Author: Jo

A Surprise in the Mailbox

I love getting real mail.  You know, the kind that is delivered by the mailman?  I rifle through all the junk mail, newspaper coupons, and credit card pre-approvals each day, and once in a while there’s actually a little treasure worth opening!  Whether it be a note from a friend or family member, an invitation to a shower or party, or a present (which is the most exciting), those days when I get a real piece of mail bring happiness to my life.  Today was no exception.

A few months back, around Christmas time, I had pre-ordered Karen Kingsbury’s new book Leaving, which is a continuation of her Baxter Family series.  When I ordered it, I was so excited to receive it in a few months and dive right in.  I can read an entire Karen Kingsbury book in a single day.  It’s a little scary.  I’m in a different world when I read her books.  I completely forget about what is going on in my life and escape to the world inside the book.  I don’t think there has been one book when I haven’t laughed and cried as I read it.

Anyway, the months went by and I completely forgot that I had ordered her book…..until today, when it showed up in my mailbox!  Don’t you just love when that happens?

I can’t wait to start reading it!  Normally I don’t like to read two books at a time.  I have to finish the book I’m currently reading in order to start a new one.  It’s the OCD in me.  Right now I’m in the middle of George W. Bush’s book Decision Points, and while it is a very interesting read, it is a VERY loooooooong book, 477 pages to be exact.  I am only on page 254, which means I have to read 233 more pages until I can start this new Karen Kingsbury book.  I don’t know if I’ll be able to wait that long.  It’ll be going against my nature to start this book while in the middle of the other one, but sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do.  I’m sure ole Georgie Boy will understand.

I’m an avid Karen Kingsbury fan if you couldn’t tell.  Excluding her children’s books, I own every book that she’s ever published.  This is just one shelf in my bookcase.  I have another one just like it. 🙂

To read now or to read later…..that is my dilemma.  I’ve also got the full Twilight series that Steve gave me for Christmas to read, plus several other books that I haven’t gotten to yet.  Looks like I have alot of reading in my future.

Taking on a New Name

When I first started this blog, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to name it, and to tell you the truth, I didn’t really think it was that big of a deal.  But since I’ve been looking around at other blogs, I have seen such cute names!  Names like The Pioneer Woman, Bakerella, The Chic College Cowgirl, and Twelve Months of June.  Those were all such creative names and my Joanna Elaine blog name didn’t seem to pack quite the punch like I wanted it to.  Now don’t get me wrong, I love my name.  It’s the name my Mama gave me, and it is a combination of both her and my grandmother’s middle names, and I’ll have it until the day I die.  But it didn’t seem like a good blog name.

So, without further ado.  I give you my new blog name.


From now on, my website will be southerndaisy.com and I will soon be sporting a new lovely header with a custom logo created by my good friend and graphic designer, Sherica Harvey.  I can’t wait to see how it all turns out!

I wanted to have a name that had something about daisies in it, since those are my favorite flowers.  Gerbera daisies to be exact.  And last night, Steve and I were trying to come up with a good, catchy name, but nothing we thought of really sounded that great.  Then this morning I was throwing ideas around with my mom and my BFF Elizabeth, and the names I was coming up with were just so so.  Here are some of the possibilities I was considering.   A Pink Daisy, A Daisy Life, A Dainty Daisy, and Dainty Pink Daisies.  Then my mom brilliantly came up with Southern Daisy.  It was PERFECT!  Just what I wanted, but somehow couldn’t come up with on my own.  It combines two very important aspects of my life.  My love of daisies, and the South, which is where I now live.  I couldn’t have come up with a better title if I tried….and believe me, I tried!

So thank you, Mom, for coming up with such a great Blog Title!  This site will now, and forever be called Southern Daisy.

P.S.  You can still access my blog using the old joannaelaine.com domain, it will just redirect you to southerndaisy.com

My Name is Not Amanda

After Steve and I (and the furbabies) moved to Tennessee, we changed our phone numbers to match the local 615 area code.  It made us feel like official Nashvillians (not to be confused with Nash-villains).  Unfortunately, ever since I got my new Nashville phone number 2 years ago I’ve been getting phone calls for a person named Amanda Phelps.  Now these aren’t just any phone calls.  They’re detectives and investigator calls.  Apparently Miss Phelps has a little check fraud in her background, and, as luck would have it, she had my phone number before me.

Most of the time these phone calls are made by automated voices saying “This message is for.……long pause…..Amanda Phelps (insert computer generated voice).”  And it basically asks her to call back regarding an investigation of complaints of fraud against her.  Like that would ever happen, even if she still had this number.  “Oh yah, let me go ahead and call back the people who are investigating my check fraud.”  Riiiiiiiight.

Anyway, I usually just let any numbers that I don’t recognize go to voicemail, because chances are if I don’t recognize the number, it’s for Amanda.  A couple times at the beginning, I would answer the calls and if it was miraculously a real live person I would tell them to please stop calling this number.  I am not, nor have I ever been Amanda Phelps, and I do not know anyone named Amanda Phelps.  Usually they say that they’ll make a note of it, and then the calls stop for a couple weeks.  But after those few weeks the calls pick back up, and we go through this whole song and dance again.  They have literally called over 5 times a day sometimes.  It gets REALLY annoying.  Especially when a live person leaves a voicemail for Amanda.  I mean, really?  My voicemail says “Hi, you’ve reached JOANNA….” NOT AMANDA…..JOANNA!!!!

So today, I was at work putting e-cig kits together (Steve and I own an electronic cigarette company) and I get a call from an unknown number.  I silenced the ringer knowing it was another call for check fraud lady, but suddenly I had had enough.  This has been going on for 2 years and it needs to stop!  I don’t want to have to change my phone number, which is clearly what Miss Phelps did after the multiple harassing calls each day.

I answered the phone, and the voice on the other end said: “Hi, can I speak to Amanda?”

Me: “If you’re looking for someone named Amanda Phelps she is not at this number.  I have had this number for two years and I keep getting calls for this person and each time I tell them that I am Joanna, not Amanda.  Please STOP calling me!”

Investigator: “Well I called the other day and the voicemail greeting said Amanda.”

Me: “Umm, no it says Joanna.”

Investigator: “No, I listened to it yesterday and it clearly says Amanda.”

Me: “Look, it says Joanna.  Wouldn’t I know what my own voicemail greeting says since I’m the one who set it up?  My name is Joanna Pentland, NOT AMANDA!”

Investigator: “Well if this is Amanda, you have a warrant for your arrest regarding check fraud–“

Me: “Well, I’m Joanna so I don’t have a warrant and you can stop calling me.”  —Click

He called back 2 seconds after I hung up but I let it go to voicemail.  I’m sure he heard that it did indeed say “Joanna” because he didn’t leave a message.

On a happier note, there was a large box by our garage when we arrived home this evening.  And guess what it was……..

Our patio furniture!!!!!!  I still have to make 2 more curtains and curtain ties until it will be complete.  But doesn’t it just look beautiful!!!!?  I love it!  Just in time for spring!