Miss Manners Wild and Wonderful Tea Party

In the fall of every year, Miss Manners visits Leika's at Church Street United Methodist Church.  In her honor, the kindergarten class hosts a tea on the lawn. This year my friend Beth and I signed up to plan this event since both of our children are in the kindergarten class.  We chose to follow the theme of this year's Leika's Tshirt, "Leika's Under the Stars" with a camping woodland scene on the back.  I supplied the food and Beth the decor.  We enjoyed it as much as the children.

Tablescape by Beth

frosted sugar cookie trees personalized for the boys in the kindergarten class

frosted sugar cookie stars personalized for the girls in the kindergarten class

Miss Manners Wild and Wonderful Tea Party Banner

The children LOVE cheese sandwiches and

ham sandwiches withOUT crusts please

Landscape - what you can't see is the tent and sleeping bag 

Can't be a real tea party without cheese straws

This horrid platter was my craft project. Have I mentioned I am not very crafty? Why I decided a craft project was a must in this instance I do not know. In the middle I glued tiny sticks for ground cover centered with logs made of larger twigs and red m&ms for fire. Marshmallows represent the children sitting around the campfire. When I texted a pic of it to my sister, she suggested I tell people my children did it.

Trail Mix 

Cookies for the four year old class

Kindergarten with Miss Manners

Miss Manners herself - she is lovely with exemplary manners!

The boys - ties required attire

serving line

Beth (below) and I (above) helping students fill their plates with treats

The boys enjoying the tea
(clearly my SON is in the class - no equivalent pic of the girls!)

Barron - handsome boy with close connections to Miss Manners

My Sam

Wiley (his mama's mini me)

Beth's daughter Anne Frances in her lovely tea party attire

Wiley, Anne Frances & Sam

Sam - I'll admit I posted this pic because it shows his green boat shoes. I absolutely love them - JCrew GQ!
(I purchased them on sale at CW kids for $10)

Sam with Miss Daneen, his teacher last year in the 4 year old class.
We LOVE her!

Celebrations

Celebration. Even the word is fun.  A time to honor an event, a person or an accomplishment or, of course, all three.  January is the month of one of my good friend's birthday - Bradford.  A few years ago we celebrated with a night out of town.  The memories are better than the photos. Happy Birthday month Bradford!

Cupcakes...you gotta love um!

A cupcakery in Franklin Tennessee 

with college friend Suzanne

so many equally delicious choices

we went traditional

Sue with vanilla and latte

Me with straight chocolate

Nashville - The Music City

SHINGDIGS CATERING...IT'LL SPANK YOUR TASTS BUDS

My brother Mac is a chef. He owns and operates a catering/food truck business in Birmingham Alabama along with his partner Chad.  The name of the business is Shindigs. They concentrate on creative flavor profiles while keeping it healthy.  For as long as I remember in pre meal prayers Mac's final petition would be "use this food for the nourishment of our body - not fat". Well he and Chad pass that blessing to all of their customers and manage to spank your taste buds too!


I had the privilege of attending a tasting before the truck known as "Miss Piggy" rolled onto the streets of Birmingham/Jefferson County. I enjoyed taking pics.

Link to their website:
shindigscateringtrucks.com

SUNFLOWERS

I was not a fan of sunflowers but that changed.  In August 2008, my grandmother decided to reside in a garden home in an assisted living facility here in Selma.  Instead of her home being sold to complete strangers, something I could not seem to wrap my brain around at the time, we moved.  We lived there two and half years before moving back to our "new old house" in March 2011. During the time I lived at my grandmother's house, I was sitting outside on a warm sunny day when God gave my the vision of a flower bulb buried deep in the cold earth.  As the vision proceeded the bulb began to sprout above ground in the sun.  I asked God to reveal what the vision meant.  He said you are the bulb. I am showing you were you have been and where you are now. Delighted by this unexpected God speak, I then asked "What type of flower am I?"  No answer. Fast forward months later when one of my best friends hosted a couple who minister internationally.  The wife operates in the prophetic so I sat at her feet and said God I am listening if you have anything to say to me.  Immediately she told me that God kept telling her that I was a sunflower. Well, hellllooo. Thank you God I have loved sunflowers ever since.  So here's the first photograph of sunflowers I ever took.