a birthday luncheon & family pictures

Hello dear readers and a blessed Wednesday to you.

I do hope that your week has been a lovely one thus far?

 Mine has been filled with plenty of gardening, organising, and even a quick trip to the local nursery for compost and a few punnets of cheery violas.

~

Today I am delighted to be sharing (lots) pictures from Gabrielle's celebratory birthday luncheon...

This sweet sister is now thirteen years old.  

When I began my blogging journey in 2009, she was barely two...

Back then she was my little buddy - she followed me everywhere, and wanted to be just like her older sister - we even shared a room. 

I feel truly blessed that we have maintained that close relationship, and still love doing things together! ♥

The birthday celebrations may have been quite simple, but the day was still so special...

Beth sewed a beautiful skirt for Gabrielle (which she is wearing in all these photographs), Nancy made lovely crocheted heart bunting to match Gabrielle's bedroom decor...the little ones gave her a new diary and colourful pens, and I told her I would get her started with a blog of her own, something she has been dreaming about for a long time.

You can now visit Gabrielle over at An Old Fashioned Girl.  ♥

While Gabrielle spent some time sewing with Mom, the girls and I baked some delicious eats, and decorated the party table while listening to beautiful soundtracks.  

It was quite festive in the kitchen that morning. {{smiles}}

 ^Of course we had to use our prettiest tea sets for the occasion...

^The delicious orange, almond and polenta cake Gabrielle requested...this cake is gluten-free.

I will be sharing the recipe next week. ♥

^I baked these little vegetable quiches the day before and served them with fresh basil.

 ^Nancy baked these gorgeous mini orange and dark chocolate eclairs and served them on a mirror. 

 

^Gabrielle and Caleb, ready for the festivities to commence!

 ♥

^Gabrielle with Sofia.  How special our whole family could spend this time celebrating together.

 ^Gabrielle was so thankful Dad could be here for her birthday.

^Let the celebrations begin!  Rebekah sipping a cup of tea.

 ^The lovely birthday girl.

^Hmmm...♥

After tea we decided to take some family photographs in the front garden.

It may not have been the prettiest location for pictures, but they still came out quite nicely...can't wait to have a few printed once lockdown restrictions are lifted.

 ^Mom and Dad with Gabrielle.

^Gabrielle with Mom and Caleb.

 ^Beth and Gabrielle.

^Gabrielle with Nancy

 ^Rebekah and Gabrielle

 ^Mom and Gabrielle.

 ^Dad and Sofia.

 ^The Gray children - Caleb (3), Sofia (8), Rebekah (10), Gabrielle (13), Beth (15), Nancy (20) and yours truly.

 ^Mom and her older girls. ♥

What a beautiful day of celebrating Gabrielle's life and the blessing of family. 

~

Have a beautiful week further, sweet friends.      

Blessings,

~ Kelly-Anne ~

Slowing Down & Savouring || Come, Stay for Tea {A Guest Post by Elizabeth}

 Hello dear friends,

I hope your weekend was a truly delightful one!

Today my sweet friend, Elizabeth, from Ponderings from the Inglenook, is sharing a lovely guest post on taking time to slow down and enjoy something as simple as a cup of tea...

 

I am sure you'll be blessed by what she has to share...

~

 

 

Teatime is a chance to slow down, pull back 

and appreciate our surroundings.

-Leticia Baldridge-

Dear friends,

I invite you to savour a few moments of quiet and calm...

brew a pot of your most delicious tea,

choose the most beautiful teacup in your cupboard,

perhaps set a cookie or two, or maybe even a scone, on a pretty plate,

turn your phone to "silent" and turn off all the noises around you.

Curl up in a cozy, squishy chair or sofa, 

if it's cool enough grab a warm blanket or well-loved quilt.

 Sink down into your seat, cozy up,

and take a deep breath.

Soak that up...

that quiet and calm.

Drink it in, let it fill you up. 

May the words of this post bring peace to your spirit,

renewal to your heart,

and refreshment to your bones...

 

 

Emilie Barnes said that "the ritual and nature of tea invites us to pause during our day and to indulge in a soothing ritual." Take a few moments today and indulge in a relaxing, peaceful teatime.

The simplicity and comfort of tea gives us this same sense of connection with God. When we slow down, we have time to express our gratitude, lift up our needs and seek God's heart. And when we share tea with others, we can extend our understanding of faith to them, heart to heart. When we take the time for simple pleasures, like the ritual of tea, we also calm our thoughts and worries, and we make room for the ritual of spending time with God.*

 

 

 It's not the tea, in other words, that makes teatime special, it's the spirit of the tea party.

It's what happens when women or men or children make a place in their life for the rituals of sharing. It's what happens when we bother with the little extras that feed the soul and nurture the senses and make space for unhurried conversation. And when that happens, it doesn't really matter what fills the cups or holds the liquids.

It really isn't the tea.

It's the spirit of the tea party.*

 

 

Lord, grant me a giving heart that wishes to share the treasures of tea and hospitality and kindness. Remind me to bother with those extras that make the difference in the lives of family members, friends and strangers. Amen.*

 

 

Tea takes time-- and that's part of the magic.

You can't hurry it without losing something vital.

The act of making and drinking tea forces us to slow down--

and I truly believe our bodies and spirits are desperate to slow down

from the frantic pace our culture sets for us today.

People in our society don't like to wait, 

but you simply cannot hurry a good pot of tea.

You put on the kettle, then you must wait for the water to boil.

And while you're waiting, there are little things to attend to.

You rinse out the teapot.

You fill the cream pitcher and the sugar bowl 

and set out the teacup-- the prettiest one you have.

You might pick a flower or set a candle in its holder 

or rummage through the cabinet for a pretty plate.

Even if you haven't had time to bake,

you open a package of cookies and arrange them on the plate.

You see, boiling the water in a kettle is part of the ritual.

Arranging the tea party is part of the ritual.

Preparing and enjoying tea is a ritual in itself.*

 

 

Tea is a "Ceremony of Loveliness".

It takes so little to make us glad,

Just a cheering clasp of a friendly hand,

Just a word from one who can understand;

And we finish the task we long had planned,

And we lose the doubt and the fear we had---

So little it takes to make us glad.

-Ida Goldsmith Morris-

 

 

Enjoying a cup of tea is not like taking a summer off or going away on a retreat.

It's an island of calm you can reasonably visit in the course of your busiest day.

Once you make the decision to adjust your pace, 

you can relax and enjoy the journey.

Tea is like that too. 

You may need to change your mental gears to enjoy it fully.

You may need to practice waiting and learning to enjoy the repetitive freedom of the ritual.

But once you do, the change of pace will renew your mind and refresh your spirit.*

 

 

God, let me savour the sweetness and beauty of serving others and being with friends. 

I'm so thankful for such joys in my life. Amen.*

Nowhere is the English genius of domesticity more notably

evident than in the festival of afternoon tea.

The chink of cups and the saucers tunes the mind to happy repose.

-George Gissing-

 

 

The spirit of the tea party is, at least in part,

the spirit of beauty. And I'm fully convinced that we humans 

need beauty in order to live rich and fulfilling lives.

People grow and flourish when they are able to respond

to the beauty around them and create their own forms of beauty.

And the ritual of teatime allows room for both receiving and giving loveliness.*

 

 

The very act of preparing and serving tea encourages conversation.

The little spaces of time created by teatime rituals call out to be filled with conversation.

Even the tea itself-- warm and sweet and comforting-- inspires a feeling of

 relaxation and trust that fosters shared confidence.

It's not the tea, remember---

it's the spirit of the tea party.

And the spirit of the tea party is,

above all,

the spirit of true friendship.*

 

 

May the beauty and peacefulness of the ritual of teatime

fill you to overflowing with a renewed mind, refreshed spirit,

and a heart to share that beauty and peacefulness with those around you.

Bless you, dear friends!

Thank you for joining me for tea today.

♥ 

 

Note: All sections marked with a star (*) are taken from Emilie Barnes' book, "The Tea Lover's Devotional".

~

Dear Elizabeth, thank you for being willing to share this beautiful post with my sweet readers today...

~

Do stop by Elizabeth's lovely blog, Ponderings from the Inglenook, for some sweet inspiration - she writes about the joy of home, everyday beauty and bookish ramblings.

♥ 

 

With love in Christ,

Kelly-Anne

Thoughts on Letter Writing {Repost}

 

"Writing letters is the purest form of friendship

we humans can possibly express.

We capture ourselves in a moment,

and then we give that moment away to someone else."

 ~ Anonymous

Letter writing is a something I take great pleasure in!
Thus, you can imagine my disappointment when I asked where I would find the writing paper in the store the other day and the lady replied that they no longer stocked writing paper...   
"No one writes these days..."  She said.  How very sad...

In days gone by, letters were the only means of communication, now we have the blessing of not only talking on our phones and texting, we have the internet which allows us to email and message in a  matter of mere seconds!

Oh, I do love having the internet...it is a true blessing and I have made the most precious, thoughtful friends through blogging...  How lovely it is to type an email and know it will be read just a little while later and perhaps even replied to on the very same day...

However, it saddens my heart to see how folks these days are out of touch with many of the beautiful, simple practices of old such as letter writing...

Writing letters is an art, and presentation is just as important as the contents of a letter, in my opinion...

 I realise that many of us don't have too much time for writing long letters by hand, but might I encourage you to set aside a little time every so often and put a bit of love on paper, decorate with some pretty goodies from your collection and seal it in a lovely envelope to bless someone's day...?

It is delightful to discover a handwritten letter in the mailbox in amongst bills and such, and just imagine the smile your sweet note will put on another's face!

Writing letters is a beautiful way to minister to others and share the love of Christ...

I have a few very dear friends whom I write to quite regularly, and who write back!   

Some I have never even met before...  This is oh, so very special...  

Isn't it wonderful that a simple thing such as a handwritten letter, can bring such joy...?

~

Thank you for stopping by today, my sweet friends...I am always touched by your kind visits!

I have a delightful surprise up my sleeve which I will share within the next few days, so do stay tuned!  {{Smiles}}

Happy Tuesday! 

~

  This post may be shared with...

~ An Ornament of Grace Link Party, Five Star Frou Frou, The Art of Homemaking Mondays, Wise Woman Link-Up, Raising Homemakers Link-Up, Cooking and Crafting with J and J and Modest Monday,

A Very Springy Tea Party...

 

You are cordially invited to a tea party, dear readers...

Not just any tea party, but a Spring tea party for ladies both young and old!

Please don your prettiest and most colourful skirts or dresses and bring a plate of

delicious eats along to share with all who are gathered...

~

As I mentioned some time ago, my sisters and I hosted a delightful Spring tea on the 16th of September.  It was our desire to have both the older and younger girls join us for a wonderfully festive occasion...

If you have been reading my blog for awhile...or if you were a reader of my previous blog, Beautiful Girlhood, you will know that tea parties are cherished events in our home and we thought it would be a special way to celebrate the arrival of this glorious season whilst enjoying tea and fellowship with one another...

We love anything vintage and beautiful, so naturally we incorporated this into our table decor...Nancy and I have quite a lovely collection of teacups and thus we were able to set the table with our beautiful mismatched treasures.
The teapots belong to both my mom and I...  I actually splashed out and bought a new one for the occasion...it is now in my special collection.  {{smiles}}

We did not have to buy much at all, improvising here and there...  We were short on sugar bowls, so we used mini pink teacups instead...a friend even helped us out by lending her teaspoons to us for the occasion, thank goodness as we were hopelessly short on cutlery!  {{smiles}}

The flowers were grown right in our garden and picked and arranged by Nancy...  I found some pretty serviettes in my hope chest which were perfect for the occasion while the tablecloths were made from gorgeous rose fabric that had been given to us.

It is possible to host an event without spending too much...we knew we wanted to invite a lot of girls, not wanting to leave anyone out, so we realised we would have to be careful to plan and be willing to make do with what we had.  It all came together so perfectly on the day, praise the Lord for this!

I also made a pretty butterfly bunting from paper and hung teacups and small vases of flowers with lace and ribbon from the gazebo...it created such a stunning effect!  You can see pictures of this idea in this post.

The morning of the party, I awoke to pouring rain...  We had planned to have our tea party outside on the porch, so this was not a good start!  I hoped and prayed it would clear up, but after breakfast things were not looking good.  I began to feel very despondent and wondered what we could do...our house is fairly large, but certainly not for such a big group of girls.  Also, as I did not intend to have the party indoors, I hadn't spent too much time neatening up the living room.

It was then that my dad sent me a text message, reminding me to trust in the Lord for it was His occasion and He knew how it would turn out...  I went to shower and get dressed for the party and surrendered to the Lord...  

As I began baking the snacks, I noticed a bit more light coming in through the window and that the rain had ceased...

By 10:30am, the weather was bright and glorious!  We could not have wished for a more beautiful day for the tea party and all the girls could wear their dresses without shivering.
At one stage, it began to get hot quite outside!  How great is our God?  He even cares about simple things such as a tea parties...

All ready for a splendid morning of tea and fellowship...

Our delicious strawberry sponge cake and centre piece, lovingly made by my sister, Nancy.  I love the little paper bunting she finished it off with...

Miss R dipped strawberries and figs in chocolate before dusting with crushed nuts.  She then arranged them ever so beautifully on a plate, along with other fruit and chocolate...I was thoroughly impressed by the creative efforts of all the girls!

These chocolate brownies were baked by lovely Miss E and arranged, along with the pink meringues, by her creative younger sister, Miss A.  I love this idea and hope to replicate it next time I need to make a tray of sweet treats for an occasion...

Jasmine...from the garden.  Actually, all the flowers were from our garden and really beautified our table...

Before we enjoyed our tea, we played two delightful games...  One was pass the parcel which I happen to be a particular fan of!  {{smiles}}  

I controlled the music which was Vivaldi's Spring whilst snapping pictures here and there.  Each of the girls had a turn to open a layer of the beautifully wrapped parcel...  

Our parcel was somewhat different to the norm as I wanted to include a special gift for each girl with the loveliest present, a beautifully decorated box for earrings or the like, being in the final layer.

Nancy contributed a few pairs of her gorgeous crocheted earrings as well as beaded bracelets and I made a few lace headbands...I also found a couple small gifts while out shopping which included pretty tissues, a bar of chocolate and flavoured tea... 

Each layer of the parcel was wrapped in different vintage gift wrap I had on hand...

This game was a fabulous way to get started and we all enjoyed it very much!

The next game was poetry in motion and produced some wonderful laughs!  {{smiles}}  

 Each girl was given a sheet of paper and a pen and she had to write a line of poetry before passing it on to the girl on her right.  That girl would then write something to rhyme with the first line before folding over the paper to cover the first line....

The process was repeated until each girl had taken a turn to write a line of poetry on each piece of paper.  The ''poems'' were then read out loud and you can imagine the complete nonsense that was produced!  Oh my, it was a great success!

Miss A unwraps her layer of the package in pass the parcel while Gabrielle looks on...

Miss A excitedly tears at her layer of the wrapping...I wonder what is inside?  {{smiles}}

 

Miss S concentrates on carefully unwrapping the parcel...

While the girls were reading their ''poems'' out loud {and laughing merrily}, I popped the kettle on to boil and began filling numerous teapots with tea and arranging the eats on a separate table...

Once everything was ready, we filled our plates with homemade goodies, poured tea in our pretty teacups and enjoyed a lunch which consisted of mainly sweet treats!  {{smiles}}  I sipped so much tea, I am sure I drank a whole teapot on my own!  There was plenty of chatting to do, you see!

It would seem everyone had a sweet tooth, for I was the only one to make a platter of savoury eats!  {{Smiles}}

Time for the party...delicious eats, plenty of tea and pleasant chatter...ah, what could be more wonderful?  {{smiles}}

 

Friends pose for a picture...Miss S and my sister, Beth...

By the time we had munched our way through the tea party food, it was about 1pm which meant we only had a little while longer to enjoy each other's company.  The girls decided to have a round of charades which was hilarious!  The time went by so swiftly, before I looked again, the mothers had arrived to take their daughters home.

Now, I must share with you that by 2pm all the girls had just about left and we had begun to clear the table and tidy up...  Slowly the sky darkened once again, the mist and rain rolled in and we had to change into warmer clothes.  The Lord held off the storm just long enough for us to enjoy our tea party and my heart sang with praise to His glorious name...  His hand was truly upon this lovely event....what a testimony to His grace.

The lovely young ladies who joined us, looking so sweet and feminine in their Spring outfits...  Eighteen girls ranging in ages from 9-19 made up our tea party...

I will treasure these photographs and the memories we made for many years to come.  

~

I hope that you have been inspired to gather the girls for a special tea party...I can honestly say that you will experience the most blessing.  How true the Word is in saying it is more blessed to give than to receive.  Pray and start planning...surrender your ideas to the Lord and watch Him work...

Be blessed, dear readers...and enjoy these beautiful Spring days! 

~

  This post may be shared with...

~ An Ornament of Grace Link Party, Five Star Frou Frou, The Art of Homemaking Mondays, Wise Woman Link-Up, Raising Homemakers Link-Up, Cooking and Crafting with J and J and Modest Monday,

Treasures this week....❤

What a delightful week passed us by...

Productive, pleasant and peaceful...days that were happily filled with both work and leisure!  {{smiles}}

 "Have regular hours for both work and play; 

make each day both useful and pleasant, 

and prove that you understand the worth of time by employing it well. 

 Then youth will be delightful, old age will bring few regrets, 

and life will become a beautiful success." 

 ~ Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

I decided to compile all the little ''treasures'' I discovered this week and share them with you, dear readers...

~ 

I enjoyed a lovely little baking sesson one warm afternoon this week...these darling and oh~so~delicious custard tarts were the result...recipe coming soon...❤

Nancy and I spent a very pleasant afternoon sewing together on Tuesday...

We created a pretty summer outfit for Sofia with sweet pink fabric we had on hand...

Nancy made the peasant blouse and headband whilst I worked on the tiered skirt.

Whilst I am not a big fan of board games, I enjoyed an evening of Trivial Pursuit...or rather our attempt at it...with my mom, dad and sister, Nancy.  

Oh, how we laughed at the questions and most especially at our answers...  

We are hoping to make a board game evening a weekly occurance...

 

I discovered how dearly I love old hymns...and how few I know by heart...

This week I have been humming, singing and pondering 

the richness of hymns and the words penned by men and women who truly tasted hardship yet chose to praise and give thanks to the LORD in the midst of pain, sorrow and loss...

This is one of my favourite hymns...❤

"Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.
Bear patiently the cross of grief and pain;
leave to thy God to order and provide;
in every change He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly friend
through thorny ways leads to a joyful end."

 ~ Katharina Amalia Dorothea von Schlegel

This week I resumed my walks...how delightful to whistle for the dogs, pull on my boots and meander through the fields and gravel road surrounding the farm.  

I don't think I could ever tire of this route for although the beauty is sparse and rugged, there is a deep joy to be found in spotting tiny flowers amidst brown grass or withered leaves...  

A drier winter means less greenery, but there is still a great deal to enjoy when on a country walk.

How quickly potatoes grow after beautiful, refreshing rain!  

Nancy and I were just about to set off on a walk on Sunday afternoon when a strong wind came up, bringing with it wonderful rain!  

Oh, how we have needed water...the LORD always provides in time...

My potato patch soaked up the life-giving water and a couple days of sunshine combined with clean water means I have another vigorous afternoon of hoeing before me!  {{smiles}}

Aww, baby smiles never cease to bring delight!  

Little Caleb is such a darling baby boy...he has now begun wearing more boyish outfits seeing as he outgrew his baby clothes in less than four months!

He is perfectly precious in his wee tracksuits and dungarees!

 

Lately I have been very challenged to spend more time in prayer and in the reading of the Word...

I am purposing to ''not look into the face of man before looking into the face of GOD" each day and oh!  My time of quiet before the LORD has been blessed and wonderful...

He has given me a renewed desire to serve Him and seek a deeper, richer relationship with Him!

 Flowers gracing a vintage planter...

I am dreaming of Spring days...  

Springtime weather is most certainly just around the corner...winter is making her way to the Northern Hemisphere and warmer days are swiftly approaching!

I must take pen to paper and begin planning all that I hope to sow this season...{{Smiles}}

We have been planning a wonderful occasion for all the sweet young ladies we know...

A Springtime tea is coming up soon and oh!  

I am so looking forward to sharing the delights with you...

At the moment we are crafting and sending out invitations... 

As the tea is for girls ages 9 and up, both Beth and Gabrielle will be attending..  

You can just imagine their delight!  {{smiles}}

I have also been sewing for Heart❤made as and when I have time...

I hope to share what I have been making very soon...

~

...And thus another blissful, busy week draws to a close...

What brought you joy this week, sweet readers?