Rain, Rain, Go Away!

April showers bring May flowers... or so the rhyme says. I'm not sure if the calendar is wrong or if April showers brought us more than we bargained for. Either way, they came and never left. I can scarcely remember a day without overcast skies and rain for weeks (although I know that there were at least a couple of them),

There have been several forecasts for sunny - or at least partly sunny - days with no precipitation. My guess is that they were merely wishful thinking on the part of the forecaster since they never actually happened!

So what does one do when the sun is scarce, a chill wind blows, and rain drenches everything? One has tea in the garden of course! I finished planting the deck garden (still a bit of rearranging left to do) but I harvested my first bunch of fresh cilantro and enough lettuce for a generous salad, then sat down to tea with a friend under cover of the curtained canopy.

We dug out the vintage Limoges for the occasion. The cookies are home-made sugar free cornmeal adorned with sugar free raspberry preserves, not too sweet and perfect with herbal tea.

Little touches elevate a cup of tea and cookies into an experience.

 

White lilacs, a sprig of Coralberry crab-apple blossoms, and a spray of Pink Passion roses from the gardens below match the china perfectly.

 

This hand painted chocolate pot doubles as a wonderful tea pot. The pot is by Bawo and Dotter, Elite Works, circa 1900-1914. The other pieces are vintage Theodore Haviland. I much prefer the cafe au lait cups for their generous size for tea.