Good Morning Dear Friends in Tea, April 16th

Good Morning Dear Friends in Tea. Todays Tea Party is dedicated to 'Homecomings'. Grandpa Harry is coming home from his stay in the Care Center. Yesterday, I was enveloped by fear of the unknown...but, I just couldn't tolerate that level of angst for very long. If one can jump into the waters of fear then fear becomes something else, making way for strength and ease of motion. It is a bit icey but I can inch forward a little bit at a time...until I don't even have to jump, I'll just fly! While I am going that, I think a good tea is the order of the day. I know I have mentioned Fuze White Tea with Orange Blossom of a few occasions but I am going to mention it again. I love the stuff...and recently purchased the Fuze Green Tea with honey and Ginseing which is also very satisifying. It is a bit hard to find but, that tends to make me want it all the more.

There is no stopping the march of spring now, and I think we have seen the last flake of snow until next winter. That is so far away I can't even envision it. The winds are whipping the pine boughs as sunshine dapples the garden forest with delight.

I received a reply from Tracy Stern concerning her aritisan teas. She indicated to me that her teas were for 'discriminating palates' [which mine apparently is not] and thanked me for my purchase [which I wish I did not make]. I had hoped for a more positive letter, but, then again, you always know when you are valued and welcome.

With more plans than time to spend, I am leaving a smile and a mountain of courage for a picnic. I hope your day is blessed and your lifepath a joy to follow. Your very grateful hostess and friend,  Mary

Dear Tea Friends, I woke up to a beautiful spring morning here.....and I can see so many more blooming flowers in the yard.....I'm going to go cut some flowers and make a bouquet for our dinner table tonight, I won't be here but it will be nice for my parents......

Dear Mary, I hope it is Spring for you -  I am sure all the seasons are beautiful where you live and you can enjoy them all to their full extent....I think in Texas we get SUMMER a little fall hardly any winter and a day of spring.  :)

Dear EMR:  Ok, Kentucky I feel silly now.....I should have thought that through more.....impatiens are so pretty....we planted snapdragons and gerber daisies in one or our shade beds.....it's taken mom a long time to make a shade bed since we pretty much get full sun everywhere.....

Dear Carole, thank you for the encouragement.....she really does a doozie on me and she just arrived and is already throwing some sort of fit....she refuses to talk but points and grunts at everything....words would be a big help, but she's a doll and I love her with all my heart and I can be the one she snubs for now.....one day like you said she'll beg me to convince her parents of letting her go somewhere.....or do something I'm sure!

Have a great day everyone.....

Oh what a beautiful morning.......Good morning, girlfriends.  I hope your day is filled with love and laughter and you remember to share a smile with the people you encounter, today.

Mary, you are an angel.  Plain and simple, an angel.  Your parents have raised you well.  I wish you and Grandpa Harry well on his trip back home.  I'm sure it will put a sparkle in his eye to share another cup of tea with you.  Hugs to you my friend.

Donelle, you have me cracking up about your little neice.  You know  she will grow to favor you over everyone.  Put her in a closet for a couple years and she will be fine!!  LOL, just kidding.  I have a question for you, actually.  We are in Southern California.  I want to fill up my pots with flowering plants.  They will be in full son.  Which ones would be best and most water resistant?  Thanks for your input.

Elza, I am getting more and more jealous of your part time job.  I used to always think I never want to retire because i love my job so much (and I do) BUT I just haven't decided how much I like this new owner.  Maybe it is because he is only 32 years old?  I don't know what it is but his idea of business is much different than mine.  He takes a more corporate approach and I take a more mom and pop approach.  You know once you get a taste of money you have a hard time giving it up.  Ah, to work parttime and make the same wages....there!  That's the solution.  LOL

Has anyone heard a peep from Katts?  i sure do miss her.  What about our LisaA and LisaFaye and Debra?  We're so fabulous, how could anyone stand to be away for more than a day?  LOL!

Hugs and smiles

Kathy

Good Morning Mary and all the other Tea Angels..

 So happy Mary that G-pa is coming home.. have been keeping you both in thoughts and prayers...

A beautiful Spring morning here.. No rain for 2 days now and my tulips are so pretty. The sun is shinning and suppose to warm up in the high 60s today..  Heard on the news this morning that the Hummingbirds were being spoted in our area..

Mary you make all your teas sound so good.. I have been enjoying some that I can find in local groc. stores.. I think it was you that mentioned something about a pina coloda flavored one?? That would be intresting I think to try. I ordered a tea ball from QVC its a little glass pot that you brew tea in.. either loose tea or bag.. it has a strainer to put your tea in.. I think its neat...

Well its my day to help my little friend with  Avon... So I wish you all the bests of days and thanks for my visit and "Cup of Calmness"  I will need it for sure today..  bdett

Kathy, I'm going to check with a friend of mine who lived in Southern California most of her life....When we were in San Diego last we noticed how beautiful and lush so many flowering plants were that won't last long in Texas because of our heat....boo!  I'll let you know though....I know my niece is just a bit more extreme than most.....she doesn't cry she screams and throws a huge fit if I pick her up at a restaurant or a store when my mom or sister are around.....as soon as my dad got home last night she started it all over again....my nerves are just flat out shot...my mom teases me and says I should talk to my doctor about valium.....i know it will pass, but i may run away before that time comes...lol!

Good Evening Tea Angels,

Mary, I'm glad your DF is returning, but as Susie said, you probably have mixed feelings and could use more days of rest and be on your own to unwind and do some healing yourself. Many of us have been there and do understand. Thinking of you and sending love and thoughts of comfort for both you and Grandpa.

Donnelle, glad you have made time to join in more often as we missed you. How nice that you can already cut bouquets of flowers from your garden - we still are at the coolish tulip and daffodil stage, but our perrenials are starting to show buds and filling out. That little niece of yours really has you in her grip!! One of these days she'll end up being your shadow and you'll be trying to figure out how to dodge her....Have you decided on what kind of a greenhouse you might get for your mother?

I have the Bookclub gals coming over tomorrow afternoon at 2 PM, to discuss 'A Walk in the Woods' - anyone here read it yet? It's about a couple of guys who walk part of the Appalachian Trail (which extends from Georgia to Maine). It's a good read and very humorous in parts - At 1 AM, reading in bed, I was laughing out loud. Since it's after lunch, I made biscotti to serve with red wine (dunking in wine is good), and will serve a simple bruschetta on toasted baquette rounds, and an Italian bean/cheese spread (thanks Costco). Kathy, I doubt if the lowest temp on your roaster is even close to what it would be on a Crock Pot/Slow Cooker, which is why some foods have to cook up to 8 hours. Those country ribs I made normally take about 6 hours in a slow cooker, but I could get it done in about 2 hours on top of the stove or in the oven, covered.

Kay, so sorry you are upset over your bible study class and hope you can relax and calm your thoughts over the next few days.

I have a few more chores to tend to tonight so will say goodnight and wish all of you sweet dreams and a relaxing night.

Anne

Good Morning Dear Friends in Tea. This mornings Tea Party is dedicated to 'A Circle of Friendship' and the loving care and kindness that blooms from it. Yesterday became one of great challenge and I had to call on every good thought I could muster. I felt a bit like I was pushing an overladen cart filled with apples that tipped and spilt! As I reloaded it, I came to a point where I felt happiness in the action and that struck such a chord with me. I couldve been loading that cart on the worst day or the best day and it would still require a lot of doing, but it would require the same work. Happiness is simply a state of mind, separate from anything else that is occurring around it. It has nothing to do with external and everything to do with the spirit. We think of the body mind connection, as state of mind is important to how things hum inside of us, but our spirit is not so limited. In fact, it is boundless in its abilites.

I was forced to take Grandpa home before I was prepared to do so. That isn't because I don't love him nor because I lack commitment to his everyday care. I simply was lead down another path where he wasn't 'ready' to come home and then, that changed in an instant. I had to flip that thinking over, or be runover! I decided to face it by walking towards it instead of running willy nilly and hiding in the closet [which I think I would be very good at....if I could do it]. I went right out and bought the fanciest bakery cupcakes and some 'Republic of Tea, Take Heart' which is reported to be the very best tonic for that all important muscle. As the hour of ambulance arrival came, I was waiting and ready. Unfortunately there was a terrible glitch, and Grandpa had been sent home with no oxygen on. If he was suffering from confusion before, he truly is suffering more.

I am not a person who jumps on any bandwagon...mistakes are made and they are above all else to be learned and benefitted from. I am not actually sure that there are any such things as mistakes at all, but God's most gifted happenings at all times.

I am thouroughly blessed that he survived the trip and the twist that happened in my heart to know his suffering was tolerated as part of a greater happening made me cry.

After stabilizing him, I made those all important imformative calls and was just caught dumbfounded by the lack of....patient concern...but personal 'Little Red Hen Behavior' of everyone saying, 'Not I'. How strange is that? How incredible. How very sad in the scheme of things. I am standing up right now and raising my cup to being it in responsible loving behavior and that is that. I am very grateful to have Dear Grandpa home. He cried and he told me he never thought he would get here, and there lies my grateful attitude.

Mercy.

To say that harm has come to him is a hard call, because he was not in his clear mind before this happened so there is no measuring stick. It doesn't matter in the grand result, except to do my best and make beauty where there is little to work with. Maybe that isn't quite right, maybe there is absolutely more than I can imagine.

On one of my favorite tv programs, 'Monk' there is an episode where the main character, who is a cleanophobic is faced with a city of garbage and he attacks the problem head on, " One bag at a time, one truckfull at a time." Sometimes life requires that you get more involved than you ever thought possible.

The good news is.....there is never a dead end in life. God gave us free will and abundance of choices and we make them. When they don't turn out as expected, there are still innumerable choices, and we make them...and then, we make more and more and more. I read the book, and it all turns out just fine in the end, but what a story it is!

Back to my tea discoveries of yesterday.  "Republic of Tea, Take Heart "contains Organic Rooibos, Hawthorn [leaf, flower and berries], Hibiscus, Ginkgo, Bilberry, Rosehips and Blueberry, along with Raspberry and Blackberry Flavors. It is absolutely delicious and very healthy for that all important organ we all need to survive.This tea is wonderful hot and would be just glorious iced.

I also experienced a new taste sensation...."Green Tea Cola, by a company called Cricket Cola in MD." I am not a fan of soda pop as a rule, but this was very very nice, for a change. There are two other flavors that I intend to try as well. The label calls this "Happiness in a Bottle'. Can happiness be bottled? I can say with certainty that I truly felt happy just sipping it as I felt it was a high quality beverage with healthy benefits as well as it was a surprise find.

Dear Donelle, One thing I know about children...if your neice did not feel you were safe and trustworthy, she would not feel enough confidence to act out in your presence. She loves you, but, she doesn't know how much, yet. Rejection from a child is a deep sorrow, but, it will change soon. You are such a dear and loving person and I can't help but feel that this will grow into a special relationship for both of you. I love the descriptions of your flowers and your activities, it just makes me feel good to walk my imagination around all you do.

Dear Kathy, Change is difficult, even under the best of circumstances! I am sorry that your work has become less than the lovely place that it was for you. Maybe its time to look around and be sure that you are exactly where you long to be. Perhaps this is the perfect time to put more emphasis away from work. You surely would never do that if things had not taken another path. My alarm clock [which is under the bed] actually glows brighter and brighter as the minutes tick. It wakes you with light and not sound [thank God], but still, its under the bed and what I can't see.....lol.....Have a lovely day at work and play.

Dear Elza, My Dad actually wagged his tongue at me..which was totally unexpected! If it didn't startle me so much, I think I might've laughed. Hold my hand and I won't be frightened. It is hard for me to even think about Derby as it makes me think of the wonderful Stewart HOmeschool that I visited on behalf of the future that Dear Nick did not have. Can you believe that I didn't even know it was Derby weekend when we made the trip? I attended the Governors Breakfast, waved at the Derby Train andfound a covered bridge that had my maiden name on it! All without a plan.

Dear Susie, Thank you for the hugs and prayers, God knows I loved every single one!

I hope you found the stars for over your fireplace, that you mentioned. I saw some three dimensional stars hanging from the covered porch of a neighboring house and it made me think of you.

Dear Carole, Your knee is really hurting me...and I don't even have a pain there. Oh, I will feel so much better when you receive relief! I have a black thumb too...and I hate worms! Everytime I go to dig a trowelful, I come up with so many I think I might pass out. On to...container gardening and it is with a thankful heart that I say that DH can grow popsicles from sticks.

Dear Bdett, Once again you have just touched me with your gentle sprit and calmness. I am just sweetly resting in your spirit. Quilts are wonderful and just perhaps there is one built of days and quiet service that awaits you in Heaven.

Dear Kay, When we are ripped from a place we try to be, perhaps it is because the perfect place needs us. Explore and let the joy of it come and find you.

Dear Anne, Please save a little spot in your Bookclub for me. I love thinking of the time to come when I will find one of my own to share in. If I could just once sit in your kitchen and enjoy the ambience, I would never forget it. You have a wonderful gift.

It is with a very grateful heart that I come to this place in the day. It is a hopeful time and a time of work sprinkled with all manner of sweetness. Happiness is a product of the spirit and has so little to do with anything we do or do not do. I think that is a secret, but it is begging to be shared. Your very grateful hostess and friend, Mary

Every day in the newspaper there is a column that lists Horoscopes. A special message is written for each birth sign and although I cannot believe in such a blanket message....I do believe in messages, sent in a bottle of tea. Perhaps it doesn't matter when or where you are born, where you live, work or play. Just maybe, we are all meant to be who and what we are, and most certainly God loves us, just because we are created sheerly of love. Be happy, at this second...its a whole world in a teacup.

Good morning angels, 

Mary, glad grandpa Harry is home.  There is no place like being at home or in your own bed.

well let me run, i have got to find me something to take for lunch.  Have a great day everyone.

Hugs

Carole 

Good morning, girlfriends!  Need I tell you again that it is an absolute beautiful morning.  This time of year is so beautiful with all its greenery.  Once that intense heat from summer comes the green doesn't stay as lovely.  We could still use some great rain.

Mary, i think about you all day long.  Why did they make you take Grandpa home if you weren't ready for him?  This just doesn't seem professional especially with the error of not sending him with oxygen.  What the heck were they thinking?  I know this is so hard for you but you do it with love.  I wish I were there to help you.  Hugs my friend

Anne, I would love nothing better than joining at your house for a book club.  i am not a great reader of books but I would read just to have the company of you.  I actually love clubs and girl get togethers.  I used to play bunco and had a blast doing it.  Everyone is so busy now a days that it is hard to get anyone together.  That is why I would LOVE to buy a place in an active adult community where they have all the clubs and activities right there in your own neighborhood.  Hope all is well with Howard.

Carole, waving to you as you head off to work!  Have a good day.

Hugs to everyone and smiles to share

Kathy

Morning Tea Angels......Mary my heart is with you today....you are an amazing person and I enjoy reading your posts....Kathy I've asked a friend of mine about the flowers since I am not 100% certain what would grow best in your area, but I do know that the geraniums flourish beautifully in the San Diego area and are awesome in pots and you can plant some trailing rosemary around them along with some dusty miller or potato vines for extra green colors....but as soon as I hear back from her I'll let you know......Anne....well my mom has her eye on a Greenhouse from a grower that retired not too far from our house....Greenhouse can be very expensive to set up & purchase and he has this one as a good deal....I think that I can get it for her by the end of May.....but we'll see!  not exactly in time for Mother's Day but it will make her happy and our business lengthen through the winters....and keep my grapefruit tree and pineapple plant happy! Carol have a great day at work......as far as my booger of a niece....well I feel as all of you do and I know it will pass, but boy my nerves sure take a beating during the week....I love her to pieces and we havea  lot of fun together, but man OH man she really likes to play this game with me and she does it to her mother as well.....but her smile is the best thing in this world....and her laugh is so contagious....it's so fun.  Well I better water the Greenhouse for mom she had to go to work really early today...and I had classes in Dallas this morning at 7am....have a great day everyone!!!!!

 Afternoon, Tea Angels!

 Just flying thru to say a quick hello before heading out the door to run yet more errands. I think I need roller skates! It'd surely help save on gas!! :o)

ttyl............