It's Blossom Time on the Island

One June evening, when the orchards were pink-blossomed again, when the frogs were singing silverly sweet in the marshes.... and the air was full of the savor of clover fields and balsamic fir woods, Anne was sitting by her gable window. She had been studying her lessons, but it had grown too dark to see the book, so she had fallen into wide-eyed reverie, looking out past the boughs of the Snow Queen, once more bestarred with its tufts of blossom. ~ LM Montgomery - Anne of Green Gables

Hello my dear friends. The apple trees are in bloom again and the fruit trees are filled with fluffy sweet smelling pink-tinted blossoms. 

This time of year I always look forward to their fleeting beauty and even when the blossoms have fallen on to the grass I love how they carpet the ground with their petals. 

Alas, it's been raining all week so I couldn't get out with my camera so I had to borrow the picture from a friend whose apple tree is blooming in their yard. Did you spy the butterfly in the blossoms?

This is also the time I like to bring out my Blossom Time trio. 

This gorgeous pattern is made by Royal Albert and the blossoms depicted on the china were created from real images of the apple blossoms in Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia. The pattern was created in 1933 and discontinued in 2001. You may find the history of this pattern by clicking here.

An interesting note I gleaned from the Royal Albert website : 
In 1933 when the china was first produced you could buy a cup and saucer for 90 cents; the teapot was sold for $4. When it was discontinued in 2001 the cup and saucer sold for $56, and the teapot sold for $210.

I found my square plate at a thrift shop for around six dollars. 

My sweet Aunt Judy gifted me with the cup and saucer. She made a trip to Replacements Ltd. in North Carolina on her way home from Florida one year and got me this beautiful teacup.

She has a whole set of this beautiful pattern which she inherited from her mother. 

Can you imagine a dinner table set with this pretty china, fine crystal and silverware? It would be gorgeous!

Today Bernideen is hosting her 100th Tea in the Garden and I was hoping to join her with an outdoor tea but it has been raining here all week thanks to the remnants of post tropical storm Colin.

So the best I can do is set my table in front of the window looking out into the beautiful green foliage of the maple tree in our front yard.

I took a picture of my bleeding hearts through the window. Can you see the rain drops on them?

So, my table is set with my Blossom Time china and some pretty roses. I found these scrumptious pink roses at the grocery store. This colour is an almost perfect match to the pink in the Blossom Time pattern but the camera doesn't pick it up so well. Because it is such a gloomy day, I've had to doctor up my pictures.

"Isn't it lovely? Don't you think it must be glad to be a rose? Wouldn't it be nice if roses could talk? I'm sure they could tell us such lovely things. And isn't pink the most bewitching color in the world?" ~ Anne of Green Gables

Sometimes I like to use a pretty teapot to hold my roses and I thought this RA New Country Roses would do the trick.

It is rhubarb season once again and I have made some Rhubarb Crisp. Delicious sweetened red rhubarb under a spicy topping of crunchy oatmeal. Served warm with ice cream or a dollop of freshly whipped cream, makes a lovely accompaniment with your cup of tea or coffee. I will share my recipe on the weekend. I am using my vintage pink glass sherbet for the dessert. Can you see the etched flowers on it?

Please join me and we can sit and listen to the rain while we chat about this and that. 

Happiness is sharing tea with a friend.

Tea with my blogger friends would be such a treat! Thank you, Bernideen, for hosting your party and thank you my lovely friends for joining me today. Enjoy your weekend, everyone.

I thought I would end my post with this beautiful shot of Anne of Green Gables and Matthew riding through the apple orchard. 

Courtesy of the Internet.

Happiness is the realization
of God in the heart.
Happiness is the result
of praise and thanksgiving,
of faith, of acceptance;
a quiet tranquil realization
of the love of God.~ 
White Eagle from the book "A Book of Joy" by Thomas Kinkade



I am sharing with the following parties ~

Tea in the Garden
Tuesday Cuppa Tea
 Bernideen's TTCG Blog Party
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 The Art of Home-Making Mondays
 Share Your Cup Thursday
 Home Sweet Home

Sharing from my heart ~ Sandi