Breakfast at Wimbledon

Last Sunday, I hosted my annual Wimbledon Breakfast party. Every July, I have my friends and family over to watch the Wimbledon Gentlemen's Final and to eat a hearty breakfast.

As you all know, Roger Federer won his sixth Wimbledon title. He beat American Andy Roddick on the 4th of July weekend. That's just wrong!



We started the morning with crackers, cheese, and fruit. Cranberry cinnamon goat cheese, baby swiss, and English wensleydale with rosemary and sea salt crackers, English biscuits, and petit toasts.




My sister'a teapot from Harrod's was filled with Harrod's No 42 tea (Earl Grey).




A purple and green bouquet reflected the colors of Wimbledon. The tea rack held more selections for the guests should they tire of Harrod's No. 42.




Molly got distracted by something outside the window.



Oscar got tired of watching the long match. He wanted to play his own games.




Andy Roddick gave it his all.



But Roger Federer had all the graceful moves and he persevered.



Evidently, Molly and Oscar had a little difference of opinion.




Ww had baked french toast, frittata, fruit salad, scones with lemon curd, strawberry jan and mock devonshire cream. This fruit tart was just one of the dessert selections. Everyone made something for the party.



I served Starbucks coffee to finish off breakfast.




In the end, heartbroken Andy was gracious. He pushed Roger to the limit but like all true champions Roger found a way to win. It was quite the match and a jolly good time for the spectators, especially those watching from home.

Happy 4th of July weekend

Celebrating freedom, family and friends this fourth of July. And of course, fireworks.

This photo was taken by my friend Don at last year's fireworks. Hopefully the rains will stop long enough for cookouts and fireworks displays this year too!

The Gift Closet

Am I the only crazy one in the universe with a gift closet? Actually right now I would have to term it a gift shelf. What is a gift shelf? It's a place where you store all those goodies you buy throughout the year. They're meant to be gifts for others but sometimes you like them so much you keep them for yourself! (Click to enlarge any of the photos).

So I thought I'd give you a peek into my gift closet, I mean shelf. Look at these soaps. I bought them at the Festival By The Lake a few weeks ago. They're from Grace Farm Organics and they smell great. Also look how pretty they are, each fragrance has a different carving. Of course, the fleur de lis is mine even though the scent is rather manly and called Northern Gentleman. The other scents I have are lemongrass and rainforest.



I found these at my favorite store, Nesting. They are little journals with blank pages adorned with pretty ribbons, vintage photos, and sayings. I keep a little journal in my purse most days. I like to write down restaurant and store recommendations, new websites, etc.



I found these sweet embroidered linens at Thoreauly Antiques in Concord. The lady on the towel looks like she should be in the movie Emma.




I got the sailboat linen napkins at the same antique shop. Such pretty pastels. Perhaps a future blog giveaway?





I love the line of bath products by Thymes. These bath salts are from the discontinued fragrance of Green Tea. I also got the body wash but I think it's
going to stay with me.



Another antique store find was this hand tatted lace hankie. Love these colors and I had to buy it. It's going to make one of my friends happy.




Tealights from Colonial Candle in their Pink Peony Fragrance. It really smells like peonies.




Lavender sachets picked up at the local Home Goods.





I also bought the jar candle version of the Pink Peony scent and another called Lime Grove which I must confess I broke into the other night. It has a nice clean scent. Perfect for the kitchen.

As you can see I am fully stocked for any occasion. If I need a hostess gift or a
birthday gift I am all set. Now, if I could just keep myself from raiding the shelf!

The Bounty of the Winchester Farmer's Market

This morning I decided to pay a visit to the Winchester Farmer's Market. Wow, they had some great stuff!

Look at what I bought! Edible flowers with salad greens. I am told the little blue flowers taste like radishes. Some baby swiss cheese from Boggy Meadow Farm. At the Cocoa Express booth, I bought cranberry oat scones and apple crisp muffins.



Although a little out of focus, these strawberries still look yummy, don't they?





I forgot about the lemon zucchini bread also from Cocoa Express. This is going in the freezer until next weekend when my friends come over for my annual Wimbeldon Breakfast. More about that in a future post.

As you can see, I had a wonderful time at the Farmer's Market. The sun was actually shinig this morning. We've had 21 straight days of rain so it was a welcome sight!

Reminiscing - Hidden Pond Cottages

I've decided to try something new and post photos from the past few years. When I do a post like this one, I'll call it Reminiscing. Some of the photos might be from my pre-blog or early blog days. I was just learning to upload photos back then!

Today's post is about a birthday gift I received from my friend Kim. In June of last year, Kim took me to Kennebunkport and Biddeford Pool, Maine. We went to a house tour of the Cottages at Hidden Pond and then we had a late lunch in Biddeford Pool.



Talk about a sleeping porch! Don't you love this bed?




Such a pretty setting. If you rent one of these cottages, you can have a personal
chef.




This bedroom was so dreamy. I love the color combination.




Isn't this a clever towel rack? Love it!



Don't you want to rent one of these?




I would sit here all day, sipping lemonade or ice tea with a good summer read.




Here's the view from the place where we had lunch.




We sat at one of these tables and enjoyed the ocean view. I had the most delicious shrimp roll I ever tasted and the parmesan fries were yummy too!




The fog was starting to roll in at Biddeford Pool. I had to quickly snap this photo before darkness settled in. The end to a perfect day.

Oscar's Anniversary

One year ago today I rescued Oscar. At the time he was living in the parking lot of my old apartment building. When my landlord wouldn't let me take him in the building, I knew it was time to move. Some say Oscar is the reason I bought my condo. I just think it gave me the push I needed to make a move. I wasn't happy where I was living anyway.

As you can see, Oscar is healthy and happy and loving life as an indoor kitty!

New Lamp

Remember the money I got from my Dad for my birthday? Well I used it to buy this lamp. I think it's amazing! The colors are simply gorgeous. I am going to put it in the middle window of my living room. A place of honor since it has the wow factor I'm looking for. Now of course, I really have to get going on the window treatments. Any and all ideas would be appreciated.



Here's a closer look at the colors of the lamp.



As with any new item that comes into the home, Molly must inspect it and approve it.
I think she likes it!