Welcome sweet friends. We are in the deep freeze in Northeast Alabama! It is hard to believe that our Gulf Coast beaches and South Alabama are forecast to have snow and/or sleet today!
“I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands.”
Psalm 143:5 (ESV)
January is National Hot Tea Month and I have set a table for two in the cottage to celebrate.
I look forward to the third Tuesday of each month when Mary and I share tea with our readers. We are always delighted to have Shannon from Belle Bleu Interiors as our special guest. She is a fellow tea enthusiast and a sweetheart. The links for lovely teatimes with Mary and Shannon are at the bottom of this post!
Sunshine Cottage provides coziness and warmth during the gray and cold days of winter. It is a perfect spot for reading and reflection while enjoying a cup of tea. The dappled sunlight casts a magical display on the table!
In celebration of National Hot Tea Month, I am serving up my favorite, Earl Grey! A special blend, Earl Grey Crème, from the Spice & Tea Exchange combines the comforting flavors of vanilla and cream to lighten the citrus notes of a traditional Earl Grey!
If you are a tea enthusiast, you will love “The Art of Tea” from the editors of Victoria Magazine. The book is filled with stunning photos, delicious recipes, and beautiful presentations of taking tea! I often refer to this treasured book for inspiration!
Being an avid outdoorsman, my Renaissance Man’s love for nature has sparked my interest in bird watching. January is the perfect month to watch birds from my kitchen and dining room windows! With that in mind, I pulled out a set of Pottery Barn ‘Winter Fauna’ bird salad plates that were discontinued long ago. I can’t even remember the last time I used them. With my new hobby, the bird plates are perfect for a winter tea!
All through the day, I catch myself peering through the kitchen window watching the cardinals and mourning doves as they flock to the bird seed on the ground next to the back walkway. They share with a variety of smaller birds that gather in numbers at the spot, although occasionally there is a bully among the bigger birds that attempts to discourage the others. I guess birds act like humans at times! Bluebirds and bluejays on the other hand are all around the yard and garden but never join the group buffet. Both will venture very close, but tend to be loners that hang out with their own family group.
Spode ‘Blue Room’ dinner plates compliment the tea set adding more blue and white to the table. I repurposed a tartan throw as a tablecloth which provides a feeling of warmth on this very cold day!
An appointment in Birmingham last week gave me an opportunity to visit Trader Joe’s…
…and a display caught my eye. Large packages of Danish Kringle had captured the attention of several shoppers. I noticed two ladies had placed a couple in their shopping carts. A very inquiring mind had to know if they had tried them before. Their answer was yes and they loved them. At the check-out, the cashier told us they receive shipments about every other month and they are always a different flavor. The pecan Danish Kringle was delicious and Butch, Daddy, and EM gave it a thumbs up. Are you familiar with the award winning Danish Kringle from the O&H Danish Bakery in Racine, Wisconsin? Strawberry, pistachio, and amaretti macarons along with chocolate hazelnut Piroulines, and Danish Kringle served on a stack of Bordallo Pinheiro dessert plates provided sweet bites for afternoon tea.
Last year I discovered that tea lattes were delicious. I love a coffee latte or cappuccino, but for some reason, a tea latte had never appealed to me. In celebration of National Hot Tea Month, I made myself a London Fog Latte to serve in my pretty cardinal cup that Mary sent me for Christmas, 2023. A London Fog is warm, sweet, and frothy with a hint of citrus from the bergamot-flavored tea. It is quite simple to make. Brew a cup of Earl Grey tea and leave room at the top. Add your choice of sweetener, I used honey. Heat about a 1/4 cup of milk and froth in a milk frother. I like to spoon the froth on top with a sprinkle of cinnamon for the perfect finish!
“Winter is the season that is full of excuses; excuses to sit by a warm fire, excuses to drink hot chocolate, excuses to snuggle up closer to the one you love.”
~ Butch Richardson
Long-time readers know that I am a collector to a fault. Butch and I had been married a couple of years when a friend of mine gave me a porcelain Hummel figurine. From that ‘Little Hiker’ the collection grew for many years. I haven’t added to the collection in more than twenty five years, but I still love the sweet rosy cheeked children and can’t part with them. I have an antique French glass-front cabinet in our primary bedroom that is filled with Hummel figurines. They were once highly sought after collectibles, but not so much now. I never collected to resale, but just because I think they are charming.
Many years ago, a very dear friend gave me ‘Icy Adventure’, a scene of an outdoor frozen pond with a pair of darling ice skaters, a rosy cheeked boy and girl who had fallen down on the ice!
There are no flowers on my table, just a pitcher of blush nandina and rosemary. The scent of rosemary fills the cottage!
Nothing gets past the eyes of EM. She examined the ice skating scene and noticed two cups of hot chocolate with marshmallows, a pair of rabbits, and a blue bird!
You have a special invitation to join Mary and Shannon for tea!
Mary ~ Home Is Where the Boat Is
Shannon ~ Belle Bleu Interiors
Thank you for your visit and gracious comments. Stay warm and safe, my friends!
Linking with: Pieced Pastimes, Between Naps on the Porch, Katherines Corner, Follow The Yellow Brick Home,
Life and Linda
Good Morning Pam! Your Sunshine Cottage is living up to its name with the sunlight dancing across your table and making for a cozy setting to enjoy your tea latte! I’m a fellow bird enthusiast and enjoy keeping them feed and watching from the window in winter too. I have the same set of Winter Fauna plates, they look so pretty with the accent of blue from your Spode and tartan plaid throw as a tablecloth and I’m so glad you’re enjoying your Cardinal teacup! 🐦I so wish we had a Trader Joe’s closer to us…your Danish Kringle looks like the perfect treat to enjoy with your latte. I love your sweet Hummel figure scene too…the icy adventure so fitting with the Arctic blast we’re experiencing this week. As always, it’s a treat to join you for teatime. Hope you stay warm and cozy this week! ❄️❤️
Thanks so much, Mary! Our low tonight is supposed to be 8 degrees. Mobile and our Gulf Coast could receive 2-3 inches 🤍❄️
Good Morning. I love those bird plates on your tea table. I have been giving the little birds lots of seed in the feeders with it being so cold. We are -7 today. The wind chill is so cold. I am praying for an early Spring. I know you guys are not use to these temps and SNOW!!!!! Stay warm and cozy. Hugs. Kris
Oh my, Kris -7 sounds just horrible. Stay safe and warm, my friend. Thank you for your faithful visits!
Beautiful table, and would be lovely to share a cuppa in your cottage. I adore Victoria books, every one is full of the grace I wish still existed in the world.
Thank you, Carole! It would be fun to share a cuppa with you!
Minus 9 currently at my house but weather forecast is for the weather gage go up to 40! When I turned the tv on this morning the reporter was having a hissy fit over snow in Texas. The children will be so excited to have snow in those places that snow is a dream. I would gladly send some to you if I could. Tea sounds wonderful . Just put sweet potatoes in the oven to warm the kitchen and to make sweet sweet potato pancakes later.
Alice, sweet potato pancakes sound delicious. I have never made them but I think I should. Stay safe in that cold. It is supposed to be 8 degrees here tonight, that is cold for Alabama!
The Sunshine Cottage is indeed such a wonderful spot to get cozy in with a cup of tea Pam! I love the warmth that you feel immediately when looking at the tartan throw on your table. I adore cardinals and always feel lucky when I spy one out the window, and your bird captures are so pretty. I love the Kringle’s at Trader Joe’s, the pecan one you got sounds really good. Your bird plates are wonderful and I love the cardinal tea cup Mary sent you! The Hummel figurines are adorable! Stay warm this week, and I can’t wait to see if they get snow on the coast!!
Thank you, Jenna! Butch just read that James Spann said Mobile would get the largest snowfall since February 1973!
Stay warm during our freeze. Tonight is supposed to be 8 degrees. That is cold!
Good morning, Pam! Sunshine Cottage is the perfect spot to enjoy tea on this cold winter’s day. The dappled sunlight streaming in is so pretty. As a fellow bird watcher, those bird plates made my heart swoon. They pair so beautifully with the blue and white china. I adore plaid, and the plaid throw adds a perfect layer of warmth to your setting. Earl Grey tea is my favorite, and I love a delicious London Fog too. Around the corner from Caroline’s apartment is the cutest coffee shop, and they make the best London Fog. That is where I first tried one, and I was hooked. Your sweet treats look delicious. It was such a joy to join Mary and you for tea today. I wish you a most wonderful day, my dear friend! Stay safe and warm!
I so love your winter table and I’d love to have a seat there, sip one of my favorites (also Earl Grey) from a charming blue and white teapot and talk Hummels with another fan. Yes, I have a few, too. I am a MASSIVE Kringle fan.They freeze beautifully and whenever I see them, I get an extra for the freezer. Raspberry is wonderful, too (and I love the pecan; almond isn’t bad but I like the others better.) That company — I wonder if they are the only ones who make Kringle — I never see one by anyone else!
oh on this cold, frigid day, what a pleasure to stop in here for a warm and cozy visit. i’d love to share a hot cup of tea with you and friends. and bonus points for those beautiful plaid woolen blankets. thanks for a wonderful visit, friend! be well.
The Sunshine Cottage is the perfect place to get cozy with a cup of tea. I would give anything to sit with you at your lovely table, sipping Earl Grey tea from a beautiful blue and white teapot! We, too, are bird watchers. The goldfinches love our feeder and also enjoy water from our fountain. I love your bird dishes. How wonderful to have those. As for the Kringle, I have never had it, but I am sure I would love it!
Happy Tuesday! Stay warm and cozy, my friend!
It’s a great day for hot tea here in Wisconsin! Earl Grey sounds mighty fine with our weather at -5 degrees with a feels like windchill of -14 degrees! Your table scape is so charming, warm and inviting–absolutely love that little ice-skating scene.
Wonderful Tea time!!! Balm to the soul… Hugs and blessings.
Your Hummel caught my eye and it is adorable. I have an extensive collection of Hummels and sadly most of the collection is boxed. I moved and only took out 3 large ones. It is sad that the Hummels are no longer collected. If you are lucky to find out on the secondary market they are inexpensive. Most dealers in my area have no interest. Continue to enjoy yours!
Oh, Pam, your teatime in the sunshine cottage is perfect for this cold day here in Austin. I will happily join you! I’ve never tried a tea latte, but you are tempting me to give it a try. I need to find my frother!
Love the sunkissed shots and Butch’s quote. I’ve saved it off and may use it soon, with his permission, of course.
Trader Joe’s Kringles are always in my freezer ready when company shows up. I favor the almond, but need to try the pecan. I will pick one up next time I’m there. The ART OF TEA is one of my go to books, and bird watching is also a favorite activity. I recently added a bird feeder outside my kitchen sitting room. I noticed this morning that it is more than half empty, so I best fill it up. A friend recently received a birdfeeder with a built in camera. Have you seen those? It even records their sound and identifies the birds.
Thanks for the cozy tea and chat.
Good morning Pam, it looks so lovely and cozy in Sunshine Cottage! The plates are spectacular. After you recommended the Earl Grey Creme, I went back to Highlands and purchased some. Making a London Fog will be on my list! Our low is “only” 17 with a chance of snow showers, but Charleston is looking at 4-6”. Isn’t bird watching fun? I filled big saucers again this morning with black oil sunflower seeds and have had at least 10 cardinals all day (plus one fat squirrel and kitty noses pressed against the window!)
What a delightful Tea time Pam! I didn’t realise you all had a National Tea Month, just my cup of tea, lol!
You had all my favourites too even the blue & white china, & I could partake in a Macaroon r two as they’re gluten free! A perfect cuppa together sweet friend.
I often enjoy a Chai Tea Latté when I’m out & about as a treat.
Blessings, Jennifer