Tin Roof Teas

I really enjoyed my visit to Raleigh, North Carolina

to see my BGD (Beautiful God Daughter), her handsome fella

(AKA The Kids) and to attend their confirmation.

One afternoon, BGD and I set out to find Tin Roof Teas

and boy, did we find tea!

BGD is a coffee drinker, but she was a good sport 
and tasted all the samples of the day.




I think BGD liked Pineapple Mimosa Fruit the best.
My favorite was Arabian Night.
We enjoyed China White Monkey and to be fair,
it was a warm day so the cold tea was really good!

There were rows of tea and colorful teapots, tea mugs, tea bag holders.
All sorts of tea utensils. 
I didn't get a picture of the tea bar where they make their own blends.




Matcha sets, more pretty tea cups and 
they have wonderful tins and ceramics for storage.
If all else fails, and you don't find any tea that you like,
perhaps some chocolate will do!




Be sure to visit Tin Roof Teas if you are in the Raleigh, North Carolina area.

Wishing YOU well, much joy and a wonderful cup of tea!

Big thanks to the hosts of:
Mosaic Monday

Teatime Tuesday
Teacup Tuesday

Friends Sharing Tea

Tuesday Cuppa Tea

Share Your Cup Thursday

Postcard Friendship Friday

Postcard Friendship Friday is hosted by the lovely Beth. Be sure you visit!

Today Beth has posted a card about our wonderful national flag.

I would like to say I did some closet cleaning this week, but that wouldn't be the truth.

I have this closet. It houses a little of everything. Extra pillows, yarn, beads, photos. I am happy to report that the door does close and nothing falls out when I open the door. In my search for the objects I was looking for, I found some old postcards. I didn't remember them at all and it was a very pleasant surprise. Here is one of them - The San Antonio River Walk. I have to admit that I love the painted look and the wonderful colors of the older cards.

The very top of the card reads: "Where Sunshine and Shadows Meet". Scene on the San Antonio River, San Antonio, Texas.

My parents and I did live in San Antonio for a very short time when I was 6 years old.

That was some 50 - cough, cough - years ago. I'm guessing that is when this card was purchased ... a remembrance of sorts.

Happy PFF!

Postcard Friendship Friday

The lovely Marie is our postmistress for Postcard Friendship Friday.

Today Marie has a card featuring the letter W and a story about Braille.

Go see it!

I thought today I'd celebrate Canada - in honor of the beautiful country to the north that has brought us the winter Olympics this year.
I don't have Vancouver postcards, so it's off to Toronto we go.

Toronto at night.

Toronto Island

Toronto Harbourfront

All of these cards were sent to me by a dear blogging friend of mine.

If you haven't met Sherry, you should!

Happy PFF!

My World

Be sure to visit My World to see more of our world or to participate yourself.

I love this time of year in Houston.
There's so much to do -- too much!

Last week I went to the International Quilt Festival with
my Sista and god-daughter.
We girls always have a good time together.
We were wowed by what we saw.

It was a hard decision just deciding where to start!
So much to see!

(On the Wings of A Dream by Caryl Bryer Fallert)

This quilt is called On The Wings of A Dream
and was the grand-prize winner.
Caryl Bryer Fallert from Paducah, Kentucky is the artist.
Caryl describes the quilt this way:
"After a major life event, a new life chapter begins, and
there is freedom to make new choices and try new things.
The dancer and the transparent white bird merg
together to represent this freedom. The eagle represents
the past, which must be left behind in order to move forward."
Hand dyed and painted, machine pieced, embroidered, quilted

(Beyond the Horizon by Mary Ann Hildebrand)

I promised Kim over at Calamity Kim's that I would post
this quilt called Beyond the Horizon today.
It is based on one of Kim's favorite woodcuts.
The artist of this quilt called Beyond The Horizon is
Mary Ann Hildebrand of Comfort, Texas.
Mary Ann says " This quilt was made in response to a local
art center's call for quilts based on other art forms and my
husband's challenge to do the design.
It is based on an early woodcut."

(Touque - a neat word for a hat, eh? by Victoria Gray)

There was a whole section of quilts made by Canadian artists.
This quilt by Victoria Gray from Heffley Creek, British Columbia, Canada
is called "Touque (tuk) n. a neat word for a hat, eh?"
It made me smile. Fun, isn't it?!!!
I would think a knitted hat would be indispensable in Canada!
Techniques: Hand appliqued, embroidered, braided and distressed,
painted, stuffed, trapunto, machine quilted

This is just a glimpse. There are more for another day!

Click here to view all participants of My World Tuesday.

Joy!

My World

Visit My World to see more of our world or to participate yourself!

Last week our grandson and his parents were visiting.
We had a great time and now you get to see some of the pictures!

(Himself with the menu)

One evening we went to the Rain Forest Restaurant.
We were surrounded by animated animals.
Every 20 minutes there was a rain storm.
No water, but the lights flashed like lightening with plenty of sound effects.

The monkeys made monkey sounds.

The tigers growled every now and then.

The elephants raised their tusks and flapped their ears.

But it was Tracy the Talking Tree that HIMSELF really liked.

Click here to view all participants of My World Tuesday.

Joy!

Camera Critters

It's Saturday so it must be Camera Critters time.

Be sure to visit to see other critters from around the world.

We are going back to the Houston Zoo

for more of Photography Day

and cats.

This beautiful little cat is the Margay.

The Margay is about two feet tall from feet to shoulders, three feet long and weighs about five to twelve pounds. It has gray to golden-brown fur with black and brown spots. The spots on its sides are often different shapes and are often black with a brown center. Its undersides are white. The Margay has a small head, large ears and eyes and a long tail.

The Margay can be found from Mexico to Argentina. It was once found in the United States in Texas. The last Margay seen in the United States was spotted in Texas in the 1850s.

(Please excuse the blur ... between the rain and this little guy being in constant motion it made getting a really good shot a little beyond my capabilities.)

The Margay makes its home in tropical and subtropical forests.

The Margay eats a wide-variety of food including birds, bird eggs, small mammals, reptiles and fruit. It hunts primarily in trees.

Margays mate year-round. Females give birth to one or two young three to four months after mating. The kittens begin to eat meat when they are about eight weeks old.




The Margay is nocturnal. It is a very good climber and jumper. It has joints in its ankles that rotate 180 degrees. This helps it climb down vertical trees headfirst. It is the only cat in North America that can do that! It can also hang from tree limbs by one hind foot. It spends most of its time in the tree canopy hunting for birds, small mammals, reptiles and eggs.

The Margay is near threatened because of loss of habitat.



We spent a lot of time just watching this little guy. He was in constant motion -- up, down, around and do it all again and again.


Here's a video from the zoo on You Tube. The keeper will talk about enrichment for the cats and this little guy is in the video -- constant motion! You'll also see the Fossa, Leopards, Tigers.

Enjoy!

My World

Visit My World to see more of our world or to participate yourself!

I'm taking us back to Williams Tower and the grounds around the building to the Water Wall.

A three acre setting

Dedicated in 1985
Built and designed by John Burgee architects with
Philip Johnson Network

The gabled archway fronting the fountain, the scaenae frons
is reminiscent of an ancient Roman theatre stage.

11,000 gallons of water
per minute
spill over the walls of the 64 foot high fountain.

front and back

We had seen the Water Wall many times on the local television stations.
We had never visited the Wall before until the day we visited
the Williams Tower for the art exhibition for Mr. Turner.

I can't begin to tell you how overwhelming it is.
And, the sound of all that water!
WOW!

Click here to view all participants of My World Tuesday.

Postcard Friendship Friday

I'd like to thank our lovely postmistress Marie for putting Postcard Friendship Friday together.

Be sure to visit her to see the other participants.

Does this look familiar to you?
Can you hear the theme song playing in your mind?

We visited Lake Tahoe several years ago.
Near where we were staying was the amusement park
The Ponderosa Ranch.
On the North Shore of Beautiful Lake Tahoe

Who was your favorite Cartwright?
I liked big brother Adam, then there's Little Joe,
Dad Ben and of course, Hoss.
Here they are in front of the Ranch House.

The Ranch House of the Cartwrights
showing the exterior, living room,
and Ben's Office.
"This legendiary home has authentic antiques
and furnishings gathered from around the world."
(From the back of the postcard.)

This may be my favorite postcard of the Ponderosa Village
at Incline Village, Nevada.
I love the view of Lake Tahoe in the background.

Every time we go someplace new, I buy postcards. I even send a few out to friends and occasionally send one to myself. Memories!

My World

Visit My World to see more of our world or to participate yourself!

Today I'm taking you to The Path of Tea.

You can see all the teapots in the window.
They were everywhere inside.

This is the sniffing bar.
133 organic teas to pick from.

You pick the tea cup you wish to drink from.

Here's Mr. Dragon with his red velvet cupcake.
We need to go back to more pictures of the TEA!
We had such a good time, we forgot all about the camera!

They had wonderful goodies to pick from.
Here's my cupcake.
Several bars and cookies were made with tea.
We picked a green tea called Jasmine Dragon Pearl.

The girls had a black tea flavored with Lychee.

What made this tea drinking special were our two guests.
The one on the left is the curator for Asian Art at the museum.
The one on the right used to be her assistant, Vivian.
Vivian may look familiar to those of you who have followed me for awhile.
Vivian went temple trekking with us before she went to China to study.
Now she's off to Michigan to work on her Ph.D.
This was a farewell and good luck tea.

Click here to view all participants of My World Tuesday.

My World

Visit My World to see more of our world or to participate yourself!

Last week we walked around the Museum District in Houston a little more and this week I thought we'd return to Hermann Park and walk a little there.
Hermann Park is nestled between the Texas Medical Center, Rice University, and
the Museum District.

This is the reflection pool. It is 740 feet long and 80 feet wide.
We are looking toward the Pioneer Monument (obelisk 50 feet tall) and
the Miller Outdoor Theatre.

There is a jogging trail that winds it's way through the park --
about 2 miles long.
You can sit along the way and relax under the old live oak trees.

How about some Tai Chi?

If you are tired of walking, you can always take the train!

Or sit and share your lunch with a friend.

(Click to enlarge photos.)

Click here to view all the participants of My World Tuesday.

Thanks for visiting.

Joy to You!

Wabash Antiques And Feed Store

Wednesday is our day to do errands and just play around in Houston. We call Wednesday our adventure day. It is our no computer day. (Try that one on for size!)



The Wabash Antiques and Feed Store: Bees Buzzing, Pigs Flying, Spring is Here! YeeHaw! We've driven by the Wabash many times on our way to and from the parking for the Bayou City Art Festival that is held in Memorial Park in the spring. We decided our adventure for last Wednesday would be to stop and visit the Wabash.




This had to be a very quick picture as cars were coming and going the entire time we were there. Folks knew what they wanted (everything from pet food to fertilizer to plant seeds to animals), got it, got back in their cars and off they went. The Wabash had lots to pick from including chicks, hens, roosters and kittens. Oh, the kittens. Mr. Dragon just shook his head. I knew he was thinking three fur babies are enough!

They did have *flying* pigs ... made of scrap metal.
They had lots of scrap animals.

A very large chicken of scrap metal.

Beautiful swans-
They really didn't want their pictures taken.
One would bob and the other weave as the photos were taken!
Perhaps it was a game for them.
Let's drive this woman nuts!

Amongst the pots and other outdoor accessories we found
the fish, crab and behind the fish is a scrap metal swan in the water.

The herbs were an herb gardeners dream!
They also had fruit and citrus trees just for our area.

We haven't decided what our adventure will be for tomorrow.

Think you know all there is to know about where you live?
Try an adventure day and find out!