Just the way I like it

It's the last day of hubby's vacation, and for some pleasant, but unexpected, reason, he decided to make me breakfast in bed. Except I surprised him by coming downstairs while he was in the process. Best laid plans, and all. He's definitely getting better at making tea for me, tho! Today was no exception: a delicious mango and peach black tea, lightly sweetened, just the way I like it!

There's no place like home

After playing in three different towns, we finally made it home. Not before suffering thru some fairly yucky iced tea at lunch. Ick. And after a week of vacation eating, we both feel a little, well, plumper than we did at the beginning of the week. Definitely feeling the lack of our regular work out.

So tonight I am enjoying being home, curled up with a book I am thoroughly enjoying, and having a hot cup of nettle tea. Aw, normal has returned.

Home really is where the heart is. And the tea!

Happy Wife, Happy Life

We went out of town while hubby took off work for vacation. As with every hotel room we get, there's a microwave, a refrigerator, and a coffee maker. COFFEE maker. Which means if you try to make tea in one, it will taste like...coffee. Yuck. But, hubby insisted this particular type wouldn't do that, because it only poured thru hot water.

So, off we went to a local Walmart, and I found a new tea. Cranberry Spice.

Guess what?

As hubs would say, happy wife, happy like!

What I Wanted For My Birthday

My birthday was this week, and instead of going out to eat, I decided to put all my master grillers to work. I did all the prep work, and even handwrote instructions on index cards. This way they could see what heat and how long each dish needed, and they could plan accordingly. I am very, very pleased to say everything turned out delicious! And we're still eating leftovers, which is something I totally enjoy.

Hubby made me some cherry vanilla black tea for my birthday breakfast. This mug is kinda perfect.

It says Cook Dinner Tonight

The back side says Feed the World. I fed a household plus a few more. Great birthday!

Doing me proud

Hubby is off this week for some vacation time. We've pretty much just been chilling, doing stuff we want. Today he wanted some Mexican food; he's been craving it for awhile. Normally he has a beer with his Mexican food. Today he wanted...tea! Yeah, I'm kinda giddy.

Mango Peach Black.

And he's not even a Scotsman.

I'm back!

I've been away. Tornado warnings, a street that became a fast moving river from flooding, a fried motherboard that turned out not to be fried at all, and several episodes of wtf, and I have been unable to keep up with my posts. I'm about two months behind now. Yikes.

Yeah, life has been a little crazy, and that is putting it mildly. Thank goodness for tea. Seriously. Even hubby sips a cuppa sometimes. Like today. Ginger peach. As we sat and sipped our tea, I asked him why he chose this particular flavor. It was the first one he grabbed. Okay, so he's not discriminating. But that's okay. He drinks tea. He's a keeper.

This was a gift from him to me, and I absolutely adore it.

The Japanese Way of Tea

And this series of tea customs simply would not be complete without a piece on Japanese tea customs. It may have taken awhile for tea to make it from China to Japan, but many believe it was the Japanese that took the art of tea to a new level of perfection.

In the Japanese tea ceremony, Cha-no-yu, humility is key. The door to the sukiya, or tea house, is low. It forces those entering to bow low, humbling themselves, as they enter. Every ceremony is unique, and meant to be savored. The ceremony can take hours to complete.

An important part of the ceremony is the tea bowl, or chawan.

I don't have any matcha, which is what is traditionally used in Japan. So today I am drinking a green tea with strawberry and orange. In a very special mug:

This mug was a gift from a dear friend of mine. Because we both love tea so much, she bought us matching mugs. Sharing this mug today is especially appropriate, because she lived for awhile in Japan, and has very fond memories.

And just for her, I'm going to plug a tea she created. It is Myst Berry, and you can find it here. It's delicious, and I highly recommend you buy some!