Rejoice in the Lord always. Philippians 4:4a
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"The Lord be with you! The Lord bless you! ..." ~ Ruth 2:4 NIV
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"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." ~ A. A. Milne
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"Never place a period where God has placed a comma." Gracie Allen
“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” –e.e. cummings

Don't let the noise of the world keep you from hearing the voice of the Lord.

Friday, January 27, 2012

PBS Wishes

Every once in a while I have a wish granted on my Paper Back Swap list. I can select my titles and have them on automatic request so that if I'm first on the list, as soon as the book is available, it will be mailed to me for FREE! If you have special conditions about books that you want, you can let the sender know, as in dust jackets, non-smoking homes, etc. The only drawback is that one must have patience to wait.
This arrived this week and gave me ideas for a "someday" tea party for my students. They would love to celebrate and I am thinking this spring would be an excellent time for a reward for their diligence and practice in improving their reading skills! I saved $19.95 and the book and jacket are in perfect condition.

Click on the PBS image and you will go right to their site.
Trade Books for Free - PaperBack Swap.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Celebrating Tea Time

We're celebrating T.T.T.'s Second Birthday!

I'd love to be knocking on Sandi's door tomorrow to celebrate Tea Time Tuesday with her in person. It's been TWO years since she started being our hostess. Congratulations!
This teapot with roses was a Christmas gift from Wally's sister. She is so cute and gets so excited when you open what she knows is the perfect gift. Her excitement is as much of a gift as is the package.

Now in your mind we're singing Happy Birthday, Dear T.T.T., and then as soon as we finish singing, out pops:
"I'm a Little Teapot, short and stout.
Here is my handle...


Here is my spout!"
And since this is a party, there's lots of chatter, laughs, and time for a blessing before we begin to eat. We hold hands in friendship, over long miles, and quietly ask the Lord's blessing for all in attendance, thanking Him for our Tea Time Tuesday friends, and praising Him for the fellowship we experience with Sandi's talent and commitment to bringing us together.

And now for the food...did you know you could have stopped by this wee grocery store and picked up nearly everything that we have on today's menu? The teapot measures 4 1/2 inches and is not hollow, although the lid comes off. How about that shadow? I left this picture "in" because of it. That is our afternoon sunshine at work!
The grocery store caught my eye while in Denver and was $1. A fair price I thought. It reminded me of my Lilliput Lane and David Winter cottages but had "Hometown Teapot Cottages" on the bottom. There are others in the set, so I'll keep my eyes open for one.
Sandi, Thank you for letting me join the fun when I have things together. It takes a lot of time to do this each week and to celebrate TWO YEARS is amazing! Not only are your pictures and tea things lovely, your words are beyond beautiful. We are blessed that you share this talent with us each week. Tell your family that we appreciate them, too. May God continue to wrap His arms around you. ♥♫

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Happy Birthday, Dollie

This must be the reason I'm late with a birthday post for my baby. Thanks to Mo, here are the exact words I put on the birthday card on the 13th for her 31st birthday!
I always find the sweetest things that Mo generously shares. And it's lucky for me as I have no knowledge of how it all happens. Thanks, Mo!
To my baby:
Happy Birthday!

Monday, January 9, 2012

Holiday Tea

On a warm November day I was busy outside turning these trees from green to frosty winter white. They were going to go on the mantle or hearth, but were too bushy so they were put on top of the old entertainment center. Sarah thinks I need to get rid of it, but it comes in handy for storing a ton of church music and a few other things.
As we have a tradition of leaving things out until after Sarah's birthday in January, the trees were pretty to look at for my holiday tea for my dear friends. My 50 cent etched glass tea pot from our church rummage sale held mini ornaments as our table decoration. I used my new cake stand as a serving piece for some scones, gingerbread, and eclairs. Christmas cash and Pier I!
My trips to the city and the larger grocery stores are interesting and they always have new products to discover that aren't available here out on the eastern plains. This cooking creme was new and I added a bit of powdered sugar to it to serve with the raspberry scones. It has almost the same consistency as sour cream, but is not as tangy, especially with the added sugar. The container had ideas how to use it in other recipes and I must get more next time to try them out.
One of my gingerbread girls wanted to be the
center of attention!
Our tea time was not exactly High Tea (or a cream tea), but I had to have cucumber sandwiches! I used what I had at home for the bread...Sara Lee thin style buns. They are flat like pita bread and this weekend I even found some mini buns when I got my mom's groceries! I would have rather had rye bread, but I don't run to town for just one item. The sandwiches looked so plain that I shredded some carrots because the curls I made were too big.
We enjoyed our late afternoon soiree by sampling, sipping and chatting and before we knew it, the sun had gone down and it was dark! We are too old to wait for the moon to come out or go down for that matter! I think this group of friends should do tea more often!
Totally unrelated, but I really love my new mantle clips that I discovered before Christmas. I about killed Alex's flat screen TV with a stocking hanger that you can see in the first picture when I was moving things around. They are going to be so much safer AND I will be using them for more decorations during the year. In a few more days it will be bye-bye Christmas and hello Spring. I'll just skip Valentine's Day and move right on to the pastels that I love the most. ♥♫

I joined Sandi at her lovely Tea Time Tuesday party this week and forgot to let you know! You may click on her name and return to her blog if you are visiting and want to stop by other tea parties.


Tea Time Tuesday


Friday, January 6, 2012

Daisy

Daisy is my girl that I made when I promised my First Graders I'd bring a POLAR BEAR to school if they could bring in 100 milk jugs to make an "igloo" to celebrate the 100th Day of School. This celebration is a big one for children in K-1 as they learn about the place value system in math.

After residing in the "Princess" bedroom for several years, Daisy wanted to go back to school . It was getting rather crowded in her room when Maxx stayed over during Christmas and she wanted to be with some girls who'd understand her better than a boy, like Maxx. Because I was so happy to have a real grandson staying with me, I let her spend the holidays at school waiting for the girls (and boys) to return. Now she wants to stay and is at the reading table in my classroom ready to work on her words for 2012.
First, I'm going to help her learn how to

Simplify

That was my word for 2011 !

Then I want us to work on a new word. I've been thinking about this one for a few weeks now and I've commented on several blogs about it, too. But, as any teacher knows, preparation is very important. So I'm off to finish my plan and will return with more on our word for 2012:

Honor. ♥♫