Time to shop for holiday decor

I always buzz by the ornament aisle at Hobby Lobby at this time of year since the teacup and teapot ornaments tend to sell out early. I didn't find any new tea-themed ornaments there last weekend, but I did find some cute stickers that I think many of use would enjoy using to seal our Christmas cards or decorate packages this year.

So cute, and these *tea mug stickers* were half price, just $1.25.

But as a longtime Santa mug collector and crocheter, I was MOST excited to find this charming kit for a crocheted Santa mug! Once I get these home repairs behind me (the new foyer ceiling was installed this week), I plan to take some time off to enjoy crafting with my friends, and this adorable little project, which was also half price, is the perfect one to take along. Are any of you shopping for Christmas items yet? Some of you, I know, never stop!

Rose-Shaped Ice Cube Trays

I bypassed these cute pink silicone ice cube trays the first time I saw them at T. J. Maxx because goodness knows I have way too much kitchen stuff already, a fact that is staring me in the face since my dining room stuff will be crammed in the kitchen, too, next week when new dining room flooring goes down. But it dawned on me that rose-shaped ice cubes would be gorgeous in a punch bowl, so before I went and bought a bunch of the trays, I decided to try one out.

The trays are a bit fussy to work with. You fill them through the little round openings at the back, and I apologize if you suddenly find yourself thinking about Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which isn't until October, but hey, I didn't design the thing.

And here's the first batch of the rose ice cubes I made. Pretty, huh? But I have found that the water spreads unevenly, so you may have some really thick roses and then some like the one at the bottom that isn't as thick. I'd like them to be completely uniform, so I'll be trying again to adjust the water level so these all look the same. They didn't pop out of the tray quite as easily as I'd expected, either, but still … rose ice cubes, y'all!

I wondered how a single one would look in a pretty tea goblet. Like this. They look like this, which wasn't as impressive as I'd hoped. But then I poured this water into a Tervis, and that was the chilliest ice water I've had all summer! Even as the giant ice cube slowly melted, it kept that water sooooo cold. So that's a win too. Now I'm thinking that I may buy one more of these ice cube trays, strictly so that I can have a pretty red tea punch to serve at Christmas or Valentine's Day (I would freeze cranberry juice for the ice cubes). Are you tempted by these? Would you have the patience to fiddle with them just to get pretty ice cubes?

A weekend full of nieces … and a creative baby shower!

My weekend was all about my nieces! On Saturday, I joined my youngest niece, Amelia, my sister, Rhonda, and my oldest niece, Madison, to shop for Amelia's wedding dress in Chamblee. Turns out that all of us were a bit worried about how this would go. Amelia has always been very picky about her clothes, with comfort being a MUST. When she was a little girl, I once took her Christmas shopping for clothes, and she had to touch the interior of every garment, eventually striking them all as possibilities. So we were thrilled when she said yes to the dress! And it was truly stunning on her and made her look like a very elegant princess. She will be a beautiful bride this December!

Beforehand, we ate lunch at a great restaurant called J. Alexander's. They had fabulous salads, including the one I got with chicken, avocado, pecans, bacon, and cornbread croutons. Yum!

Then yesterday after church, I headed to Ranburne, Alabama, for Madison's baby shower. Little Hoyt, her and Logan's first child, is due in just a few weeks, and the church Logan pastors gave them a great shower yesterday.

I loved all the balloons!

Hoyt's nursery has a woodland theme, and that was used for the shower decor as well.

I loved the paper place mats that featured rings of wood. I asked one of the hostesses where she found them, and of course she said Amazon!

They had a great variety of finger foods, which was most welcome since I sped there after church and hadn't had time to eat. I love pinwheels, crackers and dip, cheese spread, and other such foods. 

The cucumber sandwiches above were the one contribution I was asked to make. Madison absolutely loves cucumber sandwiches, and I like to think this is because of all the tea parties she enjoyed as a little girl.

Someone had special cookies made, and I thought they were so cute.

But one of the cutest touches was the trail mix station.

As a thank-you gift, we all got to make our own trail mix to take home.

What a lovely way to remember such a fun baby shower!

A new flavor of stroopwafel

When I received a stroopwafel with a teacup last month, it reminded me how much I enjoy these lovely teatime treats. It also occurred to me that these would be fun to share with my little neighbors at teatime, so I looked for some when I was in T.J. Maxx this week. They love to add honey to their tea, and since the honey flavor was a new one to me, that's what I got, though they also had caramel, chocolate, and coffee flavors.

T.J. Maxx also had them in miniature sizes, but I like the ones that fit over the top of a teacup.

Or the top of a tea mug! The vessel doesn't matter, I suppose, as long as it provides the steam necessary to soften the stroopwafel. I enjoyed the new honey-flavored stroopwafel as much as the caramel-flavored ones I've had in the past. Are you a stroopwafel fan?

 

Revolution Tea's Earl Grey Lavender Black Tea

The tea in my teacup in Monday's post was this Earl Grey Lavender blend from Revolution Tea, a brand I first enjoyed many years ago. When I was introduced to this tea company, each tea bag was housed in a tiny little cardboard box that was maybe 1-1/2 inches wide and an inch tall. So when I saw this new box of their tea at Ollie's, I had to give it a try, especially at just $2.79 for the box of twenty pyramid tea bags.

Each pyramid bag is contained in a large foil pouch that keeps the tea leaves from getting all crunched and smashed.

And the taste is everything you want in an Earl Grey blend, with just the right amount of bergamot and a not-overly-perfumy amount of lavender. I find this a great "transitional" tea, as it's heartier than the fruity blends of summer yet not so spicy that you want to go make a pumpkin pie. And another thing I like about this tea? Once I've steeped the hot tea, I toss the tea bag into a glass of cold water, place it in the fridge to cold brew, then add a squirt of lemon juice to make yet another refreshing tea. It's definitely one of my favorite bargain finds of recent months!

A new vintage recipe: Apricot Nectar Cake

I'd been wanting to try a recipe that I found in one of the old metal recipe boxes I started collecting a few years ago, so I volunteered to make a cake for Bible study kickoff last week so that I would be able to share it. Typically, about half of a 13 x 9-inch cake will get eaten at such an event because of the wide array of treats, and I was happy that it was well received and that one friend liked it so much that she took home some of the leftovers. I also saved a few slices for teatime with my young neighbors, and I even had a few slices left for me. (When you slice a 13 x 9-inch cake into 1 x 2-inch bars, you end up with a lot of cake!)

The secret ingredients for this very moist apricot cake are a can of apricot nectar and a box of lemon-flavored Jell-O. And of course I have never met a lemon glaze that I didn't like.

This cake confirms my long-held belief that the more stained and weathered the cookbook page or printed recipe, the easier and better it is. If you want to make a delicious teatime treat that feeds a crowd, I definitely recommend this one, which paired well with some Earl Grey Lavender tea. Enjoy!

Now in bloom …

Guess …

what …

is blooming right now at my house?

And more are on the way!

After almost a week of focusing on home repairs, I took time to enjoy tea with my little friends in the tea garden yesterday. If I hadn't, I might have missed these blossoms on my Camellia sinensis plant, and it looks like there are plenty more to come!

An eventful Labor Day weekend …

Did you have a nice Labor Day weekend? Mine was … eventful, shall we say. I was supposed to be in Statesboro crafting with some girlfriends, but on my way downstairs to leave on Thursday morning, I touched the staircase rail and felt water. Water? I looked up, and water was coming through the ceiling! A copper pipe had ruptured, and while the plumber got here promptly and repaired it, the damage was enough to mean I will be getting a new ceiling, flooring, and carpet soon. So … fun times ahead. But what did not get postponed was my Labor Day hiking adventure with my friend Tammy. Here we are at High Falls State Park in Jackson, Ga., and from there, we went to Indian Springs State Park in Flovilla, Ga., and hiked there.

In the visitor center at Indian Springs, I was surprised to find an exhibit featuring this gorgeous vintage wedding gown.

And I also hit the brakes when I saw silver and glass pieces in a display case. Wouldn’t have dreamed I would see such wares while off hiking at a state park.

Pretty glassware always makes me reach for my camera.

Afterward, we were famished and headed to the Whistle Stop Café in Juliette for lunch. It’s the restaurant featured in the movie Fried Green Tomatoes. Part of the movie was filmed in Senoia, a town here in Coweta County, so that movie is very beloved in these parts.

When the waitress asked what we wanted to drink, I asked if they offered Arnold Palmers, and they certainly did. I love seeing the blend of tea (unsweet this time) and lemonade!

Both Tammy and I ordered those and the sampler platter, which featured fried green tomatoes, onion rings, chicken tenders, and sweet potato fries, all of which hit the spot. I took over half of mine home with me and have learned that such foods crisp up nicely in the toaster oven. So while the giant dehumidifiers continue to roar downstairs this week as my house dries out, at least I got to enjoy some fresh air and exercise on the Labor Day holiday itself!

Happy Labor Day, friends!