Eat Dessert First !

"In the hour, when death shall open the door into eternity- many things which now assume an 'air of importance' , will be found as light and unsubstantial as a child's dream." John Newton

Flying Goose Teacup~ Tea Time Tuesday

Last week I loaded up two of our dogs into the car and headed off to soak up the Autumn color. I also had a destination in mind, a small town nearby that has a row of antique stores on it's main street. I did not care if I found anything to buy, but teacups were at the top of my list of desirable purchases. Boy oh boy, teacups are expensive!Since I really don't NEED any more teacups I am picky about them. They have to be appealing to me and fairly cheap. Look at this teacup I found! This looks like a flying goose to me. I am not sure what the black thing is, maybe the tree trunk, or something more sinister. When I first glanced at this teacup on the shelf in the store,behind a lot of stuff, I thought the black was a fox or cat after the goose. Can you see the detail on this saucer? The gold is very bright, the green leaves of the tree are so delicate. Somehow this teacup manages to be bold and delicate at the same time. The china is so fine I can see the design on the front through the back. I am sipping tea from this cup right now as I write this post and I can see the liquid through the outside of the cup even though the lights are dimmed in this room. The lady who sold me this teacup said she would sell it to me for $6.00 because it was unmarked. We both held the saucer up to her sunny window to make sure there was no mark and although we saw a small green blur, there was no apparently visible writing or marking. My receipt from her reads " unmarked cup and saucer- $6.00 ". You can see the reflection of me taking the picture of the opposite side of the cup . As I was preparing this Tea Time Tuesday post I again held the saucer slightly slanted under a bright lamp and wouldn't you know it, there IS writing! Very small, but very clear tiny green letters saying "made in Japan".The way the letters appear make them seem like they are supposed to be a secret, only to be seen in a mysterious way, I like mysteries. Does anyone out there have a clue about this teacup and saucer? Sipping tea out of this teacup is like sipping tea out of a delicate gilded eggshell. I truly love this beautiful gem of a teacup, this treasure I found on a bright and colorful October drive through beautiful country. The day I came home from a glorious day with a treasure, a treasure to share with you! I am leaving you with this quote from a favorite author who's books are a treat to read as you sip your tea by the fireside or sunshiny porch. "As October ends, the air begins to smell of windfalls that have been frosted. The leaves drift down, and most of the branches are bare.We see more sky. Night shuts down early. I miss the long summer twilights, when day seems to linger indefinitely. But the mornings have a sparkle , and I love to see the shadow of the house silver with frost when sun has melted the rest of the crystals on the lawn." Gladys Taber Please, pour yourself a cup of tea and share a bit of time with these ladies, you won't be sorry, they know how to do Tea Time Tuesday right !

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

Yarn & So Much More

My heart has been bursting with the joy of these Autumn days, sunshiny and crisp, how can it not? Perfect for spinning my wool up into yarn as I sit on the porch.I can enjoy birdsong and bird squabbles over the feeders full of sunflower seeds .I take in the changing colors of the leaves, I watch my sheep from my porch.There is time to be quiet, to think. Look at this beautiful wool. It is from my ram, Goth. Who knew such a bashingly bad ram could give me such lustrous, soft fleece. My husband has been very patient with me as I keep showing him this wool while I spin it up. "Look at this! Isn't it beautiful?Look how much wool I got from Goth! Look at the long staple, isn't the color scrumptious...yadda, yadda."Sometimes I even push the lovely wool into his hands or make him sniff it! ( What a patient husband I have.) Can you see just a little bit from this picture how pretty Goth's wool is?The variations of black and white.His black is fading into a very sweet shade of blue-gray. What is the point of this post, well....I am happy and thankful for my sheep, for the ability to use their wool AND enjoy watching them. I am thankful for my husband who builds all the pens and housing for the sheep, even though he would prefer to have NO sheep.I am thankful for a husband who will let me fill a room with wool, loom, spinning wheels~ and not begrudge me the time to use it all. I am thankful for the time to meditate on The Shepherd, who watches over me, one of His sheep. I pray He allows the wool of this sheep ( me) to be spun up into even a tiny strand of wool yarn to be knit and woven into the fabric of a life glorifying Him, all else is but fodder for moths. To God be the Glory, forever and ever!

"The web of our life is but a mingled yarn, good and ill together." Shakespeare

"Charm is deceitful, beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised." Proverbs 31:30 "Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight Oh Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer." Psalm 19:14

Autumn Tea~ Tea Time Tuesday

It is Tea Time Tuesday where I feature a special tea cup, and often a tea setting. The weather around here is the kind of weather one describes as "the perfect Autumn day". I decided to take tea on my front porch. Along with a pot of Earl Grey tea, I had grapes picked from our own vines, apples from our trees, and Spiced Pumpkin Bread.*

This place on the porch is also where I love to spin up my wool into yarn.

Here is my teacup for this Autumn Tea Time. The yellow and light salmon roses are a good color for Autumn. Look at the gold around the rim and edges of the saucer and cup.

Royal Grafton, Fine Bone China~ Made in England

There is no given name for this pattern, just some numbers painted in gold under the foot of the cup.

• Visit these sites to see other Tea Times and Tea Cups~
• Martha's Favorites *
• Artful Affirmations *
• Lady Katherine's Tea Parlor*
• Breath Of Fresh Air*
• Wanda Lee*

Obsession

Hawk can often be found in the sun room striking this pose, and he can hold this pose for long periods of time.

Miss Marple can often be found in the sun room striking this pose, and she can hold this pose for long periods of time.

Can you say "obsession" ?

Yes, OBSESSION !

Poor Bob & Belle, they are so oblivious to the fact that if they were not safely housed in cages they, the objects of so much attention are really the objects of natural appetites. ( Belle whistles 'Thy Loving Kindness' & 'Jingle Bells' all day . She has a musical obsession.)

Look at her, she likes the dog and cat's attention, little does she know...

"Well, I am a BIRD dog!"

"Meow~Just let her out of the cage once...purrrrty please?"

I'll Fly Away One Day

"He will swallow up death in victory;and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off faces." Isaiah 25:8

"He who believes in the Son has eternal life" John 3:36

"And there is salvation in no one else ; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by that which we must be saved." Acts 4:12 "Truly, truly, I say to you he who believes in me has eternal life." Jesus~ John 6:47

"For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him, may have eternal life; and I Myself will raise him up on the last day." Jesus ~ John 6:40

(pictures taken during a visit we and our grandchildren made to the cemetery in Tacoma where my father, a U.S. Army veteran of 2 tours in Korea, and 2 tours in Vietnam, is buried)

I'm So Doggone Popular~

I'm so doggone popular and I don't know why.

Children love to adorn me with jewels.

See?

Children love to hug my face and kiss me.

Starry jewels for my head, beads and scarves for my neck, cuddles and kisses !

I am so doggone popular...what's a dog to do?

~"We long for an affection altogether ignorant of our faults. Heaven has accorded this to us in the uncritical canine attachments." George Elliot

~"Dogs have given us their absolute all. We are the center of their universe. We are the focus of their love and faith and trust. They serve us in return for scraps. It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made." Roger Caras