Happy Birthday tea me...

What's your opinion on buying a birthday present for yourself?  

I really wanted to try David's Tea.  The Montreal-based company has taken the tea world by storm.  "Tea World"?  Did I really just say that?  Anyway... the tea... fantastic.  The choices... endless.  I had an outstanding birthday yesterday.  Seriously, the BEST.  I was showered with love, and presents from the moment I woke up.  Of course, every birthday is fun, but my family really went above and beyond this year.  So did I neeeeeed the tea?  No.  But birthdays are a great excuse to spoil yourself just a little, and you know, I'm all over that.  This was my birthday present to me, and I've been in tea heaven since it arrived.  :) 

Organic Mother's Little Helper

The great escape. Need a little relaxation? Try running for the shelter of this mother’s little helper. It’s got organic valerian (aka “nature’s Valium”) to take the edge off your 24/7 reality. Plus there’s chamomile, peppermint and lemongrass for an added dose of tranquility. And pretty blue cornflowers just to make you happy. One sip and you’ll feel like you’ve spent the day at a spa.

Love Tea #7

One sip of #7 and you’ll find yourself head over heels. Mysteriously changed. Magically happy. Walking on air. How does it work? Frankly, we don’t know. Our blender came up with it and then just ran off with the girl of his dreams. Maybe it’s the chocolate bits that lower your inhibitions. Or the seductive strawberries. Or the romantic rose petals. Either way, this black tea is seriously lucky.

Birthday Cake
Party like it’s your birthday! What’s the best thing about birthdays? It could be the presents, or spending time with loved ones, but let’s be honest. It’s all about the cake. With vanilla icing, and lots of sprinkles. And this sweet and festive rooibos blend brings the taste of birthday cake to your cup any day of the year – sprinkles and all. Best of all, not only is it low in calories, it also has all the goodness of rooibos. Talk about having your cake and eating it too.

I also snagged the Strawberry Rhubarb Parfait for Evy, the Mango Madness for James, and Licorice Twist because it's Jeff's favorite tea.  Honestly, I really like all of them, but so far the Birthday Cake blend has been my very favorite. I'm so excited to order again and try the Toasted Marshmallow, the Gold Rush blend, and soooo many more. My catalog is full of circles, stars, hearts, and notes- it looks like Evelyn got to it. But nope... that's all me. 

 What's your all-time favorite tea?

St. Patrick's Day in SLO!

This past Saturday was St. Patrick's Day.  Did you celebrate?  We thought that rain might derail the party this year, but no, they partied wet.  The downtown revelers were out in full-force until 3am on Friday night, and (I'm not even exaggerating) they were back at it at 6am sharp on Saturday morning.  Girls crying, guys fighting...  Raucous singing, bagpipes playing, and yeah- people peeing on our steps.  

But that's downtown-living.    

Though it was a little ridiculous to see the sidewalks full of extremely drunken College students, Amber and I had a great time running into the band of bagpipers in fireman's helmets and kilts, and snagging a few photos of the festivities.  We spotted these hilarious cautionary posters, warning of the perils and fines for public drunkenness, public urination, DUI's, and minor's consumption of alcohol- featuring a green wig-bedecked damsel replete with green beads and regret.   

Even the graffiti was green!

Not pictured:  Girls struggling to walk, drunk in green heels.  Men riding on each other's shoulders,  green barf on sidewalk, woman completely limp being lifted off the ground by friends.  Yikes.

d.i.y-not? Terrarium fun!

I love terrariums so much- I think they're beautiful and classic.

And there's something about a happy, thriving, little self-contained world that just makes me feel relaxed.

From Victorian Belljars, to unconventional modern shapes, to mason jars... the possibilities are endless.

And endlessly fun!

I've been so inspired by these guys and this little upstart in the heart of Brooklyn. I love that they're not taking themselves too seriously. They've really elevated the process to a whole new level of living artistic expression.

I mean, look at this:

Amazing.

A few weeks ago, Beverly's had a great sale on large-scale glassware, so I thought... why keep dreaming about my own little terrarium world? It was time to act! Wanna know something about me? I love all things teensy and petite. So anything in the diorama-family is right up my alley. I had so much fun painting tiny people, creating outfits and expressions on them... inventing scenarios, and arranging them.

As you can see, I actually made two terrariums. One enclosed, and one open-topped. I gave one to a friend. In her terrarium-scenario, she and her husband are dressed up for a night on the town- but they end up in a beautiful park instead. He's arranged music, and lights, and a private glittering dance floor just for them, but it's behind her and she hasn't discovered the surprise just yet.

***FYI: My friend keeps hers on her desk at work, and even though

she's usually a plant-killer, her terrarium is thriving and looks gorgeous! YAY!

In my terrarium scene, Jeff and I are holding hands, hiking around the Mountain behind Madonna Inn. The last time we did this in real-life, it kind of turned into a cluster-cuss, so in my perfect mini-world we just hold hands endlessly (superglue, yo) and enjoy the view. We never get tired and my dumb cesarean scar never aches or burns and makes me whine and walk back to the car 5 minutes from the top of the mountain. Ahhh, to be the diorama-me.

This project has made me so happy. You know how watching fish swim can make you feel calm and relaxed? That's what my terrarium does for me. ♥

Ready to make your own? Here's what you'll need:

1. Glass container. Any size and shape works, but make sure you can fit your hand into it for easy workability.

2. Plants. I used Scottish Moss, which is a really basic and common terrarium grass. I also put a little baby cypress in mine- crossing fingers that it will thrive.

3. Rocks. These are your bottom layer. Larger than the charcoal pieces. Decorative. Sand works for succulent variety terrariums.

4. Moss. Some people like to add the moss between layers, and I think that looks great- but I chose to just use it around the top edges of my terrariums.

5. Activated Charcoal. This is so important. It acts as a drainage barrier between the water and the plants, to keep them from molding in the warm, moist air.

6. Soil. Nothing fancy. I just used a potting mix I had leftover from my window boxes.

7. Plants! This website was an excellent resource for determining the best plants for a terrarium and the lighting conditions each plant needs. If you're planning to do a succulent variety terrarium- you'll find a great tutorial here.

8. Diorama! This is the super fun part. I bought the 1.5" men and women mix. They start out completely stark white, but clothed- and from there your imagination can just run wild! I also used a package of very tiny flowers in multiple colors. They were kind of like the icing on my terrarium cake. :)

9. To lid or not to lid... Care is slightly more complicated for the enclosed terrarium, but I really enjoy the look of the lid. More info here.

I hope you have a chance to make one too!  ♥