"It is well to remember that the entire population of the universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." A.Holmes
Showing posts with label Tea-time Tuesday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tea-time Tuesday. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Busy Bees Take A Break !

 This tea-time Tuesday is one I would normally save for spring when our honeybees are out & about  gathering nectar and pollen to feed their brood thus producing honey for us too. However, with record-breaking warm temperatures for us this January our bees are seeking nectar and pollen where there is none. The flowers are not budding or blooming because it is January. The bees are being supplemented by sugar boards my husband has placed in their hives so they do not starve.
 We have been blessed over the years to receive gifts from family and friends who know we love our bees. I am sharing a few thoughtful gifts, some I have shared before. Above ( top 2 pics) is a tin of specialty teas we received from my husband's oldest sister & her husband for Christmas. This treasury of teas has already produced some refreshingly delicious pots of tea when it was really winter around here, and now that we are experiencing temps in the 60's ( very unseasonable ) it is refreshing after working outdoors in the gardens and animal pens. (Thank-you Jim & Jean ! )
 The white mug in the background of this pic was a birthday gift to me from my husband's sister Alice & her husband. I use it all the time and now think every tea mug should come with a matching lid to keep the tea perfectly hot. I can put a teabag and boiling water in this mug, put the lid on, and sip hot tea for quite awhile. This bee themed mug with it's own lid is my teacup for Teatime Tuesday. The honeybee mug / lid came with a few other treats , one was the teabag rest where I have placed my snack of home-made peanut butter fudge , a gift from our daughter & her family. The tea time cloth napkin was a very pleasant surprise I received in the mail from a dear friend and beekeeper, Robin . (Thank-you Robin ! ) These special gifts are loved all the more because the people who gave them to us care enough to know what pleases us and makes us happy. Not only that, all these gifts came from very busy people who really do take the time to enjoy the simple things in life.

A poor old Widow in her weeds
Sowed her garden with wild-flower seeds;
Not too shallow, and not too deep,
And down came April -- drip -- drip -- drip.
Up shone May, like gold, and soon
Green as an arbour grew leafy June.
And now all summer she sits and sews
Where willow herb, comfrey, bugloss blows,
Teasle and pansy, meadowsweet,
Campion, toadflax, and rough hawksbit;
Brown bee orchis, and Peals of Bells;
Clover, burnet, and thyme she smells;
Like Oberon's meadows her garden is
Drowsy from dawn to dusk with bees.
Weeps she never, but sometimes sighs,
And peeps at her garden with bright brown eyes;
And all she has is all she needs --
A poor Old Widow in her weeds.” by Walter de la Mare
 
This poem reminds me of me and my days spinning wool on our front porch , wildflowers growing everywhere on Cedar Pond. As I sit & spin yarn I watch the bees gathering nectar and pollen , and often, more often than you would think, I watch the busy bees take a rest , perched on a leaf, a blossom, or a flat rock warmed by the sun. Busy bees taking a break ! All you busy-bee ladies make sure you take time to rest, sip a cup of tea, and remember the every day joys of life truly are simple.
 
Please join these ladies today for Teatime Tuesday as you enjoy your tea ~
 
 

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Ivy Lea Teacup, Cookies, & Importance of Family Traditons

 I got down all my boxes of teacups and sorted through them looking for the perfect Christmas teacup, and although I have a lot of very beautiful teacups , this teacup is the only one I took out to be MY special Christmas teacup. She is Ivy Lea by Royal Albert. I keep her on the buffet with a little shepherd and some sheep , and her matching creamer & sugar bowl.
 I snatched a few Berry Butternuts* from the stash my husband baked this past weekend. Berry Butternuts are a family Christmas tradition started in my husband's family by his father.
 Berry Butternuts are a family tradition my husband is now carrying on in our family, and he takes this very seriously. We have to use real butter, real vanilla, fresh walnuts, and good raspberry jam. He was in a tizzy one Christmas season when we ran out of raspberry jam. I suggested some of my homemade plum or blackberry jam, but no, HAD to be raspberry jam ! Now I make sure to make a lot of raspberry jam from our own berry bushes. We can't be running out of raspberry jam at this time of the year.
I made a pot of peach tea and covered it with my Christmas tea cozy, marveling at how well the gold-rimmed , ivy intertwined with snowdrops pattern cup and saucer fits in with all our Christmas decorating. I am thinking of snipping a few sprigs of variegated ivy I have growing in a pot on the porch and using them for my Christmas table-setting.

Both my husband & I come from Norwegian American families. Our families shared a few beliefs and attitudes about this time of the year I discovered were not , as I had assumed, common to most families. Our families were very good at being "over the top " in celebrating Christmas without spending a lot of money. I found a book Keeping Christmas ~ Yuletide Traditions in Norway and the New Land by Kathleen Stokker , that is rich with the history & traditions of Norway from pagan to Christian times, and then onto the celebrations the immigrant Norwegians brought to America. Fascinating ! This history explains so much about our families' attitudes &expectations towards the Christmas season we still carry on, without having realized just how much our families' traditions & history affect us even today. Hospitality was always important , especially at this time of the year. 

"A veritable archive of Norwegian American character traits - the vital role of hospitality , equality ,evenhandedness in sharing hosting obligations, resourcefulness ,the ability to make one's own entertainment , a concern for aesthetics, and the attention recorded Christian piety- this custom embodies qualities still valued in Norwegian society." by Kathleen Stokker  Hospitality is always precious, and sharing tea and cookies with friends & family this time of the year and all year round are traditions and customs shared world-wide . Tea-Time Tuesdays have given me a glimpse of hospitality from all over the world through a tea-cup  !

Join these ladies to see how they celebrate all things tea :
Artful Affirmations with Terri *
Bernideen's tea time Blog *
Martha's Favorites *
Rose Chintz Cottage with Sandi *
Antiques & Teacups with Ruth *

Monday, November 17, 2014

Where Do I Store My Teacups ?

 I store my teacups and teapots in pretty boxes ...
 ... in my crafting room. It looks cluttered I know, but I took these pictures after a few hours of needle-felting wool balls. I set my needle-felting materials near the small table which has a stack of rubber foam to absorb the sharp needles I use for needle-felting the balls. Blizzard the cat is my constant companion when I am indoors and I frequently have to stop my crafting and remove him from my work surfaces . I placed the little table & chair in front of the small t.v. so I can watch the Hallmark channel Christmas specials I have recorded for my days in the craft room. ( Easy- viewing Christmas specials with happy endings make me happy , and inspire me when I craft.)

 I sew, quilt, make rugs , scrapbook, fill photo albums , and write letters in this room. And I store my teacups here.
 
The view from my window in the crafting room. It is a fine foggy fall day, the ducks and geese are splashing in the pond, Blizzard is napping on the table .As soon as I brew myself  a cup of tea I'll remove Blizzard from the table and begin a new batch of felted wool balls.I'll show the rest of my crafting room in the next post.
 
I am joining these ladies for Tea-Time Tuesday :
 

Monday, March 17, 2014

Royal Tara Shamrocks For St. Patrick's Day

It is already March, and the day we celebrate Saint Patrick by wearing green and celebrating all things Americans consider Irish. Shamrocks, celtic music , eating corned beef, Irish soda bread , and many imbibe in maybe a bit too much beer. Me, I just got out some shamrock china and cleaned my home. Don't you love this little sugar & creamer ?
You can see just how tiny they are sitting next to Samantha, an American Girl doll I rescued from a thrift store a few years ago. Samantha is sipping her tea from a wee shamrock teacup . I have her out as I get ready for a special time my husband & I will have soon when one of our granddaughters comes over to spend a few days with us as part of her birthday celebration. She'll be bringing her AG doll along and we'll set a table for tea for all of us.


The sugar & creamer were made in Ireland by Royal Tara .

The cup & saucer were made in England by Sandford.
I find the history of St. Patrick himself to be fascinating. He was not Irish, but a Roman born in Britain. I imagine most of you already know his story, but it was not until I had children of my own that I discovered this while we were researching him for a homeschooling project. The stories abut him vary depending on the source, but we do know he was a Christian missionary who's faith and ministry had a lasting effect on Ireland, and many places beyond. If you're interested in the amazing role the Irish played in history you might check out 'How The Irish Saved Civilization'. So Happy Saint Patrick's day to you !

Join in the tea-time festivities with Terri * , Martha * , Sandi * , Bernideen* ,Kathy * & Ruth* . Now that spring-time is here there is even more fun for tea in blog-land . Happy St. Patrick's Day to you !

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Tea-Party Memories

She loves her tea sweet !

This teacup is special to me. I have precious memories of a tea-party my youngest granddaughter & I had together almost 4 years ago. I can still picture her tiny hands stirring the sugar into her tea and watching her drink every drop of the sugary syrup she made only to have her teacup re-filled and carefully repeat the process. To see the original blog post click here*.
 
The tea-time Tuesdays have inspired me to make time for many tea-parties with my grandchildren over the years.As I was looking over some of my tea-time posts I realized we made many precious memories together and had a lot of fun creating our tea parties. Thank-you ladies who host this day every week and all of you who share your tea-cups, tea parties, and generous support of one another through blogging.

These ladies are hosting blog parties I enjoy, celebrating all things tea !

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

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 :
 

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

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 :


Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Mouse Reunion & Bears Plan Party

 Years ago ( 1986) I made many, many little mice to sell and also give as Christmas gifts. I only kept 2 mice that I never fully finished and had forgotten about them until we received the buffet my husband inherited from his parents. There in the buffet were some of the mice I had given them many years ago. I do remember them displaying the little mice around Christmas.
 I gathered the mice up and put them into one of the terrariums my husband gave me for Christmas this year.( I am so excited to arrange some miniature plantings in these terrariums.) Look at all the little mice gathered together, a mouse reunion !

 The mice shared tea while they got reacquainted , and I overheard them planning a tea-party in the near future. Won't that be interesting ? They will have to be careful about making too much noise because my cats love a good mouse treat, real or stuffed !
 As I was putting away Christmas decorations I peeked into the Bear family home. Mrs. Bear and Baby were also sharing tea and Baby was asking mama if they could celebrate New Years' Eve with a big party at the Little's home. Papa Bear was already over at the Little's where he and Mr. Little were sipping tea and having a lively discussion, as they are wont to do. If there is to be a party I suppose it will be up to Mrs. Bear and Mrs. Little to arrange. I think my husband & I should lock up the honey just in case the Bear family raid the pantry again this year.*

 Mrs. Bear finished her tea quickly while Baby ate his apple as he gulped and sloshed his chamomile tea with honey. You can see Mrs. Bear has cake already made for tonight's celebration, she only has to keep Baby from sneaking licks of frosting or taking baby bites out of it.
It just might be a pretty lively New Year's Eve around here after all even though my husband & I are planning a quiet evening together playing a game we received as a gift. We hope your New Year's celebrations are wonderful and the coming new year brings you joy & blessings abundant !

I am joining these ladies for Tea-Time Tuesday this last day of 2013 ~ Enjoy !

Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage *
Artful Affirmations *
Martha's Favorites *
Bernideen's Tea Time Blog *
Antiques & Teacups *

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Christmas Goose Teapot & Cups

 This Christmas will be very different for our family. My husband's father passed on into eternity this past year and anyone who knew him knew he loved Christmas. My husband's parents' home had Christmas decorations throughout the house all year long, because the decorations made them happy. My father-in-law was also one to share his love of Christmas with his family. He often bought multiples of items he knew his 6 grown kids and their families might appreciate , and we were the beneficiaries of many beautiful Christmas ornaments, dishes, figurines ,books, or any other Christmas items he knew we had to have .The Christmas Goose mugs shown above were a gift from my husband's parents at least 20 years ago. I remember serving my children hot chocolate with whipping cream and marshmallows in these mugs. ( Sweet memories...) I am drinking peppermint tea while I decorate our home for Christmas.
 I have undertaken the now-daunting pleasure of setting up our Christmas village. Daunting because it takes at least a day ( I am on day #3 now )  to drag all the boxes out of our closet , and then we have to be creative enough in our display without compromising practical living space. As much as my husband & I enjoy the Christmas village vignettes we display, we still need space to entertain friends & family. Plus, I hate clutter. Our large Christmas village display is a challenge for sure.
 A little farm resides under our big fig tree. I had to move quite a few large plants from our sun-room to make space for our village and also my husband's train set. This fig tree is too large to move so I incorporated it into the decorating. It is now a large tree on a snow-covered hill with a wee farm nestled at the base. I haven't yet added the little people and accessories to the farms & village.

This teapot was among my mother & father-in-laws' possessions. Years ago he gave us a set of 8 mugs, now I have 8 more mugs and the teapot that goes with them. One of the first signs of Christmas in our home is the 'changing of the dishes' ,and the very first dishes I bring out are the coffee mugs. My grandchildren will hopefully remember the many years they have already used them as their hot cocoa mugs. Hot cocoa with whipped cream & marshmallows. Now I have the pot to fill with cocoa . Thank-you Dad B. We miss you especially during Christmas. The mugs and teapot were made in Japan and originally distributed by the Fred Meyer stores.

Please join these ladies for December Tea-Time festivities ~
Martha's favorites *
Artful Affirmations *
Rose Chintz Cottage *
Bernideen's Tea-Time Blog *
Antiques & Teacups *