Transition Tea

It is Tea Time Tuesday once again. My how the Tuesdays fly by. I am calling this my Transition Tea because I am in the midst of holiday transition, from autumn and Thanksgiving decorating to winter and Christmas decorating. We have been gone for almost a week and there is a lot of catching up on all the needful chores along with the fun of decking the halls with boughs of holly and baubles. Since I have not had time to bake, and no time to sit down for long, I made some tea in my new / old teapot, and sipped it out of one of the accompanying teacups. ( Do you like the Christmas tea cozy I made ?) This is one of 6 Japanese Lusterware Teacups and saucers I won in a bid on E-Bay. I have fallen in love with Lusterware and this inspired me to check out the china on sale via E-Bay. I have never bid or bought on E-Bay before, but I found this set and the price was very right. I bid, won, and received a whole snack set with teapot, sugar and creamer, plus the cups and saucers of this Lusterware and will feature it all in another Tea Time post. Some of the Lusterware was marked 'MADE IN JAPAN', some was not. I read this in an article on Lusterware by Harry Rinker. "Sometimes all pieces in a set are not back-stamped. The profit margin on ceramics was slim, and a factory could save a little labor cost by not marking every piece in a set." I also found some pieces marked with lettering that seemed to be gibberish, clearly read letters spelling nothing I could understand. I like my black, peppermint, or green tea straight. No cream or sugar. "The teapot must be boiling hot when the tea goes in. And the tea should steep four or five minutes. Thin slices of lemon pricked with cloves are all right; so is colored sugar. But for a family tea, we pour it out and drink it without anything in it. Just tea." Gladys Taber

Pour yourself a cup of tea, put the Christmas music on and visit these ladies for more Teatime Tuesday offerings~

• Pam at Breath Of Fresh Air
• Martha at Martha's Favorites
• Lady Katherine at Lady Katherine's Tea Parlor
• Terri at Artful Affirmations
• Wanda Lee at The Silken Purse
• Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage

"A cheerful heart has a continual feast." Proverbs 15:15

Have A Thankful Thanksgiving~

Have a thankful Thanksgiving,and be thankful you're not a turkey! Our turkeys are not aware of how thankful they should be this Thanksgiving. We could not find the time to prepare them for the Thanksgiving table , so they will happily gobble and eat their fill of grain , thinking turkey thoughts, dreaming turkey dreams. Our days around here are full of keeping the house warm and water in the animals' troughs. The power went out in the early hours this morning and came back on this afternoon. The weather forecast is for much of the same below freezing temperatures through Wednesday.( We are colder than the North Pole is right now!) Because of the uncertainty of electric power and that the rest of the week will be full of cooking and enjoying family, I will not be blogging for a few days. Happy Thanksgiving to you! ~"It is good to take time to be thankful, for it is all too easy to let the world's trouble sweep over one in a dark flood and to fall into despair." Gladys Taber ~" The Pilgrims made seven more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished than these who, nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving." H.U. Westermayer ~ "Thanksgiving Day comes , by statute, once a year; to the honest man it comes as frequently as the heart of gratitude will allow." E.S. Martin ~ "Thanksgiving , after all, is a word of action." W.J. Cameron

Snow & Thanksgiving

I am thankful for the first snow of this season. Cedar Pond is a snowy, white wonderland. The sheep have their woolly coats to keep them warm.Our ducks, chickens, turkeys and doves have the warmth of the protective and beautiful feathers God has given them and the shelter of the housing my husband has built for them. Our dogs have their fur coats and beds in the house for the night.Our cat sleeps safe and warm on the sofa... ...before the fire in the wood-stove, burning hot and steady. It warms our whole home , fueled by the wood from the trees here on Cedar Pond. I am thankful for the first snow, I am thankful I can enjoy this frosty beauty from the comfort of our warm home, and that our animals are safe and warm too. I am thankful tonight I know my family is safe and warm. November is a month and season with a beauty all it's own. There are still red and brown leaves stubbornly clinging to the trees, the sunny days are often a bit dim and damp, or frosty and bone chilling. Not quite fall, not quite winter.A time of transition. Don't rush into Christmas just yet, take time to savor the lull before the dashing madness of Christmas time, and the swiftly approaching new year. I am thankful for November, this is a month that has brought me some of my greatest joys. Every year and every season God grants us is an opportunity for great joy, and I am thankful for that especially. "There is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and tell himself that his labor is good. This also I have seen, that it is from the hand of God. For who can have enjoyment without Him? For to a person who is good in His sight He has given wisdom and knowledge, and joy." Ecclesiastes 2:24-26

Thank-you!

I am going to dedicate my blog to giving thanks for the rest of this month.I want my first expressions of thanks to be for YOU! I moved my Blogger List of FOLLOWERS to just below my header to acknowledge my appreciation for you all, and what you have contributed to my life. Blogging has enriched my life, and that of my family in ways I will not elaborate here except to say your many prayers and words of encouragement, your kind and helpful comments, well~ you humble me.Your blogs too, enrich my life, inspire me, entertain me.Thank-you, very much. "Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow. Don't walk behind me, I may not lead. Just walk beside me and be my friend. Albert Camus "It is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises unto His name." Psalm 92:1

The Dolls Were Invited Too~ Tea Time Tuesday

Tea Time Tuesday, one of my favorite days. A couple of weeks ago I invited one of our granddaughters and her dolls to tea. She was delighted, she loves to spend time with us, and she loves tea parties! Above is a picture of the Jaymar Toy China Dinner Set we used for the dolls. The teapot ( coffee?) , sugar & creamer in the background are treasures I picked up at a barn sale this past summer, don't they and the toy china set look like they belong together? The doll cups and saucers were too small for us, so granddaughter and I each chose the teacup we liked best. She likes the yellow butterfly teacup. I like the Japanese Lustreware. These teacups have been featured in other Tea Cup Tuesday posts. Peanut butter & jam sandwiches with a cherry on top, grapes from our vines, apples from our trees, chocolate chip cookies granddaughter helped bake, accompanied by mint tea. Perfect! I want to show you the bottoms of the toy set alongside the old pot, sugar and creamer from the barn sale. Both sets were made in Japan, and the lettering is almost a match, except the pot, sugar and creamer have the words "made in occupied Japan".

There is never enough sugar in the tea!

Pouring tea for the dolls, they drank a lot of sugared tea.

Thank-you for joining us and the dolls for tea. There are many other spots to enjoy a pot of tea today, just click onto the names of the ladies below~

• Martha at Martha's Favorites *
• Terri at Artful Affirmations *
• Lady Katherine at Lady Katherine's Tea Parlor *
• Pam at Breath Of Fresh Air*
• Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage *
• Wanda Lee at The Silken Purse*

"Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good: for His lovingkindness is everlasting." I Chronicles 16:34

Remember ! Veterans' Day

Veterans,this little band of rag-tag soldiers salute you! Veterans' Day, a day to honor our Veterans from all branches of military service. One of these little boys ( center, with black tie) became a U.S. Marine because he truly desired to support our country . He truly has ideals that embrace honor, courage, loyalty. He fought in two tours of duty in Iraq, lost friends and brother Marines. He is now working even harder , as a single Father, raising his 4 daughters with the help and support of family and friends, as he starts a new career.David, you are a hero to your Father and I. Thank-you for your service, and we praise God you are here to raise your daughters. All four of those little rag-tag soldiers are the grandsons of my father, who did 2 tours of duty in Korea, and 2 tours of duty in Vietnam. My father was a man of honor and loyalty too. He came home from his 2nd tour of duty in Vietnam to the attitude and disrespect of the 70's. I still remember with distaste and shame the attitude of so many of my generation as I saw my father and others who served in the military, be disrespected and scorned. We lost some of our best in that war, and those that returned home were often maligned, terribly. "Their deeds will not be less valiant because they are un-praised." Tolkien Thank-you David! If my father were alive I would give him a big hug and a kiss on the cheek and say"Thank-you Dad". Thank-you Dad B. ( my Father-in-law) who fought in WWII. Thank-you nephews Brad & Michael. Thank-you Brothers-in-law, Paul, Tom, and Kaare.Thank-you nieces Misa, Anastasia, Jessica. Thank-you Veterans ! "No arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is as formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women." R. Reagan "You only have the rights you are willing to fight for." "Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die." G.K. Chesterton "But the freedom that they fought for, and the country grand they wrought for, Is their monument today.. " Thomas D. English

A Busy Tea Time Tuesday

This teacup is Japanese Lustreware . You can see why it has been given that name. Look at the luster and shine. You can see my reflection in the bottom of the teacup as I took a picture of it. I have a lot to do before I am ready for the Lake Lawrence Christmas Bazaar this weekend. I have been up later than usual finishing Wee Little Sheep, felted balls, yarns, weavings...as usual, I don't have half what I had planned ready for this bazaar.A cup of black tea helps bolster me for a few hours more work.I will listen to Christmas carols too, they help keep me in the mood for Christmas crafting. Look at how neatly these little sheep line up for me. Wouldn't it be nice if my real sheep would? I have 4 of these Lustreware teacups & saucers. Although they are a matching set, each one is unique in that the details show they were hand painted. They vary oh- so- slightly.The bottoms of the cups have no markings, but the saucer bottoms say "HAND PAINT, Made in Japan".

The pink sheep is for you Joni.

To see more teacups , tea settings, and 'all things tea', just click onto the names of the ladies listed below~now I must get back to work! I am looking forward to taking tea with these ladies during my breaks.

• Martha at Martha's Favorites *
• Terri at Artful Affirmations *
• Lady Katherine at Lady Katherine's Tea Parlor *
• Wanda Lee at The Silken Purse *
• Pam at Breath Of Fresh Air *
• Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage *

It's Almost Here!

This little granddaughter is already excited about Christmas. In early September she whispered in my ear, " Grandma, it is almost Christmas!" Of course around here it is always Christmas, a celebration of Christ, we just wait until the end of summer to resume playing Christmas carols. "One man regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Let each man be fully convinced in his own mind .He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats , does so for the Lord for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God." Romans 14:5,6 and "This is the day that the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

Liberty Blue ~ Tea Time Tuesday

Liberty Blue China, Historic Colonial Scenes~ Old North Church Made In England

This plate ( above) is one my husband and I bought on a trip we took a few years ago to the East Coast. We spent several days in Boston, visiting many important historical sites. Do you know they have a lot to say about Tea Parties there in Boston? See, it is even commemorated on this souvenir plate ( click onto picture for close-up). Hmm, wonder if the participants of that tea party were verbally castigated and mocked for protesting high taxes imposed on them by the British? ( Rhetorical question) Today's teacup goes very well with the souvenir plate. We bought this teacup in Cannon Beach this September and I posted a tiny bit about it but I am excited to showcase this teacup again today in more detail because the Liberty Blue China, just like the plate, celebrates important moments of our early American history. "Lovely Liberty Blue China Teacup and Saucers were produced as part of a set of china showing different colonial scenes at the center of the various pieces, surrounded by a floral graphic. " Liberty Blue China was made in England and designed to commemorate the American Bicentennial. How far we have come since the Boston Tea Party. We rebellious Colonists fought the British ,gained our independence at great cost in bloodshed ( British & American), and now as a nation consider the British among our best friends. "Patriot: characterized by patriotism, influenced by love of one's native or adopted land, intended for public good." Funk & Wagnalls Dictionary The teacup celebrates Paul Revere's famous ride,the saucer depicts the Old North Church where Paul Revere told 3 Boston patriots to hang 2 lanterns in the steeple warning of the British troops' coming. "It is easy to take liberty for granted when you have never had it taken from you." AU As an aside, every time I think of Paul Revere now, I think of Italian food! My husband and I visited Paul Revere's home in Boston and it is surrounded by Italian restaurants. The sight and scent of all that delicious food permeates the whole area.You cannot visit without having to stop and eat at one of them. Now, I will finish my cup of tea while I make notes to myself regarding my selections in the voting booth tomorrow. Remember, the privilege of voting came at a dear price. Exercise your right wisely, and pray for the leaders of our country , whether they are your choice or not. Please visit the ladies below to see more of Tea Time Tuesday ~

• Terri at Artful Affirmations*
• Martha at Martha's Favorites*
• Lady Katherine at Lady Katherine's Tea Parlor*
• Wanda Lee at The Silken Purse*
• Pam at Breath Of Fresh Air*
• Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage*