Valentine's Tea-Pink Saturday

I am having a Valentine's Day tea for a few close friends today. There will be 7 in all, a nice cozy size. This is not an official tea group event. This is my core group, my extended family if you will. Those closest to my heart. My dad didn't want to come- probably too dainty for him.

I'm not ready to host my entire tea group yet. My new condo still needs some tweaking to be tea group perfect. Although my friend Kim says people come to visit you not your house.



Anyway, I made favors and I used the idea I saw at Heather Bullard's Blog. I have to warn you hers came out much nicer. She used velvet millinery flowers. I got mine at Michael's.



I must apologize for the poor quality of the photos. Most of them were taken in natural light and it was kind of dark inside even with the lights on. So let's pretend they were shot in soft focus so they would look dreamy for Valentine's Day.



Here's a shot with the flash. I got the same jars Heather used. Ball jars from Target @ $4.59

for a set of 4. What a bargain!. I filled them with Hershey's caramel kisses and milk chocolate hearts.

I am using sheer burgundy wire edged ribbon.

Old skeleton keys will be attached to the ribbon to symbolize that these people

are the keys to my happiness.

Here's another "soft focus" photo of the flowers. I will attach the flowers to the top of the jar.

Silly me, I should have put the finished product photo here! Please scroll up to the top to see a completed favor.

I bought a second bouquet of flowers and put them in this teapot I got from Home Goods.

It's perfect for the proper English tea. The shelf it's on I just purchased yesterday. Expo, the HomeDepot design store is going out of business and everything is on sale. I got this shelf/bookcase for 25% off, yipee!

Well, I'm off to clean, rearrange the furniture, bake lemon squares, assemble my tea sandwiches

( chicken cranberry walnut salad, egg salad, cucumber, and carrot raisin) , put the petit fours on the platter, etc. Lots involved in putting on a good tea. Oh, by the way, I bought some of Harney and Sons Valentine's Blend tea, it's a chocolate tea with rosebuds. And my friend Jan went to London and she brought me back my absolute favorite tea, Harrod's No. 42 (Earl Gray). So I'll be serving both today along with a decaf tea.

Hopefully I can get some good shots from the tea for a later post.

Happy Valentine's to all and enjoy your Pink Saturday! To view other Pink Saturday postings click on the Pink Saturday button on the side bar.

Sweet Pink Memories

It's Pink Saturday again! I had a tough time finding Pink. It's February and it's New England. Pink is hard to come by when you are surrounded by frozen tundra. I had to go back to my summer trip to Martha's Vineyard to find some suitable Pinks.

So here we go. Home base was the lovely pink Oak Bluffs Inn. Isn't it cool?

We spent quite a bit of time sitting in those chairs and sipping lemonade on the porch. It was great for relaxing and people watching.

Here's a closeup of the entrance. I just love all the colors, so cheerful.

Side view of the inn.

This was a shop down the street from the Inn. The shop was called Good Dog Goods. I love the black wicker chair against the pink building.

Back to the Inn, this was my room. Green with pink accents, so pretty!

This is one of the gingerbread cottages in Oak Bluffs.

Another cottage in closeup.

The pink pops against the white of this cottage.

One day and night during the year, all the cottages in the old Methodist Campground are decorated with lanterns and parasols. They are illuminated at night. It's called Illumination Night and it's always held in August.

It's a good idea to go to the campground early and get some pictures in the daytime.

It's hard to get good nightime shots and photos never do Illumination Night justice.
It is so spectacular!

Some of the lanterns are made of silk and some are made of paper.

This cottage is called the Sweetheart Cottage. It's totally pink and all decked out in lanterns.

That's the end of the tour. It was fun to reminisce about my vacation and the warm, sunny days of August. I think I heard it's about 10 degrees outside right now. Looking forward to the warm days of August!

Kennebunk Tea and Shopping

I was invited to a tea to celebrate the 250th birthday of the Scottish Bard, Robert Burns. The event took place at my friend Janelle's house in Kennebunk, Maine.

Every time I travel to Maine I HAVE to stop at Stonewall Kitchens in York. It just happens to be on the way to Janelle's. So my friend Kim and I stopped at Stonewall for some coffee, a snack and shopping!


Here's the shop at Stonewall Kitchens. I absolutely wanted to go home with this snowshoe sconce! But I wanted two and that would put me over the budget for the day. I snapped a photo instead.

I also loved the towels on display. I collect tea towels from my travels. Should I buy one? No, I have plenty at home.

So much snow, more than back home. This is Stonewall's entrance.

We arrived at Janelle's and entered the living room. Just look at the table setting. A hint of good things to come. Attention paid to every detail. See the rose plant? Those were the favors!

Can you believe it? A bagpiper (is that the correct term?) was hired for the event.

His name is Rob.

After he played some lovely songs, he gave us a little history on the instrument and his attire.

Did you know the "man purse" they wear can be made from Clydesdale fur? Not to worry, the fur is obtained during the shaving of the hooves.

Roberta and Lori Lee looked on.

These popcorn stitch socks or stockings are part of the traditional dress. They have no seams!

The tartan of the kilt is from the Royal Stewart clan. The uniform is the dress uniform.

Two lucky ladies got to sit here and enjoyed tea for two!

The piper posed with our two hostesses, Janelle and her niece Deborah. Deborah is also in

the tea group. The ladies dressed in keeping with the theme.



The view from Janelle's living room. BRR! Cold outside, warm and cozy inside.

Off to the dining room table of delights! These are meringues with whipped cream and strawberries. Fabulous!

Wow, the little seafood tarts went fast. Love this plate!

A spoonful of chocolate pudding and whipped cream artfully displayed.

I confess this is my plate. Meringue, lemon tart, button cookie, and pudding spoon and yes, I ate every bite! We also had mini Shepherd's Pies prior to dessert.

Here's Renee, another member of the group. I think that's Scottish tea in her cup.

She dressed to match the room. Kidding!

Lori Lee, a member of our group, got into the spirit of the tea. The hat, the plaids, she looked stunning as usual!


View from the upstairs guest room. The color of the room was airy and soft like Summer but then there was that giant icicle outside the window to remind us it's still Winter.

After our tea, Kim and I went to the Old House Parts Company in Kennebunk. We were met at the door by a sleeping cat named Napoleon. Don't you love his markings?

The Old House Parts Company is in a warehouse. It's an architectural salvage type of place.

I would love one of these old stained glass windows. They sold old doors, fireplaces, you name it.

I bought some old skeleton keys and some lamp finials.

Late in the afternoon, we headed back to Massachusetts with wonderful memories of a day

filled with food, friends, music and history.

My First Pink Saturday

Beverly of How Sweet the Sound hosts Pink Saturdays and I decided to participate for the first time. So it's all about Pink today. I will be off on a day trip to Kennebunk and Kennebunkport, Maine. So while you read my summery feeling post, I will be up in the frozen tundra of Northern New England.I'll probably be all rosy cheeked. But I am sure to have lots of tea to warm me and I will be surrounded by the warmth of my friends in the tea group. Aw, yes! I belong to an afternoon tea group. But that's a post for another time.


Don't you love that teacup? The tea inside is from Jacqueline's Tearoom in Freeport, Maine.It's actually a red tea or rooibos named Autumn. It looks pink in your cup and the flavor is heavenly!




I love these pink ballet shoes. I got them at a store called Sweetbay. A fabulous store but it's closed now. So sad!

First I put them on the table for display but then I decided they would look better hanging.

They're from England. Sometimes I put them on the outside door. I have to be careful of the elements since they're satin.

Just a little bit of pink today for my first Saturday. I'll see you all next Saturday.

Molly and Oscar- A Tale of Two Kitties

Oscar is finally in his forever home. Actually he's been living with Molly and me since December 30th. I guess you can call him my New Year's baby. I am enjoying the new addition to our family. Molly? Not so much. For those of you who want to get up to speed. Go to my very first post entitled "Starting from Scratch". All may look peaceful here but don't let them fool you!

Oscar chases Molly all over the condo. She is certainly getting her exercise. She's 7 years old and he's just 1 year old. Molly is plum exhausted from his antics.

This is Oscar's usual state. Hiding and about to pounce! He still has his wild side. Poor thing has lived in 4 places in his young life. First he was outside in the bitter cold last winter, crying for food scraps in the parking lot of my apartment building. I met him on Valentine's Day night! Then in June when I rescued him I took him straight to the vets. He stayed there

for 2 weeks while I searched for a foster mom for him.

My sister sent out an email blast to all her friends and we found Diane and Michael who had recently lost their 20 year old cat. Diane said she would foster Oscar for 3 months. So off to

Diane's he went. He loved it there. Sleeping on a sheepskin rug, catching an occasional mouse and getting lots of lovin'. He was in kitty heaven. I visited him weekly to keep in touch. Diane and Michael could not have been a better match for Oscar's temperament.

Finally I bought a condo and moved in with Molly. I got her settled and then I was able to finally take Oscar home. It's been an adjustment for all of us. Diane and Michael come and visit and play with Oscar. Molly has learned to ignore him at times and I just love the little, um, not so little guy.

Molly sometimes tries to show him who's the boss!

This is the only safe haven for Molly. I'm sure Oscar could jump up on the sink but for some reason it doesn't appeal to him.

Molly, don't jump! Oscar will calm down, someday!

Stay tuned I'm sure they'll be a future post about the Tale of Two Kitties!

Happy Birthday Dad

Meet my Dad. Today is his birthday. We celebrated with dinner at Legal Seafood Restaurant.
Dad had the broiled scallops. He's health conscious and it shows. Isn't he handsome? Some say he resembles Paul Newman. Others remark at how well pressed he is. And if you could see his shoes you would see your reflection in them. In fact, he has on more than one occasion said to me, "take those shoes off I'll polish them for you."

Back to dinner, my sister had the baked schrod and I had the fried clams. I need to be more health conscious. We all shared some chocolate mousse for dessert.

This is Dad 3 years ago at his big birthday with a zero bash. He feigned surprise for the crowd.
We had to tell him about the party because he is a very active man. He is an avid reader, plays free cell on the computer, and most importantly there is golf. He is obsessed with golf. He plays golf almost year round and he still can shoot his age. When anyone has a question on the rules of golf they call him. In fact, he usually has the answer before the TV commentators when there is a rules question during a tournament. He also rates golf courses for the Massachusetts Golf Association and he is an official at tournaments.

Dad is also into genealogy and loves learning about his Irish roots. In fact, the two of us traveled to Ireland for his seventieth birthday. We had the best time exploring the birthplace of our ancestors.

Dad is a WWII veteran and he enjoys going to his naval reunions. He's the one who takes the photos and emails everyone afterwards.


This is a photo from his WWII days. My sister made a video for him for his big birthday party.

My mom now resides in a nursing home. She had a stroke nearly five years ago. She's doing well and he visits her every day. They've been married more than 50 years and they met in junior high school!

The most well mannered, perfectly dressed, devoted man I know. They don't make them like they used to, do they?

So Dad, here's your first blog birthday card.

Love you, Lane