Mother’s Day is just around the corner, which has me reminiscing about my grandmothers. (Stay tuned for memories of my mother!) I have been fortunate to have such strong and beautiful examples in my life as these women have been. 

I dearly loved my Granny Zorn, although I have been told she could be difficult to get along with because she was brutally honest.

 I am pretty sure I was Granny’s favorite; whether that was because I was the youngest grandchild or because we both loved the color red, I don’t know. 

Granny and her brother, Uncle Ab, lived together and would come over for dinner almost every evening. They were my babysitters when I was little, which was before the time of car seats. I remember sliding around on the big back seat of her big ol’ red car - told you she loved red! 

My Grandma Tucker always amazed me with her humility. She had very little and nothing was fancy in her home, but she shared everything she had.

 You could never leave her home with an empty stomach or empty hands. She put up fruits and vegetables by freezing and canning all summer, just so she could put a jar of something in your hand as you walked out the door. 

Her heart was abundantly full of grace and love, but she never realized just how great an example she was. At the time, I didn’t appreciate her sacrifice as much as I do now. She accepted me as her own, even though I was not biologically hers. Her son was my sisters’ father, but my mother remarried after his death, then had me. I never felt a difference in her love. I hoped that my children would get to know her as well, but she passed away when they were very young. 

Nanny (my mother’s mother) has always had a full table - both the food on it and the company sitting there!

Mother’s Day is a perfect time to incorporate your mother or grandmother’s china with your own. Host a lunch to celebrate the women in your family or to honor the memory of those who have gone on. How sweet to reminisce together over a meal served on beautiful dishes belonging to beautiful women!

For more biscuit love, check out Southern Biscuits by Nathalie Dupree.

1. Frozen vegetables, cream soups (cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, cream of celery, etc.), sour cream, shredded cheese, and crackers - You can throw together almost any casserole with these items. Thaw your veggies, mix the can of soup, sour cream, cheese, and seasonings. Add chopped onion, celery, and/or carrots. Place filling in glass pyrex dish, top with crushed crackers, and bake! (Note: I have known my father-in-law to improvise with cheez-its or goldfish crackers in a pinch!)
2. Canned beans and/or corn, rice or balsamic vinegar, olive oil - Drain the cans, add chopped onion, tomato, and/or bell (or jalapeño!) pepper, salt & pepper, herbs, oil, and vinegar. Instant salad!
3. Deviled eggs are super easy to prepare, and go with almost any meal. Read this recent post for a traditional deviled egg recipe, or join The Southern Mercantile’s Recipe Club for delicious Blue Cheese and Bacon Deviled Eggs!
4. Make a relish tray with sliced pepperoni or salami, rolled pieces of ham or turkey, pickles, pepperoncini or banana peppers, pickled okra, mixed olives, and sliced or cubed cheeses. Add crackers or toast points to the side or in a separate basket or tray, so they won’t get soggy.
5. A box of brownie mix makes a simple start to a delicious dessert. Mix up the brownies as directed, then add chopped nuts, coconut, mini marshmallows, white chocolate or other flavor chips, even candies or chopped candy bars! Bake as directed, then enjoy the ooey-gooey goodness!
6. You can never go wrong with a fruit or veggie tray. Just be sure to have the ingredients on hand for a simple dip to go with the healthy treats. I like to make a veggie dip using sour cream, mayo, and powdered Ranch dressing mix. My favorite fruit dip is cream cheese and marshmallow fluff.

Here’s hoping that the next time you find yourself wandering around your kitchen thinking, “What in the world am I going to take?” these tips will help you answer that question quickly!

Visit our Kitchen Category for great casserole dishes and cook books to go along with these great tips!

After purchasing our “little” project the first step was to deal with the termite damage!  Our little jewel is totally wood, inside and out.  Ugh.  When we bought the house I knew there was damage, but like most projects, the more you rip out, the worse it gets!  I was on a very tight budget, so I feel very blessed to have found two super talented fellows that came every weekend for a year to work on the house.  I will never forget the Saturday that they called me at work to let me know that it was “worse than they thought”.  The kitchen floor was so rotten that it just started falling out when they started jacking up the house to replace the floor joist.  There were three layers of rotten floor, many years of just covering up the problem

The next major problem was a rotten wall in the kitchen.  When we first looked at the house I wondered why one wall had the ugly 70's paneling. Surprise!  It was hiding a wall that was half eaten by termites!  This wall was one I had wished I could remove but didn’t want to go to the expense. Guess what? We took out the wall! One positive outcome to the termite damage: a beautiful open kitchen space. 

The next problem to solve was finding an inexpensive flooring option for the kitchen, dining and living area.  I really wanted the look of an old farm house wooden floor but of course could not afford tongue and groove.  I decided to use 1 x 8 boards for the flooring, even though I was strongly encouraged not to by my local hardware store and my weekend warriors.  I decided to go with my gut (I am known to be a bit stubborn) and ordered all the wood from my local hardware store.  I must say that these floors turned out to be one of my favorite parts of the house.  This is a good lesson in why it is sometimes good to go with your gut and not listen to those that say “it can’t be done”! Kyle, one of my weekend warriors, did a beautiful job installing the boards for me.  I spent about $500.00 on materials and even had enough to put in the bathroom.  I think it turned out absolutely perfect!

Since then, my guys admitted that it turned out much better than they thought it would.  The fellas from the hardware store have been over to check out my progress and also admit that the floor looks great, despite their initial concerns.  My little inexpensive flooring project has caused quite a stir!

With a little sanding (o.k. maybe a lot of sanding), some stain, and help from good friends, my inexpensive floors are quite a masterpiece!