Tuesday Tip: Honor a Vet!

If there’s one thing Southerners are known for, it’s their hospitality. If there’s a second thing we’re known for, it’s our patriotism.

So this week’s Tuesday Tip is something that can bring a smile to our Veteran’s (and a smile to our own)! Who doesn’t love the feeling you get when you do something nice for someone? It relieves stress, warms your heart, and doesn’t make the other person feel too bad either.

So today, on this day before Veteran’s Day, where we take the time to honor our Veteran’s, and think about so many others who have risked, and daily risk their lives and their freedoms to give us ours, why not spend a few minutes baking up a batch of your favorite cookies, make up a batch of your best homemade soup, or those last blooms from your garden and taking them to a nearby military base (call ahead and see what the requirements are for getting a visitor’s pass), Vet’s hospital or shelter, or even to a fire station. Just honor someone in our community who serves us while we think about those who sacrifice so much so we can have the freedoms we enjoy every day. And if you’re lucky enough to know a current service member (love you, honey!), make sure you do something extra special for him or her.

Warm a Veteran’s heart. And your own!

Road Trip: Walkin’ in Memphis

Memphis holds a special place in my heart. I lived my high school years in Memphis, and moved back there after college for a year as a young, single girl, so there are memories embedded everywhere for me.

Now I have our second annual Sweet Iced Tea roadtrip to add to those memories! While we don’t want to give away too much about this city that’s the home of rock ‘n’ roll, blues, and the best bbq in America, we do want to mention this stopover, and look ahead to some of the exciting features we’ll be highlighting in May. So stay tuned for more!

And a special thanks to my sweet in-laws who hosted us while we were there. The food was yummy, the beds were comfy, and the company was wonderful. Love y’all, ILs!

Released Released

Released by Tina Thompson

You’ll all remember my wonderful mother (whom I affectionately call Lady) who wrote for us a great post a while back about her historic home. Well, she’s not just a great guest blogger, she’s a published author.

Today, my sweet mom’s book Released was, well, released!

About her experience of struggling with depression and anxiety, she wrote this practical guide to help those struggling with the same through it. But it’s so much more than just a guide.

She shares her experiences, troubles, and how she found answers, ultimately in God, with us all. While I feel like I knew my Lady better than almost anyone, I was shocked and surprised to learn about how deep a depression she went through when I was much younger, too young to remember. What a strong Lady! (And not technically a Southerner by birth, but she got here as quick as she could, and has lived in the South more than half her life.)

While hundreds of thousands of folks write books every year, few of those ever get read by publishers. And even fewer of them get picked up to be published. And for most of those, it takes years of submission.

Tate Publishing picked hers up almost instantly. We tease because my dad is a writer by trade, and my mom is the first in the family to complete a book. (Though my third pursuit starts on Sunday!)

If you know anyone who is struggling or has struggled with depression or anxiety, this book is worth a read. At 96 pages, it won’t overwhelm someone going through these types of trials. And if you’re fortunately enough to never have undergone such a time, I can tell you from personal experience, I’ve learned so much from this book. We as humans are designed to live and work a certain way. Our souls are designed, while not to always be happy, not to be in the bondage of depression or anxiety. So it’s definitely worth a read.

Pick it up here at her site, or at Barnes & Noble or Amazon.com.

Congratulations, Lady! We’re so proud of you for overcoming and for writing this guide to help others through it!

Like Buttah!

Ok, these are the reasons we Southerners get a bad name, but somebody tell me this doesn’t look delicious.

It’s that fall time of the year. Time for visits to the apple orchard, picking out pumpkins, and state fairs.

And Dallas-native Abel Gonzales Jr. is at it again (he’s the guy who invented such delicasies as fried cookie dough and fried Coke. This year, he’s dreamed up fried butter.

I mean, we’d all have to eat salads for a month, but I would love to get my hands on a pipping hot ball of fried butter!

Stories from the Back Porch

I know y’all know, but I love nothing more than a fun blog. It’s kinda like stepping into someone else’s life for a day. We’ve made some good friends along the way.

Now one of my favorites, Brooke, from Playing Grown Up has a new blog, Stories from the Back Porch. Doesn’t get any more Southern than spinnin’ a yarn out back.

So, pour yourself a glass of sweet tea, take that laptop out onto the back porch, and amuse yourself with a story or two.

Road Trip with Sweet Iced Tea

Sweet Iced Tea Roadtrip

You might of noticed we’ve been m.i.a. the past week. Where were we, you ask? We’ve been in the good ol’ South, of course! (We’re glad you missed us!)

As promised, we’ve seen some of our favorites states: Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi. So, in the coming weeks, we’ll be bringing you highlights of our favorite points of the trip. Of course, through all the iPod playlists, references to the map, and snack breaks, we were thinking of you, friends and readers!

On the road again…

Squirrel in the Attic

It’s no secret that I love to shop, and we’ve featured the wonderful website, Etsy here before.

So this afternoon, when I stumbled across these adorable Southern-inspired cards, I just had to get some! Who could pass up a chance to send out a “hey, y’all” to friends and family?

Check them out for yourself!

Goodbye, Patrick Swayze.

I’m sure the sad news has reached most of you by now that this Houston-native passed away yesterday, losing his battle with cancer. Mr. Swayze lived a full life, and our hearts are with the friends and family of this brave and inspiring man.

Mr. Swayze was perhaps best remembered for his famous role in Dirty Dancing. I remember my first experience with the film. I couldn’t have been out of kindergarten, and my mom was having a “girls day” with her best friend, Karen from Nashville. They watched Dirty Dancing. I’m sure at the time I was bored, not understanding, or probably even watching the film, but even moms aren’t immuned to the spell of that compelling story.

Let’s celebrate this Southerner and his life as we remember him during this time of lose of one of our own.

Now the Summer’s Over Roundup

Well, y’all… the summer’s officially over, but I know most of us still have a few hot days out there of shorts and backyard cookouts. Still, we thought we’d round up our list of things we suggested you do as a Southerner all in one place. So if you didn’t get to these all these past few months, don’t worry (neither did we!). Sweet Iced Tea will be here all throughout the year, dreaming up more activities, nostalgia, and just plain ol’ Southern charm. We know you’ll get around to them eventually.

We kicked off the summer with a dance! It’s not too late to get out there and dance in the streets, your living room, or a community hoedown.

Then, we planned our great Southern road trip. Where did it take you?

Next, we ate some veggies (seasonally summer, of course).

Becky took us out to the beach, of course.

We found ourselves a summer theme song.

… went shopping.

… learned about the joys and pain of owning a historic home from Tina Thompson.

And ate some more veggies! (My, weren’t we enjoying our Southern right to eat this summer, weren’t we?)

Went to Graceland.

And took a walk.

There was so much more throughout the summer, including visits to North Carolina, New York City (through the eyes of a Southern girl, of course), and Alabama. We learned about bees and honey, watched the moon, made some cobbler, and caught some fireflies. Shew! We were busy between all that relaxing!

So now that summer’s over, here’s to fall at Sweet Iced Tea!

Labor Day Weekend at Mercer University

If y’all are still looking for an idea of a great way to spend your Labor Day weekend, look no further than Macon, Georgia. Mercer University, located in Macon, hosts its 2009 Robert McDuffie & Friends Labor Day Festival for Strings.

Between concert engagements, McDuffie teaches string students at the Macon campus and hosts the Labor Day String Festival to showcase junior and senior year musicians with some of the nation’s premier concert artists.

The Festival’s opening concert takes place Thursday, September 3rd at 6 p.m., and a free closing concert is held on September 7th at 3 p.m. The faculty and students will perform one of my favorite classical pieces, Barber’s Adagio for Strings. The festival will feature Christopher Rex, Paul Murphy, and Andres Diaz.

If you’re looking for something to do between the opening and closing concerts, Macon is full of both city attractions, and those last lazy hazy days of summer relaxation.  There are gardens, monuments, and historic homes galore, as well as some fantastic eats to sample.

What are you doing for the Labor Day holiday?