Christmas is Coming...

Home is the nicest place there is. ~ Laura Ingalls Wilder

Hello dear friends! T'is the season for busy-ness! It is snowing! The fluffy flakes are coming down slowly like feathers floating to the ground, and it's quite beautiful!

Hubby and I have been busy putting our trees up and getting all the decorations out of storage. It's a big job, and after the holidays, I am going to have to scale down because a lot of them I no longer use. I have put up four trees this year. One in the family room, one in the living room, and two in the kitchen-dining room. 

My beloved daughter-in-law tells me it is a good thing because surrounding myself with beauty helps make me happy. She is right of course! You see, I am shut-in most of the time and Christmas just helps to make the weeks ahead a little more enjoyable.

I am however running behind. I don't have my fruit for my fruit cakes yet. This time last year, I had them both made. But I have been busier than usual this year. 

Our son was over again three weeks ago and I am so thankful that he can come so often. Since moving from the west coast to the east coast in June, he and his family have been here every month since July. Sometimes we see him twice a month. What a wondrous thing to have taken place! God is good, and He does answer prayer in His own time!!

Let's have a tea break. I am using my Friendly Village today. I love this pattern by Johnson Brothers. It will take you through the Autumn and into the Spring. 

I am using several pieces of FV including, The Ice House which are the teacups/saucers, the small tea plate is Sugar Maples, Willow By the Bridge, and The Covered Bridge.

I have made some muffins and some mincemeat tarts. Last year there was no mincemeat to be found in the stores so we have stocked up on it this year. I can do so much with this incredibly spicy fruit concoction; muffins, squares, pie, tarts, and there is even a sauce you can make to pour over ice cream. Yummy!

I have also been watching Hallmark Christmas movies with my hubby and reading some new books.

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

I ordered Laura Childs' two new books and got a couple more Joanne Fluke books. If you enjoy mysteries, tea, and baking, then you will enjoy these books! 

I am reading this one at the

moment. Isn't the jacket fun?

All but one of these books have a Christmas theme which is fun this time of year.

I hope all my American friends enjoyed their Thanksgiving weekend. Next on the calendar...Christmas! 

Thank you for your visit and have a lovely week! Happy Hanukkah to my Jewish friends as well who begin celebrating today! God bless you all!

Give every day the chance

to become the most

beautiful day of your life. ~ Mark Twain

Sharing from my heart ~ Sandi

Tea Time

I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers. ~ LM Montgomery - Anne of Green Gables

Hello my dear friends! We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with my NB family a couple of weeks ago. 

My son worked on my computer and I never have to worry about running out of picture space again. Next time he comes over he will set up a new program for me to edit my pictures. I am still using Picasa and I am limited to what I can do. I haven't been able to make collages for quite some time now so he will take care of that for me too. Thank goodness we have children who are more techie than we are!

I just finished making a big pot of Chili for supper tonight. It is quite cool on the Island now so a nice bowl of Chili and rice will be welcome. Do you call the evening meal, dinner or supper? Here in the Maritimes, it is supper.

Today, I am sharing a little tea time. Those beautiful dried hydrangeas came from a friend and they are arranged in my grandmother's pancake jug which is over one hundred years old. The jug has travelled a long way and once belonged to my great-grandmother.

When were you introduced to tea? When I was a very young teenager, perhaps thirteen or fourteen, we lived across the road from a wonderful farm. The farmer lived there with his family and his mother. Everyone called his mother, Aunt Sue, and she was a dear old soul! She and my mother were such good friends and every once in a while, maybe once or twice a month, I would make my way up their long driveway to visit her in their beautiful farm house. 

She had the top floor to herself which had been turned into an apartment just for her so she would entertain up there. This is where I enjoyed my first tea time. 

She would bring out her lovely teapot and fine china cups and saucers and served me tea. But she also served tiny finger sandwiches on a pretty plate. Sometimes she would use her tiered plate stand with a variety of lovely sandwiches and sweets. She would offer cherry and cheese, which I loved, egg salad, chicken salad, asparagus, and peanut butter and banana pinwheels. I had never eaten asparagus sandwiches before and I rather liked them. I felt quite special when I sipped tea with her in her apartment, just the two of us.

 

She would talk to me and I shared with her all that was going on in my life at the time. She was very keen to listen and offer advice when I asked. I will never forget her or those special tea times I spent with her in her parlour. Do you have a memory to share?

I had made my grandmother's war cake, or boiled fruit cake, as my mother called it, as well as other goodies, for Thanksgiving. I sent half of the cake home with my son and his family, so there are only a few pieces left. This cake is so good and the recipe makes a long cake. 

You can find the recipe on my sidebar when you print in "search this blog."

It is October, so my Flower of the Month teacup is being used as well as my Old English Rose teacup which came from my Auntie P when she downsized. The cake is served on a Lavender Rose tray which came from my mother. All of these pretty pieces are made by Royal Albert and they are pink which I'm sharing in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and all those fighting this terrible affliction. 

There probably isn't a lady out there who hasn't been affected in one way or another by breast cancer. Most of you know I lost my best friend to this disease and the loss has been life-changing for me and all those who loved her. Please get your mammogram regularly and be sure to do self examinations often.

Sometimes we need the salt of tears to remind us how to savour the sweetness of life. ~ Lysa TerKerust

I hope you are enjoying the Autumn season and looking forward to Christmas. I know I am! If everything goes as planned, it will be the first Christmas in many, many years that our family will be celebrating the Holidays together. It is very nice to have this to look forward to.

Thank you for visiting and have a lovely week!

Time is like a river. You cannot touch the same water twice, because the flow that has passed will never pass again. Enjoy every moment in life. ~ unknown

Sharing from my heart ~ Sandi