A Different Teacup

On a recent shopping trip to TJ Maxx, I came across a set of these popular silicone baking cups.

I knew that it would be fun to bake some teacup cupcakes as a surprise for my little granddaughter.

She seemed delighted with her cupcake and dug right in. 

I know that we’ll be enjoying these little cakes often for our special tea parties.

 

You can find these cute silicone teacups online, or maybe at your local TJ Maxx store.

"What Makes Life so Sweet? Cupcakes to eat and Someone to Love."
~ Marie Williams Johnstone

Canada From Sea to Sea

This pretty Royal Albert “Canada From Sea To Sea” pattern teacup was purchased on my recent trip to Canada.

I found it at the Care & Share Thrift Shop near my brothers home in Stouffville, ON.  They had an abundance of beautiful cups and it was difficult to choose just one, but I was running out of space in my carry on bag.

The pattern includes maple leaves in green and raspberry with a Canadian flag on the cup.

The cup is in the pretty Montrose shape, with a lovely feathery scroll handle.  Both pieces have 22k gold trim.

This is the second cup in my collection with a Canadian theme.  I also have a Windsor teacup in the Royal Canadian Tartan pattern.

It’s been a while since I’ve participated in Teacup Tuesday and I’m happy to have some new cups to show you.  Be sure to see all the gorgeous cups at both Terri and Martha's beautiful blogs.

Animal House and a Teapot Handbag

In my last post I gave you a little glimpse of my brothers splendid lake house.  Part of my trip was spent there and the rest of the time I stayed at his home.  He jokingly says that coming home is like “being on safari”, hence Animal House.

  You’re greeted in the foyer by a life sized bronze gorilla sculpture.

This elephant carving hangs above one of the fireplaces.  There is lots of art, including Robert Bateman wildlife.

A giant wooden fish sits near the hot tub.  You can get a glimpse of its mermaid companion behind it.  There is something interesting everywhere you look.

 

Even some of the furniture has an animal theme.  There are giraffe, zebra, elephants, lions, monkeys and more throughout their home.  My sister-in-law realized her lifetime dream of visiting Africa in January and now they say they can’t wait to return.

Seems harder than I thought to get caught up with my blog and blog friends.  I still haven’t taken photos of all the tea goodies I bought in Canada.

 

We were looking in a little shop in Haliburton (or maybe Parry Sound) when my brother saw this handbag and decided that he wanted to buy it for me.

 

It is from the Amliya Leather Collection and came with a handy shoulder strap.  This purse is large enough to be practical, as well as cute.

Most of my tea purchases came from Teaopia.  I learned that they are soon merging with Teavana and so are selling off their logo stock (75% off).  I bought two pretty teapots, double walled tea glasses, a Teaopia tea tin and some hibiscus wellness tea for a friend.

My dear, if you could give me a cup of tea to clear my muddle of a head

I should better understand your affairs.

- Charles Dickens

Up North

Just returned from a trip to Northern Ontario to visit family.  Part of the time was spent at my brothers lake house.  What a gorgeous spot.  Swimming in this beautiful spring fed lake was such a treat.

Their two Samoyed dogs were my constant companions – they thought I was their personal masseuse. 

There is nothing quite like paddling on a quiet lake and catching a gorgeous rainbow trout for dinner.  My brother was terrified that I was going to tip the canoe, but we made it back to shore – dry and with our prize. 

The weather and the bugs cooperated and my time there was pure bliss. 

While in Ontario I visited a few small towns and found some great tea bargains.  I’ll post more on that later and also show you some pics of “animal house”. 

Savannah…….continued

We stopped at The Green Truck Neighborhood Pub for lunch on our way to the Historic District.

My Papa’s Salad was really delicious – it was like having breakfast on a salad.  It contained warm roasted potatoes, ham, Gorgonzola and cheddar cheese, topped with a sunny-side up fried egg and dressed in oregano red wine dressing.  Hubby had the El Camino Salad with black bean salsa, tortilla points, avocado, sour cream, cilantro, cheddar and southwestern vinaigrette – also delicious.  I can see why people were still outside waiting for tables late in the afternoon.  I’d definitely visit again.

We dined at The Olde Pink House on our first night in Savannah – I highly recommend it.

I can’t believe that I didn’t take pictures of my wonderful Habersham Platter that included shrimp & grits with collards, huge seared scallops and a delectable crab cake. 

If you love crab cakes, then don’t miss Belford's in City Market.

The fish and chips at Molly MacPherson’s Scottish Pub & Grill were good (did I mention the waiters wear kilts?).

After hearing so much about the Back In The Day Bakery and their new cookbook, we had to stop for lunch on our way out of Savannah.

It was a cute place and the desserts all looked scrumptious.  We tried the bourbon bread pudding.

The sandwiches are served on fresh baked ciabatta bread – my chicken salad with curry and raisins was excellent.

As I mentioned before, the Savannah historic district is a great place to walk, and I needed that after all those lovely meals.  Hubby likes reading all the historical information on the many statues and plaques. 

I’m looking forward to visiting Savannah again, but for now I’m off to Canada.  I’ll have lots to share about my time in beautiful Northern Ontario when I return. 

The (Savannah) Tea Room

The Tea Room was an easy walk from our hotel.  The guys had a four hour break from their conference, so they decided to join us for lunch at The Tea Room.

Once again, I forgot to take photos of the gift shop which is right inside the front door.  There are many books, china teacups, teapots, and of course tea for sale, among other things.  There is one wall of silver tea canisters with an impressive selection of fine quality loose leaf teas for sale.

 

Since I hadn’t made a reservation for afternoon tea, I chose this turkey avocado wrap from the lunch menu.  It was filled with moist, freshly roasted turkey breast, bacon, avocado, tomato and cheese with aioli sauce.  It was served warm in a whole wheat wrap – so delicious.

Hubby had the salad of the day with Applewood bacon, watermelon, onion and a tasty vinaigrette type dressing.  All of us had gazpacho soup (very refreshing).  Our friends said the quiche was very good too.  We enjoyed iced peach, Temi Sikkim, Pinhead Gunpowder and Assam Mangalam tea.

Our dessert was a piece of vanilla cake, cranberry scone, shortbread and fruit.  I’d already started to eat this before snapping the picture.  My friend asked if she could have chocolate cake instead and that was quickly brought to the table.

I’ve never been disappointed at this tea room.  I’d still like to tell you about The Green Truck Pub (great for lunch) outside the historic district.  The Olde Pink House was memorable for dinner.  We also had fish and chips at Molly Macpherson's Scottish Pub & Grill where the waiters wear kilts.

Lunch at Gallery Espresso was fun and so was dessert at Lulu's Chocolate Bar.  There are so many great places to eat in the Savannah historic district.  So…….more to come.

Savannah trip

What a wonderful city to visit.  Once again I was struck by its beauty and accessibility.  The historic district is a great place to stay and there are so many sights and restaurants within walking distance.  We stayed at Planters Inn for the second time.  This boutique hotel is in a 200 year old building, with lovely amenities.  The rooms feature reproduction furniture by Baker, with four poster beds.

A wine and cheese reception is offered in the lobby each afternoon between 5:30 and 7:30.  Such a nice place to gather before dinner.  There is a pianist to play romantic music and lots of little seating areas for quiet conversation.

I love to walk in Savannah.  There is so much to see with all the pretty squares, gardens, historical buildings and sculptures.

The residential areas have so many gorgeous old homes.

We met a fellow at the hotel (visiting from Toronto) who studies architecture.  What a perfect place for that.

There’s something for everyone here -  the foodie, the history buff, the shopper, the photographer……

I did visit my favorite tea room on Broughton (The Tea Room) and for this visit hubby and another couple joined me.  Sadly, I didn’t make a reservation for traditional afternoon tea, but I must say I was impressed with my gazpacho and turkey avocado wrap.  The chef roasts the turkey on the premises, instead of using deli sliced.  I drank a pot of Temi Sikkim tea and hubby enjoyed the Pinhead Gunpowder.  Our friends said the peach iced tea and Assam Mangalam were also very good.

We ate at many restaurants and coffee shops.  I’ll post more on those later.  On our way out of the historic district we visited Back In The Day Bakery – they have been getting a lot of press on their cookbook by the same name (with a forward by Paula Deen).  I so wish I’d bought an autographed copy while we were there.