Teach your Children

Teach your children to love one another.

Those hearts are gentle and open to learning when they are young.

When they grow to adults the lessons they learn

will sit well with them.

They learn by example.

They learn by watching each of us.

They learn by sharing stories.

And one day they will lead us.

Happy weekend, dear friends!

Hug someone each day and tell them you love them.

Still Life

 

 

 A few weeks ago I put Lightroom on my computer,

then the very next day I signed up for a 1 year online class

with Kim Klassen to do still life photography.

Whew! What a learning curve.

Here are some of my first photographs.

A crate was recommended for setting up a still life

and I realized I was keeping my props in a crate.

Unpacking the crate I played with apples and leaves.

 

Then as a backdrop I found a vintage chalk board works really well.

One rose, a vintage vase from my mom, and a chalk board

all agreed to play with me.

 At the very end the rose dropped it's petals in exhaustion.

 

What fun I am having!

What struggles in learning!

Time consuming, YES!

But all in all, it delights my heart.

What is delighting your heart today?

A Mad Hatter Celebration

Red Robe Oolong from Wuyi Mountains in China

was my tea of choice at this special Mad Hatter Celebration.

Yes, the Mad Hatter was in attendance

for he chose to celebrate his 40th birthday at afternoon tea. 

 Charitea's in Sandy, Oregon was the place.

There were the expected cucumber sandwiches

and then there were delicious chicken salad sandwiches too.

We wore hats,

we celebrated,

and we sipped tea.

At the end of the day there was a bit of sweet nibbling too.

Chocolate brownie, lemon tart, and a scone buried in cream and jam.

Mad Hatter Tea Parties are the very best way to celebrate one's birthday.

Happy Birthday to  you, Geoffrey Norman,

a tea connoisseur for sure.

Agarwood Tea

When I was a young girl my mother had a friend that collected

Asian antiques.  How I loved visiting her and just taking in the sights

of drapey kimonos and black lacquer furniture.

A friend recently gifted me enough Agarwood tea to

have in one gaiwan this morning.

After the first steeping I inhaled the fragrance

and tears came to my eyes as I remembered this scent 

from the incense my mother's friend burned in her apartment.

The scent is so distinct, a woody, tropical, fruity fragrance.

Looking up in wikipedia I found that Agarwood is the most expensive

wood in the world.  It has health benefits for relaxing muscle tissue

and relieving muscle cramps.

http://www.teabook.co/

has developed a 2013 limited edition tea

that is for the tea connoisseur. 

It is a blend of Agarwood from Vietnam

and ripe Puerh from ancient trees in Yunnan, China.

The flavor is quite wonderful and the texture so smooth.

It is a real treat to have this sample to taste.

If you are a avid tea collector you can add this to your

collection for $500 for 120 grams (4.23 ounces).

Thanks, Geoff, for the taste of delightful memories.
You can find Geoffrey's blog posts at http://steepstories.com

Notes from the Garden

Can you find the orange heart?

The lighting of the evening was just gorgeous!

The birds were welcome here.

Have you walked in a garden that delighted you lately?

This early Autumn is such a lovely time to take a walk,

enjoy the outdoors.

A Special Day

 On Wednesday evening my small family gathered

at Peninsula Park here in Portland, Oregon.

It has always been a favorite park for me;

so when my daughter chose to be married there,

I was thrilled.

 My "live-in gardener" and son waiting for the event to begin.

 It took place under these trees.

 Even Darth Vader made an appearance.

 Darth Vader escorted the bride.

 This sweet little family is joined together.

 It was full of JOY, surrounded by beautiful roses.

His job was to hold his mama's flowers

when his daddy held his mama's hands.

He did the job just perfectly.

May the sun always shine on them

as this special day in the park.

Happy weekend, dear friends!

Happy Autumn!

Nature gives to every time and season

some beauties of its own

and from morning to night,

as from cradle to the grave,

it is but a succession of changes

so gentle and easy that we can scarcely

mark their progress.

~Charles Dickens

A Lovely Day

 A gift from the garden.

 Autumn is in the air this morning in my garden.

It is a lovely day.

The last day of summer.

Oh JOY of the season's changing.

A day to celebrate.

The Song of a Lovely Day

Of kitchen curtains blowing; of a bubbling kettle;

Of a yellow cat on an oaken settle;

Of the webs I'm brushing from a corner in the hall;

Of crimson roses climbing up a garden wall;

Of a beater whipping egg-whites to a froth;

Of a table set for tea with a linen cloth;

Of children's lilting laughter; of a broom's soft swish;

Of the first ripe strawberries in a crystal dish;

Of a morning's ironing and its crisp array-

Oh, of all the details of a lovely day,

I will make a song, dear, then when I am through

Will keep it for the singing, come evening, to you.

~Ethel Romig Fuller from Kitchen Sonnets

Wow Times!

The sliver of a crescent moon shining through the trees.

The fragrance of a new tea freshly poured for me.

The small hands that touch me with hugs and say

"I love you, Mimi"

The wind while walking on a sandy beach and

listening to the crashing waves.

The whale that lifts it's head and peers back at me.

The hummingbird that stops by for a sip

outside my breakfast window.

The softness of the spring sunshine caressing my skin.

The laughter of children.

Nature astounds me.

All growing things delight me.

What "Wow Times" do you find that delight you?