Wednesday, May 15, 2013

The Cue, a Pause, a Blessing

Victorian Violets teapot, sugar, & creamer.
Hammersley, Made in England
The Sisterhood of Quilters publishes a column called Girlfriend Wisdom. I always enjoy their perspective. Today when I picked up a Country Register magazine and read the column, I realized that their advice went with my day. Listen to this...

"Did you ever wish you had a Peaceful Pause Button? A button that would simply pause all the actions that surround your busy day. Errand running, chasing children, cleaning and cooking, working, working, working. If you had an imaginary Peaceful Pause Button that would de-stress your day, how would it work? What lifts your spirit and stirs your soul?"

Violets Tea Towel
Painted by my mom
They suggested that you think of a word and use that word to cue into mentally pausing during stressful moments during the day. Good idea, but better yet, what about actually taking time to pause. A break from daily routine and doing something that's calm, quiet, and special can do wonders for a person! Tea breaks are good for this. Best are tea breaks with a friend! Add a little window shopping to the mix and you're set to go!

Teacup marked JAPAN
The other teacup is Colclough China,
Made in Longton, England
Since it was Karleen's birthday, the decision was made to take a pause-day; a day away from chores and routine. We started with a tea break on the porch, enjoying cups of white blueberry tea. From Fujian, China, this Adagio tea is very fragrant and deliciously soft. Homemade cinnamon rolls and smoked almonds added energy for the day.


After visiting some of our favorite shops and looking for summer sandals, quilt supplies, vintage ware, and assorted plants and flowers, we took a break for lunch.


Chilled carafes of spearmint water refreshed us while we waited for a pot of Assam tea.

Our shared lunch tray
We decided to share a Mediterranean platter for lunch. It was filled with mixed nuts, assorted salty olives, hummus and dips, pasta salad, crusty bread, crackers, and cheeses.

Chocolate with peanut butter frosting
And since it was a birthday, we walked down the street after eating and enjoyed cupcakes from that sweet little shop I'd found with Dad and Alma last week. The shop carries cupcakes for everyone with options for vegan, gluten-free, and every taste bud.

Searching for a Picasso petunia 
The day ended by another stop for plants and flowers. With a car filled with an assortment of cosmos, petunias, million bells, and more, we stopped one more place before arriving back home. It was to the home of a quilt guild friend. What a sweet little cottage she has. It is surrounded by a fence to contain a friendly dog and happy chickens. An abundance of lilies line the parameter, filled with buds and ready to burst forth in blossom at any time! Some kind of exercise gadget sits on the front porch, and it was appropriately covered with a colorful quilt made just for it! She invited us inside for a chat before we headed home.

A pause. A birthday. A friendship. God's gifts are abundant. How special it is to take a pause so that one can stop and appreciate each and every one. Today, the chores will be a bit easier as a result. Plus, there are flats of plants to get into the ground which is another kind of reprieve. Blessings.

12 comments:

  1. What a perfectly delightful day. That's definitely my style and I'd love all those stops.
    I like the idea of spearmint water, too. Never tried that but I'm going to.

    Thanks for sharing your special day with a friend. Susan

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sounds like you ladies had an awesome day! I think you have the right idea - we all need to just pause and take quiet breaks from our hurried lives.
    Have a blessed day, Lisa :O)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh my just reading your blog is like a pause break. It really was a great day for you and your friend. Yes, even though I am a grandma, I still have those days of taking grandchildren here and there, watching them at the baseball games etc. This week I pick 2 of them up from school,feed them and take them to ballgames, since their mother and father work long hours. Next week I'll plan a day to pause!

    ReplyDelete
  4. LaDonna:
    Thanks for the note. The linker with the cartoon which was on there was a spammer which I reported to Brent at Linky tools. I tried to delete them but couldn't so I see he removed them.

    Thank you for linking your wonderful post. You show a wonderful time!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Happy Wednesday to you! I loved this post and reading about your special day; I just finished reading Country Register but I think we must have different articles in ours. I love tea-your lunch sounded perfect as well as the shopping and of course visiting your friend. She should have a blog-sounds like someone(just like you)who I'd love to spend time with. Just we all need to stop and pause daily, taking time to appreciate life.
    Hugs today.
    Noreen

    ReplyDelete
  6. Reading your blog is my pause break. I always enjoy stopping by teacup in hand. Imaging the white blueberry tea... Be Blessed. Karen

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for your message...just got back in town, but it's not me Martha is looking for it's Ruthie Miller! What a fun birthday time! The Med platter looked wonderful and I love your teacups!
    Ruth

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The mere description of such a day provides a sweet break. The thought of white blueberry tea and I have never had white blueberry tea...

      Delete
  8. A pause day is just the most perfect thing to do with a friend. I am so happy you had one with Karleen. Your lunch is just the sort of lunch I would thoroughly enjoy too, especially with tea. I must remember to take a pause day one of these days.

    ReplyDelete
  9. What a fun day!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Sounds like a lovely day! I like the "Pause Button" idea!!

    Katherine

    ReplyDelete
  11. I definitely need a pause button. Sounds like you had a most wonderful day. I'm so ready for the school year to be over. Best wishes, Tammy

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for commenting on my blog post. I am always happy to hear from blog readers. Your words encourage and inspire me. I am glad you stopped by to share conversation, recipes, ideas, and thoughts on creating a welcoming home.