A Tea of Hearts

"If instead of a gem, or even a flower, we should cast the gift of a loving thought into the heart of a friend, that would be giving as the angels give." ~ George MacDonald


Welcome my lovely friends to my Tea of Hearts~ 

February is heart month and so today in celebration of Valentine's Day, we are sharing our hearts, pinks, and reds. If you don't have any hearts, pinks, or reds, then simply share what you love.

"You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have really lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love." ~ Henry Drummond


I had a plan for today's post which didn't work out and I had to get my post ready early because of the blizzards which engulfed the Island over the weekend. I couldn't take a chance on any power outages. So, I hope you will enjoy this tea today as it comes to you with a lot of love.

"Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving, Make every day a holiday and celebrate just living." ~ Amanda Bradley


Most everything you will see here today was given to me as a gift. The lace table cloth, the lovely lace edged topper, the teacup trios,  as well as the little angel. All are gifts given to me by dear friends and of course my hubby.

My sweetie brought me roses and tulips before the storms hit. He's the best!

This darling little angel who is smelling her posies was an early Valentine gift from my hubby. You can't tell from the picture, but her wings sparkle. The sweet bouquet she holds in her hands as well as the posies in the basket at her feet, all sparkle.

She is called White Heather, "Wishes can come True," is written on the bottom.

I am using my Valentine teacup today; a wee bit of pink and red together in the form of pretty hearts sprinkled about both the cup and saucer.



As well as the two teacup trios which were a birthday present from a dear friend. The pattern is called Rose of England, made in China. Each piece is trimmed in gold and adorned with scrumptious light pink and dark pink full blown roses.

Heart-shaped sugar cookies drizzled with sugar pink icing.  

Egg salad sandwiches cut into heart shapes, on my Amour heart plate.

Fresh strawberries, shortbread cookies, and of course, chocolate!

"Friends are kisses blown to us by angels." ~ Unknown

"The world is a rose; smell it and pass it to your friends." ~ Persian Proverb

With love from me to you!

February is also the month of the amethyst and the violet, so next week, let's share our tea things adorned with lavender, pansies, violets, etc. I know many of you love this colour.

Happy Valentines Day, my lovely friends!

 I am delighted you have stopped by for tea today! Your presence always makes my tea party that much more special and I am happy to see all your tea things, whether you have shared them before or not. This tea party is all about sharing your joy of tea time and any thoughts you might have on the subject. You may be as creative, fancy, or as laid back with your tea time as you wish!

Do you have a favourite teacup/teapot or mug that you would like to share with us today? I would love to see it and I'm sure others would too!

If you wish, you may do coffee instead of tea or the following is acceptable too:
Hot Apple Cider
Hot Chocolate
Lemonade
Iced Tea or iced coffee
Punch in a lovely bowl.

The Tea Time Tuesday button on my sidebar is available for you to use in your post or place on your sidebar if you wish. A poem, tea quote, or scripture verse would be more than welcome! To be sure everyone has a visit, it would be nice if you visited the participant before and after your name.
Inlinkz is available below for you to sign up for my tea party.

As a courtesy, please link back to me so that your visitors may find their way here to visit with all my lovely participants.

I am joining the following parties as well~

Heart and Home ~ http://angelwingsandapronstrings.blogspot.com/
A Return to Loveliness ~ http://www.adelightsomelife.com/
Tea Cup Tuesday~ http://artfulaffirmations.blogspot.com/
Tea Cup Tuesday ~ http://www.marthasfavorites.com/
Tuesday Cuppa Tea~ http://antiquesandteacups.blogspot.com/
Friends Sharing Tea ~ http://bernideensteatimeblog.blogspot.com/
Home and Garden Thursday ~ http://adelightsomelife.blogspot.com/
Share Your Cup Thursday~ http://jannolson.blogspot.com/
Cottage Style Linky Party~ http://lavendergardencottage.blogspot.com/
Home Sweet Home~ http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/


Sharing from my heart~ Sandi

HOME

"Having somewhere to go is HOME. Having someone to love is Family. Having both is a Blessing." ~ Author unknown


Hello my dear friends and welcome to my HOME!
I hope you're all enjoying your week...

You will very seldom hear me complain on my blog as I am basically a happy person and I count my blessings every day.
But this past week has been difficult. Last week was a whirlwind of activity at our home what with company, appointments, and my mother in the hospital. Sitting around in a hospital really plays havoc on my bad back.
Our computer was not working for two days and early Sunday morning, I pulled a muscle in my back. It was all I could do to sit and get my visits in and my new posts up.  

My back is still giving me grief but hopefully, it will mend soon and in the meantime I hope the computer and I will strike a harmonious chord.

Some of you who host weekly parties do not do features and I may have to join you as I am having far too many problems getting my features ready every week. I have such a temperamental computer and it doesn't always do want I want it to do! Oftentimes, it can take me hours to get your features on. So, until further notice, I am sorry but this will be my last week of features for a while.

I will begin with the most viewed post from last week. Congratulations Jeannie @ The French Hen's Nest. If you love blue and white, then please check out this charming blog as Jeannie and her sister Linda collect all things blue and white and use it so creatively to beautify their homes.

Some other lovely posts which caught my eye last week ~

Schotzy @ Wings of Eagles served a beautiful Valentine brunch for her friends.  I adore her pretty table set with lovely red transferware and silver. She also made a delicious Strawberry Cheesecake French Toast; yum! The recipe is on her post if you would like to make it for your family and friends.



Also, two of my bloggy friends made lovely heart creations, one used sea shells while the other used pistachio shells which she painted a delicate shade of pink. I hope you will check them out as well.

Sherry @ The Charm of Home created a heart out of seashells which is really cute. This was her copy cat version which I liked much better than that which was in a magazine.

And Kathy @ A Delightsome Life also created her pretty heart using pistachio shells, sugar pearls, and paint. She added a faux rose and some ribbon. Isn't it sweet!

Thank you everyone for your fabulous posts each week. I really enjoy visiting each of you to see what you are working on. As soon as the kinks are worked out, I will share features again.


As promised at my tea party this week, I will share the recipe for my Quick Victoria Sponge Cake. It's actually not a true sponge but my take on it. I almost always bake from scratch but last week, I had too much going on so I used a mix instead.

 
Usually a Victoria Sponge cake has a plain top layer or it's dusted with powdered sugar. However, my hubby doesn't like powdered sugar, so I opted to spread the top with real whipped cream and berries. He loved it!

Quick Victoria Sponge Cake

I used a plain white DH cake mix. 

Mix together with electric mixer-
Cake mix, 3 large egg whites,  1-1/3 cups water,  2 T. oil, in a large bowl on low speed for 30 seconds until moistened. Then beat with mixer for 2 minutes at medium speed.

Pour batter immediately into a greased angel food pan and bake at 350 degrees for 43-48 minutes. Cool completely and split into two layers.
On the bottom layer, spread real whipped cream and 1/2 cup of a good strawberry jam or preserves. Place the other layer on top and lather on more whipped cream. Add some fresh strawberries.

It really is a delicious cake and it's pretty too. It would actually make a lovely cake for Valentines Day, don't you think?

Thank you for joining me at my HOME this week. I just love having you! If you have something HOME related that you would like to share with us, please refer to the list and sign up.

My little tidbit for today ~

Grace isn't a little prayer you say before receiving a meal....It is a way to live." - Author unknown

Cooking and baking, recipes, antiquing, artwork, home decor, ceramics, crafts, crocheting/knitting, quilting/sewing, floral arranging/gardening, homemaking tips, hospitality, refinishing furniture, DIY,  tea time, tablescapes, thrift shopping etc....Maybe there's a new baby in the family or you have a new fur baby you would like to introduce us to. They are welcome too! Anything and everything which makes your HOME more enjoyable to come HOME to, for your family, your friends, and yourself.

As a courtesy, please link back to me so that your visitors may find their way here to visit with all my lovely participants.

I am joining the following parties as well~

What's It Wednesday~ http://ivyandelephants.blogspot.com/
Home and Garden Thursday ~ http://www.adelightsomelife.com/
Share Your Cup Thursday~ http://jannolson.blogspot.com/
Cottage Style Linky Party~ http://lavendergardencottage.blogspot.com/
Tutorials Tips and Tidbits ~ http://www.stonegableblog.com/
Home Sweet Home~ http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/
Open House~ http://bernideensteatimeblog.blogspot.com/


Sharing from my heart ~ Sandi