Wie gehts meinen freunden? Just a quick trip today and let’s start this post off with a favorite song: “Make new friends but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold…” That Girl Scout song is internationally known and is a perfect opening for today’s trip around the world. Since travel is limited to short trips to gather groceries and a quick walk with the dog, I thought I’d share some unique blogs with you which perhaps you aren’t familiar with.
Not long ago I updated my profile to read that I often think of blogging like when we all sent letters all the time, like we are pen pals. Inspired by an unused airline ticket just making my fingers itch to go somewhere fun… Let’s go armchair traveling from the comfort of our living rooms, shall we?…
First up is a visit to Mariette who writes from and lives in Alabama. Originally from the Netherlands, she writes about her and her husband Pieter’s work (and their travels) as mushroom experts! By far the most unique job I’ve ever encountered, Mariette shares so many wonderful stories, postcards and more from her late husband’s trips around the world as a mushroom grower. ~ The Living MushroomCave in Le Puy Notre Dame, Loire, France.
Next on today’s armchair flight around the world, you may know Fabiana of Fabby’s Living from all the times I have shared her lovely table settings. She collects all kinds of tableware (as so many of us do) and has family over quite often for tea or for dinner (when we aren’t in a pandemic situation). Here is a recent Quarantine Teashe shared with her husband (extra slices were props for photos only). I picked this post as I love how she describes her family here… You can really feel the love. Fabby lives in Ecuador and would welcome your visit!
Now let’s travel to Michigan to see Jeanie at The Marmelade Gypsy who shares her travels, working in public television during its early days, and the beauty of Michigan from their lake house. In 2018 she travelled with her husband to France and wrote this wonderful post about Paris: Bread & Wine Shopping!
Our last visit today takes us north to Quebec, Canada to the home of Thelma who writes Thel’s Days and Thel’s Kitchen from Thelmaday.blogspot.com. Here Thelma shares her quick and easy recipe for Beef Pot Pie – Day 15 of Quarantine. Normally Thelma is busy out and about with family members visiting lighthouses all over Canada and the Quebeçois coastline. Do look for her travel posts when you visit!
I hope you’ve enjoyed this little trip to visit a few of our French Ethereal friends! I’ll be bringing more travel ideas to you as spring rolls on, and also more of our backyard outdoor space, too.
Hello there! Welcome back for part 2 of my visit to the lovely French country style home and gardens (and THE cutest gardenhouse ~ shown above ~ and she shed!) of my friend
Judith Stringham who writes the blog Botanic Bleu…
A couple of days agoI shared Part 1of my visit with Cindy of County Road 407 and Laura of Decor to Adore to visit another of our friends whom I met that first Christmas here in 2016 ~ Judith Stringham.
I had never been to Judith’s French Country Christmas Event at her home in Mansfield, Texas before but I knew she held one each December for all of her friends. Judith is a retired teacher and administrator in her local school district, and this holiday sales event brings all of her friends together for a visit and some fun French country shopping!
Me and Cindy outside Judith’s adorable French country blue and limestone brick/stone garden shed transformed into her shop twice a year. Oh! There are those super big pinecones peeking out from behind Cindy on that little garden étagere.
Judith is all about French country style (my absolute favorite style, as you know!) so I thought I’d share the rest of the fun photographs today that I took last weekend.
I seriously wanted this urn… And those large round marble cheese platters… And those glittery Christmas trees…
These pics were taken inside the garden she shed I shared in the last post (Judith’s wintertime photo of her garden from a number of years ago), and since then she and her husband built a gorgeous large greenhouse (of which I have serious greenhouse envy…) which sits just to the left and stepped back from the shed.
I will share that in a moment… 😉
So here we are inside!
Laura is checking out all the wonderful little French christmas and non-Christmas soaps and goodies decorated with foxes, bears and “les lapins.”
A better picture of Laura with Cindy… 🙂
Judith lovingly curated blue and white crockery, blue and white napkins, bespoke linen Christmas tea towels and also ones for everyday use, custom silverware, French country angels, small etchings and prints straight from France for us gardeners and decorators to use in our homes alike.
Three of Judith’s friends from her former school district were there at the same time as we were and were squabbling (just a bit) over two large Christmas angels. (I think they worked it out!) *<;)
Large angels were for sale and some furniture pieces(alas, no room!), as well as birdcages, holiday tins, gift bags and greenery and huge pinecones (Laura’s favorites!).
I am sure Judith made this dried boxwood Christmas tree. I bought a small dried
boxwood wreath to hang at home while here (shown above hanging on the mirror).
I found several things to bring back to our French country home and I will share them over the next week or so. One is this little Santa Belsnickel glinting in the sunlight here… And the small boxwood wreath…
Judith cleverly hung her tea towels on this copper railing below this tin garden sink. Her regular curtains hide soil and pottery the rest of the year. The butcher block counters are wonderful and cost effective (we used one $40 piece from Home Depot back in California to make our tv stand/storage unit in our master bedroom) and this gives me wonderful ideas for a future garden shed at our Texas home!
The white painted pieces across the top of the television and underneath it were butcher block pieces we cut to fit and painted. Very solid and sturdy, they make excellent non-warping shelving to hold a lot of weight around the home. Plus butcher block is beautiful in the kitchen! You can see more of our last home in this post here.
I would love to have shown you more but other people were shopping and I didn’t want to intrude. Here is Judith looking lovely in a custom-made scarf she won from another blogger she knows in France who curates and sells boxes to people who are Francophiles…
Seriously, from baskets to metal birdcages of varying shapes, to Santas and more… I could have dropped several hundred dollars without a thought.
Laura, Cindy and I oggled over these French blue doors Judith made from
four French iron gate closures, decorative buttons, and sheets of thick plywood.
Let’s check out the greenhouse!
The greenhouse is lovely with its French blue doors leading inside a bright and airy area to store tender plants during Texas’ super cold winters. This winter so far is pretty mild which is wonderful for gardening but not so good for next summer’s crop of nasty biting no-see-um mites (Texas needs the super cold ~ around 0 degrees Fahrenheit ~ to kill the biting bugs off).
This is the reverse view looking back towards the house from the greenhouse. The interlocking brick pathways had me at hello!
Here is a close up of one of the lovely French doors…
And a couple of peeks inside… Nice thick mats to stand on for foot comfort and wraps for tender plants. Love it!
You know me and chandeliers!!! Here you can just see this beauty peeping out in the sunlight above the back double French doors…
ooh la la!!!
Another lovely view… I hope Judith will share sometime where she found all these French doors. What a lovely place to come and pot plants or to just sit…
A few looks more from the Stringhams’ veranda which wraps around their home looking back towards the garden shed and acreage.
I love this old French garden bench crafted from a gate or iron headboard with its watering can and planted evergreens…
Etherealness at its finest!
Sharing with
Thursday Favorite Things ~ Follow the Yellow Brick Home
Sunday Sentiments this month is about giving our best. I was invited to a friend’s birthday party and last minute I realized I hadn’t picked up a present. What is one to do? Look for a treasure of one’s own to pass on… 🙂
My friend Carrie is the same friend whom I shared a post about organizing her trailer when we lived at Wagon Master RV Park. I helped to re-organize her kitchen and her trailer’s closets over a couple of weeks and this little bit of kindness really helped my friend!
July is her birthday month and as I previously mentioned I did not have a gift for her, so… I shopped my home! In my corner-round display hutch I have probably 50+ teacups and saucers. Mr. Ethereal and I are seriously looking at all the items we had shipped back to Texas from our two storage units. What should stay and what should go? More and more is heading into the garage for a future garage sale, and rightly these things should pass on to new homes. 😉
I do love this teacup set with its expression of faith but I thought my friend would enjoy it more. Carefully I wrapped up this green, tan and pink set placing it inside a pretty gift bag. I found a perfectly new journal already tied with a bow that I had never used and placed that inside the bag, too.
Time came for the birthday party and Carrie was thrilled with all the lovely gifts she received from her friends! She now lives in a group home so these sweet gifts from friends will be happy mementos for her.
“Like the woman at the well, I was seeking For things that could not satisfy. And then I heard my Savior speaking— “Draw from My well that never shall run dry.”
Fill my cup, Lord; I lift it up Lord; Come and quench this thirsting of my soul. Bread of Heaven, feed me till I want no more. Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole.
There are millions in this world who are seeking For pleasures earthly goods afford. But none can match the wondrous treasure That I find in Jesus Christ my Lord.
So my brother if the things that this world gives you Leave hungers that won’t pass away, My blessed Lord will come and save you If you kneel to Him and humbly pray—”
hymn by Richard Blanchard, 1925 – 2004
I am happy to give Carrie a special memory of the teas we shared at the park after our walks on cold and rainy days. We both miss those sweet and precious times.
Our home is finally ready to share a bit more… I busted a gut putting books away in our three big bookcases all this past week but with good reason! Having friends over for tea is one of my passions and it is also good motivation for getting boxes unboxed; finding homes for things while organizing and cleaning; and then enjoying the fruits of one’s labor with those friends over for tea…
This is a bit of a double-feature tea as I reset the table from last week ~ I found the egg cups like literally 5 minutes after last week’s 10 on the 10th post went live – really! So the next morning when it was sunny I shot this quick table recreated for you. The eggs were already boiled and made a nice addition to this
spring table setting. I kept this table setting sans tablecloth as the nest-look of the woven gold placemats along with the bare golden oak of the table really created a nice contrast.
Our friendship table however was styled using a Battenberg lace tablecloth I have had for years, some vintage tableware pieces and a big bunny in mind. Turns out the bunny competed with the flowers in the vase because of his size so… Out hopped our sweet little rabbit from the china hutch to grace this Easter table.
The sweet butterfly dessert plates I found after Christmas 2017 and shared previously at this tea table setting.
Our first roses…
Last week’s flowers have mostly faded away but the big white mum and some of the white daisies were hanging in there so I recut their stems and used them to fill in this mini bouquet. Our first Queen Elizabeth roses were just opening up and I am happy to share them from our new garden with you here.
Little vintage butter pats were set out in case we decided to do tea bags instead of loose leaf ~ always a nice choice! Plus they are just too cute to leave in the cupboard as this tea was all about sharing favorite rose tea things with two friends.
Here are my friends ~ Laura (left) and Cindy (on the right).
You may know these ladies!
I have wanted to have several friends over since we moved in and many of you know me from the old days at our last home in California ~ I went to tea once a month for 18 years as part of the Victorian Tea Society there. I began this blog sharing several tea parties I had like this one and this one plus tearooms I’d visit.
Laura of Decor to Adore and Cindy of County Road 407 came over and we had a lovely tea luncheon! Cindy brought a Caesar salad to share and Laura provided a lovely English sparkling lemonade, which I had never tried before ~ very tasty both!
A little view outside the window this week.
We talked about blogging and how it has changed (something I’m sure you’ve found, too!), gardens, fabrics (Laura and I sew quite a bit) and dying fabric. You name it; we discussed it!
😉
Scones mixed with homemade self-rising flour, Craisins and chopped pecans were filled with raspberry jam and mock Devonshire cream were the first course ~ delicious if I do say so myself! Making these scones was easy too as I was able to just roll out the dough right on the granite countertop of the island.
We drank our English lemonade plus cups of freshly brewed English Breakfast tea. Really refreshing!
A photo I posted on Instagram.
Chicken salad sandwiches were served on large croissants cut in half along with juicy fresh fruits ~ tart strawberries with green and red grapes. These comprised our second course along with Cindy’s salad.
We were all hungry and ate our fill. After a visit to see my new craft room we came out and chatted in the living room.
Cindy asked why I didn’t have this Shabby Chic bolster pillow out in the living room since florals are my thing ~ I don’t know. I hadn’t gotten that far with my decorating yet (or my thinking, since I’ve just been unpacking for what seems like forever…).
I am glad she thought of it though and brought this pillow out ~ it really adds to the room! I had asked the girls if they would help me decorate in here as this house feels more contemporary than our previous homes. I have a lot of “littles” and my decor needs some editing to bring it up to date. Laura suggested having a swap with other friends ~ good idea!
So excited about this Regency pattern to use with this fabric!
Oh, I have to tell you the girls brought lovely gifts as housewarming presents! Laura spent a lot of thought and time hand-dying several yards of fabric a wonderful dark green. She also brought over a bunch of older sewing patterns for ideas to make a costume dress for attending future teas. I was and am still totally amazed…
This hat I refashioned to wear two ways ~ as a bonnet and then with the mop cap over the back as a second look.
Laura dyed this fabric to go with a Regency bonnet I fashioned from a hat she gave me last fall so I could attend the Dickens Festival and a tea at the Lasker Inn with her down on Galveston Island. We had a really fun time that weekend and also previously when I visited the DFW Costumers Guild.
Love the green of this serving piece! So pretty…
Cindy brought over a gorgeous large green-glass server for iced tea and other drinks. I am also thinking could act as a terrarium when not filled with ice tea, water with floating lemons and cucumbers, or lemonade. She had it wrapped in a beautiful bag ~ both came from HomeGoods, a favorite store we all like to shop.
Very thoughtful gifts both, thank you, Ladies!!!
Our final course included a lemon poppyseed cake with orange zest in the mix for a light citrus flavor. We ate this over in the living room with more tea and our water. Sorry I didn’t snap any photos as we were deep in conversation.
And just a final couple of photos including one of me as I rarely get in photos since I am usually behind the camera. 😉
I should have looked in the mirror before snapping this selfie, lol! Not the best hair day… Staying up filling bookshelves until 2:00am didn’t help, either. 😉
More work to be done unboxing but you can see how the living room is shaping up.
Christmas is the such a wonderful time of the year truly and I find it such a blessing to be a guest at other friends’ homes! Getting to share the season with friends and family is such a treat and today I wanted to share two special days with you all.
Two special luncheons where friends gathered to share the Love of the season… Pour yourself a hot cup of tea or another favorite beverage as this will be a bit of a journey; however, I hope you will be truly blessed…
Two luncheons so different in decor and style of home but very much the same… The first place we are visiting today is my friend and Bible study teacher Peggy Hayes’ home in Denton.
We held our last study of the year where two special stories about the birth of the Christ Child were shared. Peggy read to us from the gospel of Luke ch. 2…
The Birth of Jesus
1In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2(This was the first census that took place while a Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3And everyone went to their own town to register.
There was no room at the inn…
4So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
And an angel appeared…
8And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.10But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
A few tears ensued and smiles spread all around as we finished out study time and felt His holy presence.
Friends Peggy Luigs (L, Peggy #2), Carrie Ballard (back) and Peggy Hayes (R, Peggy #1), our hostess.
Our potluck menu
We moved all our study things off the table and shared our potluck luncheon of homemade chicken tortilla soup made by Peggy #1. A Raspberry Balsamic vinaigrette-topped salad with chopped pecans, mandarin oranges and ruby red Craisins and baby Roma tomatoes. There were tortilla chips for crunching on top of our soup and sides of crackers and cheeses and delicious Kosher bologna.
Now I don’t tend to “shove the Dove” as Pastor Brian used to say not to do at Calvary Chapel of Murrieta some years ago, so only a few times a year will you hear me really pour my heart out for our Creator.
Today is one of those days…
🙂
One of the many wonderful crosses in Peggy’s home.
Peggy’s home is filled with red everywhere ~ her favorite color! She also loves quilts and a casual country decor using long-loved and thrifted finds to create her loving home. She has many beautiful crosses and Nativities, of which I’ve shared a few.
L-R: New friend Jane, Carrie, Peggy #1, Peggy #2, and another new friend Nancy, who is a pastor’s wife.
Food for thought
Here’s the gang! This was a wonderful day with good food of both kinds to nourish our holiday season-wearied souls. I for one am really glad that the Christmas Story was read as I needed to hear it again.
I hope you needed it too.
🙂
Laura’s super cute ornament display in her kitchen ~ based off the one I’m linking here!
Tea at friend Laura’s home was the very next day and she invited three friends from her church to come hang with Cindy {who writes the blog County Road 407} and myself for the day.
and has become a good friend over this past year as has Cindy. We like a lot of the same things just as my friends in California do ~ decorating our homes for each season, thrift shopping and antiques. And of course a heart for Jesus!
Don’t you just love this pink decorated Christmas tree in it’s little cart??!
Laura’s theme
When Laura was thinking about what colors she wanted to do this year for Christmas her daughter suggested pink {I think it was}so Laura took a look through her Christmas decorations and ornaments to see if there was enough…
Happily there was enough and a pink-and-white decor for the Christmas season enveloped their beautiful home!
This beautiful china hutch is part of a set of antique oak pieces brought back from their living in Germany when Mr. Decor was stationed overseas.
Love, love the villages and castles on these vintage china pieces ~ so pretty!
Which goes along with the pinkish-red transferware china Laura collects ~ another similarity we have as I found some Johnson Bros. china a couple of years ago just after we moved here to Texas.
Here is a simple Christmas vignette on this blanket chest in their foyer complete with a sweet German Bavarian-style Advent carousel on top. Fresh greens from their trees outside complete the decorations and show the Advent piece to its best advantage.
In a hutch in her living room near their Christmas tree sits a display of white ironstone creamware decorated with silvery Christmas balls set on beds of snow. Little cottages and tiny decorated chalets sparkle in the cabinet’s light…
And more little Christmas houses beckon over on the antique carved server in the dining room. Soft wisps of angel hair snow cozily wrap snow drifts around the town and church…
And the Gunn’s two weenie doggies came and visited with us, too! This little guy is now 16 years old and such a lover and so jaunty in his Christmas neckerchief…
I apologize for not getting a good shot of both of them. I did try but you know how it is with kids and dogs and photographs ~ too much excitement to sit still!
A place setting for Jesus
After much visiting and meeting new friends we brought our soup bowls into the kitchen and served up the delicious chicken, spinach and cheese tortellini soup ~ heaven in a bowl!
Love this alcove for the range and all the brick! The copper pans and sieves remind me of the copper pans and moulds my mother collected.
Sprinkled with little slivers of parmesan cheese and pine nuts the soup had a nice crunch that satisfied all of our palates.
I believe this is Johnson Bros. “Friendly Village.”
The Advent wreath
As we began the meal, Laura had us each in turn light a candle as she shared the story of the Advent wreath and what each lit candle means ~ this is a wonderful tradition her family has celebrated for years!
Each part reminds us of the coming of Jesus. The circle of evergreen branches represents “eternity.”
The candle lit in the center represents Christ as the “light of the world.” The other candles lit in turn beginning on the fourth Sunday before Christmas represent as follows:
1. “Prophecy candle” ~ traditionally a purple candle and the first lit, in remembrance of the prophets but mostly Isaiah as he foretold of the coming birth of Christ. This candle represents “Hope.”
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14, NIV)
2. “Bethlehem candle” ~ or the “Love candle,” symbolizing Christ’s “Manger,” and is the second purple candle lit.
“This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” (Luke 2:12, NIV)
3. “Shepherds candle” ~ which represents “Joy” as the shepherds heard the Good News and went in search of this great news. This is the third candle lit and it is traditionally a pink or rose-colored candle.
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. (Luke 2:8–11, NIV)
4. “Angels candle” ~ lit on the fourth Sunday of Advent, the Sunday before Christmas, is the third and final purple candle lit. It represents “Peace.”
My own little scene at home…
The symbolism of the day was not lost on us and more happy tears were shed for a baby born long ago whose sole purpose was to come into this world to save us all from sin and claim us as His own.
🙂
Our next course was a lasagna Laura made and served with a light salad which was wonderful! There wasn’t much talking around the table as we were just enjoying the meal and the ambiance.
After visiting for a while longer, we were ready for dessert and I brought in my Victoria Sponge…
This naked cake was what I brought to share and didn’t look this pretty when it first arrived ~ LOL!
A funny story: I made a cake the day before but it completely flopped and didn’t rise. I tried using Splenda instead of regular granulated white sugar and probably overbeat the mixture, so… Don’t do what I did when you mix your cakes, friends! 😉
These two vanilla sponge cakes came unfrosted from Wal-Mart’s bakery here in Denton, Texas and thankfully theirs were wonderful! Put together with lemon curd in the middle and a Mock Devonshire Cream frosting topped with berries and sprigs of rosemary, since I didn’t have a sweet pine tree close by.
The Great Cookie Exchange
Laura had set up a fun cookie exchange between all her friends and each of us was gifted with a Dollar store lidded bowl for taking our loot home.
This is Cindy and she is sooo sweet!
Here is Laura with Gerlie on the left.
Yours truly cutting us all BIG slices of the cake.
;)’
Here are Cindy who is my other blogger friend (L) who also lives close by in pink {was definitely the color of the day!} sitting next to Nancy {I think? I am terrible with names and I do apoligize and will correct as I ask forgiveness!}. She and the other Cindy were running off soon to help feed a group of people their church supports.
And here is gang #2!
These last photos are courtesy of Laura Ingalls Gunn of Decor to Adore
who lovingly sent the to me.
:X
Two lovely days meeting and sharing a meal in our Savior’s honor with old and new friends.
I have a friend here where we live who has special needs and lives on her own however organizing her living spaces
is just not her forté.
She and I have been friends for a little over a year now and we walk together all the time and I help her with things
she may need from time to time.
I have helped by taking her to get groceries or driving her to the doctor, as a number of her other friends also do.
It is a privilege to be able to help in this way and it is really an honor to be able to use my organizing and decorating skills
to make her life more
functional and beautiful.
🙂
Begin by clearing out
My friend had already begun packing up things
she no longer needed and had outgrown in bags.
We continued some of this on our first day organizing.
Since she has lost a considerable amount of weight
she is excited to be receiving gently used clothing
from friends and finding new clothing at a few nicer local thriftshops.
We concurrently went through her kitchen pulling out
duplicate and unneeded items and talked about having everything you need to prepare meals and for baking everyday right where you cook and mix things.
We also discussed ways to organize the kitchen ~ by use and item.
You can see in the top photos we have begun putting all the
kitchen appliances in the cupboard above the tan chair.
Then we worked on putting paper goods and less needed
kitchen items together in that same area.
Reorganize and space planning
Since my friend has lost a considerable amount of weight she is excited to be receiving gently used clothing from friends and finding new clothing at a few of the nicer local thriftshops.
A mutual friend takes her out shopping about once a month
or so and they make a day of it by going out to lunch, too.
As we worked on purging those no-longer-needed clothing pieces
I spent time teaching my friend about hanging long items
together and about taking unrelated items out of each closet.
Small space living is the same whether one lives in a trailer,
a small cottage home or in a studio apartment.
Really organizing one’s built-in cupboards and closets
is key to making our homes look and feel bigger!
😉
Our Yoda shows an interest in helping clean and organize.
Clean as you go
One of the biggest tips I can offer is to clean and wipe down
cupboards inside and out and the items going inside as you go through them.
Putting everything away all nice and clean makes a big difference in how we feel about ourselves and about our home!
Since there are only three small storage drawers in the kitchen which were meant for the silverware, some utensils and a few linens for wiping and washing dishes,
I showed my friend how to display her silverware in large
water glasses up on her counter along with an unused crock
to hold her utensils.
Just doing this gave us a free drawer to have the
ever-needed “junk drawer.”
Repurpose closet spaces
Above her television is a perfect spot for my friend’s jeans
casual pants that can be folded and t-shirts.
Here we will put in some foldable shelving to give her
better stacking ability.
This closet will probably hold other things as well
but she really needs clothes closet storage ~
her chief complaint with not being able to put
things away as she would like.
Store away non-used items
Christmas is just over for the year so we worked on
giving her a bigger storage box for her needs.
In this new box we were able to put in all of her blank
Christmas cards, wrapping paper and decorations
and ornaments as it was just the perfect size!
This box fit perfectly in her really unused storage area
on the outside of her trailer.
We will be storing more items there as we get further
into our reorganizing adventure.
😉
Fixing up the bedroom will be here in the next few weeks.
To be continued…
I’ve been over one other day and we worked more on
putting things for donation out in my car
so…
The next time we get together we will probably tackle
the bedroom closets and storage needs in there.
Here are some items we might need in my friend’s home
that I began pricing when I picked up my own groceries
this past weekend.
Stay tuned!
Being kind and helping others is what I believe in.
I love my decorating and gardens but my heart is
firmly planted in helping others and especially friends
Sharing with Wow Us Wednesday ~ Savvy Southern Style Hearth and Soul Linky ~ April J. Harris Totally Terrific Tuesday ~ The Savvy Apron Feathered Nest Friday ~ French Country Cottage Thursday Favorite Things ~ Katherine’s Corner
*An Update
My friend and I walk together and attend the same Bible
study, but we haven’t really got back to more organizing
in her little trailer home.
I did share some organizational skills with her and we
took a bunch of outgrown clothes and other clothes
which were donated to her to the Salvation Army.
People at her church and here where we live give her
bags of clothes to sort through all of the time ~ one of
the problems she has with organizing.
So… with that, we will get back finishing organizing as
the weather cools off, hopefully!
🙂
AlsoI’m resharing this post with
Spread the Kindness Link Up #80 ~ Shelby on the Edge
Kris ~ Junk Chic Cottage PERK Project and Kindness Lavender Dreams The Give Way of Life Cindy ~ County Road 407 Serve and In Turn You Are Served Tammy ~ Patina and Paint The PERK Project Terri ~ Our Good Life One Word ~ Kind Carol ~ Bluesky At Home How to Write Your How for Your Why
My friends Scott and Marian just sitting down to tea.
This past Tuesday I had some new friends over for
a real tea~ something that has been missing in my life
since we moved out of our former home…
🙂
I have had friends in individually just for a scone and tea
but I haven’t had a full-on tea with courses like I used to do a
couple of times a year for 17 or 18 years as part of the
Victorian Tea Society
when we were in our previous two homes.
Sorry this is a bit blurry! It was 11:45 or later and I was rushing to shoot a few photos before my friends arrived.
We had a wonderful time! Spirit radio played softly
from out in the living room
candlelight flickered from the vanilla candles unobtrusively set on the dining room table and the spicy scent of cinnamon~chip scones filled the sun-warmed air around us.
Zucchini quiche made with goat cheese replacing the usual mozzarella {why it’s so soft} and chicken salad sandwiches.
First Course
Our first course included cinnamon chip scones with mock Devonshire cream
made with goat cheese, almond milk and powdered sugar
{since Marian has allergies to cow’s milk}
whipped into to soft peaks.
Because of using the goat cheese, this type of
cream doesn’t stay whipped for long ~ just make a
small batch and use it up quickly.
*If I had my big Kitchen-Aide mixer here the clotted cream
may have stayed whipped together better.
We also had cherry jam and Ikea’s orange and elderflower marmalade.
If you’ve never had this jam, it is incredibly delicious!
;)’
After each having one scone, the basket was passed around
a second time whereby Marian and I split a second scone.
We decided to save room for what was coming next…
Main Course
Next we partook in goat cheese zucchini quiche
chicken salad sandwiches on cinnamon bread and
fruits including
raspberries, grapes, blueberries, and strawberries.
The fruit being the perfect complement
to the tanginess of the quiche and
the cinnamon spiciness of the sandwiches.
While we ate we talked about Texas… They had brought over a AAA book and a
couple of magazines with places to visit and
things to do here in this great state.
We also talked about where they are going
and what they will be doing next.
They will become camp hosts at their next camping spot
like we were in our last spot in California from
late summer 2015 – November 2016!
It’s a great way to see an area and work a little
to pay for a camp spot to park your RV.
Something to consider if you plan to travel
when you retire. {Since it costs so much to pay for campsites…}
🙂
Scott and Marian will be heading out of state
following their daughter and son-in-law with a change in jobs
{Fun! Always a good thing to get to see new places!}
but I realized that I will really miss them.
Having been neighbors here in the park for several months now
surviving a number of hail and lightening storms
and
this past winter hunkering down together through the real cold
strong winds and rains that happens in this part of North Texas,
we’ve built up a real friendship in a short amount of time.
Same with my friend Sondra and
her dog “Shelby”
who are also traveling cross-country moving back home
to Oregon where she can be closer to family.
{She missed the tea as this was her first day to travel, but I made sure she had scones to go. :)}
“Shelby” is a sweet chihuahua terrier mix
These two photos were taken with my iPhone ~ a mutual friend took this one of Sondra and myself and our pups.
Scott and Marian took me down to the
Fort Worth Botanical Gardens
last month and we had a lovely lunch down there that day.
Marian, her daughter and granddaughter enjoying the walk through the various garden rooms at Fort Worth Botanical Gardens.
The Last Course ~ Dessert
Dark chocolate cake with dark chocolate frosting
dreamily drizzled with mashed raspberries
was the perfect end to a perfect meal.
The one flavor complemented the other…
We moved over to the living room for this final course
and my guests were treated to the picturesque views
of the property out the back window…
The alpacas lay quietly under now fully leafed trees
down in the pasture to the left
or were grazing nearby.
Birds hopped about in yard and on the meadow hill behind our prairie home picking up twigs and grasses and working industriously finding materials to build their springtime nests.
I have been thinking about all that is lovely, all that is ethereal… On our trip to visit family and friends this week over Thanksgiving, my longest-known best friend Janet, her daughter Sara, and I went Geo Caching out at a water reservoir in Auburn, California. Even with only being 1/3 full, the water and surrounding countryside were beautiful! A family was there and their dog chased a ball into the water over and over, bounding out with unbridled enthusiasm. Here, he is resting between his trips into the lake to retrieve his beloved object…
Sometimes life is this big bridge…
Crossing this enormous foot bridge,
took courage and ignoring vertigo!
This was the second bridge of the afternoon,
about a football field in length.
The first was only 25′ long or so.
This rushing stream ran underneath the first.
Getting back together with friends
whom I hadn’t seen in several years
was wonderful!
We have known each other since high school,
over 30 years now.
And, it always amazes me that
no matter how far away we are,
how long it has been
since we have spoken,
we fall right back in-step,
as though we have never been apart…
Sara with the gecko she found in the first geo cache.
Janet signing the geo cache log.
Finding another item under the end of the big bridge, and adding a little toy moose!
Life is easy, life is good, we can ignore the evils out in the world, turn introspective and just be.
It was my turn to host our monthly tea today and I was still setting the table as my friends from the Victorian Tea Society group I am involved with in Riverside County, CA, arrived.
But I was able to snap just a few photos before they arrived all the while as I was going on with getting the tea and scones ready to serve and out on the table…
Similar scones ~ photo “stolen” from a later tea tablesetting. 😉
For the first course I made cranberry and walnut/pecan scones then I tossed a summer salad shared by Courtney over on
French Country Cottage a week or so ago, made with spinach, sliced strawberries and fresh blueberries, crumbled feta cheeseand drizzled with a lovelypoppyseed and oil vinaigrette!
The salad was absolutely delicious!!!
*Here is the link to Courtney’s post here.
A little stack of silverplate platters and a teacup decorating the buffet.
Next, we ate smoked turkey and avocado sandwiches served
on mini croissants with fresh fruit salad sans dressing.
The beautiful rose strewn teapot given to me by the ladies when we first moved into this house in 2004 ~ it’s a favorite! Here it is paired in all of its peacock blue goodness with tea-stained linen napkins found in Idaho on a track and field trip.
It was the first time I used this cake pan; however, it turned out well for baking it for the first time!
This I served with powdered sugar
sprinkled lightly over the top of the cooled cake. {sorry, no photographs…}
The table set for our first course of tea and scones served with lemon curd and clotted cream.
The ladies enjoyed all of the courses and we talked about all kinds of things (like usual!) ~ about our kids and grandkids who was heading back to college (my kids) upcoming weddingsand school beginning soon.
A little rose craft I copied from one I’d seen ~ hanging off a floor lamp.
The peacock tea with blue and cream as part of the decorating
theme and inspired by these little note booklets I’d found
at Michael’s Craftstore, I believe.
The peacock feathers I was given by the occupational therapist
who works with the students at our middle school.
He and his wife have a gentleman’s farm and raise peacocks
and other farm animals ~ a perfect addition to this tea and
was part of today’s Peacock Tea inspiration!
Friends Gloria (left, on settee under the window), Caroline, Julie and Patsy ~ sitting on the just finished settee cover. We were having fun looking at blogs and Pinterest.
Julie has a cute glamper so we had to check it out! I hope this tea has inspired you to try some themes at your next teas and with your tablesettings!
