Once a month I go into a Southern Living trance

I don't know about the rest of you, but once a month, when I see my new Southern Living in the mailbox, my heart flutters just a little. I know it is full of recipes, beautifully decorated houses, gardening tips, and party planning ideas...all with a wonderful southern spin! I also know that I can't even skim the cover until I have a solid hour or so to dedicate to this wonderful publication; because once I start reading, there is no stopping until I have read all the way through to the the "Southern Journal" piece at the back of the magazine.

If you are anything like me, you get inspired by tons of new, fun, creative ideas and you say as you get to each page, "I'm going to HAVE to try this!" Of course, I end up overwhelming myself and hardly ever do I actually attempt to tackle any of the recipes or plant any of the plants or visit any of the great cities that are featured.

So, from now on, I am going to select one, fairly simple idea each month, and dedicate myself to trying it out. I am going to start with baby steps, and hope to work my way up to the the seven layer, triple chocolate, turtle cake with chocolate dipped strawberry topping smothered with a walnut caramel sauce (OK, I made that one up, but doesn't it sound like something that would be in a "Whip up these easy desert ideas for the perfect bridal shower" section?)


This month, my project will be planting some Cool Season Herbs. I have been trying to cook real meals for dinner lately and I always buy a big bunch of parsley or cilantro, use a handful, and then let the rest go bad in my fridge. So why not have it on the back patio and only use a handful when I need it? I am hoping my husband can build the rustic-looking box for me to put them in. I will post pictures/an update on this when and if I actually follow through.