Is it Valentine's Day Yet?

Happy Saturday!

For the first time ever, I am linking up with http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/ for

Pink Saturday.

Please click on the above or use the PINK button on my sidebar to see all the other

delightful Pink Posts.

Since this is my first time on Pink Saturday, I am making this short and sweet.

Just could not resist joining the fun with my pink pretzel.

Have a blessed week and stay warm and cozy.

My grandson is 2!

Happy 2nd birthday to my youngest grandson,

Dylan Robert Danks

Always such a happy little boy!

He has two big brother, Jacob, almost 9 and Kevin, just turned 5.

In this picture he was at brothers ball games last summer.

Christmas Day

Dylan loved Grammie's snowpeople all singing together.

We are at Dylan's house.

Dylan helping Grampa set up Kevin's train.

Engineer Dylan with Kevin's engineer cap

Happy, Happy, 2nd birthday Dylan

See you on Sunday for you and Kevin's family/friend party in the park.

Quiet Time Tea

A thing of beauty is a joy forever:

Its loveliness increases; it will never pass into nothingness; but

still will keep a bower quiet for us,

and a sleep full of sweet dreams,

and health, and quiet breathing.

    John Keats

Hello my precious new blog friends,

I would like to share a favorite spot in my home for my quiet time with the Lord, and have cup of tea

 and this time, a rich dessert.

This is our bedroom.  I did not know until after I took this picture and had put everything away, that after having my quiet time, I neglected to straighten the quilt before taking the photo.

I was concentrating on the side table, the lamp glow and getting a little touch of our scrolly wrought

iron headboard and did not notice the quilt was messed!

I will get it together as the weeks go on......

But one aspect you must realize is that while my photos will never be perfect,

my heart is always so happy to share a little bit of loveliness and a cup of tea

with my brand new blogging friends.

Well enough babbling.....

Let's go for a closer look and share tea and dessert.

Here we are!

I bet you noticed right away the lamp was not lite in this picture.

You are so right.

Because.......

The blueberry dessert was a "gift" to my daughter for her birthday.

Was her special favorite when she was growing up.

Have not made it in years.

This was the last piece of the section I saved for my hubby.

I knew if I did not take the pictures early in the day,

hubby would eat up my prop!

Let's look closer at the dessert

Here is this yummy dessert up close.

(the recipe follows for those who would like to try it)

The plate and teacup and saucer match.

It is by Royal Patrician.

White roses and violets.

One of my favorite patterns.

Terry gifted me with this set at Miss Mabel's tearoom,

which I shared with you last time.

A closer look at the lovely teacup....

Do you see the little rose and violets inside the cup?

The "tea" is Bigelow's Cranberry & ginseng Herb Plus B Complex.

So technically, it is not "tea". 

I hope this is ok.

I must admit I drink herbal "teas".

I do drink a lot of green tea, too.

I love cranberry and this tea is so yummy.

I especially like this in the cold weather.

Ok, ladies stop laughing, knowing I live in Florida!

We have had unseasonably cold weather, really!

I know, I know.....to so many of you, that would be downright balmy.....

Smiling....

Any climate, any weather, anytime....

This herbal blend is excellent.

Would you like the recipe for the dessert now?

Blueberry Dessert

2 cups Bisquick baking mix (I use the low fat version)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup margarine or butter, softened (I used butter)

2 eggs, separated

1 package (16 oz) frozen blueberries, thawed and drained

(I used the entire pint of fat fresh blueberries, which were on sale!

I do believe if you get the chance, use the fresh, just a bit better, IMHO)

1 cup Bisquick baking mix

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup firm margarine or butter

Heat over 400 degrees. Mix 2 cups baking mix, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup margarine/butter

and the egg yolk until crumbly.

Press in ungreased 13x9x2 pan (I used what I had, 9x9 pan)

Bake 10 minutes.

(crust on edges will brown up nicely, don't worry it all tastes great)

While the crust is baking, beat egg whites until stiff; fold in blueberries. Spread over the baked

layer of crust when it comes from the oven.

Mix remaining ingredients until crumbly, sprinkle over blueberry mixture.

Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. 12 servings.

****notes from me

I have everything mixed in three bowls.  I like to whip the egg whites before the filling as I find it must easier to

clean my beaters after egg whites than the filling.  So I do the whites until stiff peaks. Rinse the fresh

blueberries and leave in the colander to drain. 

I then make the crumbled topping and lastly the filling.

While the crust is baking, I usually clean up the dishes used in preparation. About 2 minutes

before the crust is done, I fold in the blueberries into the stiff egg white.

As soon as I take the crust from the oven, I spread the egg white/blueberry mixture on top

making sure all the crust is covered. Then sprinkle the topping and put back in the

oven to bake.

****High altitude directions: (3500 to 6500 feet) Oven 425 degrees Bake as directed, EXCEPT

beat egg whites until soft peeks form. For topping, decrease 1 cup baking mix to

3/4 cup Gold Medal flour (little commercial there, I am typing directly from the card, lol)

Whew!  It is super easy and super good.

Also a dollop of cool white or cream is very good.

To take the picture I could not embellish it like that and stick mint in the cool whip,

since as I said it was my hubby's last piece and did not want to take my

pictures and then scrape off the cool whip, lol.

Since you all have been so patient with the recipe information,

I am going to reward you with a few more pictures of

my precious bedroom corner that is so tranquil for my quiet time.

With or without tea.

Oh good, I see I did smooth the quilt in this one!

This one does show our headboard.

Truly love the scrolled design.

Footboard matches.

So love the crystals sparkling from the sun coming in the window

or from the soft glow of lamplight in the evening.

The tattered rose is actually a pin.

Made by Susie Holt

of

"Posh and Palm", in Sarasota, FL

(formerly "The Cat's Meow")

she and her husband Mark own.

Terry and I had the honor of meeting this dynamic couple

in person at their former store, the day I purchased this lovely pin.

They are so delightful, so down to earth and friendly and....

they hugged us goodbye like old friends when we left!

I wish them nothing but happiness and luck in their newest

venture in Sarasota.

A fraction of the lovely linens I collect.

Do you love old linens as much as I do?

This little cupid is getting all ready to wish you all a wonderful

February 14th soon!

He is sitting on a box that is usually on my desk in another room.

Inside, I store quotes.

My friend gave me a desk calendar at work desk last year

and I so loved 90% of them, I saved them in this box.

By the way, have you figured out yet that "purple" is one of

my favorite colors.  Actually lavender, but I call every shade

"purple" it seems.

See you are finding out all these less than perfect "quirks" of mine.

One last picture for this week.

Oh, the necklace did not come out clear, was focusing too much on

the box.

However, this necklace is so dear to me.

5 years ago, Terry and I were in Nashville, Indiana.

Our first time.

Such a artistic community made up of studio's and galleries and shops.

Terry always makes a gift of one special item for me as a memento

of our special trip.

So we were taking in the shops and I saw this lovely necklace.

The roses are the perfect shade of lavender.....

However, I did not want to choose that (with matching earrings)

before I had looked in all the shops.

But by the time we had finished and I knew the necklace and earrings

were to be my memento, we were famished and headed to the

lovely Artists Colony Restaurant.

We were enjoying our meal and a couple came in and we

overhead them talking about the shops closing.

It was so early to us, 5pm.

We live in a huge metropolitian area in Florida

where stores stay open much later on Sunday.

We had to leave early the next morning and the shop would not open until

after we had left.

I was devasted.

My "hero" as always, had the waitress bag up what was left, paid our bill

and we rushed outside to catch the shop before closing........

but then I realized we had been in so many shops, I was not sure

EXACTLY which shop had the necklace.

Shops on both sides of the main streets were turning off their lights.

Putting out the closed signs......

When Terry grabbed my hand and started sprinting toward one

shop in particular.  I was sure he was wrong!

The owner was starting to close the door....Terry explained and he let us in.

Still,  I KNEW this was NOT the right shop......

until......

Terry, ahead of me, held up my necklace with a huge smile.

Suffice it to say, I cherish my husband and the memories bring smiles to

both of us each time I wear this precious gift from my hubby.

Please understand, it is never the "gifts" per se that I cherish.

It is his huge heart, his love that overflows and shines when he looks at me.

The Lord allowed this man to come into my life

at one of the worst times in my life....

but that my friend is a story for yet another day....

Proverbs 14:1The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.

Today I am linking up with:

Sandi@ http://sandimyyellowdoor.blogspot.com/ - Teacup Tuesday for my second week

and

Kathy~ http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/ - Victoria- A Return to Loveliness

for the first time.

 

Please stop by these lady's lovely blogs for tea and loveliness to warm your Tuesday.

 

 

                                                            Have a blessed week!

 

 

A warm fuzzy kind of day

For the last hour or so I have been snuggled on the couch

  Dreaming, planning, having a delightful afternoon

while hubby, who has a bout of IBS, is sleeping.

It is an overcast, rain soaked day here in Florida.

The perfect day to turn on soft lights.

Such as my favorite lamp shown above.

Actually, this was a "reward" to myself for finishing rearranging our bedroom closet.

We have a lovely small cottage- like home we both love.

But........

Not nearly enough storage space!

I was looking for some of my "romantic" treasures....

since Valentines's Day will be here shortly.

I was going through the last few boxes and guess what I found?

A box full of magazines!

My hubby and I both LOVE LOVE LOVE

books and magazines.

Neither of can throw the very special ones out.

Ok, maybe I should be more honest, lol.

Neither of can ever throw our beloved magazines out!

When we do make the effort,

 we donate to Good Will or our local library.

Guess what I did next?

Curled up on the couch with my favorite quilt.

We found it  in a charming quilt shop in Eureka Springs

some years ago.

Just so love to wrap myself in it......

and enjoy the eye candy in some of my

favorite magazine:

Victoria, Romantic Homes, Country Living,

Better Homes and Gardens and Midwest Living, since our Midwest trip last Fall.

Don't you just love them too?

While I am sharing with you, I would love to show you our favorite clock.

I can look over at it while sitting on the couch.

Thought I would share it with you.

Would you like a closer view?

The detail is stunning.

The owner of Somewhere in Time,

antiques and more

in

Brandon, FL

gifted with me a discount for anything in the store

last year as a "thank you" for featuring

this favorite shop on my blog.

Terry and I both saw it at the exact same time.

Looked at each other

and knew it was going home with us.

Hubby is awake now and feeling much better.

Rain has stopped and we have an hour or so before dark,

so think we will take a short "road trip", lol

BEFORE I LEAVE.....

A sincere and heartfelt thank you to all my new followers.

I am so honored to have each of you following me now.

When I get 100 followers, I will have a give away!

Which does give me some time to ponder the details....

Until Monday, have a blessed weekend, stay warm, drive safely

and always, always cherish those closest to you.

Hugs are freebies that light up our lives.

Birthday greetings to Heather and Kevin

Belated birthday wishes to my beautiful daughter, who was 37 yesterday at 11:32 am!

and

Big Happy 5 birthday to my grandson Kevin, shown on the right.

Kevin is Heather's middle son. Dylan shown on the left is her "baby" son

who will be 2 Jan 28th.

Her oldest son, Jacob will be 9, July 19.

Heather, Kevin and Dylan last winter

We were watching big brother Jacob play baseball.

The sports complex in St. Petersburg, FL is awesome with

it's park like setting surrounding the fields.

Heather, boys and my handsome son-in-law, Mike.

Jacob is on the left behind mom and Dylan.

Happy Birthday Kevin!

Grammie and Grampa will see you later for your cake and ice cream.

Also making a treat for my daugher, blueberry dessert.

I used to make it all the time when all three of the kids were much younger.

Until this year, I never had time to just have fun in the kitchen.

Retirement is awesome!

Thank you to the lovely ladies who visited my blog for the first time yesterday

Thank you for two new followers.

Wonderful surprise.

Have to make the dessert now, but will finish visiting anyone I missed at Sandi's Tea Tuesday

while the dessert is baking.

Miss Mabel's Tearoom

Good morning!

Today I have the honor of joining Sandi at

 Rose Chintz Cottage
for

Tea Time Tuesday

This is the day which the Lord has brought about; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalm 118: 24

This is my  first time attending a blogging party.

I so hope I do the linking thing correctly.

 I am sharing photos of a lovely tea room, we visited,

Miss Mabel's in Dickson, TN.

Sadly this tea room is not in business anymore, but I believe one can

still order tea online.

When you get to know me, you will know there is "a story" to almost

everything I post, lol.

This is the story behind  this tea room.

We were traveling through TN on the way to Arkansas.

Before we leave, I research our favorite things along the route for "sidetrips".

At that time tea rooms were a highlight of our trips.

We arrived in Dickson, late afternoon on a Saturday

and found the tea room easily.

Once inside, we looked around, apologized and started to leave.

We had on jeans, nice jeans but they
were comfy clothes for traveling.

The entire house was made up of beautifully decorated tea rooms.

Even though there was only two other people sharing tea, we did not feel comfortable

in our jean in such a lovely tea room.

  However, the owner herself came out and insisted we not only stay, but

 treated us like royalty.

So much so, we made sure a year later on our way back to Arkansas, we

made reservations for tea and stayed in Dickson overnight
just so we could "dress for tea".

That is our "party" on the bottom!

Our last name was spelled incorrectly, but German last names so often are.

However, it was a thrill to see us as a "party" since it was just the two of us.

I had to have my picture taken on the porch too, of course.

Love those beautiful lace curtains, don't you?

Let's take a look inside, shall we?

This is the room we sat in.

You can see Terry in the back sipping his ice tea.

Most everything on the tables and shelves was for sale..

It was a tea room made in heaven.

Beautifully arranged food, beautiful tea sets, china, linens, cards,  and tea books.

See the image in the mirror way in the back?

That is another room.

Want to see that room close up?

The shawl on the piano was splendid.

As was everything else!

Oh, I believe our food has arrived.

Let's walk back to our table.

Let's take a closer look at the wonderful assortment on the trays.

The top layer had sliced fruits and grapes.

Second layer had the chicken salad sandwiches and I believe shrimp salad sandwiches.

The bottom layer had gingerbread cakes with lemon cream.

I loved that we were served on one of my favorite patterns,

Royal Albert Old Country Roses.

Sadly, this pattern  has always been way out of my budget to purchase as a set.

One last picture.

I love how the mirror shows the back of my hat.

This is really mine.

My husband bought it for me in Mount Dora, Fl

a year or two prior to this tea.

I was thrilled I could wear it to this beautiful  tea room.

It has a large net bow and net streamers.

I tucked the streamers inside the hat for the tea room.

We did a British tea room in Mount Dora on that trip.

Sometime I will show pictures of that trip.

Just cause everyone always ask this question:

Yes, my husband enjoys tea rooms with me. He is a old fashioned sweetie

who enjoys the graciousness of a time past.

He also has IBS and eats lightly at meals normally.

On this trip, the next night we spent in a Caboose for his passion

for trains.

We mix it up on our road trips, sharing each other's favorite sidetrips.

I hope you have enjoyed our tea room experience as much as we did.

I thank Sandi for hosting Tea Time Tuesday today.

It was so nice to meet everyone today.

I will hop over to your blogs and meet you individually.

If you are new to my blog, I would love to have you take my button and/or follow me.

I would also like to get to know each of you better, so please leave a precious comment.

Time spent in the company of a friend

is like a golden moment in our day.

Ron Lessin

On the North Carolina - Virginia Border

Good morning!

Hope everyone is staying warm and toasty.

I have a mug of Harney & Sons peppermint herbal tea beside the laptop and am ready to hunker down

and share some more of our trip.

We were still in Mount Airy, but Virginia was only minutes away.

We had our first taste of "countryroads" going back and forth from NC to VA.

Shall we begin our trip?

As you will see, I have very eclectic tastes.  Loving the country roads, roadside stands, funky country restaurants, and at the same time Victorian houses, very large houses, pumpkins, huge veggies.

Let me show you who I am through my photography.

Do you know I had never seen real white pumpkins until I saw them on blogs!
Seriously. Yikes, should I even admit that to the world?

These squash were HUGE.
My hubby, bless his heart, says I will never grow old because I am full of child-like wonder
over the simpliest things.
I simply see the Lord in every day things and am full of praise and yes, child-like wonder.
Are you this way too?

Hard to see the wildflowers against the wire fence, but they are there.



I love roadside stands, don't you?

I love coming around a corner and finding these signs. Just makes my heart sing.

Since I have way too many photo of the two houses I love, am saving them for another post.

Until next time, stay warm and cozy this weekend.



Our serendipitous road trip in 2010

Happy Wednesday!

As went crossed into North Carolina, back in mid September 2010 our plans were set. We would head to Mount Airy, NC to  the hometown of Andy Griffith and "Mayberry".

Then up the East Coast for three weeks in Maine.

I had carefully researched and we had had our reservations for months prior to my retirement.

I am from the NE but have only been in Maine twice, briefly. My hubby has never been.

First stop, Mount Airy, NC.



Pictures of Andy decorate the motel office.



A little music on Main Street.



This is the home Andy Griffith lived in.
Now rented privately.



The walk ways or alleys between building all had flowers cascading up the walls

or in planters. Also the Main Street was fill with colorful flowers in hanging baskets.

At the moment cannot locate the hanging basket pictures.

You truly do not want to know how many pictures I took.

I do thank the Lord every time I use my camera that digital is available because I

use my camera for both pictures and for inspiration for my jewelry.

Usually the inspiration is a color or mix of colors that draws me.





Oh yes, if you did not already know my favorite color is lavender/purple, lol

 

I always squint after I take off my sunglasses.
Wanted you to see the flowers in the alleys not me squinting, lol


I have many more pictures of Mount Airy that I most likely will share another time.
We arrived in Mount Airy the Tuesday before the 50th reunion of Mayberry was to take place starting on Friday.
We prefer to come just prior to a large event when everything is spruced up and "ready" but the crowds
are not at full capacity yet.
We thoroughly enjoy this charming town and also saw the "Duke's" (John Wayne) home.
We had so much fun, we extended our stay another few days.


Mount Airy was only minutes from the Virginia border and it was this country road between the states that first
made us realize we did not want to go to Maine on this trip.  In celebration of my retirement, we wanted a spontaneous
type road trip. 
There was a house that I fell in love with in Virginia and I will be sharing that with you, plus more of the country road between NC and Va on Friday.
I'll be looking for you then.