the elements of rest.

this morning jeremy made a declaration. in fact, he began the declaration by saying, "i am making a declaration."

it was this: "today let's do nothing. i just want to read."

as a plan, this works well because we go to church in the evening. we actually slept in until ten (a rarity) and now eli and j are puttering in the office while a blueberry-orange loaf puffs up in the oven and the dog sniffs the rug for remnants of eli's pancakes.

i finished franny and zooey (loved it!) and am now moving on to The Great Gatsby AND The Screwtape Letters at the same time. well, look at me: TWO books at once! we happen to have two copies by Lewis so we're going to read that one together and discuss.

i then made a declaration of my own. because church begins at five o'clock, i want to start making a big brunch or lunch on Sundays...whatever i was planning for dinner will move to the afternoon. i think this tradition will keep us from jotting mid-sermon notes on our bulletins to each other about the desperation of our hunger. today i will attempt salmon pasta with leeks and broccoli (a recipe from nonchalant mom), spinach salad, and sourdough bread. yum.


{update: just finished lunch. salmon pasta = deeeelish! a must try. super healthy and super easy & we added a squirt of lemon to bump up the flavors...jeremy helped cook. the only flaw, i think we failed to clean the leek thoroughly so there was a smidgen of grit. but we still ate our bowls clean.}


a little lunch and a little reading seems like the perfect way to complete a restful weekend hanging around our beloved Cheatham County. we never imagined we'd be uttering "beloved" and "Cheatham" in the same breath, but we've really grown to love it here. on friday, jeremy played a set at the local coffeehouse as part of their *free* Friday evening summer concert series. there was a great turn-out from the neighborhood and some friends from nashville came by too. there was red-velvet cake, great music, and eli truly appeared stunned with pride at seeing his daddy on "stage."




yesterday found us as serious sugar-gluttons. first, mochas and muffins (oh, and a chocolate brownie.) next stop, Gigi's Cupcakes for delicious sweet confections swirled sky-high with decadent frosting. last night we dragged our fat selves to the nearby Broadway Drive-In (for Get Smart) with our friends from the coffeehouse. Eli loved staying up late two nights in a row (hence the sleeping in until ten), and rolling around on a thick palette of quilts under the open hatchback of our Subaru. I had not been to a Drive-In movie since about age 10, but it may just have revolutionized our movie-loving lives because it eliminates the necessity for a sitter. and there's something so fun and all-American about a drive-in movie.

the perfectly cooled summer air and an aroma of greasy-grilled cheeseburgers from the concession stand flowed through our open car windows and we lounged on pillows, eli curled up between us wearing only a diaper and t-shirt, his damp hair stuck to the side of his face while he slept.