A Southern Accent

I recently received an e-mail from a young lady moving from the mid-west to the south. She was excited about moving, but unsure as how to address adults in the south. Her question: Miss Wendy,  I'm 15 and we are moving to the South. I have a question on southern manners and thought you could maybe help? Do adults expect to hear yes or yes ma'am when being answered? I heard it a lot when we visited. I want to baby-sitt and  wanted to know how best to respond. Thanks! So, I really had to think about this one, actually. Having always lived here, it's not uncommon to hear or say yes yes ma'am and no ma'am, yes sir and no sir. But lately I have noticed a decrease in the use, as more and more people move to the south from other areas. I was taught at a very young age to always say yes ma'am/sir to my mother and father, grandparents and my elders, so it's never been anything I've really ever thought twice about. We teach Walker to say the same, and ...

New print in the shop inspired by a quote I came across online. Who knew? Perfect for that book-lover in your life, or to hang in a library or office!

Happy Valentine's Day to my two boys! Love you very much! This morning, I drew hearts on Walker's waffles with syrup. He said, "Mom, did you get that idea on the computer?" I responded, "No, I came up with that one all on my own." Maybe I need to step away from the Pinterest boards? Ha ha ha...

If you have a son like me, he's pretty weary of the whole Valentine's day thing, so something mushy just isn't gonna fly. He's in that stage when any mention of a girl embarrasses him to no end. And if you are like me, you'd prefer not to buy the pre-made character Valentines in the store just because you need another excuse to get your craft on. In fact, I've avoided the Valentine aisles completely to avoid the tug-of-war that could ensue if Walker were to see the Star Wars section. After some pinning and searching on good old Pinterest, I finally landed on the perfect idea for a Valentine via Dandee Designs - bugs, jars and hearts. She has a template for the jars posted on this link , but I made mine a little larger so I could add two bugs. I actually picked the bugs up in the party favor section at Wal-mart, so they aren't hard to find at all. Check them out, officially Walker tested and approved...

Have you seen that new show "My Cat From Hell" on Animal Planet? Although Reese looks so angelic here, we could seriously use help from Jackson Galaxy (The Cat Whisperer) in our house.  My best friend refers to him as the Devil Cat.  As in, "Hey, is that Devil Cat of yours still alive? When is it going to die?" He doesn't like people too much. Really doesn't like my mom. He hisses at her when she comes around. And he once chased a friend of ours out of the house when he came over to feed him when we were out of town.  And don't put him up against a dog. He would probably take em any day.  He has mellowed a little in his older years. The last couple of weeks, he's actually started sleeping at the foot of the bed instead of in the closet. He really can be sweet, but I think he mostly just chooses not to.  Reese actually sat still long enough for me to take his picture the other night. Fifteen years old and I've finally captured some goo...

Dear beautiful, loving, wonderful mother-in-law, I know you'll read this before anyone else, so I'd like to take this chance to put a bug in your ear to put a bug in your son's ear about my requirement to adorn my demure lobes with something to make them a bit more adventuresome and bold. I think it's a supreme tribute to our love and would go beautifully with a note in which he confesses he unending love for his bride. AKA: I need some new earrings. Tell Mike for Valentine's Day. Love you! Me P.S.: They can all be found at Nordstrom.

2012 has been much better related to behavior . It goes to show sometimes we really have to work to be a great parent, and we don't always have the answers. I don't know how many people I talked to and consulted with and asked for advice about how to ensure this little cutie would be a better listener, respect adults, control his compulsiveness and respect personal space. I read books, blogs and I prayed... and prayed... and prayed. And so far, his precious, patient teacher has said he's having a great 2012. I've seen more smiles, I've had more patience and we're certainly seeing results. It's been a learning experience for me for sure. I grew up thinking that how to be a perfect mother just magically comes to you - something that every mom has in her. To an extent, I think that's part true, but I also think we can always become better at everything we do.  And I guess, before the Internet, books, close neighbors, Faceb...

Sorry I'm just now getting back to y'all on the results from my second mammogram last week. I have been so busy the last couple of days I haven't even had time to check in. To start, I'm fine. Everything is OK. It was a bit nerve-wracking and VERY eye-opening, but I'm OK. I showed up for the second, more intensified scans of my right breast Friday, where they found an area on the initial baseline scan. I had to wait forever. That was so not fun. When I was called, I went through the steps, had my boob squished for a short bit for pics, and then I had to wait. The nurse was so wonderful. I'm sure she's been present for the delivery of news from both sides of the spectrum. So she was very sensitive to every word and every move I made. She said, "Now I'm going to go meet with the radiologist. Don't be scared or get nervous if it takes a long time. That just means I have to wait a little and he's busy." So I waited. And I flipped...