Feeling Blue

Flowers were the language of happiness and always the gifts we gave to others. They seemed as necessary as food. ~ Elizabeth Cerutti

Welcome to tea time, my lovely friends! It's hard to believe that a month ago, it was Christmas!

Today, I decided to share a tea time with you. It is a dreary and snowy day, so some hot tea and a lovely bouquet help to perk up the day.

When you choose joy you feel good, and when you feel good YOU do good, and when YOU do good it reminds others of what joy feels like, and it just might inspire them to do the same. ~ unknown

Hubby found this soup tureen for me for Christmas one year. Isn't it wonderful? It is fabulous for holding my baked beans, homemade soups and chowders, chili, stew, or in this case, a beautiful bouquet of posies!

Yellow roses, white tulips, and a few white roses from last week's bouquet fill this tureen up nicely.

Is there anything prettier in the dead of winter than blue and white enhanced by a sunny bouquet?

Naturally I brought out my JB Old Britain Castles teacups to compliment the tureen.

This 2011 Victoria magazine looks pretty in the vignette. I save all my magazines so I can look back on them. How about you?

Yellow roses are like a burst of sunshine!

Happiness is sharing tea with a friend.

I am serving Victorian Garden tea in my little glass teapot which comes with its own infuser. I have had this for a number of years but I don't use it very often.

Victorian Garden is a Ceylon black tea with all kinds of lovely things in it like China green gunpowder, vanilla, and rose and lavender flowers. I had purchased it from our PEI Preserve Co. in New Glasgow where they have a splendid tea room.

Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world revolves- slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future. ~ Thich Nat Hahn


Tea is ready, how about a little nosh with your cuppa?

For some reason, I am feeling like a little chocolate these days. Perhaps because Valentines Day is on the way? Home made Chocolate Pudding with a dollop of whipped cream and some grated chocolate. Mmm! 

The plates are Blue Willow by Churchill.

My little creamer has no mark. I paid a dollar for it at an antique shop several years ago. 

Tea is quiet and our thirst for tea is never far from our craving for beauty. ~ James Norwood Pratt

This is an old post which I have updated a bit. I hope you have enjoyed it. As always, it is a pleasure to have you come for a visit. 

The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed. ~ Proverbs 11:25

Wishing you JOY today!

Sharing from my heart ~ Sandi

Friendly Village and Chocolate

Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home. ~ Edith Sitwell 

Hello my lovely friends! We have been having the loveliest weather here and oh, to have the whole winter like this would be grand! Then the rain came on the weekend! But it has been mild, and until the two days of rain came, we had sunshine; what bliss!

I have most of our Christmas put away now. I replaced the little tree in the dining room with a tray of some Friendly Village china and one of the little trees I used at Christmastime.

We shall have our tea using this china today. Johnson Bothers, one of my favourite makers, produced this charming pattern first in 1952 and it has attracted generations of admirers and collectors over the years. Each piece depicts a different scene which creates a delightful story for your table. It's appeal is as great today as it was when it was first introduced more than a half century ago.

I was planning to make these little nuggets for Christmas but just didn't get around to it. So, I made them on the weekend. 

The chocolate raspberry truffles are very small and delectable, and they are a delightful little treat with your cup of tea or coffee. I have served them in one of my King's Crown red rimmed sherbet glasses. The truffles would be lovely for Valentine's Day. A little chocolate also makes you feel good.

All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt. ~ Charles M. Schulz

The truffles recipe is from a mystery novel authored by, Joanne Fluke, a New York Times bestselling author. A number of her books were made into movies as well, and I have them all. This particular recipe is from the book, "Plum Pudding Murder." Sorry, I do not have permission to share the recipe, but if you go to her site or Pinterest, you can find the recipe there. 

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

I have acquired quite a number of mystery novels and other books over the years. I love a small library of books that I can go to at whim. I love to read. How about you?

Some of these mystery novels are written by Joanne Fluke and some are written by Laura Childs, who is also a New York Times bestselling author, of the Tea Shop Mysteries. I have every one of Laura Childs' tea mysteries. I really enjoy Childs' character, Theodosia Browning's exploits along with her tea shop employees/friends, tea master, Drayton, and baker extraordinaire, Haley. Their adventures take place in Charleston, South Carolina. If you enjoy a good mystery and a cup of tea, you will enjoy her books. She always includes tea recipes and tips. 

Joanne Fluke's character, Hannah Swenson, on the other hand, owns The Cookie Jar, a coffee shop in Lake Eden, Minnesota. She too loves to solve a mystery, oftentimes at the chagrin of her detective friend, Mike, and dentist friend, Norman. With the help of her family and partner at the coffee shop, she has helped solved many sticky situations, and loves to share her many recipes. 

I recommend both of these authors' books. They are wonderfully entertaining and good books to curl up with on a winter's day.

Thank you for visiting today and I hope you have an especially lovely week. Take one day at a time and glean every drop of JOY you can from it. 

Every day is a second chance. ~ author unknown {from the Hallmark movie- A Joyous Christmas}

Sharing from my heart ~ Sandi