A (very) snowy day

Good morning!  Yesterday I was in the middle of a blizzard, so a perfect day to stay in and drink tea!  January is hot tea appreciation month--and now it is extra clear why!  We ended up with around two feet of snow in my area, so I was out there yesterday trying to stay ahead.  Here was the shot of the door to my back deck yesterday afternoon before I went out to shovel (yes the door is open, I had to shovel some from the doorway before I could step outside):

 and here was my last picture of the day looking up my street from my fourth time out last night:

I had tea on hand pretty much all day, so I could have something warm in between the shoveling.  I set out a little winter tea tableau to share:

 

This Royal Albert figurine is wearing a bolero jacket covered in snowflakes and a silver snowflake belt.  You might remember her, she is one of the Christmas figurines I shared earlier this month, but I think this is more "wintery" personally.   

 

 

I also used my cardinal teapot which is also a repeat--I had actually already put it away for the season, but cardinals and holly make me think of winter--they are a common sight where I live and stay all winter long.

 

 

(I'll admit, this is cheating.  This picture was taken after an ice storm a couple of years ago. He perched on the window above my backdoor.)

 

Cardinals are so pretty next to the white of snow (or ice), so I decided to enjoy tea in a Gracie china teacup with a cardinal on a holly bush with a snowy white background.  I bought this cup solely for the pretty cardinal as I'm not a huge fan of the flat bottomed shape, but the design is so pretty. 

 



 

This post is also the first in 2016's monthly series:  gemstones of the month!  Garnet is the January birthstone, so off I went to my jewelry box. 

 

 

My mother gave this ring to my grandmother a long time ago, and then she gave it to me after my grandmother passed away.  The pinecone covered runner was also a gift from my mother--a perfect match for this tea.  I think this series will be especially fun--I love jewelry and teacups, so what better way to enjoy them then to mix them together :). 

 

Well, winter was a bit slow arriving, but it is definitely here now! 

 

Update!  I just came back inside from shoveling the front, so here is the final pile photo (at least until the plow comes and the street is cleared).