Pink Tea-Cups For My Tea

 It is snowing outside . I am in between wool projects, my sheep have not yet begun to lamb. I need not leave the house except to feed the animals. I decided to get out all my lovely pink teacups , bake a  batch of sugar cookies using freshly gathered duck eggs & butter . Baked with pink sugar sprinkles , they look to me as tasty as they are ! Oh the fragrance of freshly baked sugar cookies , there is no artificial scent that matches it , though many try.

 Royal Grafton Bone China ~ made in England

I am linking with these ladies for Tea-Time Tuesday :

 

• Terri at Artful Affirmations *
• Martha at Martha's Favorites *
• Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage *
• Bernideen at Bernideen's tea time Blog *

Tea & Crafts With the Cats

I poured myself some tea to sip from my Gracie Chintz china cup while adding some finishing touches to a flock of little sheep . I had some help with my crafting.

Yes, after finishing some of the sheep I took them into my sun-room to photograph in natural light so I could post them for sale in my Etsy shop and look, peek-a-boo ! Miss Marple was supervising the whole procedure making sure none of the little sheep strayed from position. She is very good at whacking them around if they do. Sometimes she even helps them get away , to their detriment. Good thing there is a shepherd there to guard them. ( And I don't mean the little porcelain one. )

On the very same day I finished up a few wool needle-felted balls. I had help there too.

Blizzard personally checks each and every wool ball out by batting and rolling it around. If the ball has jingles in it he double and triple checks it , enjoying my game of seeking it out after he is done. You can see Blizzard is sitting next to a blue bin where the wee little sheep are placed for their protection after they are completed. I have learned the hard way NOT to leave the little sheep unattended if the cats are prowling the house.

Just minding her own business ? Hardly, she is supervising the terrarium projects I have going on...

...with some help from Blizzard. I'm not sure if they think the resin mouse in the terrarium is real, but I do know they'd love to sink their paws into the mosses . If you look closely at the window behind Miss Marple you can see the cats have thoroughly decorated the window with little nose prints, the higher row of prints being those of Blizzard. I suspect the terrarium will be thusly dotted soon.

And then there are my weaving projects. I completed 3 rugs last week all with plenty of help from Blizzard. He holds the loom down for me. At 16 plus pounds, he's very good at this.

"Cats can work out mathematically the exact place to sit that will cause the most inconvenience." Pam Brown  ~ But that being quoted, you can tell I love having my cats in, out, and round-about me. As I write this Blizzard is holding my husband down in the recliner , stretched full out on my husband's lap. They are taking their evening nap together. "Dogs have their days but cats have 365." Lillian Jackson Braun

I enjoy this teacup, one of a set of 4 rose-chintz patterns from Gracie China. It is not only beautiful, with it's rose patterns, but when I hold it up to the light it is slightly transparent. Also, this is a sturdy teacup , a quality I need when working around my cats who love to check out my dishes but pay them no mind if they decide to have a spat about who gets to sit closest to me. I have had to remember to place my teacups firmly toward the middle of the work table to spare them such disasters. We don't have too many broken dishes from the cats, I am the klutz, but several close calls taught me well.

I would like to mention a blog I love, written by a cat lover who also enjoys her tea time. Deb at  'Just Cats'* writes not only about her cats, but also about the cats she encounters in her cat-sitting business. She also has some very good tips and info regarding cat care, and some common problems people face with their cats & kittens. "The smallest feline is a masterpiece." Leonardo da Vinci

I am linking up once again with these ladies for Tea-Time Tuesday :

• Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage *
• Terri at Artful Affirmations *
• Martha at Martha's Favorites *
• Bernideen at Bernideen's Tea time Blog *

A Chicken For A Teacup & TeaTime Tuesday Is Lambing Time !

It is Tea Time Tuesday once again.Seems like the Tuesdays are flying by.It is also lambing time on Cedar Pond too. So much excitement calls for a cup of hot tea , then it is back outside to tend my sheep.Isn't this teacup pretty? I laid a few of the roses my husband gave me for Valentine's Day next to the teacup. They seem to have been meant for each other, my teacup and my roses.

While helping my husband's sisters clean out their parent's basement I came across these two little books.We had been separating the many books into 2 places. On the shelves will go the books worthy of placing up for sale or of possible interest to the many family members. In a big box go the books destined for the Goodwill. I almost tossed these books into the box.Then I took a second look.The 'Romance Of a Doctor's Visits' pub. in 1937,are stories the author says are , "true incidents in the life of the writer." I think it will be interesting.

This plain little blue book is by Amy Carmichael. It is titled 'If '. She writes in the first pages ,"such a booklet as this is not meant for everyone, but only for those who were meant to be under-shepherds." To learn more about this amazing woman, missionary to the vulnerable girls & women in India click here.*

Just one of many gems in this tiny book, and it pierced my heart.

Back to the teacup. It was made in England by Ridgway Potteries. I received this teacup in trade. I traded 2 frizzled bantam hens for this lovely teacup. Do you think I got a good deal? I know the lady who took home 2 of my fluffy, curly, frizzled hens was happy,she now has 2 broody hens to hatch out & raise her chicken's eggs.

This is Delilah. She had a handsome ram ( boy) lamb this afternoon.Here he is pictured still wet from the womb, trying to get up to find his mother's milk.I always find this amazing, new born animals walking within the hour of birth, seeking milk, and within a few hours are usually leaping and playing. If you would like to see the other new lambs click here*.

"If I myself dominate myself, if my thoughts revolve round myself, if I am so occupied with myself I rarely have "a heart at leisure from itself," then I know nothing of Calvary love."Amy Carmichael

For more Tea Time Tuesday delights, check out the links below, you'll be richly blessed !

Terri at Artful Affirmations *

Martha at Martha's Favorites *

Bernideen's Tea Time Blog *

Antiques & Teacups *

Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage *