Holiday Tea

Friday night I was blessed to attend a special holiday tea at the church of one of my friends. This year was the 10th anniversary of this spectacular event. Last year was the first year I attended and I knew right away that I wanted to come again! This event is sponsored by the Women's Ministries organization.

Members of the church sign up to host a table, and what hosts they are! They bring from home their beautiful china, crystal, silver, lovely linens, centerpieces, candles, chair covers or other adornments. Tickets are nearly impossible to get, but I lucked out this year and was able to get 4: one for Aunt Liz, one for Pat, one for my sister, and 1 for yours truly.

The doors open at 5:45; the tea begins at 6:45 - - this leaves exactly an hour to feast your eyes on 52 beautifully decorated tables! I warned my family to bring their cameras as this is really a Kodak event! I'm including only a few photos from the many I took.

The tea began with scones: Apple Streusel and Dried Apricot, served with Lemon Curd, Devonshire Cream & Raspberry Preserves. These were so delicious that it was hard to remain "a lady" and only take one of each. Of course, Barry's Gold Blend Tea was also served.

Next we had Tea Savories: Smoked Turkey Lingonberry open faced sandwiches and Cucumber tea sandwiches. These were followed by a salad of Field Greens with Cranberries, Blue Cheese and Spiced Walnuts. All of these were delicious.

The theme of the evening was Treasures from the Heart. The guest speaker, Carol Lund, spoke about the treasures she has collected in her life, both tangible and intangible. She brought with her a trunk that her grandparents traveled with when immigrating to America from Sweden. Her trunk housed her wedding dress, dress her grandmother made her for her first birthday, photos, and other such things. It made me think of the treasures I have stored in my cedar chest.

By now we were ready for the final course: Tea Dainties. We had Chocolate Dipped Strawberries, Orange and Ginger Thins, Oat Biscuits with Dark Belgian Chocolate, and Chocolate Candies. Once again, it was yummy!

My family told me they had a wonderful time and want me to try to get them tickets again next year. This afternoon I showed my photos to some of my friends, and guess what? They want to go next year too. My, oh my, what am I going to do?????????