Soup Beans 'n Cornbread

Ever since leaving the motherland of northeast Tennessee, my tummy has growled for soup beans and cornbread. This is one of my all-time fave meals! Mammy (my grandmother) makes the BEST soup beans in the entire world! She knows how to do 'em right! Anyways...a few months ago, we received a fun package from a friend, aka Richmond Memaw. It was stuffed with a bag of dried beans, a packet of cornbread mix, 2 PayDay candy bars and oh yeah...a package of smoked ham! When was the last time YOU got ham in the mail!?!?!? My mouth watered thinking about the spread this was gonna make! I quickly set the menu in my head: soup beans, cut up onions to sprinkle on top, slaw, cornbread, fried taters, and a full bottle of ketchup! Mercy! I'm tellin' you...I didn't know how quick I could get to the market to find everything I needed. The beans soaked overnight, the crockpot got fired up, and they slowly but surely turned into a mouthwatering taste of home! The cornbread in the oven filled the house with the smell of hot country goodness. And the fried taters....well, they'd have made your eyes roll back in your head!!!! I love cooking and I love eating. But there's nothing like cooking, eating, and thinking of everyone back home. Hope y'all are doing great!