Fill The Plate Luncheon

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / April 30, 2018 /

  Prodisee Pantry was packed out for their Fill The Plate Luncheon last Thursday. I’ve been feeling much better since my heart procedure, but the morning I was supposed to speak at the luncheon, of course, something was wrong.  — What’s a girl to do? I hate to ever, ever, go back on a commitment,…

Bless your heart, it’s a good thing!

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / April 11, 2018 /

“Bless your heart, darlin’!” Elinda Lou was so sweet when I told her of my ailment. Since we live in a fast-growing area of Alabama, it doesn’t surprise us anymore when we need to explain ourselves to friends who have moved here from far away, and this was no exception because Tina from Toronto was…

The sister act

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / March 11, 2018 /

Although I never had a girl, my two boys have grown up with the large presence of a sister. We’ve never seen her, because she’s totally imaginary, but she’s helped my boys in many real ways. When I was a teen, I knew several families with boys-only, and while a few of their mothers had…

Lessons from the farm and garden

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / February 18, 2018 /

I used to think the worst chore in the world was helping Daddy with his garden, so now, using the rule of what goes around, comes around, I’ve decided this is the year I’ll make a garden of my own. All these years, I’ve had the tiny required Southern lady small containers of tomatoes, a…

Back to Birmingham!

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / February 16, 2018 /

  Its back to Birmingham for the second weekend in a row! What better place to be than in one of my favorite cities? It’s a BIG city to me, and I sound like a complete country mouse when I talk about the traffic there— although, I’ll have to say the drivers may be numerous,…

Banging the bladders — a Mobile tradition!

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / February 5, 2018 /

Now admit it, isn’t this the cutest picture you’ve ever seen of me with cow bladders drying over my head?   Let me just say, I loved biology class, so this story didn’t bother me in the least. I also love the pageantry and tradition of Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama, so to be invited…

Birmingham, finally!

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / January 16, 2018 /

Not to bore you out of your gourd with more book things, but this is such a crazy learning experience for me and I have such good news!  Writing a book is totally different from marketing and selling a book. A publisher only does so much and I have to do the rest, which of…

Atlanta bound? Home of the best greens ever!

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / January 5, 2018 /

Who would have thought the home of Scarlett O’Hara would give us the best-tasting collard greens ever . . . courtesy of a Mexican restaurant? I hate to admit it, but I haven’t always like collard greens. They were always too slimy or too bitter. I know, my Southern-ness is questionable now because I’ve also…

Organized or Obsessed? New year’s planning.

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / December 29, 2017 /

Speaking of the new year . . . here’s a photo of my neatly organized drawer of calendars from over the last few years. Okay — over the last 14 years to be exact. Snuggled in the drawer next to my hankies (see the Christmas hankie?), they sit, year after year, records of meetings, parties…

Follow the Star party

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / December 20, 2017 /

  The year I thought I would definitely win the Mother of the Year award, I decided to secure the trophy and crown by throwing a little Christmas party for my boys. I convinced my husband to dress up in an old Mardi Gras tunic and tie a folded tablecloth around his head to make…