Hydrangeas Rule!

Visit a Stroll Through Life for more!!!

When the  Hydrangeas outside  are  heavily laden....

it's time to  capitalize on their  luscious    glory!!

They  appear in  every  room!!

Complimenting  our  beautiful daughter bride!!!

The dining table!

Nooks and crannies!

  Let's see where to next !

Storage Dilemma

I am  sharing on Seasonal Sundays..

and  I  have really  deliberated on    why... because I am opening   my blog followers up to the truth and reality of my  storage problems...
 Beautiful china  has always been my weakness, but I am  terribly limited  in the storage issue!
 Even as I type I have some wonderful china at my mom's home that  I want to bring here  but I have nowhere to store it....
Believe me,   some ideas are  brewing about the resolution of this dilemma, but meanwhile I  will go ahead and share a bit of the  mixed up places I have  stored  some items.  Now you  must  know that I live in a 1930's house... and  storage  of china wasnt exactly  on  the  radar ...  I have very limited kitchen storage...
Of course. I have my one kitchen cabinet  designated for  everyday  dishes and  I do  have  4 sets   stored there, but  I also have  a kitchen hutch..
 

This is where I house  my  red transferwear and  some of my  South Hampton  Whites ...

  
 the   bottom of this  hutch is filled with  seasonal    decorations  and Christmaswear..
The built-ins in the sunroom beside the sofa  offer a bit of space..




 
Here I  keep my  wedding china  that I seldom use, and my porcelain from Germany, also with a few odd pieces of Emerson Creek Pottery...

  The  corner cupboard  is pretty much loaded..

My best china is kept at the ready here..

  The bottom  houses  more Christmas  china, platters,  entertainment pieces, etc...  I realize  my photos  didnt come out very clear...  poor lighting!
 Also,    I am realizing that  there are a few other places   that I am unwilling to reveal  ....  perhaps  this will really  inspire me to  get on the ball do a   major reorganization project....!  HA!

In a Manner of Speaking

Kathy of   The Delightsome Life  hosts this  beautiful theme each week...   and  Rhoda from Southern Hospitality Blog   hosts  Thrifty Treasures...   Now Im not usually into  thrifting unless Im trying to think of ways  to  remove  items from  our home....  but  last week, I had a weak moment..  being totally devoted to all things  British  I  can not  pass up  anything that speaks  tea time and such  to me...so  when I  saw these two items at a consignment shop  I  gave in....



  the  Harry and David  collector jar    



  just seemed  like the  perfect storage container for the multitude of  various tea bags I  have  accumulated....   and at $7.00  it  suited me as I had seen similar jars for twice that much....   but not as  simple and  complimentary  to my  kitchen a s this one... 
 But the piece de resistance'
  was this  lovely  melamine tray...  



 I love that it is melamine... lightweight, durable, and    just a huge bargain a t $3.oo!




The next thing you know  Im enjoying   an afternoon  reverie    with    my  ice cold glass of  Lemon Tea Cooler,  biscotti, and fruit cup!!!



 and perusing my book, 
In the Royal  Manner
Expert Advice on Ettiquette and Entertainment from the former Butler to Diana Princess of Wales....
Paul Burrell

  I love  reading his book...    his twenty year connection  with British royalty has  instilled in him an easy    grace  that  extends itself into every word..  

The book is chock full of  delightful entertaining ideas and recipes,

 as well as tips and proper guidelines for service and     party planning...    Not that I am planning  a lavish affair anytime soon,  however, just to read on  them  lifts  my ideals and  inspires me to  be   a more gracious hostess ...who knows..perhaps an event  is just around the corner!!!

Breakfast with a Punch!

"

Visit Mary at the Little Red House for more Mosaic Monday!!

I am also sharing on Blue Monday  with Smiling Sally!

 
I dont think it is any surprise to anyone that  breakfast is our favorite meal  , especially served on the porch.   These cool  late spring  mornings just lend themselves to  a leisure time  spent 
 al fresco...   and for me the  creative  cooking juices are at their  height  at this time!
Today  I   decided to play around with my baked egg dish that I shared about a few weeks ago...  
 Baked Scrambled Eggs
IN a baking dish
  place
2 T. Butter and  1 chopped  scallion
saute'
add 4eggs , stirred as if  for scramble\ing,  
season with salt and pepper
  4  fresh picked basil leaves, roughly chopped
1/2 c grated parmesan cheese
bake in  prepared over at 375 for  about 15-20 minutes,
This will puff up  like a baked quiche..
  absolutely divine and  much fewer calories and less expensive.

Later  we  enjoyed  a  delicious  glass of energy on ice!
I read about  the benefits of  these teas in   Woman's World magazine...

The article  expounded the  health benefits of green tea,  which  Ive always known  but it also  introduced to me the idea of   white tea, and another tea, pu-erh  which I have yet to find in the shops....  But Im still looking!!
The recipe I    made    taken  from  the  article  was a bit    changed due to my lack of  ingredients   but  was so  tasty and refreshing  I want to keep it on hand.
Lemon Tea Cooler 

Bring 8 oz of water to a boil, add
3 white tea bags 
3 green tea bags
several  fresh ginger slices
steep for 5 minutes  
remove tea bags and  ginger slices Pour into a heat proof pitcher and stir in 2 T fresh lemon juice
cool, then chill.
Serve over ice, add lemon slices  I used  sugar free sweetener to taste.
Makes 8 servings...
    I actually had   1 tarragon tea bag that I added for  an extra punch....   and I think  any  herbal  tea  or flavored tea would be  delicious with this...  Im still looking for the pu-erh  tea,  but  this combination of green and white tea and ginger is  

• full of  antioxidants
•     appetite cutting  
• metabolism boosting 
• healthful 
•   delicious 

One Thousand Gifts (151-160)

Ann Voskamp, creator  of  this site and the author of One Thousand Gifts  is one of my favorite bloggers.   

  Every Monday  she is hosting this  wonderful  theme  whereby we join  in  counting the blessings of our lives online, I pick up at  151... this week   Ann encourages us to focus on the JOY we have in our daily lives

151.   The tripling notes  skipping along the keyboard as I listen to Ann's  lovely playlist
152.  Lynn calling me to breakfast this morning.... so sweet
153.   The playful  fledglings outside our window
154.  The  loving voice of our daughter on the phone last night telling us about her Asian trip   from which she           had just returned
155.  The expectant opportunities I have on my calendar  to meet with  friends  and  serve in my church  this week
156.  The  respite in our weather this week... the air so fresh and cool
157.  The reminders in God's Word  that  He is sovereign in all things even when our society and our culture is  so loudly professing  He  is obsolete,  irrelevant, yet He is in control and I can put my faith and trust in Him!
158.  Leisurely   moments of rest    and  renewal  I have experienced  the last couple of days
159.  Reconnecting with  very old friends and acquaintances in  new and  powerful ways...  because  of  our sweetest connection.. our love for the Lord!!!
160.   Thinking about  the role of this blog in my life is a blessing!

Pink Saturday

For more  PS   visit Beverly here!!!
Happy Pink Saturday!
This season I am greeted with a bit of pink every time I step out my back door....   this  gorgeous deep  fuchsia pink!


 
What  a lovely welcoming   color  to greet  friends and  neighbors!
 This yummy color  brings to my mind the  rich  textures and  colors of the parlor  in the first bed and breakfast we  stayed in about  5 years ago  for our  35th anniversary

I believe that the Federal Crest Inn  will always  hold   a place near the top of our  list of favored  Inns...

    Luscious  can only describe every thing we  experienced there  from the visual, to the aromatic, to the  fabulous  food!!!
  I am thinking  on  b and b's  because I am deep in the throes of planning our Autumn New England  vacation....   and I cant wait to share  where we are going!!!!

Summer Braised Beef and Rice

The Friday Foodie  hosted at Rattlebridge Farm     serves up  everything about food on Fridays, and I   wanted to share a bit of  supper  we  had last night that  we both enjoyed  so much....  and it was so simple...   Every  month I purchase    lean  beef cubes  cut up for stew  to keep in the freezer   and  so after I had thawed it, I  did as  always...  braised (stewed it in  about 4 fingers of water  slowly over low heat  for  about 3 hours  with  an envelop of  dried onion soup  to season it...  this  then has always  been  the base for  a vegetable  pot or  a soup,,  but last night  I had  recently seen on The Cooking Guy show    how he  had  sauted  some  chopped   green onion along with a a few slices of fresh ginger, and  a couple of  cloves of garlic,,, and I  have been raising   fresh  leaf basil in the herb planter so I pinched some of that and  did a rough chop.  meanwhile I steamed a bit of  brown rice,  and   sauted my   veggies,    added the    cooked rice,  the  beef and its  cooked down stock,  then  tossed in the  cut basil,  stirred it all  up  while the basil  only  wilted,,,,, and served it up in a bow with  some steamed broccoli....  This was  so  tasty... the  tender morsels of  lean braised beef, the  rice  with its nutty  flavor, the  fresh basil that  brightened everything  up,   and the  savory goodness of the    reduced stock and  the bite of the sauted  veggies made for  the complete deliciousness of the dish!!!!   Lynn  said he's  gladly eat it again and again!