a spring tea

so this is my first take on a tablescape! I just picked up a bunch of new jars and glasses at Goodwill, saw {THIS} contest over on Maddycakes Muse and decided it would be a fun way to try out my new wares :D Figured I'd join in on the fun whilst I was at it ;)

So I went for the theme of a high tea. Being Irish, and Saint Patrick's Day is fast approaching, and well since DH and I have a lush supply of tea, I thought it would be fun to do a tea time! Not to mention I had just made some maple buckwheat scones, which made the perfect centerpiece! I was originally going to add in some flowers or namecards or something, but decided instead to keep it simple, just a few white candles, so that the focus was rather on the tea and yummy scones! I also went with spring colors- using the light spring green table covering, which plays well with our green ladderback chairs and pairing with natural, neutral tans and browns. Unfortunately we live in an apartment {hazard of Army life}, so we only have one table and one room to play with, so you get some of the wall hangings and maroon curtains in the photos- not to mention variable lighting at best, but we work with it! Enjoy :)

{above you'll find some white chocolate chips, cracker assortment, and dark chocolate wafers in the jar}
{below are some honey lemon sticks and a chest of Numi tea}

{above you will find a tray of sugars- your standard white granulated, turbinado, and natural cane sugar}

{below you will find an assortment of various teas- Stash, Celestial Seasonings, and Republic of Tea}

{above is the cream and sugar accompanied by a Numi flowering tea}

{below is our Nikko "Moonstone" china, which I l-o-v-e!}

Thank you SO much for joining me on my first journey in tablescaping {is that a word? well.. now it is!} and I do hope you'll come back soon as I begin this fun journey on my homemaking blog.
God bless- Shauna

show me your lists

so Tip Junkie posted the other day "Show Me Your To Do Lists" and I'm totally one of those "list" people, I work well being able to check things off throughout the day- gives me a sense of accomplishment seeing all the checks and reminds me in case I've forgotten something, as I frequently do! So, anywho, I decided to show you two of my master lists! :) Feel free to email me if you'd like a blank copy of either for yourself! And head on over to Tip Junkie to see more great list ideas!!

PS. If anyone knows of coupon clipping sites that do NOT require you do install their third-party printer junk, PLEASE let me know ;)

NOTE:: we live in an apartment, so the cleaning is much less than if we had a whole house, hehe. this is a list that will grow as our home and family size does ;) umm, and we're also a bit OCD about some cleanliness, so some chores may be done more often than normal :P

.: Monthly List :.
Here's my monthly list- it keeps track of the bills I have to pay monthly and also any chores that I do on a monthly basis. This is an altered copy of my original, made suitable for online posting :)
.:. the first of the month is a full cleaning of the kitchen and bathroom
.:. the big box below the calendar keeps track of our credit cards- how much we owe, how much we paid off this month, etc.
.:. the bills in red on the calendar are the ones that are constant each month, say are paid on the 15th every month
.:. bills with a ".A" after the amount are those that are set up for automatic withdrawl each month
.:. the "other bills" box is for the monthly bills that have a different due date each month, so at the beginning of the month, or as soon as I get my online statement for the month, I fill in the date on the calendar that those bills are due

.:. click on photo to enlarge .:.



.: Weekly List :.
Here is my weekly list- keeping track of chores and other such "to do" items for each day of the week. I print out this weekly list and have it on my fridge. There's more on these lists, but this is an altered copy made suitable for posting online :)
.:. the top of each list is pretty constant, stuff to do each day- work on my thesis, work out, Quiet Time reading the Bible, etc.
.:. the chore section is for cleaning and tidying stuff mostly
.:. the bottom section is blank, writing things in by hand that I need to remember that are unique for the week- get togethers, meetings, etc.

.:. click on photo to enlarge .:.


as I've worked more with these lists, I've altered the monthly one a bit- I'll post my newer version soon! :)
cross-posted on my crafting blog {here}