I'm Tamara - wife, momma, blogger, frequent pinner.

Hi, I'm Tamara. I'm a wife, mom, daughter, friend, and former New Yorker turned Southern.

I married my best friend and man of my dreams in June 2009. In July 2013, we had our son, Wells Emerson, in Philadelphia. In July 2015, we had our daughter, Poppy Emmaline, in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands. Ted is in the US Coast Guard and I'm a stay at home mom. Wells and Poppy fill our lives with so much joy. We are currently living in St. Thomas and anticipating our move to Seattle, Washington in the summer of 2016.

I was born in Bronx, New York. I grew up in Staten Island, New York, Jackson, New Jersey, and a short lived move to London, England before finally making it down south to Louisiana. I've lived all over Cajun country in New Iberia, Henderson/Breaux Bridge, La Place, Reserve, Metairie, Kenner, and New Orleans. I claim New Orleans area as home. It's where I attended high school, college, met and married Ted. Ted and I have also lived in Newport News, Virginia and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

I'm a dreamer & learning to just start. I have a constant flow of ideas but learning how to create more. I have degree in Culinary Arts and in the past have worked as a line cook in a few restaurants. I was able to do my culinary internship with Chef Keith at Terrain at Styers, an Urban brand farm to table restaurant, in Glen Mills, PA. My dream is to open a small quaint restaurant one day. The first time around in college, I was studying Family Child Studies which still fascinates me. One of my favorite jobs was being a barista and learning how to roast coffee beans and make specialty drinks. My faith in Jesus Christ is central to who I am and how I live my day to day. Most importantly, I am a sinner in need of constant grace. My passion is not solely in food but in all sorts of things like my kids, photography, traveling, typography, reading books, natural birth education (even though I've had two C-sections), painting, fashion, home decor, blogging, and color stories.

I try to live in the moment and this quote I read somewhere really sums it up perfectly:

"Soak it all in, breathe deeper, love better, speak kinder, live in the midst of the moment, enjoy today."

about blog

I started this blog just before we made our first move away from New Orleans together in January 2010. I write about our travels, marriage, motherhood, pregnancy, moving, style, Wells, and my favorite iPhone apps. You can read a string of posts about me here. 

elsewhere

Southern Grade has been seen on these blogs: Grey Likes Baby, Amy Rae Photography here and here, Dream Elephant, Rock'n'Roll Bride, For Me, Life Blessons here and here, Life with the Liles, and Dream Up Wonder. From Wells is my instagram shop where I sell Wells' clothes. In the past, I've sold items from my closet. You can read through my blog list here.