Snowed in

January 6, 2014



We had more than eight inches of new snow here in Michigan yesterday, with maybe 16 or 18 inches in total over the past week. Wind chills are supposed to get down to -35 F tonight! We got the groceries in and the cars tanked up (not that we're going anywhere) before the storm hit.

We checked our flashlights and brought more candles up from the basement and charged our phones and did laundry in case we lost power. My husband brought in armloads of wood. We filled up the birdfeeders. My daughter made cookies, oatmeal scotchies, her brother's favorite.


And now . . . what a perfect time to sit in front of the fire, and have tea while the wind blows and the temperatures continue to drop.




I have many beautiful teacups that I love to use, but one of my very favorite is this mismatched set. The saucer is missing its cup; I broke it years ago. The cup came without a saucer from a collection my mother-in-law had. They don't match, of course, but I love the cup especially so I put them together.

Look at how beautiful the blue is on this cup . . .



My favorite strong black tea is PG Tips. It almost looks like coffee here.


Sometimes I sweeten it with this Demerara rough-cut sugar from Mauritius. Mauritius is an island east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean, and was home to the do-do bird more than 300 years ago. Yes, it really was a real bird. The bird had no natural predators, but when the Dutch landed there in 1598, the rats on their boats escaped onto the island and found ready food in the do-do birds' nests, which were located conveniently on the ground. This, and hunting by sailors and their domesticated animals, led to the extinction of the do-do by 1662.

Sugar cane is grown in the rich volcanic ash of Mauritius. This Demerara sugar from Mauritius has a natural caramel-like flavor which hasn't been refined out.


This is what I store the sugar in. I'm not sure where this came from, but I've been using it for as long as I can remember.




I loved this little "thatched" roof.


I'm joining Rose Chintz Cottage for Tea Time Tuesday http://sandimyyellowdoor.blogspot.com and with Antiques and Teacups for Tuesday Cuppa Tea


The cup is Phoenix bone china (not sure of pattern name), and the saucer is
colclough bone china (pattern Clc20), both made in England.

Stay warm, and stay inside if you can!

8 comments

  1. I have no problem with mis-matched cups and saucers. I rather like them. We have very cold weather right now with freezing rain today so tea and cookies sound like a great snack. Stay warm. Deb

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    1. thanks for stopping by. I had a peek at your blog -- we love cats here too!

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  2. Hi Deborah,
    We have been in the deep freeze too and I'm sure we've had record snowfall for the month of December. I'm afraid we're in for a very harsh winter this year. But, Spring is in March and it will be here before we know it; eleven weeks away!
    I think mis-matched sets are often very charming and that is a beautiful blue on the cup! To answer your question, yes, I did name my blog after my favourite set of dishes. Thank you for coming to tea and Happy New Year!

    Blessings,
    Sandi

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  3. I have been reading about the cold you are having. It's cold for us here in WA state but no where near what the east is experiencing. We used to live at 5,000 in the mountains and had lots of snow. It was actually sorta fun to get snowed in occasionally! Keep warm! Love the blue of the china. Gorgeous! The cookies look wonderful! I also only use demarara in my tea...I love the mils molasses flavor. Thanks so much for sharing and linking to Tuesday Cuppa Tea!
    Ruth

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    1. thank you Ruth. I do actually enjoy an excuse to cozy up by the fire. I feel sorry for people who actually have to go out in it, like the workers I saw last night on TV fixing a broken water main. Brrrr.

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  4. Those cookies look delicious! ;) I love the pictures of the sugar bowl that looks like a little house with a thatched roof - whimsical and charming. Thanks for a lovely post!

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