is how to bring a little bit of that Southern Style and Sensibility into your own life. I think little girls should be little girls, preferably with a big bow in their hair. I think boys should run around barefoot and climb trees and catch bugs. My kids call grown-ups “Miss” and “Mister” and I believe Hospitality is so much more than just throwing a party in your home!
So, come along with me as I embark on this new adventure with great excitement and, to be honest, mild trepidation. From Decorating on a Budget, to Gardening, to maybe just my life as a mom, I will be bringing you a taste of the South, right here in the Pacific Northwest!
Watch for my upcoming posts about my Pipeline Home Decorating Projects and be very afraid of the Special Feature, “Carrots on Steroids! Adventures in Amateur Gardening”!