Teacup Thursday #60 and More Gardening!

Can you believe this is my 60th posting for Miss Spenser's Teacup Thursday? It's really been so fun and I've learned a great deal. Of course the best part is meeting lots of great tea lovers and then that branches out to other bloggers and...I love it!
We had a great vacation over Memorial Day. The weather was nice today, so I wanted to finish up my planting in the backyard.My wonderful handyman Duane helped me move my potting shed and little cabinet over on the side of the house. He put down gravel and then built me a little shed for my tools. This was just a wasted space that I never used. I give him the credit for turning it into a wonderful area. He put down gravel, then sprinkled dry mortar over it and watered it down. It was less expensive that than concreting the area and yet it keeps the gavel from tracking all over. Here's some pictures of my new work space after I made a trip to a new nursery for plants.

I'm working on an herb garden. I'll have to post pictures soon when I get it finished. I ordered some spoon markers from an Etsy gal in Eugene Oregon. I got carried away and have to order a few more spoons. Here the first order....

Today I planted basil, oregano, tarragon, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme,mint, marjoram, chives and lavender.

Oh yes, it is Teacup Thursday, so on with the sharing. I love this cup and saucer and thought it was just perfect for a garden theme. I've had this one for years. It's marked Colclough China Made in Longton England Genuine Bone China! The little lady is charming as are the flowers.

It was fun to take the teacup photos outside....a new experience for me.

Do you have a favorite herb? Do you plant them in your garden? More pictures to come.....

Crafting with Marni in Maupin!

It begins like this! Marni invited me over to make mosaic tile pictures today, a craft I have never done before. After you sketch o simple outline on a board, you smash some tiles up for your pieces. You glue them onto the board with a special adhesive and try to cover the board...it's like a puzzle.

Mine is supposed to be a teacup on a saucer. It was a small board so it was a bit of a challenge for me. Well, it would have been a challenge even with a bigger board. You learn with your first try and you don't have to be perfect with this project.

The master at work...my friend and teacher Marni. She is an awesome high school teacher. She did this project with her students! I wish I would have had an art teacher like her when I went to school.

Fellow students for the day...Marni's sister Erin and niece Emi. Emi made wonderful turtle.

A wonderful ocean wave for this little outside table was Marni's creation. Isn't it just great and I love the movement. You can almost hear the roar of the sea!

The next step is to cover the board with a sand grout and let it dry followed by cleaning the tiles off with a wet cloth. When it's completely dry and clean, you polish the tiles with a clean, soft cloth.
I'm anxious to make another one now that I really know what to do and what NOT to do!

Thanks Marni for the lesson and for introducing me to a brand new craft! Great for summer garden items.

Memorial Day Weekend Adventures!

The weather today in Maupin, Oregon was just so perfect...sunny with a light breeze. What a great day for a holiday. I woke up thinking about Memorial Day or as it used to be called, Decoration Day.
A day when we should remember all those who served in our military and especially all who gave their lives for freedom. We tend to forget that when we get to have a fun holiday weekend! I've been watching several PSB shows about WWI recently. It's hard to watch them but it makes you realize the sacrifices that were made in that war and all the others that have followed. Sobering.... It's also a day to remember our loved ones who are no longer with us. So many good memories.
Jim and I began this journey last Thursday when we left home for central Oregon. We like to stop at the Pastime Saloon in Dufur...yes, Dufur! Love their hamburgers.

We arrived in Maupin about 3:30 PM and I was delighted to visit with my dear friend Marni and her boys...Zane and Eli. I got to see Sam the new bunny, the garden, the club house and just had fun catching up on everything. Oh, so good to spend time with friends.  This is what greeted us when we walked into our cabin #5...

Don't you love the flower beds? Actually, I guess they would be called veggie beds! A cute idea.

 

It was fun to watch the boys playing outside in their club house and just being kids, running around, playing games and just having a great time outside.

I love this one of Eli....pretty good life! Here he is hanging upside down inside the club house.

And then there's Zane....5th grade, all boy and funnier than all heck!

Jim and I are honorary Aunt and Uncle to these kids and we love them! We've been around them from their beginnings and they have been so much fun to for us! We love ya guys!

Friday was spent with Peggy and Al up in Pine Hollow. I forgot to take pictures, but I can share the fun. Peggy and Al took us for a little tour of the area, which is beautiful, and we had lunch at the Anglers. We had time to sit and talk and get caught up too. Peggy had hip surgery in April and she's doing really well with her recovery. Jim's been through that and it's a long recovery.We were happy to see her progress and wish her a very speedy recovery. We got to go to some garage sales and had a blast. The day went by so quickly!

It was up early on Saturday morning to meet my niece Desi and her husband Don and their two darling kids Isabelle and Peyton for breakfast at the Pine Hollow Grange Hall. We used to meet them
there before they had kids on Memorial Day. It's a fund raiser breakfast and it's always yummy and lots of fun. It was also Don birthday! Here's a great bunch of pictures that capture the fun we all had!

Here's Uncle Jim being funny and Aunt Linda loving having a little one to cuddle up to!

The city of Maupin was having their annual River Rest festival, so we wanted to take the kids.
I'm sorry that I missed getting a photo of Peyton hanging from a rope at the top of the rock climb! No fear at all! I was busy shopping with Isabelle. Here's the kids with a giant snow cone-oh, to be a kid!

 After a fun time at the festable (as Peyton called it) we headed back to Pine Hollow to visit with Desi's grandparents Leon and Peggy.  My other niece Anna and her husband Matt were there too so we really enjoyed a short visit with them.

This is the lake on Leon and Peggy's property! Their place is just beautiful. This is Desi's picture that I "borrowed" off of Facebook.

Later that evening, Jim and I went back to River Fest for dinner. It just poured rain and we had to take shelter under the tents to eat our meal. The rains finally let up and we had such a great evening chatting with Mike and Gloria McLucas. They will be celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary on June 9th. Congrats to you both! You are the cutest couple we know...keep it up you two love birds!
We met their granddaughter Emi and what fun we had with her! She is Zane and Eli's cousin. We certainly had our kid fix this weekend. JOY JOY JOY!
PS...Gloria posted a picture of her granddaughter and her with their face painting on Facebook, so I'm "borrowing" another picture again. Hope you don't mind Gloria, it's just so cute and I want to share!

Comment frustration!

I've had some extra time to read and enjoy lots of my blog friend's lovely posts! I am so frustrated as I can't leave comments on several of them! I'm not sure if it's the hook up where we are staying or what, but it makes me sad! I hope when I get back home I can solve this problem.
Oh a happier note, Jim and I are having so much fun visiting our friends~it's so nice to be retired and have fun to learn how to actually visit and enjoy spending time with people. Thanks Peggy and Al for sharing the day with us and for lunch!
Have a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend.

Teacup Thursday # 59 and Off to the Deschutes!

Yes, another busy week! Jim and I are going over to the Deschutes River for a few days and we are so excited. We haven't been over to the Oasis for quite awhile. We get to stay in our favorite cabin...cabin #5. I've been thinking of our friends that we are going to get to see and spend time with this weekend.
Our friends Mark and Marni own and run the resort. We're excited to see their boys, Zane and Eli and their new bunny.

I had to work really hard on my Etsy so that I could slip away for awhile. Later this year I hope to have my cottage all set up as my studio and a good place to run my Etsy business but for now, I just have to organize my items so I can easily find my merchandise when it sells.

And once again it's time for Teacup Thursday! As I'm short on time, I thought I'd show off a little demitasse cup and saucer that a friend from the past gave me. It's so sweet and floral and I have always loved it.

I recently picked up this little tea book, just the right size for this sweet little cup and saucer. It's so cute.

I love this section and it's title..."My friends are my estates"....says a lot, right? I have a special rose that is blooming right now from another friend-Colette. She sent me a tiny slip of this rose and I babied it for two years in a coffee can. She rustles roses and collects them. It has been quite rainy today, so I had to snap this picture quicky! It's such a pretty color.

My roses are trying to bloom and the garden is filling it, despite the wet and chilly weather. I'm not sure where the sun has gone!

I found this sweet little cup earlier this spring at an estate sale. It's so delicate. Jim gifted me with this little bird a few years ago. He moves it all around and I never know when I'm going to find the sweet thing! Isn't this little "strawberry" pin keep darling too? It's made from an old linen.

Well, I need to get packing...the suitcases are waiting! Off for some fishing, friends and lots of fun. Have a great holiday weekend. Don't forget to remember your loved ones this Memorial Day weekend.