A Week on Instagram

I was quite busy with Instagram last week.

I thought it might be fun to share the photos I posted.

I had an errand to run one day near where my daughter lives.  So, I picked her up and we spent the afternoon together.  We decided to visit Roger's Gardens.  We wanted to see what they had in their Easter section.  Plus, it's always a fun place to spend some time.

Here are some of the photos from our visit...

We loved the colors in this flower arrangement...

This was an interesting idea they had near the entrance.

It's fabric bags that were filled with soil and plants and attached to the wall. 

I love Hydrangeas!  So pretty!

They look like they have a little bead or pearl in each center.

Just a couple blocks away is a shopping area called "Fashion Island".

I'd never been there and thought it would be fun to check out.  They have lots of fun stores to browse through...lots of expensive and pretty clothing.  And, it's outdoors instead of being a mall.

It was a gorgeous day!  We could even see the ocean from one side of the shopping center.

They had lots of really cool water features throughout the shopping center.

We had a lot of fun watching the giant Koi fish.  They were friendly and we could even touch them!

Ewwww!...slimy!  I like how this Instagram photo turned out...looks kind of like a painting.

I enjoyed a lot of tea last week.  I even made some chai tea lattes.  Mmmmm!

I like Yogi brand tea a lot and their tea tags are fun to read.

This was a good one....so true!

I made some refrigerator dill pickles.  I put a little cauliflower in the top part of each jar.
I hope they survived the death of our fridge.

They're in an ice chest right now.  The new fridge arrives tomorrow.  I can't wait!

I'd just gone grocery shopping the day before.  It turned warm really fast...almost like it changed from being a cold making box to a heat making box!  So, we lost quite a bit of food.  Oh well!  That's life!

I made a couple batches of lemonade last week.  I used Meyer lemons from the tree in our back yard.

Mmmmm!  I like mixing it with green tea sometimes too.  More yum!

Sadly, I had to throw out a large pitcher of lemonade when the fridge died.  Just couldn't drink it fast enough and there wasn't room in the ice chest.  We tried to eat a lot of the food that night too.

Can't wait to make some more lemonade when the new fridge arrives.

The recent rains have transformed the landscape around us.  It's changed from brown to green.

It's gorgeous!  We're soaking in the sights as much as we can because it won't last long.

In fact, the weather is in the 80's and 90's this week.

So, I bet the green will go back to brown within a week or so.

It always amazes me how fast it can change one way or the other.

I did an experiment of trying to make my favorite recipe of cheddar/ham chowder but without

any dairy ingredients.  I can't eat dairy anymore.  I used cauliflower to make a creamy base.

It was a success and SO delicious! 

That's my week on Instagram!  I just love posting on there.

The effects are fun too but I don't always use them.

Do you use Instagram?  If so, you can find me there under the user name, "acorntooak".

Chilly Morning

These chilly mornings after a long, hot summer are so refreshing.

I'm enjoying a hot cup of tea this morning and a little fun with mazes.

I'm wearing jeans instead of shorts, socks instead of flip flops and I even have a jacket on.

Enjoy this wonderful Fall day!

Warm Wishes

Our local knit/crochet group sometimes meets at member's homes.  The dear host of one of our recent meetings had something that I'd never seen before.  It was a teapot warmer.  It was glass and held a tea light candle, the teapot sat on top, and it kept the teapot warm.  What a great idea!  I instantly knew I wanted one and planned to keep my eye out at antique stores and yard sales to see if I could find one.

It turns out that they aren't as rare as I'd thought.  I'd just never seen them before.  Since then, I saw some at Teavana.  They were a bit pricey.  But, last week, I saw a nice one at World Market and the price was a lot better.  I didn't get it that day but decided that I definitely wanted it after thinking about it that night and reading great reviews about it online.  However, before I had a chance to get it, my sweet daughter surprised me with it for my birthday!  She made a pot of tea, placed a candle in the warmer and surprised me at breakfast.  She also gave me a cute card that she had made.  We enjoyed hot tea and fresh, homemade granola.  What a great way to start my birthday!

I already had this teapot and it fits great on the warmer.

The warmer is cast iron.  The top lifts off to place the candle inside and for lighting it.

The top is textured so it's not slippery and the teapot sits securely on top.

It works great!  The tea stays steaming hot to the very last cup.

It's been getting a lot of use.  I love it!

Tea Time

We're becoming big fans of tea.  It started slow.  Years ago, we just had a cup or two a year.  Then, we started making and drinking sun tea.  A few years ago, we started making our own version Starbucks' green tea lemonade.  Since then, we've been trying more and more kinds of tea.  Even Yerbe Mate.  I've been hearing more and more about the health benefits of tea.  It's especially enjoyable to drink at this time of year when the weather starts to get a bit chilly.  A hot cup of tea, a cozy couch, and a yarn project are a wonderful way to spend some time.

Our collection of tea grew so big a couple of years ago that I decided to create a tea drawer.  There have been a few times that the amount of tea we had out grew the space of the drawer.  It's quite handy to have it all together in one, easy to view and choose space.

This past year, we've become big fans of Yogi brand tea.  It started with their "Breathe Deep" tea.  The taste is surprising and delicious.  Even more surprising is how well it works to help clear a stuffy head from a cold or allergies.  Since it worked so well, we've tried several of their other medicinal type teas and been equally surprised and happy at how well they have worked.  Just be careful if you use the "Get Regular" tea.  One member of my family tried it and found out that a half a cup would have worked just fine!

I'm trying "Relaxed Mind" this week.  I thought it might be worth a try since life has been so stressful lately.  The box says it helps to balance your mood and nurture creativity.  That sounds good.  I had some yesterday and I felt great.  I'm not sure if the tea had anything to do with it or not but I'm giving it another try today.  I'm not crazy about the flavor of this one but the smell is awesome.  It has sage in it and the scent reminds me of a hike and the smell of sagebrush.  Mmmm.

I like Ruby Red Chai tea from Trader Joe's.  It's super yummy mixed with rice milk (coconut, soy, almond or regular would be fine too) and a teaspoon of raw sugar or honey.  Sooo good and not too sweet.

It's fun to find and try different flavors.  Do you drink tea?  What's your favorite?