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 31 August 2015

An Avonlea Village Tea

There is a garden in every childhood, an 

enchanted place where colors are brighter, 

the air softer, and the morning more 

fragrant than ever again. ~ Elizabeth Lawrence 


Welcome friends to another Tea Time

Today I am sharing my visit to Avonlea Village which is located in Cavendish, PEI. I apologize beforehand for the lengthy post. I wanted to split this into two parts but I'm still trying to get used to my new computer. So get your cuppa and join me, won't you?

Many of you know that Avonlea played a big part in the Anne stories.



Aerial view courtesy of the Internet

Until this year, the village offered a glimpse into the world of
Anne of Green Gables with shops and re-created buildings with a heritage feel. One was charged an admission to walk the grounds of Avonlea Village where there were actors dressed in costumes of that day. 
But they discovered it was better to offer free admission and the houses in Avonlea have been transformed into restaurants, shops, etc. They also offer pony rides for the little ones and they still have music and entertainment at certain times of the day.

Join me for a quiet stroll down the street where we will see the school house where our famous author, Lucy Maud Montgomery, taught school as well as some other interesting sights.

It's been  my experience that you can nearly always enjoy things if you make up your mind firmly that you will. ~ LM Montgomery - Anne of Green Gables



We will begin at the train station where they sell Cows ice cream. Cows makes fabulous ice cream in a multitude of flavours and scooped onto one of their sugar cones, it's quite a treat! Inside there are souvenir shops as well. Anne greets you out front by the street light.



To the left of the station is the original Belmont School house where LM Montgomery taught her students in the years 1896-1897. These are her students with Montgomery on the right.



The school has been brought to Avonlea for preservation. 



It is now renamed Moonsnail Mercantile which houses all manner of souvenirs. The really cool thing about this building is that the old black board is still intact on the back wall. I wanted to take a photo but there were too many people.


Across the street is Anne of Green Gables Chocolates where they make their own decadent confections. My youngest son loves their chocolate mints so I always send him a box at Christmastime. 




Isn't this yellow house adorable? I love the picket fence! There is a dress shop in this house. 


This is a quiet place to sit and reflect with a darling little lily pond behind it. It's hard to see but there is a lily in the pond nestled among the lily pads. One almost expects to see a frog prince jump onto a lily pad, the surroundings are so magical! 


There is much "scope for the imagination" here! The whole village is so very charming and it is a lovely place to spend some time on a lazy afternoon. 


We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open. ~ Jawaharlal Nehru



The lily pond

I love this little church. Having been in the ministry with my hubby, I am always intrigued by these small country churches. Unfortunately, they are becoming more scarce every year.




This one will remain as part of the Village. It is the Long River Presbyterian Church built in 1872 where Montgomery and her cousins attended.



As you enter the church, to the right is this door to the minister's office. 



This is the view of the balcony, the pews, and the wonderful windows. They still hold special concerts in this church.


Between the dress shop and the church is a cafe but it was nearing supper time and we felt we needed a little more sustenance so we stopped to have a nosh at this Italian Piatto where their specialty is wood-fired pizza.



This young man is in the midst of making the crust. After we had eaten, I watched him make another crust. 



He threw it up in the air and it got stuck to the ceiling. 



Notice the scooter. As you know that is how they deliver in Italy. A nice touch we thought!


Our pizza; the Siciliana. Fresh fior di latte mozzarella, spicy Italian sausage, fresh basil, prosciutto, roasted red peppers, garlic, and Grana Padano. And was it ever good! Drizzle on some flavoured virgin olive oil and shake on the spices. It was delicious! 


This review of Avonlea Village and the food at Piatto is totally my own. 


Time for Tea! 


In keeping with my Avonlea Village theme, I thought green would be appropriate, as well as a wee bit of pink.


Colclough teacup made in England


Aynsley teacup made in England

Pink roses because, "After all, the only real roses are pink ones. They are the flowers of love and faith." ~ Anne Shirley of Anne of Green Gables




Faded roses lend a vintage appeal.



"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?" ~ LM Montgomery - Anne of Green Gables


Maxwell & Williams Rose Bud teapot
  The most trying hours in life are between four o'clock and the evening meal. A cup of tea at this time adds a lot of comfort and happiness. ~ Royal S. Copeland



We can't have an Avonlea tea without Anne. This is my little sand doll which my father gave me years ago. She sits on a couple of Anne books.



When you have flowers, books, and tea, you are never alone. ~ Alexandra Stoddard


Ice cream because we all know how much Anne loved her ice cream.



M&W Rose Bud saucer. 

I forget the maker of the little vintage bowl which holds the ice cream. I found it in an antique shop.

And some pound cake too.



Johnson Bros Old English square plate

A cup of Earl Grey tea.



A view of the setting.



Happiness is sharing tea with a friend.



I am delighted you have stopped by for tea today and I hope you enjoyed seeing a little of Avonlea Village

"Some people go through life trying to find out what the world holds for them only to find out too late that it's what they bring to the world that really counts." ~ Lucy Maud Montgomery



This tea party is all about sharing your joy of tea time and you may be as creative, fancy, or as laid back with your tea time as you wish! Do you have a favourite teacup/teapot, coffee cup/coffee pot, that you would like to share with us today? I would love to see it and I'm sure others would too! A trip to a Tea Shop is always fun and if you have a tea time recipe to share, we would love to see that 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, or Punch in a lovely bowl. 


I am joining the following parties as well~

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


Sharing from my heart~ Sandi

Monday 24 August 2015

A Little Tour of Western PEI for Tea Time



I am Summer, come to lure you away from your computer... come dance on my fresh grass, dig your toes into my beaches. ~ Oriana Green

Hello sweet friends and welcome to Tea Time

August is quickly winding down and alas, so is the summertime. I am finding it really hard to blog this time of year. How about you?

Hubby and I have crammed a lot of activities into the last eight weeks. We visited family in New Brunswick, had both our sons who live off Island come home for a visit, one in June and the other in August, and we relaxed a lot at the sea shore. 



We watched the sail boats down at the waterfront while enjoying our coffee in the evenings. 



We toured the western part of the Island which we have never done before. Western PEI is home to many tourist attractions.

In Mill River we stopped at a store called Simply 
Primitive where they carry all sorts of wonderful things. I have had my eye on this swan for a while and finally brought her home with me. 



She sits on my mantel and she looks good there for now. It's very difficult to take a picture without getting one's reflection in it when there is a mirror involved. 



You see the brown jug holding the ivy? 



That was my beloved Granny's jug which she mixed pancakes in. Her tradition was home baked beans and pancakes for supper every Saturday night. I consider it a wonderful treasure. Thanks to my sweet Auntie P for passing it on to me.


What we remember from childhood, we remember forever. ~ Cynthia Ozick

I also found a pretty teacup at the store which I will share later in this post. 


We saw the wind farm at West Cape which is the largest on the Island. I'm not sure how many wind turbines there are. One guy at Maritime Electric said there are more than fifty and less than one hundred, stretching for miles.



These help generate and store power on the Island for our electric company. We get a lot of wind here so these turbines certainly do their job.


As we were driving along, we saw a farmer in his field with the combine. The combine was bright red which is why I took a picture. Behind this is the St. Lawrence River. In the foreground is Queen Anne's Lace. I thought all the different elements made for an interesting picture although the red of the combine is hard to make out. 



Next, we visited West Point which is home to the second tallest light house on the Island. It was built in 1875. I find the square shape and stripes quite attractive and unique for a light house here on PEI. 



At one time this light house was called home for some and today it is an historic site. It is the only functioning light house with an inn located in Canada. It also houses a museum. 




This is a glimpse of the beach at West Point and the tourists were loving it. To the right of this is the light house. It was very hot the day I took these pictures, about 30 degrees Celsius with a humidex close to 40. I quickly snapped photos and got back into our air-conditioned car.





Now, how about a cup of tea? As I mentioned earlier, I found this teacup at Simply Primitive and it is made by Johnson Bros which is a favourite maker. 



The pattern is called Tulip Time



This would have fit right into the Dutch Tea I posted a few weeks ago. Isn't this a pretty saucer with its fluted edge?



Today's tea is one I received from a blogger friend. It is Wedgwood Original; a blend of the finest teas from India and Kenya. I am having my tea with a slice of lovely cranberry-orange and walnut tea bread; delicious!



I thought my JB Devon Cottage teapot would go well with the teacup. Would you like to join me?

It's always tea-time. ~ Lewis Carroll



Happiness is sharing tea with a friend.

Thank you for visiting today. I hope you enjoyed a wee glimpse of our Island. And if you have something tea or coffee related, please link up. We tea ladies love seeing your teacup and teapot collections. A trip to a Tea Shop or a new tea time recipe is always appreciated too. 

Have a beautiful day and God bless you.  

HOME the place where our stomachs get three square meals a day and our hearts a thousand. ~ Charles M. Crowe



I am joining the following parties as well~

A Return to Loveliness
 Tuesday Cuppa Tea
 Tea in the Garden
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 Share Your Cup Thursday
 Home Sweet Home


Sharing from my heart~ Sandi

Monday 17 August 2015

A New Teacup for Tea Time


“All in all, it was a never-to-be-forgotten summer - one of those summers which come seldom into any life, but leave a rich heritage of beautiful memories in their going - one of those summers which, in a fortunate combination of delightful weather, delightful friends and delightful doing, come as near to perfection as anything can come in this world.” ~ L.M. Montgomery- 'Anne's House of Dreams' 

Welcome to Tea Time everyone! I hope you are all enjoying your summer. We have been very busy this summer with company and a trip to New Brunswick. Taking advantage of the awesome weather we're having too. 



We had a wonderful visit with our middle son and had such beautiful weather too so we were able to spend time at the beach which he enjoys as much as we do.  

He gifted me with a new computer including a new HD monitor and I am still trying to work out the kinks. Learning a whole new system is fairly intimidating and I am still unsure of where to find everything. I am certainly not computer savvy. He showed me a great deal but has gone back home to BC so I'm on my own now. It's sad when my boys leave. *sigh*



This post today I had prepared ahead of time which is a good thing. I had hoped to add more to it like more photos of my rainbow roses and pictures of my teacups but that didn't happen. Hopefully by next week, I will be more comfortable using this so we'll see how it goes. 

Today I am sharing my newest teacup; a lovely Paragon in soft yellow with pink posies inside. 


Isn't she pretty?





I found this beauty at an antique shop about a month ago. I have tried to find some info on it but there doesn't seem to be much. Perhaps Ruth knows a little about it.  



It goes wonderfully well with my other yellow teacup. You have all seen this pretty Royal Albert Shaftesbury before. It is part of the Festival Series.



While visiting my cousin Val in NB, I admired a bunch of these little antique silver tea spoons that she found at a thrift shop. 



She gave me one and I brought it home and shined it up. It is made by Simeon L. and George H. Rogers Company. Isn't it sweet? Do you collect little spoons?



Two pretty sunny teacups invite you to the tea table. May I pour you some tea? 

Happiness is sharing tea with a friend.


Thank you for visiting. Hubby and I are at the beach right now so I will get around for my visits a little later. I wish you a splendid day filled with joy and sunny skies. God bless you!



I am joining the following parties as well~

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


Sharing from my heart~ Sandi