Tea and Honey on a Chilly Day

A few weeks ago I asked some fellow-moms on Facebook about buying local honey in Pittsburgh. It was something I'd thought about ever since reading this article, but had been too lazy to pursue. It wasn't until I found myself swallowing spoonfuls of honey at a time that I thought, "It would really be better if I knew where this was coming from."

Today on our way back from the homeschool co-op, Michael and I stopped by a local tea shop that I'd passed the sign for many times. Getting there is a little funky--it's in a very industrial sort of plaza, and you have to go through a warehouse to get to it, but as soon as you open the door the wonderuful smell of tea drifts down the stairs to greet you. It's a cozy little loft filled with lovely teacups, handknit cozies, and an entire cabinet full of honey. (I almost bought one of the little wooden honey dippers, but stopped myself after the jar of honey and a box of tea samples ... maybe next time?) There was even a little table painted with chalkboard paint and chalk for scribbling--a handy way to keep little hands away from breakables!

Among the samples I bought are two kinds of chai. Today is quite chilly, and it seems a good day to drink it! I haven't drunk much chai in a few years, and am looking for the perfect blend--not too spicy, just a touch of sweetness. I have high hopes for these! (Any recommendations? I'm also open to mixing my own!)



(It may be that my reentry to blogging will consist of elaborations on Instagram pictures. I guess I'm okay with that!)

Bedroom Tour (with a little before/after)

In the past few days I've really buckled down and tried to get the twins on a semi-consistent routine. The main goal that being their (sometimes quite short) naps overlap, at least a little. And so far it hasn't been too bad! Some successes, some failures ... but right now I have a kettle on for some chai, a slice of pear-cardamom upside-down cake awaiting the tea, and this blog post open on my computer screen. And all three boys are SLEEPING.

(I'm sure one of them will wake up before the tea is finished brewing. But that's okay! Just ten minutes is enough to make me feel a little more grounded.)

Right now Gregory sleeps in a pack'n'play in our closet. Because I am scared of what will happen if I try to put them down in the same room together. One step at a time.

It's a step above having him in a pack'n'play in our bedroom ... and two steps above him sleeping on our bed, although that's where both babies end up eventually. (They've also started falling off the edge in the wee hours of the morning. :( Time to back off on the bedsharing. Luckily our bed is less than a foot off the ground.)

Anyway. Our closet is pretty awesome. It's a walk-in with plenty of space (and a window, artfully covered by a thick blanket so that Gregory will actually sleep in there). In fact, we have a another (regular sized) closet just across from this one ... I think our bedroom has more storage space than any other room in the house.

Our bedroom was the first and biggest project we tackled in this house. It was a partially finished attic that was used as a bedroom by the previous owner, but ... it was in pretty bad shape. We finished it a week before the twins were born. (And then I couldn't sleep there for four weeks because of the c-section ... and since then the babies have shared it with us to varying degrees!)

Before

The flooring was this weird white vinyl stuff, and the wallpaper was not exactly our style. I don't know how well you can see it, but the previous owner cut individual plates out of the wallpaper and pasted them to the (also wallpapered) ceiling.

Long story short, we had a LOT of wallpaper to take down. We even bought a wall-paper remover ... we figured it was a good investment since there's wall-paper to take down in every room but the living room and the basement! (And even in the living room it looks like some previous wallpaper was painted over, so hopefully that won't become an issue.)

Removing wallpaper from the ceiling is a PAIN.

We also had to replace one of the walls (you can see the plaster in the first "before" picture), and of course paint. (So imagine me hugely pregnant wearing clothes that don't fit painting the ceiling. Or maybe don't. It's not too flattering a picture.) We also got new carpeting and were paranoid of dripping paint on it ... probably should've saved that step for last!

But the results were very worth it. I love this room; it's one of my favorite places in the house. 

Ta-da!

Doesn't the quilt complement the colors of our bedroom perfectly? It makes me happy. :) The Moroccan wedding rug that Keith's friend gave us for our wedding is at the foot of the bed, and a print given to us by friends of Mary and Joseph's wedding (left of the window). I'd like to get a side table of some sort for Keith's side of the bed, perhaps two matching ones ... we'll see! The doors on the right open to a little cupboard where I keep our sheets and a few other things. 

 The Sacred and Immaculate Heart statues on our windowsill belonged to my grandma. And the curtains in the room were made by my great-grandma Ivy, who passed away when I was 8 or 10. She traced the pattern onto the linen, embroidered the flowers, and sewed the curtains. I think she copied the flowers from an illustration in one of the Little House books. They are a bit worn in some places; I need to have them repaired soon.

Our little alcove. The windowseat opens to more storage, and the door to the left leads to a crawlspace under the eaves. I admit I am kind of terrified of the idea of the boys falling out of this window, so I never ever open it. 

Cat doorstops my husband gave me when we were dating. :) I told him a story about sleeping in a bed and breakfast when I was a very little girl. The lady who owned it had these stuffed cats that served as doorstops, and I took one to bed with me. (I also remember waking up that night to a terrifying noise; when I shook my mom awake she told me it was just Dad snoring.) These cats migrate a lot because Michael likes to come upstairs in the morning and play with them.

View from the bed. (Except normally Keith has clothes piled on top of his dresser ... sometimes up to the ceiling. I staged an intervention before taking these photos. ;) ) The alcove is to the left. Our walk-in closet is just left of the doorway, with the other closet opposite. If you look, you can see we still have that wallpaper above the stairs. 

I found you Mama!

And Gregory just now woke up! How providential. :)

Big Little Things

Tomorrow I am bringing dinner to a friend who just had her second baby. Yesterday, while Michael and I chilled on the bed (one of his favorite places), I told him we were making beef stew. And he laughed out loud. Each and every time I said it. Beef stew, beef stew! I made sure it wasn't just the way I was saying it, by repeating it in an absolutely flat tone; I buried it in full sentences ("Tomorrow we are going to make beef stew for Tom and Christine"). Each and every time, a laugh. He even did it again for me later that evening after Keith came home, which I wasn't expecting. Apparently beef stew is hilarious.

I think he might also be starting to respond to his name. This could be over-eager Mama imagination, but it seems that within the past day or two he's been turning to me when I say it, opening his eyes a little wider or smiling.

Little things like this are consolation for these stretches of days when he refuses to nap, despite the deepening bags under his little eyes. This little man needs a lot of mama-love lately. (I feel like half of my Facebook statuses are about Michael's sleeping patterns, or lack thereof...)

And Monday was his first feast day--Saint Augustine! We didn't really do anything for it, unless you count the cardamom lime sweet rolls I made, which have already all disappeared. (And let's be honest ... I would have made those even if it wasn't anybody's feast day.)

My afternoon tea. The cup and Fiestaware sugar bowl make me happy.

Right now he's half-frustrated and half-happy on his playmat. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before the frustration takes over, so I will finish this up. No yarn along today!

Bergamot Summer

Call me crazy, but despite muggy 80 degree weather I still crave a cup of hot tea. Specifically, a cup of Earl Grey. Even more specifically, the Numi Aged Earl Grey I got from Giant Eagle the other day but have yet to try.

This is the problem with summer. You sweat too much; you can't take hot showers; and you can't drink a cup of tea or cocoa without your insides melting and seeping out through your pores. Last summer when I lived in my parent's air conditioning I had an evening cocoa habit, and during the day drank tea in the chilly finished basement.

My apartment--designed like an oven to keep the internal temperature five degrees hotter inside than out--is another story. I've gone without a cup of Earl Grey for too long.

My first encounter with this tea was accidental: a box of Twinings abandoned by a friend in my cupboard. To this day Twinings is still my favorite (I mean, it's not for nothing that it's approved by the Queen), though I also have a fondness for Stash's double-bergamot version--not their regular Earl Grey, which also has lavender.

My cousin--a former Starbucks employee--had never tasted it, so I introduced her to it. She remarked after one sip that it tasted like citrus.

I was taken aback. Her taste buds are more finely tuned than mine. Citrus, to me, meant lemons, limes, grapefruit. I don't know what I thought bergamot was; I wasn't expecting it to be something like an orange. And I still can't think of it as citrus; it's light, yes, but also rich. It's like a dance between sunshine and cool, shaded places.

This is how my obsession has grown, you see. I browse bergamot scented perfumes, lotions, and body washes on Etsy. It smells the way it tastes. I haven't bought any--yet. I think if I used bergamot scented perfume I would never stop smelling my wrists.

Since my first box of Twinings, I've made Earl Grey shortbread, Earl Grey brownies, and one of my life goals is to make Earl Grey ice cream. And then Earl Grey Chocolate ice cream. (I'm of the opinion that Earl Grey + dark chocolate is one of the best combinations in existence. Perfect for watching British television.) And of course there are bergamot curd, bergamot dreams, and Earl Grey cheesecake to try also.

But I have no ice cream maker, and it's too hot to bake, so I did the only thing I could: I made Earl Grey iced tea. It was a spur of the moment experiment, but it turned out pretty well.

Granted, the scent of bergamot is hard to get out of the pitcher--and it will flavor the next tea you make. (I used to make Earl Grey in my thermos, and my coffee had a definite citrus flavor afterward.) As the last four pitchers I've made have been Earl Grey, this isn't a problem for me.

This is my pact with summer. And I suppose there aren't many things more summery than citrus.



How I make Earl Grey Iced Tea:

Pour approximately six cups of boiling water over eight bags of Earl Grey. Steep for about five minutes. Add 1/4-1/3c sugar (maybe even 1/2c, if you like sweet tea). Add 1-2c cool or lukewarm water to moderate the tea's strength.


This makes a strong tea--the kind I like. If you prefer a lighter flavor, try using Twinings Lady Grey instead.