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Says Robert Farrar Capon in Between Noon and Three: Romance, Law, & the Outrage of Grace….

“Trust him. And when you have done that, you are living the life of grace. No matter what happens to you in the course of that trusting – no matter how many waverings you may have, no matter how many suspicions that you have bought a poke with no pig in it, no matter how much heaviness and sadness your lapses, vices, indispositions, and bratty whining may cause you – you believe simply that Somebody Else, by his death and resurrection, has made it all right, and you just say thank you and shut up. The whole slop-closet full of mildewed performances (which is all you have to offer) is simply your death; it is Jesus who is your life. If he refused to condemn you because your works were rotten, he certainly isn’t going to flunk you because your faith isn’t so hot. You can fail utterly, therefore, and still live the life of grace. You can fold up spiritually, morally, or intellectually and still be safe. Because at the very worst, all you can be is dead – and for him who is the Resurrection and the Life, that just makes you his cup of tea.”

And,
“…we are saved by Christ alone who raises us from the dead – from the absolution of our death. We come before him at the judgement with no handwriting whatsoever against us. It’s simply cheating to say you believe that and then renege on it by postulating some list of extra-rotten crimes for which Christ has to send you to hell. He, the universal Redeemer, is the only judge; as far as he’s concerned, the only mandatory sentence is to life and life abundant.”

Amen to that.

Well, here we are, y’all.

I don’t know how it happened, but the school year started, today.

Fall semester. August 7th. (Why…so….early……?????)

Anyway, we’re rolling with it, of course. Though, with my boys and their issues, I’m always feel a little unbound when they head off on the first day. Now, they’re back home and I think that everything worked fine. The kinks are there to iron out…to be sure, but the kinks are kind of always there, right?

Sort of like death and taxes.

On days like this, I find distractions to be really awesome things. On the way home, in crazy first day of school traffic, I heard a great song on the radio. Turns out, it was off Jason Isbell’s newest album, Southeastern (album review: here). Now, Jason Isbell is another one of those great talents from North Alabama. He used to be with the band Drive By Truckers. Then, he went solo in 2007.  A couple of years ago, I remember listening to either his first or second album and thinking, “This is okay, but not for me.” And, to be honest, I don’t give bands much of a shot. I know what I like usually right when I hear it. Maybe that is what living almost 4 decades will do to a girl. I don’t know.

What I do know is that I really like the music off this album. I came home and listened to a Fresh Air that Jason Isbell did with Terry Gross and heard about how this his first album after becoming sober. He did a few songs for her, too, including a great version of his song, “Cover Me Up.” It was really beautiful.

So, here’s the song that I heard this morning that started my whole day of distraction thanks to music.  It is called “Stockholm”.

It’s a good one!

Tonight, a few minutes ago, I was serving my boys some pie while playing words with friends.  I kept hearing hooting and a raucous noise outside and I just assumed that it was our neighborhood barred owls all getting together for a party.

Sounds sort of like these

round about the 29 second mark.

I believe that they call it caterwauling.

Then, I let the dog out and went outside, myself.

That is when I learned that those sounds were coming from my neighbors.

They were jubilant about something.

Also, this just in, I am boring as all get out.

Happy Friday! I hope that your Friday is as jubilant as my neighbors’.

Here are some beach boys I saw today.

Happy Sunday, y’all!

I hope that everyone had a great 4th of July! We did. Our first here in Starkville. We’re actually closing in on our first year anniversary of living here.

The year just zipped by, as years do.

Anyway, here’s some of what we’ve been up to lately.

My first little tomato. Isn’t it cute? I’m anxiously awaiting my cucumbers. If the number of blooms means anything, I’m in for a bumper crop.

The countryside around here doesn’t have the hills that I adore… but it’s still lovely. I liked the stripes in this field.

Eli mugging for a picture at Walmart. He is so funny. He likes hats. Usually it’s a fedora — but cowboy hats are fun, too.

Speaking of hats, here’s Jon, my big hat, and me at a family pool party. Do you know what I found out? Big old hats get in the way of you getting near anyone — and here I was thinking the folks on Downton were emotionally detached Britons when it might just be the gigantic hats they have on. Though, hats and emotional detachment aren’t mutually exclusive, I know.

This is Charlie and Star. Star is a precious Weimeraner who likes to roam. We spent a pleasant morning with her while waiting for the animal control guy to come. She was so sweet that we sort of hope she’ll get loose again and come for a visit.

Eli sitting on the pumpkin at the farmer’s market. I think that pumpkin sitting might become a tradition.

I asked my boys what this cloud reminded them of and the unanimous opinion was a Dodo bird. The sunsets here are routinely gorgeous.

Ending on food, here is a pizza I made last week. It’s a bacon, chard, caramelized onion, and egg pizza. I thought it was wonderful and couldn’t believe how perfectly the egg cooked. So very yummy! I can’t wait to make it again!

Happy Sunday, y’all!

Links for your Friday:

This Beastie Boy, Mike D, has a gorgeous home.  Not only that, he has collaborated to make a Brooklyn Toile.  Awesome.

(Side note:  wouldn’t it be grand if someone came up with a St. Louis toile?  That is what toile needs…an Arch.)

OhHappyDay is a genius blog y’all.  Jordan has a good idea a minute, I think.  For example:

Please check out her

• apartment tour
• rose tablecloth tutorial
• striped tablecloth tutorial
• and these awesome geometric sculptures.

She has practical, doable creative things on her site.  Brilliant ideas for parties, too.

Broccoli Salad Slaw will be made this weekend!  Tomorrow, in fact.  I trust the Smitten.  She knows her salad, and her broccoli, and practically every other food.

Also, Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole.  Because it must be done.

And, Chocolate Cake.  Because one of my sons is persisting in getting older. (Actually, of course, they are all persisting in growing older. Sigh.)   He’s turning 15.  What?!  Just yesterday he was a 9 month old, dancing to Signed, Sealed, Delivered

while sucking his thumb.  Time goes too dang fast.

Finally, have y’all seen Stephen Colbert’s tribute to his mom?  You must:

Happy Friday, y’all!

The other night, I made breakfast for dinner. Of all the dinners that I make for my family, this is the one that is always on the weekly schedule. In fact, sometimes we have it twice a week.

Anyway, the dinner included grits, eggs, fruit, sausage, and pancakes.

Toward the end of the pancake making, I allow my boys to make requests. Now, most of them like their pancakes plain, thank you very much, but James and Eli always have requests. James invariably wants chocolate chips, and Eli always asks for a pancake of a particular size. Lately, he’s been asking for one gigantic pancake — about the size of a large dinner plate.

But, just to be sure, I asked him for his pancake preference on that night.

Me: So, Eli, do you want a gigantor pancake tonight?

Eli: Of course..

Me: Are you sure?

Eli: Yes! Disproportionate food is where I’m at.

Disproportionate , huh? Alrighty, then.

Here’s the buster in question. Disproportionate eyes and all.

This boy! Sheesh.

Happy Wednesday, y’all!

Hi y’all! I hope that everyone is having a good Monday. We’re having thunderstorms, or whoppers, as Eli calls them. It’s a welcome thing, actually. I love a good thunderstorm.

I wanted to mention these recipes before I go and forget them. Days turn into weeks so quickly, and, sooner or later, I find myself standing in my kitchen, wondering where that great recipe for such-and-such is.

This blog is sort of my remembrall, it seems. So, here are some great recipes that I don’t want to forget….and some that you might love to know about, too.

First, the awesome queso sauce recipe that we made for our small group a few weeks ago. When our small group from church gets together, we have a theme meal that everyone contributes to. So, not truly potluck, but more like themed potluck. We were doing loaded nachos, and I was on the hunt for a good queso sauce recipe. One that didn’t use processed cheese, too. I found a great, easy one, here.

(I doubled the recipe, using chipotle chiles instead of jalepeno and using only monterey jack cheese. Make sure to grate your own cheese  — instead of buying pre-grated — for the best melting.)

Also, this waffle recipe is it. Smitten Kitchen is a genius, anyway, and these waffles prove it. Essential raised waffles are made the night before using yeast. The batter is then aged on the counter all night (or, if you are like me, on the counter until your microbe phobia seizes you and propels you into the kitchen to refrigerate the batter). In the morning, you stir in baking soda and eggs and then either make the waffles right away or keep the batter for several days in the fridge, using batter as needed. The taste is just great, y’all. It makes me want to find a pancake recipe that is similarly made to achieve this depth of flavor in those, as well. Try them!

Smitten Kitchen also does some great pasta recipes. A quick one that I’ve been enjoying lately is her Pasta Puttanesca recipe. It is so fast, y’all, that it literally takes as long as the pasta takes to cook. So fresh and zesty, too, with the olives and capers and arugula. In fact, besides the arugula, it is a pantry meal. Very yummy and a nice break from other pasta dishes that are in my recipe rotation.

Okay, now, everyone needs a good homemade barbeque sauce. I made this one from Pioneer Woman for a weekend meal and it was great. I made it as written, except that I upped the amount of adobo sauce by quite a bit. I didn’t measure (darn it) so I don’t know exactly. I would really like to know, then I could make it like that every time. It is really good with just enough zing. I’m squirreling away the remainder to have on a bbq pizza later in the week.

Okay, that’s all that I can remember for now. I’ve gone and made myself hungry.

Happy Monday!

I looked out my window and saw this:

He was attempting to make a sea with the garden hose. Poseidon is a helpful guy, though. I know because he very obligingly watered my geranium.

Happy Thursday, y’all!

Happy Monday, all!

In the back yard today, I saw what seemed to be hundreds of baby praying mantises coming out of their egg. Pretty amazing. I was by one of our pecan trees when I noticed that the bark looked like it was moving. Did you know that a praying mantis is known as an apex predator? The things that I learn from my son, Charlie. I would have snapped a picture, but it was sort of a spellbinding thing and, also, with the light and the speed of the insects (they are fast), I don’t think that I would have gotten a decent image, anyway.

After we came in, Eli decided that we needed to have tea. So, we did. Nothing like an Oreo (or four) in the morning.

He also decreed that we needed peppy music while we had our tea.

Wallace and Gromit to the rescue! We listened to this and drank our tea and felt British, indeed.

Speaking of peppy music, I’ve been really liking Jake Bugg lately. He sounds like a youngish Dylan, to me, for some reason. I just love nearly-perfect little songs that are less than 3 minutes long. I think I have a case of adult-onset lack of focus, or maybe (definitely) lack of patience. Oh well. Also, the older I get the more I dislike slow, mellow music. What is happening here?

Anyway, here he is doing Lightning Bolt.

Alright. Onwards and upwards, y’all. My to-do list beckons.

Have a good day, everyone!