Tea Pots & Memories...

I've never considered myself much of a partaker of Tea, only the occasional unsweetened tea when I travel or eat out. I can't even make a decent pitcher of sweet tea, which is a shame and a sin, considering I dwell in the south! I didn't realize I had as many Tea Pots & Sets as I did, until I joined in the challenge of the Week 3, Tea-a-thon, hosted by Gracious Hospitality. And so my search began...



Since posting a couple of days ago, with tea pots still on my mind, I began to recall pictures of Ashley taken with tea pots at various ages. I started pulling out my scrapbooks. I love to scrapbook, but have fallen severely behind! There just isn't enough time to fit it in these days. And...when I scrapbook, my world shuts down! Dishes, dust, and laundry pile high and thick, my family and pets go hungry, bits of paper, stickers, and pictures are scattered, and litter what seems the entire house, and myself....Oh, I'm a frightening mess! But I do enjoy it, and the results of capturing our memories is priceless!

I began to leaf through the pages of the books, each turned page evoking a floodgate of emotions and recollections. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so I alternated between the two. Sometimes both at the same time! And I have to say, "My babies are P-R-E-C-I-O-U-S, just beautiful!" But then, being their Mom, I may be a little biased! "smiles" I laughed at how funny the were, (and still are!), as I recalled their personalites and the things they did and said. And I cried, for one, the simple fact that they are growing way too fast. Where does the time go? And, for the loved ones in the pictures, that have since passed away, and meant so much to us!

And all the while, the "cheesy" song, Memories, played in my mind and I can't escape it!

Lyrics...

"Memories, light the corners of our minds,...scattered pictures of the smiles we left behind, smiles we gave to one another, from the way we were. Can it be that it was all so simple then? Or has time rewritten every line?... For it's the laughter we will remember, whenever we remember, the way we were...."

~~~~~~

Memories are much an old friend, and I've decided to share just a few with you, although I could fill this blog with pages and pages of them! :) My daughter will complain that I have probably picked the worst ones, as she always does! LOL! It was hard to pick which ones to share, but I narrowed it down, for one, many contained family and friends that I didn't want to post without their consent. And please keep in mind, most of these are from the late 90's and early 2000, before I had the clarity of a digital camera. :)

Hope that you enjoy them, as much as I have sharing them...

The inspirational picture for this blog!

I'm not sure that you can read the poem, this is it...

~~~~~

The Tea Party

"I had a little tea party, One afternoon at three, T'was very small, Just I, myself, and me.

Myself ate up the sandwiches, While I drank up the tea, T'was also I who ate the pie, And passed the cake to me."
~Anonymous

~~~~~

Madeline's Tea Party

When Ashley was 5, 6, and 7, she participated in "Madeline's Tea Party," hosted by the Literacy Council, as a fundraiser. The girls, accompanied by their moms, dressed in their prettiest dresses, hats, ribbons, and gloves, and enjoyed a delightful light lunch and tea! "Madeline" made an appearance, read one of her books, and took pictures with the girls.

She signed their books, which Ashley still has!

~~~~~~~

I also have pictures, that I didn't include, of Ashley at an Americal Girl Tea Party, at the American Girl Store in NY, much to her chagrin! She was 12, "way too cool," and only went to appease her cousin! LOL! Don't get me wrong, she is a great girl...it was just a phase! :) But I did want to share, that if you are in NY and have a younger girl along, it is a wonderful, fun event to try and the food is great!

~~~~~~~

Ashley ever quite the princess...was also a Ballerina...

David & Ashley...

This is a picture of the Grandmother that I inherited the blue & white Tea Set from, shown in a previous post. She spent her last couple of years in a rest home and passed away three days after my father-in-law, pictured below.

Pictures of a Past Vacation To Florida...

Pictures of past Halloween Costumes...
(Also, captures Ashley's art...the Dog Drawing...)

Pictures of time spent at our Lake House...

The last page/picture contains one of my father-in-law, the children's"Grandaddy Bill", who passed away two years ago. The children were really close to him!