Showing posts with label Tea and China. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tea and China. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

Tea... and Photography Tips???






This post combines some photography tips with my enjoyment of tea. Hmmm.... sounds strange, doesn't it?

I think it will work though.









I was at the library, waiting for my son who ran in to pick up books and videos being held for the family...  and I saw a glimpse of pink flowers on a tree.

 I was unable to leave my vehicle to get closer because of where I was waiting, but as usual, I had been looking  around for what was interesting. I carry a camera with me most of the time because I never know when I will see something I want to photograph.  I was looking or wouldn't have noticed this tree since it was across the parking lot from me. It was also a cloudy dreary day and the light was not in a good spot at all.

I wish I would have thought to photograph what my view, from the car, actually looked like... there was nothing inspiring about it. That's the reason I didn't take a picture, but it would have helped make my point in this post. 



Another picture... just blah...   some pink, but not great at all.  I did zoom in to get this much, as the view from where I was didn't show this much color.  Both pictures are boring though.














 There was a tree, with new little green leaves, beside and in front of the pink tree and I liked the combination of the pink and the green together, but as you can see, it was still not wonderful. It was better... but still...... rather boring. 


I continued taking pictures... a little green on the side, lots of pink.... some half and half... just various combinations of those two colors. They were better... but still needed something.


 It was frustrating to me, because I love macro photography and I knew if I could get closer to the tree, I could get some amazing photos... even with the lighting conditions. Since there were no parking places and I couldn't leave the vehicle, I played around with taking the pictures I could take from where I was sitting.

Since we can't always wait for the perfect lighting conditions... or to be able to get as close to the subject as we want, we can use other ways to get better pictures.




Taking one of the "blah" pictures, I tweaked it a bit.  I darkened the shadows a little which really helped show the richer colors. Then I did a slight highlight to the colors also. This picture looks much more appealing than the other ones did. It actually looks more like it would when the light hits it better. 

If you are new to photography and find your pictures uninspiring... don't despair as there are so many ways to improve a less than wonderful picture.  

I take many pictures that are "perfect" and I do nothing to them.  Others get cropped... maybe even cropped again... and again until I find what I really like best. Sometimes colors get enhanced... sometimes the pictures sit in a file on my computer as I think maybe I can do something with them someday. Sometimes I do... sometimes I don't. I have taken many thousands of pictures and am still taking them.

By the way, maybe you feel a bit intimidated by other's fancy photography equipment...  it's easy to feel that your camera isn't good enough... but as you continue to learn, it is amazing what wonderful pictures can be taken on a simple little camera. If you get a better camera, great... but if you don't, just keep learning and taking pictures... and have fun!  :) 

So..... what to do with these pictures.... hmmm.... I like tea and wanted to make a quote picture and so created one.

 By the way, I really do enjoy tea and drink it at various times during the day....  not every day, but most days.  So the sentiment expressed on the picture really does fit me. 

There really is just nothing like a cup of tea!  :)  










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Saturday Sparks
Dishing It and Digging It
Vintage Charm
Beautifully Creative Inspired Link Party
Scraptastic Saturdays
Home and Garden Thursday
Oh My Heartsie Girls
Tuesday Cuppa Tea
image-in-ing
Make It Pretty Monday
Art of Homemaking Monday
Modest Mom Monday
Home Matters Linky Party
Friday at the Fire Station
Foodie Friday and Everything Else
Home Sweet Home
Counting Our Blessings
Share Your Cup
Wise Woman
Friends Sharing Tea











Sunday, March 12, 2017

A Few of My Favorite Things



Here are just a few of my favorite things....

 Going on photo shoots with my kids.....




A nice hot cup of tea.....



















Seeing my husband spend time in God's Word....









Country scenes..........























                                   Clouds.....                                           .



                     A bench in a peaceful place.....







A beautiful walking path for a family walk......

   


Reflections in water.....







   We all have so many favorite things... it is nice to think of them from time to time....  these have been just a few of my favorite things.  I would love to hear what some of your favorite things are also... please feel free to share them in the comments.  :)   

I hope you have a wonderful week.....



Shared on:


Skywatch
Vintage Show and Tell
Weekend Reflections
image-in-ing
Dishing It and Digging It
Blogger's Pit Stop
Friday at the Fire Station
Traffic Jam Weekend
Foodie Friday and Everything Else
Vintage Charm
Home and Garden Thursday
The Homemaking Party
Wise Woman
Counting Our Blessings
Friends Sharing Tea
Tuesday Cuppa Tea
Modest Monday
You're the Star Blog Hop
Art of Homemaking Monday
Inspire Me Monday
Over the Moon Link Party






Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Priorities... With A Cup of Tea!



 Sometimes as I have time with the Lord, I drink tea.... It seems to make it easier to slow down, ponder things, talk with Him and listen....


 Beauty can also help that... although sometimes it can be distracting also.  

I read my Bible first thing every morning... and right now, I usually stay in bed while I read.  It's warmer in there and yes, I stay awake, but I don't have any tea at that time.  :)
 Then, throughout the day, I ponder those things I had read earlier.... I meditate on them..... Well, not always... sometimes I get too busy and just don't even think about it.  I don't want to do that, though.... God's Word is so important and I want to walk with Him through each day.

It is rare that I can sit down and just drink a cup of tea.... normally I sip it as I work on the computer... or cook... or do school... or have breakfast....or whatever. Sometimes I find myself just gulping the tea down to be done with it before it is cold.

Sometimes I sip a cup of tea as my kids and I sit... and talk... what precious times. It is easier to sit and concentrate on them when I am sipping tea... and the same thing can work in my time with the Lord.... but I do have to make the time....

I tend to talk with Him all throughout the day... and most times it is not a formal prayer at all, but more of a conversation.... and it is precious.

Still.... a cup of tea... and time with the Lord... can be a good thing.

It is so easy to just run through each day.... our lives are so busy.... I know mine is terribly busy every day and I'm sure yours is also. We don't have time for everything... and something has to "go".   I don't want to just fly through each day dealing with things and reacting... I want to make time for the really important things... and I know I am a better wife and mom when I do so.

I hope you are also making time with God a real priority.... reading His Word every day... but also praying, praising and listening.....  it will help us to be the women He planned for us to be. :)   Thank you for visiting... I hope you have a great week.    

Shared on:

Bernideen's Tea Time
Share Your Cup Thursday
Modest Monday 
What'd You Do This Weekend?
Good Morning Monday
Art of Homemaking
Snickerdoodle Sunday
My Favorite Things
Weekend Brew
Simply Saturday
Saturday Soiree
Grace and Truth
City of Links 
Foodie Friday and Everything Else

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Allergy Tea.... Homemade Herb Tea

I have talked before on Gentle Joy Homemaker, about the herb teas that I make and store in pretty jars....   They are useful and very good for us... and I like having them all mixed up and ready to use.
Making Herb Teas For Good Health
Recently, one of my kids was struggling with "junk" in the throat, so I did some more studying... and came up with a new tea.




 This one is being called Allergy Tea, although its main purpose is mucous cleansing.... that title just didn't sound good for my tea, so the title is Allergy Tea! :) 

The ingredients include:
Mullein
Plantain
Comfrey
Peppermint
Lemon Peel
Fenugreek
Stevia for a little sweetness
 We have been drinking it for a couple of days and find that it is very helpful and the flavor is actually quite good. My husband and children have been drinking it willingly....and even said they liked it! :)

I have been making a pot of tea (actually about 2-3 of them!) in the morning and we all drink it with breakfast and during the day.
 It doesn't look all that wonderful... just a bunch of dried herbs all together in the jar..... but it makes a nice rich tea that tastes good.... and is good for us.
 Here is the teapot with the tea strainer inside... I added about 3 heaping teaspoons of the tea herbs.

 After pouring the hot water in, you can see the herbs just soaking up that water and releasing their good nutrition into the tea.  :)
 This is my tea strainer - one of them anyway, and this is my very favorite one. It fits into this teapot... and also into a few of our tea mugs, allowing me to easily brew the tea...or an infusion.

You can tell that mine is getting in rough shape...the screening is pulled loose from the one side (on the right side in the picture)... but it still works. I am hoping to buy another one, but since this one still works, I don't want to spend the money. :)




With the lid on the teapot... over the strainer, the tea steeps for about 10-15 minutes.

Waiting...
There it is... worth waiting for.... enjoyable.... AND good for us.

I am hoping to keep the symptoms my child has, from turning into anything worse... like sickness. I am rather excited about this tea and plan to use it much in allergy season. When I make it again, it may have a couple more ingredients, we'll see.... for right now, this is just right. :)

I am so glad that God has supplied herbs with just the right nutrients to aid us in being healthy.  What a blessing to have such healthy and good tasting teas to use.  I am drinking a cup of this tea right now as I write this....only it is in a white cup this time.... and I find that I really do enjoy this blend.


Shared on:  

Share Your Cup Thursday Modest Mom Monday
Art of Homemaking Monday

Monday, January 19, 2015

Tea... and A "Tea Bear"




For Christmas this year, a friend gave me a little tiny honey bear filled with 2 ounces of honey. I love it and it is just the perfect size to use with tea. :)


The cup is a large one made by Noritake.

Isn't this little bear adorable? :)

 This little tray is the perfect size for a mini tea... for one. :)  It was the only thing I found at an Antique Mall Thrift store a couple of years ago... and it was only 25c, so I bought it. I have been surprised how much I have enjoyed using this. It is plastic, but it is fun and it was great to use for my tea today.

I am glad God blesses us... even with simple little things like tea... and a fun tea bear. Thank you for visiting. I hope you have a wonderful week.  :)



Shared on:



Bernideen's Tea Time
What'd You Do This Weekend?
Wordless Wednesday
Wake Up Wednesday
Modest Mom Monday
Good Morning Monday
The Art of Homemaking
The Weekend Brew


Monday, January 12, 2015

A Refreshing Cup of Tea.....

Tea and chocolate.... sometimes the combination just seems.... important. :) 

Recently, I had a cup of tea... and it just tastes better in a pretty china cup, as I have said before....I sure enjoyed it. I tend to drink my tea while I am typing, reading... or doing something. I have very little time to sit idle. I rarely drink a cup of tea all the way to the bottom when it is still warm... I get distracted and keep.... busy. The cold tea in the bottom sure isn't as nice.

 On this day, it was cold out... and even inside the house, it was chilly... so hot tea sounded good.  I put homemade brownies in the oven and when they came out, I added peppermint frosting..... mmmmm, good. My original intention was to put a couple of brownies on this plate, but we were busy, my tea was hot and my time was limited to actually drink this cup of tea while it was still hot. Since I only had a little time for tea, and I didn't have time to wait for the brownies,  I put some Ghirardelli chocolates in the bowl - actually I only ate one, but it looked nicer with three in the bowl. :)

I have enjoyed this tea set... I found it at a garage sale.... seems most of what I find comes from a garage sale. :) 

After the busyness of all of Dad's recovery and taking care of Mom, I am tired, so I am trying to take a break now and then. Actually, so far I am not doing too well at that.... still so much going on AND I am trying to catch up. This was my effort to relax, though, and I hope to do it more often.
Life has a way of filling up each day... and if we are not careful, the days go by and we have nothing to show for them. I have been deliberately thankful to the Lord lately.... God is always so good, but it is so easy to lose sight of that. Taking a few minutes for tea and reflection can be such a good thing. Tea can refresh the body.... and reflection on the things of God can refresh the soul and spirit. :)  






 
I hope you are able to find just a few minutes for a refreshing cup of tea... or coffee or cocoa and some time with the Lord. . :)  Thank you for visiting today.




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Hearts For Home
Paula's No Rules Weekend Party
Saturday Soiree
Fellowship Friday
My Week In Review
Foodie Friday and Everything Else Party
Thrifty Thursday
Hearts For Home
Thought Provoking Thursday
Paula's No Rules Weekend Party
Homeacre Hop
The Charm of Home
Homemaking Party
Wholehearted Wednesday
Wake Up Wednesday
Tuesday Talk
Hip Homeschool Hop
Soul Survival
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Friends Sharing Tea
Tea Time Tuesday



Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Gentle Joy Photography-Top 10 Posts for 2014


This is the end of the first year of the Gentle Joy Photography blog. As we end one year and begin a new year, it has been fun to look back over the 88 posts for the last year and see which ones were the most viewed. So, here are the top 10 posts of 2014 for Gentle Joy Photography......









The most popular post was A Quick and Easy Breakfast. :)



A Quick Easy Breakfast



Hope



Are Your Kids A Blessing?




A Fun Surprise From God




There's A Storm Coming




Searching For Happiness.....




Has The World Gone Crazy?




Am I Worth More On Productive Days?




Guy China




Candy Bar In A Bowl


Thank you for joining me in looking back at these fun posts. I hope you will continue to visit throughout this next year. 

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Weekend Wind Down Party 
Saturday Sparks
Funtastic Friday
Home Sweet Home 
On Display Thursday
Paula's No Rules Weekend Party 
A Little R and R
Coffee and Conversation 
Whatever Goes Wednesday
So Much At Home 
Wonderful Wednesday
Wake Up Wednesday
Tuesday Talk 
Women Helping Women
Martha's Favorities
Tuesday Cuppa Tea 
Tea Time Tuesday
Hip Homeschool Hop 
Try A New Recipe Tuesday
Modest Monday 
Good Morning Monday
The Art of Homemaking 
Merry Monday
Making Your Home Sing Monday 
Motivation Monday
Country Fair Blog Party 
Friday Favorites
Weekend Brew 
The Best of the Weekend
The Party Bunch
Show and Tell Saturday
Saturday Soiree 
Dear Creatives
Weekend Potluck
Paula's No Rules Weekend Party
Homeacre Hop 
Thriving Thursday
Homemaking Party
So Much At Home
Winsome Wednesday
Thursday Favorite Things
Wake Up Wednesday