The Weekend

It was a beautiful autumn weekend here in South Florida.  Bright and early {also known as 4:30 a.m.} on Saturday morning I was up and getting ready to jog in a 5k race...across this bridge and back.  Lord have mercy, even though I didn't beat my personal best, I had a great time and came in first in my age bracket.  No excuses...I will just try harder in the next race!

I wasn't very bright eyed at that crazy time of the morning, but sported some cute Ralph Lauren pink pony gear.

I came home exhausted as usual, but spent the day piddlin' around the house and napping!  I'm enjoying the autumn decor that I've added.  Are y'all like me?  Do you decorate for the seasons and then stand back and enjoy the festive look?  I actually hate putting away seasonal decor...

The breakfast room is set with my autumn theme.

A little touch of autumn on the sideboard...

And on the hutch.

On Friday, I told y'all about The Fall Festival at The Fresh Market Grocers.  Well, I'm now obsessed with their Pumpkin Risotto.  It's a very creamy risotto with a hint of pumpkin flavor--there are actually little bits of pumkin in the mix.  Y'all simply must try it.  For dinner I had my usual cajun-spiced tilapia, lima beans {obsessed with those as well}, and the risotto.  Lord have mercy, it was delish!

The Pumpkin Risotto is $9.99 for two 12-oz packages.  I can't wait to have more tonight.

If you are a risotto lover like myself, you will love this pumpkin-flavored carb treat!

Don't y'all just love the flavors of the autumn season?

FYI:  I'm still waiting on Katie Clooney of The Preppy Empty Nester to contact me to claim her prize from the apron giveaway by Scarlet Thread Aprons.  Katie you have until 9:00 a.m. tomorrow morning...If I don't hear from you, I will draw another name!

Also, y'all check back tomorrow...I have another Monday Morning Giveaway from Carolina Clover!!!

Happy Times!

So it's time for a little joy in my life!  I've talked about my friend of 40 years {Miss Joy} before and showed y'all her fabulous beach cottage, remember?  Well, Joy's son Sean just graduated, with highest honors, from Georgia Tech.  Joy drove up to Atlanta from Savannah to be with him last weekend on his special day.  After some well-deserved celebrating with his friends back in Savannah and then spending some time with his Daddy waaaay over in Finland, Sean will be moving to Charlotte, North Carolina to start his job as a Quantitative Financial Analyst.  Lord have mercy, Joy and I had to google that...and we still don't know what it is!

My friend Joy with her son Sean...

Anyway, I love my friend Joy...we were roommates for a short while as young girls back in Augusta, we worked on cruise ships together for many years, Joy was a Bridesmaid in my wedding, and we both have something HUGE in common...we are SHOPAHOLICS!  I'm looking forward to visiting with Joy later this month at her new beach place on Tybee Island, just outside Savannah.

Miss Janice and Miss Joy  

More JOY!!!  I recently attended the confirmation of my friend Lane's little girls...Melanie and Leslie.  They looked like little princesses on their special day!  God's blessings to both of these girls as they begin the spiritual journey in their lives!

Miss Leslie and Miss Melanie

My friend Lane is into baking cakes now...and she created this special beauty for the girls at the fabulous dinner which followed the service.  The top layer is strawberry and the bottom layer is red velvet!  The cake was iced with fondant and I was, of course, very impressed with Lane's cake flower making skills!

I gave the girls sterling monogrammed earrings from The Pink Monogram...something they can keep forever!

"Here's What I Wore" to the Confirmation...The shift is the 'Tutti Fruitti' pattern by Lilly and the aqua cardi is also by Lilly...love the bright pattern!

My Accessories...The wristlet is by Tory Burch and Revas by Tory Burch.  

Charm bracelet, Chanel hair barrette, aqua iPhone cover, monogram necklace, earrings, & ring, 'Eternity' wedding band by Cartier, and 'Love' bracelet (gift from husband 25 years ago).

Thank you for visiting with me today and have a fabulous week y'all!

A Cute Pink Pocketbook...Just in Time for Spring!

Happy Spring y'all! Today I celebrated by having a "Prissy Day!" Lunch and shopping at the posh mall...The Town Center at Boca Raton. Fun Fun!!! Of course, I brought out a Lilly shift to wear...the 'Diamond Head Patch' with a Lilly lime green cardi. Here I am in Bloomingdale's looking ever-so matronly!

I brought out my new pink pocketbook...It's the Michael Kors 'Jet Set' tote in Electric Pink! I'm in love with this style of tote from MK and want one in orange, black, and white! The pink is the perfect match with my orchid pink Revas.
What's inside my new tote? A Louis Vuitton day planner, Cartier pen, car keys with 3 Lilly keychains, Chanel sunglasses, Hermes '24 Faubourg' purse spray, Bonnie Bell face powder, Bath & Body Works 'Twisted Peppermint' hand sanitizer, Burt's Bees 'Pomegranate Oil' lip balm, Chanel 'Laser Pink' lipstick, Gucci card case, Lilly 'Limeade Floater' iPhone cover, and Halls eucalyptus sugar-free cough drops...love 'em!
My Accessories: Chanel sunglasses, Lilly 'Pink Laser' lipstick, Hermes '24 Faubourg' cologne, 'Orchid Pink' Revas by Tory Burch, pink grosgrain ponytail ribbon, Lilly 'Limeade Floater' iPhone cover, pearl necklace, bracelet, and studs, and Cartier 'Eternity' wedding band.
I bought some new loot and spent the majority of the day trying to find my Easter frock! This is no easy task. I have so many things to consider for a church dress...for Easter. No red. No black. No see-through fabric. It must have sleeves. Nothing low-cut. No mini dress. I talked with Mama this morning and we both agreed that it's so hard to find church dresses anymore!

But I'm excited about Spring...bringing out all my pink and green clothes!

ROYAL WEDDING

'Twas the night before the fairy-tale Royal Wedding...Husband was sent off to sleep in the cottage out back, The Royal Wedding Official Programme was laid out so that I might be able to follow along with the service, the Book of Common Prayer was also at my side, and the Cartier alarm clock set for 3:00 a.m.!
At 3:00 a.m. I heard the sound of the posh clock ringing for me to get up...as I waited a few minutes to muster the energy to crawl out of bed, the Bell Towers appropriately rang very British-y on my iPhone! Feet to floor! Much to do before BBC America began their coverage of the event.

I pulled myself together and donned my Lilly PJ's in the 'Pick of the Bunch' pattern. Yes, I wore my comfy PJ's to watch the Royal Wedding:)

My pink Royal Slippers are monogrammed in green...

Mlle. Coco Chanel does NOT like waking up at 3:00 a.m.--but, all the same, she looks pretty cute in her PJ's!

Of course the pajamas have a tiara-motif pattern...just for my little Princess!

Her cute little topknot barrette...perfect for Miss Coco!

I decided that it would be just myself and Miss Coco watching the wedding together. I wanted to soak up every single detail of the entire event...with no interuptions:)

Since we were both gonna lounge around on the bed, I prepared a Royal Tea. Savories, scones, sweets, and a special dessert are served at a Royal Tea. Champagne/Sherry are also served. The Queen of England quite possibly serves a Royal Tea to her guests at Buckingham Palace.

I set up a small tea table in the corner of the bedroom, with all the accoutrements needed for a Royal Tea...

Pink roses and babies breath in a Waterford vase...

The tiered tea tray, with the savories on the bottom plate, the scones on the middle plate, and the sweets on the top plate--all placed on top of pretty dainty doilies. Tea foods should be eaten in that order--from the bottom to the top of tray.

Tiara sparkling on the tea tray...

The first course--savories...closed-faced, tiara-shaped cucumber sandwiches. Closed-faced sandwiches should be eated with the fingers and remember to use the 3-finger rule {use the thumb, index & middle finger} Take dainty bites--don't put the whole tea sandwich in your mouth at one time--that would be tacky.

The second course--British scones. There are several methods of eating scones; this is the one that I prefer.

With the serving tongs provided, place a scone onto your tea plate. Spoon small dallops {just enough for a single scone} of jam and clotted cream onto your plate. Never spoon directly onto the scone. Break off a piece of the scone as you would do with a roll and put only that piece into your mouth. Use your knife to dab the edge of the scone with jam, then clotted cream. Sip a little tea and repeat! Between bites, remember to rest the knife on the upper right side of your tea plate, with the cutting edge of the blade facing the center of the plate.

I made fresh Strawberry Preserves earlier this week and this jam was wonderful on the scones!

Remember, the clotted cream is added after the jam onto the scone.

The sweets are the third course. Y'all it was just me, so I tried to go soft on the sweets. Ha!

The teapot holds the steaming hot water. Since I chose tea sachets today, the tea was steeped in the teacup, not in the teapot.

'Royal Wedding Tea' from Harney Tea was a must-have for my Royal Tea. This tea was commissioned by the Historic Royal Palaces organization. It's a Chinese mutan white tea with almond, coconut, and vanilla to taste and a floral abundance of pink rosebuds & petals. Perfect for this special morning!

You may purchase either loose tea, tea sachets, or teabags. I love tea sachets, as they are a better quality of tea than the teabag, while a bit quicker and easier to steep than loose tea. If you are served hot water and a tea sachet, place the tea sachet into your teacup and allow it steep in the water for approximately five minutes. Do not dunk the tea sachet of wrap it around your teaspooon to drain it. Place the used tea sachet on a separate saucer--never onto your tea saucer.

Remember that the tea goes into the teacup first...then you would add sugar {loose or cubed}, if you prefer. Today I used a sugar scuttle to hold the sugar cubes...a pretty touch to the tea table! If you take lemon with your tea, you would add a lemon slice {not a lemon wedge, ugh!} after the sugar is added.

Remember that milk is added to tea {not cream} and it goes in last. You would not use milk and lemon together because the acid from the lemon will curdle the milk.

A waste bowl {also called a slop bowl} is used for the spent leaves after steeping or the dregs of the tea not sipped! I had a lot of dregs this morning 'cuz I was Tweeting so much about the Royal Wedding and not paying attention to my tea temperature!

I used a white battenburg Tea Cozy to keep my hot water HOT!

The cozy bed tray set for my Royal Tea...in bed!

Dainty pink tea plates and teacups and saucers placed on a white battenburg placemat. I used a dessert fork, luncheon knife, and dessert spoon, in addition to the teapot-motif teaspoon. {A dainty doily was also placed under the teacup}

When handling the teacup, place the index finger through the handle, with the thumb placed on the top of the handle to support the grip, and the second finger below the handle for added security. The next two fingers naturally follow the curve of the other fingers. It is considered an affection to raise the pinkie finger while sipping tea. Also, you should look into the teacup while sipping your tea.

Remember to softly fold the liquid when adding sugar or milk and then place the teaspooon on the saucer behind the handle.

Serviettes are used at teatime. I added a silver tiara-motif napkin ring for my Royal Tea. The serviette is a tea napkin, 12" square. It is picked up and unfolded on the lap. A tea serviette is opened completely. Proper etiquette dictates that you blot your lipstick with a tissue before taking tea or using any cloth napkin at the table. When using a serviette, blot the corner of your mouth and don't use the serviette as a handkerchief.

Of course, Miss Royal Janice had a tiara-motif placecard holder and pink gingham place card...making it just a little bit more prissy!

Just like millions of others in the world today, I am so happy that I was able to watch this royal event. As I'm writing this post, I have almost finished watching it for the SECOND time and for sure it will not be the LAST time:)

I must say that British ladies certainly know how to dress appropriately inside of a church sanctuary! The beautiful hats {Fascinators} will surely be all the rage in the United States after this wedding.

William and Kate, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge...So young, so in love, so beautiful, so happy...Their wedding just leaves me excited for both them and what their futures hold.

As they stood on the balcony at Buckingham Palace, I could not help but think of Princess Diana. How very sad that she was not there with them.

It was time for my fourth and final course of The Royal Tea...a special dessert of strawberry sorbet, whipped topping, and a fresh strawberry glaze. After their first public kiss, I lifted my 'Alaina' Waterford goblet of champagne and toasted them out loud {in my best British accent, of course} "May you have good health, happiness, and peace together"!

The royal dessert and champage...

Miss Coco and I had a fabulous morning and she is now down for her afternoon nap...wearing her little Princess tee-shirt!

Thank you for joining me today. I've now got to take my royal self to Petsmart to buy some dog food! Ta Ta!