Faith Family Friends

Celebrating the Joy of Living & Home Making ~

Baking, Cooking, Decorating, Tea Time, and taking Inspiration from those I love and the world around me...

A sharing of my heart and my home from a Christian perspective

...with a wee bit of whimsy added.

Monday 27 October 2014

My Last Pink Tea for October in Honour of Breast Cancer Awareness Month

I believe in being strong
when everything seems to be going wrong.
I believe that happy girls 
are the prettiest girls.
I believe that tomorrow
is another day,
and I believe in miracles. ~ Audrey Hepburn

Hello lovely ladies and welcome to my last Pink Tea for October! I think Audrey had a wonderful philosophy. I know being happy and counting your blessings can take you a long way. 

Anne of Green Gables said, "....isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?" ~ LM Montgomery  
And yes, I too, believe in miracles.

Most people like to be around happy people. One of the reasons why I was attracted to my hubby, besides his being so cute, was because he was a happy guy and he made me laugh. 

Happiness cannot be travelled to, owned, earned, worn, or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude. ~ Denis Waitley



Many things make me happy and some of those things include pretty teacups and roses. Sipping tea from a lovely teacup brings a sense of gentility and peace into one's life. 



Today's teacups are two that are very different but are both a beautiful soft pink adorned with lots of gold. In keeping with my Pink for Breast Cancer, I am also using my soft pink teapot.



Please make yourself at home and let's enjoy some tea and home made Cherry squares frosted with pink icing.



When I first began getting my post ready, it was bright and sunny. 



Since then it has started to rain so, to add a little coziness, I have lit the fire.



When you're cold, tea will warm you!


There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea. ~Henry James



Some of the china I have used in this post today is made by: Colclough, Windsor, Skye McGhie, Peppertree, Johnson Bros., and Ganz. The vintage silverware is Evening Star by Oneida.

This concludes my Pink Teas for October. Next week is a new month and for my American friends, Thanksgiving is in the air. Those of us who live in Canada are preparing for Christmas. The next number of weeks will be a whirlwind of activity and preparations. Be sure to take a few moments out of your busy schedule to relax and enjoy a cup of tea. 

"Happiness is a gift and the trick is not to expect it, but to delight in it when it comes." ~ Charles Dickens

Have a beautiful day everyone and be sure to get your mammogram!



 I am joining the following parties as well~

A Return to Loveliness
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 Tuesday Cuppa Tea
 Friends Sharing Tea
 Share Your Cup Thursday
 Home Sweet Home


Sharing from my heart ~ Sandi

Monday 20 October 2014

A Little Pink and Whimsy for Tea Time


We gather simple pleasures like daisies by the way. ~ Louisa May Alcott

Welcome friends to another Tea Time Tuesday to celebrate pink in support of Breast Cancer Awareness! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend.



This is my pink grocery store bouquet, including daisies, which graces my table today. The proceeds for this bouquet go towards finding a cure for breast cancer.



The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen. ~ Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

To all you beautiful ladies who have survived breast cancer, to those of you who are living with breast cancer, and to those of you who have lost a loved one to breast cancer or any cancer, our thoughts and prayers go out to you. God bless you all!

I was out in the yard the other day and I couldn't help but admire my next door neighbor's pink rose bush which she planted this past spring. Aren't they gorgeous? I don't know what variety they are but I'm sure all you gardeners would know. It must be a hardy rose bush because the roses have survived the heavy frost so far. 


It is lovely to see a pop of pink when everything around me is red, orange, yellow, and brown.


The frost has pretty much killed my beautiful mums I showed you last week but on a brighter and more whimsical side of things, we have had more mushrooms and toadstools on our back lawn this year than any other year. 



I believe the fairies have been playing back there because there is a fairy ring.

It has been unusually warm the last week or so and my little fairy friends did indeed come out to play. 


This little fairy came to me via my Auntie P. Her name is January but because her wings are a rusty peach colour, I have nicknamed her Autumn.

This is her friend Breena who has joined us for tea many times in the past. She is wearing her soft pink. Both fairies were enjoying playing on the toadstools.



They were sunning themselves just before my hubby cut the grass and their toadstools disappeared. So, off they flew.

Every person's life is a fairy tale written by God's fingers. ~ Hans Christian Anderson {1805-1875}


Do you like my posies in the pink canning jar? I found the jar at HomeSense in New Brunswick and it being a pretty pink, I had to bring it home with me. 



Now, time for tea. I have set the tea table with some of my Johnson Bros. Rose Chintz and Skye McGhie Cream Lace as well as a Pierced Lace cup and saucer.



My Rose Chintz teapot is sitting on a pretty pink Victorian Chintz plate made by Burleigh.



The Skye McGhie Cream Lace teapot sits on a square Rose Chintz plate.



Life is like a teacup to be filled to the brim and enjoyed with friends. ~ Unknown



Skye McGhie Pierced Lace.



The wee fairies have joined us for tea.



The tea party is a spa for the soul. You leave your cares and work behind. ~ Alexandra Stoddard



For our tea treat today I have pumpkin pie with whipped cream. 


And a lovely pumpkin tea bread which my friend brought the other day.


It is delicious spread with cream cheese!



For our tea, I am serving David's Pumpkin Chai and Twinings English Breakfast. Would you like a piece of pie or tea bread with your cuppa?




I hope you have enjoyed my pinks today and I am delighted you could join me for tea. Next week is the last week in October so it will be my last Pink Tea for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  But we must continue to pray for a cure for this dreaded disease. 

Please take good care of yourself and get that mammogram.

Have a beautiful day dear friends and the Lord bless you!

Autumn is a celebration of nature,
its rarefied air tugging at our senses,
begging for praise to the Creator. ~ June Masters Bacher


 I am joining the following parties as well~

 A Return to Loveliness
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 Tuesday Cuppa Tea
 Friends Sharing Tea
 Share Your Cup Thursday
 Home Sweet Home



 Sharing from my heart~ Sandi

Wednesday 15 October 2014

My Little French Table Makeover

"The power of finding beauty in the humblest things makes home happy and life lovely." ~ Louisa May Alcott

Hello friends ~

This week I shared another tea post in support of Breast Cancer Awareness and I gave you a little peek at the side table which I gave a make over. 


If you are looking for my Tea Party, it is below this one.



Here are the before and after pictures....

I paid fifteen dollars for this table a year ago. It is a French Provincial style and in very bad condition as you can tell from the photo. It has lovely lines and I knew it would look wonderful after a make over.


So, a couple of weeks ago, I thought it was time I tackled it. The top was a real mess.



As were the sides. Judging from the wood, she must have been a real beauty in her day.


This is what it looked like after sanding and two coats of primer.



And after several coats of Dover White paint with more sanding in between coats.




A little distressing gave it some character but not too much as I felt it already had lots going on. 
I must admit that I was tempted to not do any distressing but because all of the wooden pieces in the room have a shabby cottage look, I gave this one the same so the room would have a cohesive look. 






I debated whether or not to paint the handles and decided to just sand them to bring out some of the brass. Here she is wearing her new look.




I am really happy with the way it turned out. What do you think?



After Hubby sanded the table down for me it took me about a week to do this. I hope if you find a piece of furniture that needs a little make over, you won't be afraid to tackle it. It is so worth it!

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy your day.

I am sharing this post with these parties~

Inspire Me Tuesday
What's It Wednesday
Home and Garden Thursday
Share Your Cup Thursday
Home Sweet Home

Sharing from my heart ~ Sandi

Monday 13 October 2014

October Pink for Tea Time Tuesday



When we forget the obvious, the little joys, the meals together, the birthday celebrations, the weeping together in time of pain, the wonder of the sunset or the daffodil peeping through the snow, we become less human. ~ Madeleine L’Engle



Hello my lovely friends and welcome to another Pink Tea Time Tuesday in support of Breast Cancer Awareness! 




It doesn't look pink in the photo, but this is a pink pumpkin grown specially for Breast Cancer Awareness. I have added some dried roses and beads.



It is Thanksgiving Day here in Canada and I would like to wish all of my Canadian friends a Happy Thanksgiving Day! I hope you are enjoying the long weekend with lots of turkey and stuffing, pumpkin pie and time with family and friends. We are blessed in so many ways in this country and we must never take these blessings for granted.


Two of my little blessings in the pumpkin patch.

We gather together 
This time of the year
To thank God for blessings...
For joy and for tears.

Lord help us to know
What it means to forgive
And how to be thankful
Each day that we live.

So keep us in mind, Lord,
We're thankful to Thee
To live and to work
In the land of the free. - Excerpt from a poem on the front of our church bulletin


October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and I too had a couple of scares. I am thankful mine were benign and I know how important it is to take care of ourselves and have regular checkups and mammograms. We must encourage one another and pray for a cure for this disease that has robbed us of so many loved ones.





Like most of you, I have done a bit of decorating for Autumn on the inside and the outside of our home. A leafy wreath with cattails and sunflowers, pumpkins, as well as a pot of gorgeous white Fall mums perk up the front of our home.



Funny thing about my mums; they started turning a beautiful pinky lavender colour. And since I am sharing a teacup with pink and lavender on it I thought I would show you my pretty posies too.


I had no idea they would turn this pretty colour.

This lovely teacup is one I found on my visit to New Brunswick this past August.


It is perfect for October as you can see!




It is one of Royal Albert's "Flower of the Month" teacups produced in 1970 ~ Cosmos for the month of October.


I was pleasantly surprised to find this one sitting on the shelf at a second hand store and I promptly picked it up and placed it in my basket. Like many of my vintage teacups, it looks as though it has never been used. 



I love the colours of the cosmos and the Montrose shape of Royal Albert is so very elegant with its curves, pedestal base, and gold trim.


It has a pretty saucer too.



My teacup is sitting on a side table which just got a makeover. I am quite pleased with the way the table turned out and I will share more about it later in the week.



The other day I had a friend over for tea and I decided to make something different for our tea time instead of the usual pumpkin pie which most everyone in Canada has in their kitchen right now.

Each cup of tea represents an imaginary journey. Catherine Douzel

An Apple Upside Down cake with vanilla sauce was a nice change. My friend arrived bearing a lovely pumpkin loaf which Hubby and I will enjoy later.

This is a lovely pudding cake with apples on the bottom and smothered in a warm vanilla sauce.



The pool of sauce around the bottom of the cake makes it look scrumptious and indeed it is! Yum!

“I would rather sit on a pumpkin, and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.” ~
Henry David Thoreau


I have painted a few Baby Boos. What is it about pumpkins that fascinates us so? I think it is a love for Cinderella and her pumpkin coach that lives inside of each of us since we were little girls.



I still love the story of the poor servant girl who was transformed into a beautiful princess and adored by her prince and her little critters.

A Dream is a wish your Heart makes. ~ Cinderella



The produce guys at the grocery store gave these to me free of charge because they had been in a display. So I happily brought them home with me and gave them each a coat of paint and some glitter. Loving the pink



And the blush pink colour of the tulips was perfect for today's tea post.




Thank you for joining me for tea today. I hope you have enjoyed your visit. 

When you wish upon a star
Makes no difference who you are... 
Disney Lyrics


If you have a teacup or coffee mug, a teapot, coffee pot, chocolate pot, or a tablescape, I would love to see it. A visit to a tea room is always fun and a recipe which would go well with tea, or a new tea you have discovered is also welcome. Just link up below and I will be happy to visit you.



I am joining the following parties as well~ 

 A Return to Loveliness
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 Tuesday Cuppa Tea
Friends Sharing Tea
 Share Your Cup Thursday
 Home Sweet Home


 Sharing from my heart~ Sandi