craft table and tea bags!!!!!

   So, I have this nice big attic that my dad has helped me turn into the kids play room.  It is nice because I have all my crafts and kids toys in this room.  The kids can watch TV up here, have sleep overs up here, play games, do crafts, and generally just hang out and have fun....and I don't have to worry about the mess in the rest of my house, because it is all contained in the attic.   This smaller table the kids use to eat on and do crafts. I was looking to "SPICE" it up a bit.

 I bought this "craft" table at an auction.  One of the schools in Rittman was closing and being torn down.  I think I bought this table for $12.00 I would have bought more, but I did not have the room to fit more in my car.

 My nephews helped me get this project started.  They had a lot of fun picking and choosing where the tea bags would go.

 I love tea and I love tea bags.  Tea bags are so colorful and unique that I always save them....but then what do you do with them.  I think when I have my tea shop I want a wall of tea bags.  I will let customers come in and add to the art too!

 So, We were modge podging the tea bags on and I loved the look.  But, then I decided to shrink down some photos of some of my favorite tea moments.  I pictures of me having tea in London, Africa, Spain, Germany, Washington, Oregon, The Plaza in NYC, my parents backyard, and with friends.

 The table is almost done. I am saving an area for some tea bags for up up coming trip to France.

 I am sealing the table with a clear gloss Polyurethan.  The kids will still be able to eat, play and do crafts on this table.  Maybe when I have my tea shop some day this table will get added !

Teavana Sweet Fruit Garden and a Quince scone

My Easter breakfast- Teavana tea and a Quince scone.

The ingredients include: {en:Hibiscus}, apple pieces, candied papaya pieces (papaya, sugar), candied pineapple pieces (pineapple, sugar), raisins, morello cherries, rosehip peels, raspberries, flavoring (passion fruit, raspberry, strawberry, black currant).  

http://tea.teavana.com/?keyword=sweet%20fruit%20garden

When I went to google and get you a link for this tea, I see it is no longer available.  SO SORRY!!!

www.quincebakeryandcafe.com

Support local farms and promote good health and nutrition! Chef Deb Geiser,
Certified Chef de Cuisine at Quince Bakery & Cafe, is incredible!!!!  I love going to Kidron and picking up a salad, scone or even hot tea.

Tea in Little Italy

Chinatown 2014

For $80 a person my niece/cousin, Ashley, and our dear friends Emily and Josie took a bus ride to New York City.  We left at 10 pm from our home town and arrived in NYC Saturday morning at 11am (Two hours late due to a bus accident- but we were all okay!), then we were picked up Saturday night at 9pm in Time Square and driven back home.  We arrived home around 6am Sunday morning.  What an inexpensive way to see the city and have an amazing time together!!!!! 

We started off our day in Chinatown and Little Italy

We ate at this great little restaurant.  We each ordered one thing and then shared our food. It was so good! 

You know since this is a tea blog, I'll be sharing about the tea I drank there at day- hahaha!  But, I did have a very nice Jasmine tea.  Jasmine tea is excellent paired with Asian food!!!

Shanghai Heping

104 Mott Street, New York, NY ‎

(212) 925-1118

This tea was very very good.  I had him refill the tea pot at least once :)

I recommend getting a group of friends together, going to a new restaurant ordering a bunch of food and being adventurous!!!!  Try new things!

Ricola Tea and Thanksgiving 2014

Our Thanksgiving feast for around 40!!!!!!  My mom is taste testing the gravy from her sister in law.  What a wonderful day to be with the family I am so very thankful for!!!!!

http://www.ricola.com/en-ch/Products/Herb-teas/Instant-tea

A few years ago, I bougt a case of Ricola tea from Switzerland, because I could not find it in the states.  You can now buy it on line.  I love love love this tea.  My grandpa used to bring it back from Switzerland and we would have it every Thanksgiving.  This year I had one serving left, so I saved it for Thanksgiving Day.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008PNFSCY/ref=asc_df_B008PNFSCY3609593?smid=A35M35UMSGYI5D&tag=pgmp-645-95-20&linkCode=df0&creative=395109&creativeASIN=B008PNFSCY

You can purchase Ricola tea on Amazon.com for around $14.00

Enjoying Thanksgiving with my "Swiss" Lehman family!

After a great lunch we did a fun craft!!!!

ESL Bubble Tea

Sam is enjoying some bubble tea that I made for the ESL class that I help teach on Thursday nights at our church.  That night I made Lavender, Plain, and Green tea.

Bubble tea, also known as pearl milk tea or boba milk tea, is a Taiwanese tea-based drink invented in Taichung in the 1980s. Most bubble tea recipes contain a tea base mixed/shaken with fruit or milk, to which chewy tapioca balls and/or fruit jellies are often added. The "bubble" refers to the foam created by shaking the tea, which itself is called "pao4mo4" (泡沫) tea, meaning "frothy/foamy" tea. It is common to add large, chewy tapioca balls to the drink, which are nicknamed bobas

Boba are at their very chewiest best if used within a few hours of cooking. However, the longer cooking method I outline below helps the boba stay soft and moist for several days if kept refrigerated in simple syrup. They will gradually start to harden and become crunchy in the middles. For a quick-fix bubble tea when you know you'll eat them right away, just boil the boba until they are soft, 5 to 10 minutes.

1. Cook the Boba: Measure 2 cups of water for every 1/4 cup of boba being prepared into a saucepan. Bring the water to a boil over high heat. Add the boba and stir gently until they begin floating to the top of the water.
Turn the heat to medium and cook the boba for 12-15 minutes. Remove the pan from heat, cover, and let the pearls sit for another 12-15 minutes.
2. Prepare Sugar Syrup for the Boba: While the boba are cooking, make a simple sugar syrup to sweeten and preserve them once cooked. Bring 1/2 cup of water to a boil over high heat on the stove or in the microwave. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup sugar until dissolved. Set aside to cool.

http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-boba-and-bubble-tea-98067

***NOTE****I found this information on line.  I have never made the simple syrup. I just make the amount of bobas/bubbles I will need for that day.

Wild Ginger Jasmine Tea

Enjoying two of my favorite things.... jasmine tea and sushi

I love half price sushi on Tuesday nights at Wild Ginger in Wooster.

Green tea mask

I'll take my green tea wherever I can get it!!!!  And boy my face feels softer.