Sunday, April 25, 2010

Sunday Soothers--Tea, Flowers and Abbie


Flowers from the grocery from hubbie


The Tea pot ready


The tea from Teavana, a delightful luxurious combo I selected there with three combinations of my favorites and main ingredients for natural soothing of my flareups of colitis......


Of the three alone, I like Peach Tranquility the best but the combo they made for me in this cannister to take back from Boston is a delight. I tasted all three. The Lavender Dreams has alot of lavender and chamomille in it which is awesome for soothing the digestive tract. Believe me, that Lavender Dream tea from Teavana back in 2007 after hospitalization from a ulcerative colitis flare helped me as much as some of the prescription medicines I had to take. It's caffeine free.

The Jasmine Dragon Pearls blend is mainly pure white tea leaves. Its a powerful antioxident. This was the first time I tasted it. Problem with this one is that it has 5% caffeine and I have been strictly off caffeine for health reasons for about 5 years now but every now and again a little it ok. So the lovely gentleman who made this cannister for me put more of the other 2 and less of the Jasmine Pearls.
I have read alot about white tea and it's health benefits are great, probably the purest form of antioxident you can intake. So, a little of that is good. My immune system needs the boost right now.


so here is my cup I got there. I had one at home already from 2007 that is a travelers mug for tea and it is handy with commuting and when my tummy acts up like it has this week I usually can curb a flare with drinking no caffeine chamomille and lavender tea, dried from Teavana.
I splurged, ok.......LOL
Body Guard looked at me with a raised eyebrow when I said I splurged on our trip.


here it is opened up with the ceramic strainer ready for about 1-2 teaspoons. If you use 2 tsps, steep less time for the first cup and then you can use the same brew again for about 3-4 cups.



Bring the singing kettle of hot water over and pour in to the top.


Watch the tea leaves swell and imagine all the pure antioxidents you will drink in a few.


Cover and let it steep, depending on tea, but today I got a little distracted, and steeped it 10 minutes....way too long....usually 2-6 minutes depending on if its herbal use or whatever.
They have a wonderful website too, just click here
I really love reading about the different types of tea.  I don't drink this kind all the time due to high costs but like I said before, for medicinal, herbal use, it's tops!

And while it steeps you can inhale deeply the aroma of the mixture in the cannister and people will think you are nuts like inhaling markers or something (just joking) and your senses will be delighted and your giddiness will set in fast.......without caffeine!


So, yes here lies my distraction.  Abbie is posing in her new beautiful sweater that Betsy, another friend and dog lover of Chi's sent to Connie my good friend at work.....am I rambling?????
Well, anyway, she loves it. She says even if it's April, it's great for the cool mountain air and times when mommie has hot flashes like today.


I pick her up and try to give her a new brand of T_R_E_A_T, with beef flavor cowhide......Oh no, Miss Abbie turned her nose away.......besides begging me to start a BAP (Big A-- Project) here, she is wanting her usual chicken flavored sweet potato T_R_E_A_T


Look at that tail. When it wags, there is air in the house!


Her fave spot is right by the stinky socks and with her Treat

Speaking of aroma......


I take the strainer out, flip the lid upside down to hold my precious tea for future cups in a minute, and my tea seeped way to long because you can see it's too dark however, I add a teensy sweetner and it ok.
When I'm ready for my second cup I just put the strainer and tea back in there and pour hot water.
You can get quite a few cups out of 1 tsp.

I love tea like this and forgot about how good Teavana was until I went to Boston and it was a hop and a skip to get me a cup of Peach Tranquility between conference sessions.  This canceled out all the Dunkin Doughnuts in the mornings......LOL
Not really but I do believe in holistic health. Medicines are good and there are places for them but complimenting with other strategies such as herbals is the way to go!  Our ancestors can tell you about how much herbals are good to the body.  Mind too.

So, here's hoping you have a Sunday afternoon  with something that soothes your soul.
I plan to start a BAP and/or work on the smaller one to finish up by LHN.

Time for a second cup to brew.........

Jennifer

16 comments:

  1. OH MY! First, kisses to baby Abbie.

    Second...I want a cup like that!! I know I shouldn't 'covet' but that is the cutest. So...where do I get a similar cup and some yummy tea? Boston? Gee too far away :-(

    Hope you feel better.

    ReplyDelete
  2. hey there!
    You can go to their website at Teavana and may find it there.
    They have stores all over the US. The closest one to me is near Atlanta but I don't go there but twice a year at the most.
    This is lovely tea but pricey but the cup is similar to alot of their products. The most practical is the travelers mug which is like a tall coffee insulated cup. This one I loved but it is most fragile and for at home use. I took it one morning this week to work and almost broke it.
    But I'll zip over to their website and see if I can find it for you.

    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
  3. Parsley,

    click here, I found it:

    http://www.teavana.com/Tea-Products/Tea-Cups-Mugs/Infuser-Mugs/

    Its the Flight of the Butterfly one.

    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
  4. I went to the website. I think that cup is really cool. Even if I don't drink tea. But I thought I would if they have a pink cup. But no, no pink cups.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I'll look into it. I have a serious tea addiction. Love coffee too. Sometimes it would be nice for a little delicate treat...ya know?

    ReplyDelete
  6. OH MUH GOSH! I've in bliss. I see many things I want to try with a beautiful infuser cup. Wonder if hubby would get me a tea of the month membership?

    I want to find out which tea is the pink they show in the glass pots. I used to drink a pink tea but don't remember what it was. It was so good!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thank you for the Teavana website, I am always looking for new and different teas. I have a messed up stomach like you and I cannot drink coffee any longer. Here are two tea companies which I enjoy.

    http://www.republicoftea.com/

    http://www.stashtea.com/

    You can get some of the Stash teas in your local stores but I have only found the Republic of Tea at Jungle Jim in Fairfield, Ohio. They have loose teas as well as unbleached tea bags. I think Panera's serves Republic of Tea in their restaurants.

    I hope you feel better soon.
    Dona

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh my goodness! Abbie is adorable and I love the pink and brown sweater!

    Your tea cup is adorable! Love it! I'll have to check out the Teavana site!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Jennifer! So glad you stopped by my blog and left a comment. Your blog is wonderful and that tea looks delicious! I look forward to following your blog posts.

    Take Care - Robin

    ReplyDelete
  10. hey Terrie!
    one of my favorite mugs I got from a Mary Kay rep about 10 years ago and it's still in good shape....it has butterflies and grass and on the rim on the inside says BEElive in yourself. I reach for that cup on special days I need it! LOL

    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
  11. Welcome, Robin!
    Always love to connect with others who share the same passions!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Parsley,

    My friend Connie at work told me about Teavana in 2007 and oh my, if you could go into one of the shops, you would be in bliss.
    I also sampled the Strawberry-lemonade tea which is caffeine free and liked it iced. They had a sample there but didn't get that.....one day though.

    Jennifer
    Have fun on the website. I think the information is just great about the history and the different kinds of tea,myself.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Thank you Donna and Catherine for the compliment on the cup with the infuser. It just was so pretty I couldn't resist it.
    Of course, you can use regular cup and then paper tea bags to put your loose tea in too. I do that many times.
    I liked the butterflies especially on this one.

    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
  14. We have a teavana in the mall near where I live, I have never been into it but I love that cup with the stainer, I think I will have to stop on over to the tea shop and try this combonation of tea.

    Take Care

    ReplyDelete
  15. Now I want a cup of tea! I love going to Teavana even if I don't buy anything on my visit.

    Been thinking about you since I heard about all the tornados in northern Georgia. Hope you and yours are unscathed.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I love this cup, and of course tea. Normally I take green tea, white tea sometimes, and tea with mango pieces that I love it!. The cup is wonderful and delicate. Because I see that in Teavana is not being sold to Europe, I will try to look it up in Barcelona in tea shops to see if I have some luck.

    To strengthen your immune system, I recommend Goji berries.

    ReplyDelete

Comments are welcome at the homestead at any time! I appreciate your time out of your day to stop and say hello!!
I hope you find some useful information and gentle inspiration for your day.
Jennifer