I mentioned yesterday that I’m an English nerd. And it’s true. My favorite class in graduate school was called Transformational English Grammar, and every single day – for the entire class – we would put sentences on the board and diagram every single word. Sometimes we would put paragraphs on the board and diagram every single word. And for about two years after that class, I couldn’t read a single page in a book without silently labeling the parts of speech in my head (“article adjective noun adverb verb infinitive…” – you get the idea), and it didn’t even bother me. Because I love words. Words are my friends. Except when I’m playing Words With Friends. But that’s another story entirely.

Anyway, I just wanted to say that yesterday’s post was no doubt a disappointment to English nerds everywhere (or at least the six to eight English nerds who read here). I don’t know when I’ve ever been more off my game. I misspelled words. I attached the wrong links. I got my information wrong. I made corrections – and then the corrections weren’t correct. So basically what I did was to provide the internet with a blog post that any social media expert could use as an example of WHAT NOT TO DO.

See? It’s like it was a public service.

Anyway, to make up for my carelessness (not to mention my complete failure to proofread), I thought that the least I could do was to share a deeply moving video with you. And fortunately, sharing this video doesn’t require any sort of typing on my part. So there’s no way I can ruin it.

It really was a golden era, my friends. The choreography makes my heart sing, and OH MY WORD LOOK AT THEIR HAIR.

Please know that while you were watching, I was sitting here practicing my spelling.

Fare thee well.

I didn’t post many links this summer because, well, I just didn’t. I actually don’t have a single valid reason. However, as always, I’m happy to blame my lack of consistency on the heat. THE HEAT RUINS EVERYTHING.

But today there is a slight hint of fall in the air (a hint that will no doubt be obliterated by the BLAZING HOT SUN within the next few hours), and I’m feeling motivated to do a linky catch-up of sorts. No doubt your sense of ambivalence is PALPABLE.

Giddy up.

- Okay. So our pastor, David Platt, has written a book called Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From The American Dream, and I think it’s safe to say that God has used Radical to hit sort of a collective cultural nerve. And also, from a personal standpoint, to STEP ALL OVER MY TOES.

In a couple of weeks my bloggy friend Marla (edited to add: I just corrected ANOTHER mistake) :-) is hosting a Radical read-along. It’ll last for about nine weeks-ish, and all you need to participate is a copy of the book and a willingness to share what you’re learning.

I haven’t talked to anyone who’s walked away from this book unchanged. And if you really, really want to read it but just can’t afford it right now, let me know via email at boomama205@gmail.com. Just put “Radical Book” in the subject line.

- I loved Jon’s post about making horrible trades. And as an English nerd, I was sixty-four kinds of happy when I saw how he tied the post together at the end. So good.

- My new Kellogg’s $100 Visa gift card giveaway is up and running and waiting for your comments! (edited to add: comments are working now)

- If you’re a blogger, my friend Mary needs your help getting the word out about something – and you might make a little bit of extra money in the process. Here are the details.

- When I read this poem that Priscilla posted, I thought, “Oh. I am totally printing that out and putting it on my refrigerator.”

- For mindless entertainment, you can’t really beat MadMenYourself. Because whether you watch the show or not, you’ll enjoy sporting a kicky flip hairdo with your pointy eyeglasses.

- Ever thought about the pop culture divide between you and this year’s college freshmen? Take a look at the Beloit College Mindset List for the class of 2014. It made me feel old. REAL old. (via Throwing Things)

Happy Tuesday, everybody!

1) The Laughing Cow giveaway #2 is still going strong. Chime in with a funny cooking story, and you could win a $150 Visa gift card.

2) Today is the last day to enter the second Kellogg’s Love Your Cereal giveaway (with a $100 Visa gift card prize). I’ll post a new Kellogg’s giveaway tomorrow (another $100 Visa gift card).

3) The McDonald’s Family Time giveaway ends tomorrow.

4) The Smuckers Kidvitations giveaway also ends tomorrow ($200 Visa gift card).

5) It doesn’t end tomorrow, but you don’t want to miss your chance to enter the Juicy Juice giveaway ($100 Visa gift card).

Hope y’all are having a great Monday!

About a month ago a new restaurant opened here in Birmingham.

Yes, Texans. I just heard you squeal.

And listen. We couldn’t wait to try the Chuy’s. I feel like I’ve heard people talking about the Chuy-liciousness (GET IT?) for a sweet forever, and I originally had every intention of being there opening weekend and knocking on the door until they let me in and agreed to pour cheese dip into a glass so that I could drink it through a straw.

But things have been a little cuckoo around here with our various and sundry end-of-summer funtime activities, and our inaugural trip to Chuy’s kept getting pushed farther down the list. But this past Friday night we agreed that Chuy’s was a must-do for Saturday lunch, and then we held a solemn candlelight ceremony so that we could affirm our love for homemade tortillas and really good pico de gallo.

Or maybe we just fell asleep watching TV. Regardless, it was a terribly exciting evening.

So Saturday morning we pulled into a parking spot at Chuy’s at 10:55 IN THE A.M. because we wanted to beat the crowd. And it’s a good thing that we did, because I’ll have you know that by 11:20 that place was packed.

I’ll also have you know that by 11:20, we were in the midst of a serious Tex-Mex blessing.

Because oh my goodness. The salsa. And the jalapeno ranch. And the deluxe tomatillo sauce. And the everything. It was just. divine. And the little man was so fascinated by the tortilla-making that was going on next to our table that the sweet ladies behind the counter gave him his own little piece of tortilla dough.

Sorry for the glare. But I wanted to capture the fact that the tortilla dough seemed to make him thoughtful. Analytical. Consumed by tortilla-related possibilities.

We had a great lunch, and I’m sure we’ll go back an embarrassing number of times. Because in addition to the food being great, there are two other decided benefits to Chuy’s: 1) it’s next door to Charming Charlie, and 2) OH MY WORD THE VIEW.

I’m actually considering moving to Chuy’s patio this fall. Just so I can sit there all day long and look at the pretty leaves.

Welcome to Birmingham, Chuy’s.

We’re mighty glad you’re here.

When I was growing up, my friend Laura’s daddy would always start off a new school year by singing “SCHOOOOOOOL DAYS, SCHOOOOOOL DAYS, DEAR OLD GOLDEN RULE DAYS,” and it made me laugh whenever she would tell me about it because who? who sings that? who wakes up their child by singing a song from the early 1900s?

We do, apparently.

And so this new school year began.

I’ll spare you the sight of our before school pictures; just suffice it to say that my eyes would have benefitted from a solid half hour underneath some ice-cold cucumbers. I’ve noticed over the course of this past year that it’s always a good idea to give my face a little recuperation time in the mornings so that things – like my eyelids, for instance – can settle down a bit, but the hurried pace of the first day of school did not afford me that privilege. My 20 year-old self would have laughed at my need for early morning face rehab, of course, as she jumped out of bed, threw on some sweats and hauled her crease-free face to Lee Hall two minutes before Advanced Composition started.

But here’s a little secret that you can’t tell anybody: sometimes, when I think about that wrinkle-free, crease-free version of myself? I want to kick her. Just a little bit. A gentle kick. Mainly so she’ll appreciate the fact that she doesn’t have to slather on moisturizer the second she gets out of the shower. And so that she’ll treasure her precious few remaining years of looking wide-eyed with absolutely no help at all from ice packs and/or cosmetics.

Anyway.

The little man had a great first day of school, which honestly wasn’t a huge surprise since he typically has a great time doing anything at all. Pushing a grocery cart down a frozen food aisle? BEST THING EVER. Sitting on the couch in the salon where I get my hair cut? IT’S SO RELAXING, MAMA! Watching a public transit bus at a red light? I LOVE THOSE BUSES! I WANT TO RIDE ONE OF THEM SOMEDAY! Going to Walgreens? PERFECT! I WANT TO LOOK AT ALL OF THEIR FUN TOYS!

Bless him. He’s definitely a carrier of the COMPLETELY LIMITLESS ENTHUSIASM gene.

So after school we headed over to a yogurt shop to celebrate the first day of school with my sweet friend NK and her girls. It’s one of my favorite traditions, mainly because I like to sit back and think about how much the young’uns have grown and how before you know it we’ll be at their graduations and they won’t really need us so much anymore and OH MY WORD DOES ANYONE HAVE A TISSUE?

The kids had a blast fixing their yogurt and then piling on nutritious toppings like gummy bears and sprinkles and Oreos and hot fudge. But more than anything, they had a blast laughing about everything and nothing.

They’re getting so big – which is all the more reason to hold them extra tight while we still can.

Hope back-to-school has been a happy time for you, too!