A Tradition of Tea - the 2022 Edition

It was a really special summer this year, and I got to participate fully in a fundraiser tea party! I know you have heard me talk about Tea Party before in prior Blogs.  Tea party in the past has been for the benefit of one of the Valley Girls Hockey teams, but this summer it was for Houston Hawks Girls Basketball!  All of the girls from our hockey group had either aged out or were playing out of town and after Covid had closed down a lot of fundraisers, including real party, we were so happy to bring it back for the Girls Basketball team!

The head coach was a guy, and the woodshop teacher, and when we were talking about how to raise money for the team for this upcoming year, I said two words "tea party" - The silence was deafening and I thought he may have choked on his own tounge!

After he got his tounge untied though and we had a good discussion about it, the coaches decided to go for it!  We began planning!

Here is the Menu for the last Tea Party we were able to have with the Hockey teams.  Covid had cancelled a couple of them. The menu is different every year and there is always a "tasting meeting" to narrow down our choices and make final selections for what we will serve.

Here is a place setting on one of the tables- these dishes are my Moms, and are a part of her Christmas dishes.  They aren't so Christmas that they can't be used in the summer for a wonderful tea party and they are just stunning!  Each place gets a copy of the menu so the party goers will know what to expect.

NonEssentials shop in Palmer, Alaska pairs our food items with tea for each course and generously donates tea for the party!  It is always perfect and delicious pairings!  I have gone many times to get the teas they have provided - this year Magic Moon was my favorite - I have a favorite every year but there is never a bad tea!  For this year Rachael Wolfer and I were the tea Brewmasters, and I had no idea how hard that job was until now!  It was all we could do to keep up with the brewing of the tea (correctly), and keeping the tea pots full for the girls to pour at the tables.  It was fun but we didn't have a minute for doing much else. We loved it!

The girls basketball players serve all the food and pour the teas at each table. They also do part of the food prep, help to set up the tea party, wash dishes, and make sure they have things running smoothly!  They have help from my mom, Coaches, parents, Sister in Law Kim Carney, and anyone else who will volunteer!  They work together wonderfully and were just awesome!  There was something for everyone to do, and although the work was sometimes hard, everyone had fun!

We were blessed with decent weather (or at least not a deluge) during the party, and we were also blessed by MyHouse - our local youth shelter and services with some of their Steamdriven Thrift Boutique items for our selfie station!

Which started out like this!

The players and coaches all wore white shirts and black pants/skirts and everyone had a black apron to wear.  They looked so professional and ready for the day!  You gotta love the Xtra Tuffs on some of the girls with their Tea Party wear.

Some wore sandals - and all were beautiful today!

This set is also my Moms - Sandwich glass I believe and its also a beautiful set of dishes.  Yes!  Between all of us, sister, mom, sister in law, friends, me - we have enough dishes to host a tea party with at least 15 tables and up to 150 people!  That's a party!

We were blessed with wonderful donations like these handmade crochet blankets from Donna Benson for our silent auction and dollar auction - beautifully modeled by Donna herself and Shellie Ax.

This is the marvelous tea cart that welcomes people into the garden tea area and where we give directions for how to get every moment out of your Tea Party experience!

I was in charge of making the Thumbprint Cookies as one of my duties. The Vodka bottle is actually home made Vanilla - The bottle is fantastic for making and storing it.

I was also in charge of making the Honeyberry Jelly to go with the scone course!  Kim Carney makes the scones (and a lot of the food) and she is such a great maker!  Never a bad bite!

This year I will be making a lovely Hibiscus Apple Jelly to go with our first course Vanilla Bean Scones.  Can't wait!

Yes!  Real butter!  Only Real butter!  The coffee is not for the cookies - its my drinking coffee in a little Royal Tara Shamrock Demitasse cup. (Yes I have a tea set or three).  Fancy without being too over the top while cooking! lol

Finished Thumbprint Cookies with Cherry Amaretto Jam - so delicious!

The Snowfire Garden all set up for tea!

Getting the silent auction items ready for the auction!  We were blessed with very generous friends and local businesses who gave us some fantastic items!  5 full to overflowing tables and we had things hanging from the tent rafters and sitting on the ground!  It was amazing!

Assistant Coach Riley Davis with the table set with her tea set!  Beautiful Godinger Butterfly Garden with Purple Pyrex to back it up!

A little close up of part of the Godinger dishes.  So beautiful!  Its a favorite - one of many!  We always have fun seeing where people sit at Tea Party - most people choose a tea set rather than a "table".

Mrs Rachel Wolfer Modeling her full set of wonderful tea dishes!  I cant remember what they are but the Coach - whose wife this is - ended up having not one but two tea sets!  Who would have guessed?  One set was like service for 10 or 12!

We try to get everyone who donates a personalized and signed by the team Thank you card.  Complete with photos.  Someday one of these girls will be famous - they all are for this one day!

We finished the day taking our "Thank You" picture in the selfie booth with all the team and coaches!  So much fun and so many memories made (and dollars for the kids too)!

We are getting ready to have Tea Party for this year coming up on July 15th and I am excited to participate again the the preparation and hosting.  We are seriously hoping that the weather will improve and it wont be as soggy as it has been lately!  We have only had about 4 sunny days this whole "summer", and I am ready for some fun in the sun!  You can check out the Facebook event for Tea Party here to learn more about it!

Stay tuned for the 2023 Edition coming up - probably not until August.....but it will be this year!

I hope you have good food, hot tea and wonderful friends to share it with...Blessed Be.

It wears out eventually....

 Every few years or so we have an all out breakdown!  It seems like everything in the house breaks, or is peeling, or falls apart or....something!  This year it has been doorknobs and mattresses!

This is one of the bedroom mattresses - three stories up.  We pushed it out onto the top porch and then out over the railing to the driveway below.  You can't tell, but it has a big "swale" on each side where Hubby and I sleep and the hump in the middle was getting too big to be an effective seeping space.

Reed held it down while the Hubby drives the wheeler over to the truck to take to the dump!  We are only throwing out the mattress not the perfectly good boy!  He thought that was the most fun thing all day - or for a week even!  We have to do more fun things!

I don't have pictures of the new mattress that replaced this one with the giant swale on each side - that was delivered by the pro's! Not these Pro's - the ones from the store!

This is the office door.  It has been getting a little sticky, but we thought we had a little more time to get our poop in a group before we had to replace this knob. Because we have and Ike and we are out of baby gates, we have to keep the office door closed anytime I am not in the house and Ike is.  Remember that one time when he ate my new laptop?  We cannot afford any more Ike eatings so our doorknobs get a lot of use now!

 This is actually our third doorknob since the earthquake and our second one this year.  The last two we actually had to break the door to get it open and into the room and replace the doors!  One of them I was stuck INSIDE the room and could not get out...hence the need to bust down the door.  

Even though it really seems like guys would like to bust down the door, the Hubby isn't thrilled when it happens.  He is sure that people (mostly the door replacement guys - whom we know well) will think I had locked myself in there and he broke it to get at me - it IS a think gin our neighborhood, sadly, just not in our house!

We are pretty sure these are the original doorknobs from when the house was built.  We have been here almost 19 years and we have only replaced the broken ones.  So... we know they are much older than 18 years.  

The handle comes off, but even when put back on it wont turn the inner workings enough to open the door!

This was our conversation - me and the hubby - Him:"where is the drill?  I can drill it out!"  Me: "Its in the office!"  Him: "Ok - Where is the screwdrivers?"  ME: "They're in the office!"  Him:  "What tools are NOT in the office?"  Me: "Sewing tools and a hammer and chisel?"  Him:  "Why are a hammer and chisel in your sewing tools?"  Me:  "Theyre not sewing tools - theyre laundry tools!"  Him:  "No they are not - go get them!"   He didn't even ask why they are laundry tools for me!  It's for breaking up powder detergent when the bag doesnt get closed right and it gets too hard to scoop!  Hammer and Chisel!

And here we are!  Open door, not destroyed, new knob that opens the door smooth as a baby's you know what...It's Butt!

We also replaced a couple of lamp shades this year, you can read about that here if you missed it, and all of the lightbulbs in the house went to LED as they burnt out.  The bulbs were old too!

I hope that you have everything in working order, or at least a plan for when it isn't, and my words of advice for this week are - Buy two doorknobs at a time!

Open doors and fine mattresses!  Happy Spring and Blessed Be!

Traditions of Comfort - Quilts and Surgery Bears

My family has long had traditions that seemed odd to other folks.  Traditions that make effort to ease the burden of heavy events and comfort the sorrowful, sick or hurt.

You may have read about the "Pot Pie" when I was sick and needed to feel the love - it's a newer tradition and if you didn't read that one - you can see it HERE.  It has been extended to some cousins and the sister and brother, and I'm sure to a neighbor or two as well.  

When the boys were little they both had to have surgery for various reasons; Rye for his missing tear ducts and a birth hernia (he was 7 weeks early and stuff just wasn't done forming), and both boys had eye surgery for strabismus - crossed eyes.  Rye they thought was from being early and the muscles didn't quite develop correctly, and Reed because when he was born his nose was broken, chin was cut and he had a "Harry Potter" lightening cut on his forehead!  It probably tore up some muscles from the trauma. 

Rye had his first two surgeries when he was very small - the first for the tear ducts at 11 months old - after we figured out that he didn't just have a "cold in his eyes"!  Things were different then and he did weigh 7 pounds 12 ounces, so until the premie issues started coming up they though they just had our dates wrong!

Nana (my mom and the pot pie maker) made the boys "surgery bears" to have with them and take to the hospital since they had to be without their people in there so they would still be able to feel the love.  

Rye's bear matched the pajamas she made for him and it was so, so cute when he wore the PJ's and had the bear with him.  I still have the bear - I will be looking for the pajamas too - hopefully I saved them, but they may have been worn out!

This was his second surgery when he was 6 years old and we didn't have time to make the pajamas but he still had his bear!  This one was to fix his crossed "lazy" eye.  He had worn glasses for a few years to try to correct it and we tried patching the "good eye" to try to make the other eye stronger and in the end we had to have a surgery to correct it.

Reed's bear from his strabismus surgery was able to go in with him, and its a funny memory because when he was little he always had the hiccups - often!  Sometimes he would get sick of them and in order for him not to be bothered by them we would always tell him "that means you are growing"!  It always appeased him and he would go along and deal with the hiccups cheerfully!  After his eye surgery they brought him out of the recovery area to us in a little red wagon hugging his bear (he was only about 4 years old), and the first thing he said with a big smile was "Mom!  I was growing in there while I had my surgery!"  The nurses were very confused until I said "Oh Great!  Did you have the hiccups?" To which he replied with a victory fst in the air "YES!!"  The nurses were fully enamored of him, of course.

With his broken elbow, they did not let him have aything from outside the room with him, and I really felt sad that he would not have the comfort of that while he was in there, and after until they brought him out.  It was a rough go for him and for me.

My boys forever after that thought that everyone should have a bear to take when they had surgery - and so we got one with a blanket for when their great grand pap had to have cancer surgery.  It made him smile and offered comfort to him when everyone had to leave.  He knew it was love from the boys and it was a good thing.

Meemaw sent the bear to us when Pap passed away and we still have it now - reminding us of him and bringing comfort to us.

I know you have read about the "People Quilt" as I have included it in the blogs often and it has had many adventures on which to comfort me.  You can read about the origin of the quilt HERE.

This is the people quilt and my mom when we went to an herbal retreat - it was a blast and the quilt was a comfort - it got cold in that tent!  We learned a lot about local herbs and herbs for resiliancy a that retreat....we also learned that we greatly appreciate flush toilets and toilet paper! That however, is a story for another time!

When my dear friends husband died of cancer, I brought a quilt to her house that we put the binding on while we were greiving and waiting all the things to be done that had to be done, and while the shock was still new and fresh and we needed something to do with our hands other than wring them and wipe tears.  She had many people trying to make her make decisions that she was not able to make right at that moment, and the quilt gave her comfort and warmth, and maybe a bit of a hiding place, while she wrapped her brain around what had happened. 

And when another friends son died I finished this one for her to comfort and keep her warm knowing that she had a banket of love to wrap up in.

This one was made for an Aunt who battled (successfully thankfully) the ugly C word and was cold all the time from the treatments.  It has heavy batting in it and a warm fleece backing, and it gave her comfort to have it while at the same time giving me comfort and something that I "could do" to help in the situation, when it always feels like there is nothing that can be done.  She lives far away and had lots of folks bringing her meals and such.  A quilt is what I can do.  It has saved my life many times over, to create something beautiful and useful, instead of letting the grief take over and kill me.

Quilting has to save my life less these days, but I continue to do it now to keep f'ing going, and to keep comfort for others happening.  For new babies, newly marrieds, and anyone else who might need it, and yes for me.

I hope you have the comfort of love whenever you need it, and that you have friends who know how to make that comfort appear in whatever form it takes - hiccups and all!

Blessed Be!

The Right Hand of Pain!!! Aka Death of a Right Hand Round two!

Its been a few minutes since I have been able to write again, but Im back and  working slowly towards being more regular at writing and quilting and other adventures!  On a side note, speaking of adventures - Naughty Ike ate another TV remote!

We had this one a whole 24 hours!  I had just got it programmed right...... In his defense, the Kong toys are often made of hard plastic with soft areas for our "aggressive chewers" so he probably just thought it was his anyway!  We have learned - again- to put the remote where he cannot reach it!

 Ugh!! 55 has been hard!!  A few weeks ago, we were getting ready to move into the new school building and somehow I pulled some muscles in my back!  I have no idea how - seriously I dont - and I thought I had a Kidney infection, because although I hadn't had one for along time, I had been prone to them in years past.  I called our teledoc doctor that our insurance company requires and based on symptoms she thought I had one too!  She wanted me to go right then to the emergency room - 8:00 at night of course!  I said "Im not that sick", and she says "You might be and you just dont know it!"  Trust me - I know it!

So off I go the next morning - as instructed - to the doctor and lo and behold - I DO NOT have an kidney infection - or any infection - I have pulled muscles apparently!  Possibly the "transverse abdominis.  They hurt - just so's ya know - badly!  They also spasm if you try to do anything strenuous - like writing or stirring batter, or doing ANYTHING AT ALL!  So annoying!

My new office area sporting doughnuts on the counter!  Its a good way to start a new Friday in a new building!  Thats about as heavy a box as I could lift and I didnt bring them - bosses did!

Anyhoo - no new school box moving for me - which was also a big bummer, since I had most of my boxes in my car at the time!  I may have pulled muscles moving those?  It could happen!  So I was doing some working from home and data entry that needed done, and I also had some quilting stuff I was doing - and exciting new project called "Murder of A Viking"  A Quilted mystery!  More on that later - its a stay tuned!  Just doing "sit down stuff" and no lifting - should work just fine right?  Resting my back muscles that also wrap around to the front and squeeze the life outta me when they are spasming!

This is part of the "Viking" quilt and what I was cutting out using the rotary cutter. 96 individual pieces in this bad chicken O the sea (pretty sure it is waves - but it's a mystery so....could be something else)

So doing a bunch of finger movements (data entry) and cutting out quilt blocks is harmless right?  Not so fast sister!  Doing data entry and cutting while sitting (usuallyI stand up to do the rotary cutting for my quilts) while also compensating for the back muscles is a dangerous game!You end up with "Claw Hand" aka "overuse injury and nerve impingement"!

I didnt take a picture of it all curled up and "claw" looking, as I could not hold the stupid camera phone and click the necessary buttons with it like that!  Techno-zero here!  But you can see here some of the bruising and swelling....

You cannot open your hand when this happens!  It seizes up like a vise locked into position and it is very painful!

So..... off to the Chiropractor I went to see about getting "release" done for my back and my hand! UGH!!  He used all kinds of hammering tools that look like they should be in some of the naughty prank movies, and one that looked like a dremel tool on my hand and it hurt like hell, brusied the crap out of me but did the job!  You may have guessed by me not knowing how I hurt my back, that  I have the pain tolerance of a dead elephant - "dangerously high" my doctor (who passed away a few years ago) called it.  I was also (like Elaine in Sienfeld) a "terrible patient" because of it - I have no idea when to stay down!  And I don't like to either!  I got S&*t to do!

This is a few days after the "hammering" treatment to get my fingers to open.  The bruising is from the treatment- looks bad but works good!  Yes - it was sore from the bruising and treatment too - Tiger Balm worked pretty well on keeping the pain down and I also iced a few times a day, and "rested" my back by not doing other things while watching the new season of "Ted Lasso".  If you dont know who that is Google it - hilarious!  Still not great at laying around though......

I also had "cupping therapy" to help relax and release the nerve impingement that I had from all of the fun I was having!  It also looks painful but really feels good having it done and it works - and comes with a massage by the best!  Reeds girl Keyona is a massage therapist and she does wonders with me (shout out to  Back and Neck Center - Dr Mike and Keyona Mattson)!

This was all around March 9th that the muscles were pulled and I had the "claw hand" by the 13th, and I am just now able to resume some of my activities!  Cant lift stuff still or my back protests and spasms, and if  I type too long - Claw Hand!  So opening up the greenhouse has not happened yet, but it is getting better, and I was able to go to quilt retreat reasonably well last weekend (stay tuned for that post also with the Viking one).

It also looks like this still at my house even though it is getting warm during the day, so the greenhouse is not staying warm enough at night still to start anything in there, and with Naughty, Plant eater Ike I dont dare start them in the house ths year!  lol!  And cry too!

I hope you can see where you are going, know when you get there, realize when you are hurt, and rest when you need to.  Happy Spring and Blessed be!