Shades of Blue

 

On pinterest I have a board or folder just for blue flowers.
I love them, as they remind me of God's sense of humor.
Today I went looking in my own garden to see how many blue flowers I had.
There are many shades of blue, but all beautiful in my eyes.

Do you love the color blue in nature?
Blue birds
Blue sky
Blue water
Blue icebergs
and 
Blue flowers

They all make my heart sing!
Can you think of anything else that is blue in nature?

Afternoon Tea in the Park

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was tea time at Washington Park just yesterday.
Friends gathered together to share a cup of tea or two.
There were the little sandwiches that's for sure.
Scones with bergamot curd, delightful!
Fruit to make our hearts sing.
Beauty all around.

Our cups were waiting.
Black teas from Taiwan to imbibe.
Raindrops didn't scare us.
We found shelter in the original Elephant House.

Conversation was enjoyable.
Friendship is the best, but
over a cup of tea my afternoon was blessed.

Lavender Blue

 

The lavender in my garden is ripe and ready for something special.
I hadn't made lavender jelly before, but this week was the week to make jelly.
I just love summer for the bounty from the garden.
This is my first try and it turned out quite good.
Isn't it amazing how the color changed?
From lavender blue to pink.
What would you use lavender jelly on?
I thought of thumb print cookies at Christmas time or scones.

Lavender in the garden reminds me of the song.
Now let's all sing along ~

Lavender's blue, dilly dilly,
Lavender's green
When you are king, dilly dilly,
I shall be queen

Who told you so, dilly dilly,
Who told you so?
'Twas my own heart, dilly dilly,
That told me so

Call up your friends, dilly, dilly
Set them to work
Some to the plough, dilly dilly,
Some to the fork

Some to the hay, dilly dilly,
Some to thresh corn
Whilst you and I, dilly dilly,
Keep ourselves warm
Lavender's blue, dilly dilly,
Lavender's green
When you are king, dilly dilly,
I shall be queen

Who told you so, dilly dilly,
Who told you so?
'Twas my own heart, dilly dilly,
That told me so.

May your day have a song in it.

Ten Dollar Cherry

A brilliant idea, as brilliant ideas sometimes go.
There is an old, beautiful cherry tree in our yard.
We have had two or three good crops of dark cherries
from it in the past ten years.
The problem is the squirrels and birds have gotten many of these gorgeous cherries.
The squirrels even like eating the blossoms.
So last year I had a brilliant idea.
I decided that this year I would buy netting at the nursery and cover some of
the branches so they couldn't eat the blossoms or fruit.
Well I thought it was a good idea.
The netting cost me, you guessed it, ten dollars.
I waited and watched.
When I looked last week there was only one cherry there.
It was almost ripe and I was going to eat that ten dollar cherry.



This is how the bowl of cherries should have looked.
When I went out to pick that cherry, it was gone.
About that time we had a visitor to our yard.

Do you think this is the clever culprit?
I do and he would have heard from me,
but I haven't seen him since.
So you see, my theory didn't work.
My ten dollar cherry ended up being twenty dollars,
as I went to the market and bought some cherries just for me.

tsk, tsk, you bad raccoon!  Is that a smile I see on your face?  Wipe that smile away right now!

Monday's Quotes

 

Tea to Delight

 

Twinkle, twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are
Up above the sky so high
Like a diamond in the sky.

They say diamond's are forever dear
They do delight and bring good cheer.

You know for me a cup of tea will delight.
For without my morning cup of tea I would be a fright.

Silly you may say, but true.
A cup or two for me and you.
Now stop and savor my delight.
For you know a cup of tea is what I like.

Happy weekend, dear friends.
May you have a cup of tea.

Beauty in our World

 

 

 

 

 

Just yesterday as I was driving in my neighborhood I was thinking of all the beautiful
pictures I see on pinterest, other blogs, and Facebook.
It struck me as I passed through the neighborhood that I am surrounded by beauty.
So I thought I would share a few pictures from my part of the world.
As I was driving and thinking I saw a bumper sticker that said eARTh
and I realized that our world is God's palette.
Sometimes people destroy it and injure it,
but when left to God's hand beauty can return.
The color is often green with splashes of the rainbow.
EartH is beautiful!
Let's treasure it, care for it, and treat it as a gift from God.

The Sky and The Beach

 

 

 

 

Driving to the beach just the other day, it was pouring what could be said as, raining cats and dogs.
My heart yearned to visit my favorite beach, but in the rain it wouldn't happen.
As we arrived the rain stopped and the sun came out to greet us.
Oh did my heart sing with JOY.
The word for this year is SHINE and indeed it did SHINE for us.
The sky turned blue with big clouds and the water just sparkled.
Oswald West is not seen from the highway, so if you don't know the beauty
that awaits it would be easily missed.
Just park your car at the highway parking lot and hike about a 1/2 mile to the beach.
The bottom photo is the glimpse of the beach from the trail,
the glimpse that says we are almost there or farewell dear beach.
I have shared my special sky and beach with you before,
but when so in love with this special place - I can't help sharing again and again.

So if you visit Oregon one day, I would say this special beach is a definite place to visit.

DOC, a Special restaurant

 

 

 

Often when walking in my neighborhood I have peered into the windows of DOC.
I have been fascinated by the canning jars filled with all sorts of goodies.
I reminded me of a quiet street in France,
a place to sit for the evening
sipping something wonderful in your cup and eating delicious fresh food.
As part of our anniversary celebration my husband took me here last weekend.
What a treat and one I will look forward to repeating for a special occasion.
We started with delicious bread and olives and ended with panna cotta
 with crumbles of chocolate coffee cookies.
Stepping in the door you walk through the kitchen to arrive at your table.
As we sat with anticipation, we could watch as our food was prepared.
The second picture was taken of the chefs from our table.
They serve locally grown food in creative ways,
to delight the eye as well as the palate.
If you live in the Portland area, this one is definitely worth a visit.

Do you love visiting somewhere new for you, a place that delights?
If so, where have you visited or where would you like to visit?

It is fun when you find someplace to delight and then get to partake.
It is like a dream come true.
May dreams come true in little ways and in big times too.

You can visit their website here.

Monday's Quotes

 

To see a world in a grain of sand
 and heaven in a wild flower
 Hold infinity in the palms of your hand
 and eternity in an hour.
 
~William Blake

Tea Time in Tillamook

Tillamook is a coastal town in Oregon, about 1 1/2 hour drive from Portland.
There is a tea room called La Tea Da, started by two friends.
Their husbands are dairy farmers and so cheese is often one of the features.
The tearoom is now for sale, sadly I must say.
So one last tea time was shared as part of our anniversary day.
In my cup is Yorkshire Gold, a very nice black tea.

Strawberry sorbet in very tiny cups.

Tea is served, one tier per person.

 

The savories are always my favorite and they didn't disappoint.
The puff pastry held a chicken caesar salad.
The twisted sticky bun held a sausage inside, one of my favorites.
Raisin bread with carrot salad, cucumber sandwich, and egg salad sandwich too.
The stacked sandwich was oh so yummy ham and cucumber.

There were also apricot and cheese scones with cream, lemon curd, and strawberry jam.

Brought home with us were the sweets for later.
A watermelon sliced cookie, lemon cake with coconut and cream,
chocolate caramel bar, and strawberry rhubarb cobbler.

It was a special day of tea and visiting the beach.
Next week I will share pictures of the beach and the amazing clouds and sky.
It was truly a magical day of celebration.

Black and White

Aspen's in Colorado, taken on our road trip last year.

I was inspired by an exhibit of Ansel Adams photography to play a bit with my photo.

Today is my husband and my 49th anniversary.

I really can't believe it has been that long.

Thinking of marriage or partnerships I find that life is not always Black and White.

There are often grey areas in between.

Learning to live with the differences is like living in the grey areas,

sometimes a bit fuzzy, not always fun, not always roses.

Sometimes the raindrops and clouds appear,

but we muddle through it somehow.

So today we celebrate living in the grey areas and muddling through.

Off for a day trip to our favorite beach.

I had better take a towel along to wipe off the raindrops from the bench

where we will be enjoying the view.

The Calla Lily

 

The Calla Lily

The flow and movement of this graceful flower does enchant.
The curves sway to the music and dance.
It shines in the sunlight capturing my attention.
The romance of it takes my breath away.
The bridal veil it reminds me.
While secrets it enfolds.
It is present in my garden.
It is carried down the garden path.
Purity surrounds and tickles my heart with JOY.
Walk with me and we will discover secrets yet untold.
Laugh with me in bold DELIGHT and our day will sing in pleasure.
How do I love this simple flower, this calla lily so true.
It is truly in just NOTICING God's design for me and you.

May you notice what you notice each and every day!

Date Rolls

Date Rolls

1 1/2 cups pitted dates

1/2 cup chopped almonds (can substitute nuts)

2 Tablespoons oats (can be gluten-free)

Pinch of salt

Raspberries, Small Strawberries, or Cherries

In a food processor, blend the dates, nuts, oats, and salt until

well combined and a little sticky.

Make about 1 inch balls, roll in chopped oats,

place on plate and push thumb into center to make

cradle for berry or cherry.

Serve - Yummy for a teaparty or anytime

This works very well for my gluten-free friends

for a tea treat.

Recipe is an adaptation from spoonful.com

Monday's Quotes

 

Being There

My presence
is the great gift
I am able to offer to you.
In my unique way
I will help you.
I will work with you.
I will give my very life for you.
If you are suffering,
I will give you loving kindness,
understanding, and compassion.

~Shelley Richardson
Looking Deeply into Tea

In my heart I am sitting there under this arbor of grapes
holding your hand, praying with you, and just being
there for you.

The Wash

 

Taking in the Wash
by Ethel Romig Fuller

In the blue dusk when the dishes are done,
I take in the wash--it has hung in the sun
Since early morning--towels flung over
Lavender bushes, the heads of red clover;
Pillowslips, napkins, bearing the stamp
Of white currant clusters, now dewy-damp;
(My tall lemon lilies, my row of sweetpeas,
Are not so deliciously fragrant as these!)
Sheets, which have billowed all day in the wind--
I linger to fold them, when they're unpinned...
Dusk, and a garden, four o'clock-starred;
A basket of clean clothes in a back yard...
Something of this quiet interlude stays--
Something none may define--with a woman(man)always.

I love to hang the sheets and pillowcases (slips) on the line.
Awww!  The sweet fragrance.
However, I must always remove them from the line in the evening as
raccoons traveling through love to wipe their feet on the sheets.
Now isn't that a silly thing for a raccoon to do?
Have you ever had that happen?
Do you hang things on the line?

Happy weekend, dear friends!
Enjoy the sunshine!

City of Roses

 

Portland, Oregon, where I live, is called the City of Roses.
It is Rose Festival time in the city.
Last Saturday evening the celebration began with a parade under the stars.
It is called the Starlight Parade and is a casual fun parade.
Yesterday was the Junior Rose Parade for the children.
All the participants are children.
 When my children were young we were often found at this parade.
 Saturday there will be dragon boat races in the river through the middle of the city
and the big Rose Parade too.  A rose show at the mall is always a delight.
So if you ever travel to Portland this is the perfect time to smell the roses.

The photos in the collage are the roses in my garden right now.
The peach in the upper middle is hanging above the arbor where I often have tea.
I just love and delight in rose season and jump at every opportunity to nuzzle my nose in a rose.

A Special Picnic

from Susan Wittig Albert's book, The Tale of Castle Cottage

"But today is Parsley's birthday, and the hardworking badgers have laid 

aside their tasks and are taking a half-holiday to celebrate with a picnic.

Hyacinth made cucumber, egg, mayonnaise, and cress sandwiches

and deviled two dozen cuckoo eggs (removed from the robin nests

where clever cuckoos put them, to be hatched and fed by the mother robins).

 Primrose baked her famous carrot cake, and the rabbits fashioned party hats

out of paper doilies decorated with crayon and bits of colored ribbon.

Hyacinth invited Rascal, the little fawn-colored Jack Russell terrier from

the village.  He had brought a basket of snapdragons, daisies, and marigold

for Paisley, who put them in the middle of the picnic cloth for all the enjoy."

And so the picnic began.  "By the time the picnic was over, every sandwich,

every egg, and all the birthday cake had disappeared.  Not a crumb was left."

I hope you enjoyed the picnic today.

When the sunshine comes out my heart begins dreaming of picnics.

And for sure, it must include hot or cold tea.

Where You will Find Me

You will find me in the garden today.

The morning dew is turning to sunshine.

The flowers are calling my name.

I will be sitting under the shade of this tree.

or maybe picking a few herbs from the garden.

 

 

A bouquet of roses will be picked for the table.
The sun is shining and my heart rejoices with delight.

Step outside and savor the sunshine.
Be delighted in the day.

Monday's Quotes