This Week In Vermont's Garden

Lots of loveliness in nature this week: the roses have made their first appearance in my garden.



This is not the most beautiful bloom, but it was the first one to greet us this year. We were especially glad to see it, since the rose bushes had to do battle with the winter moth larvae earlier this month. This blossom is a sign of victory! More buds are on the way.









We had a nice day trip to Vermont over the long weekend, so I thought you might like to see some scenes from that "garden," too!



Lady Slipper



Rhododendron







Bloom where you're planted!







Look at all of those greens...

















The forest was so dense at some points along the trail that the flash went off!







These horses are wearing protection from the flies and mosquitoes.



I wish we had been! I'm sharing these garden scenes for This Week In My Garden at The Little Round Table.

Anniversary Fiesta

2011 is a special year for collectors of Fiesta dinnerware. Our beloved dishes are celebrating their 75th anniversary! The Homer Laughlin China Collectors Association, aka the HLCCA, is marking this birthday with a range of activities, including special coverage in The Dish magazine. The summer edition of this publication features a fiesta of Mexican-themed tablescapes by members. I was thrilled to be able to contribute this table for the party.





















On this tabletop, Riviera dinnerware meets the Fiesta promotional casserole, a Kitchen Kraft pie plate, Rainbow Depression glass, a vintage tablecloth from my friend Kathy, flatware from the Flatware Fairy and contemporary napkins. This tablecloth was also used for a tribute to Toastmaster go-along pottery.

Thank you, Elaine, for organizing this wonderful article!

Meet Sparkle & Fizz

Slowly but surely, Sparkle & Fizz, our beloved Maine Coon cats, have found their way into my posts on Tabletop Time. At first, their presence was just the occassional tail or ear in the photo frame with the dishes. Now they greet you in the header photo, so let me give you a proper introduction.

It all started four years ago when my co-worker told me that her neighbor had two mother cats with tabby litters, my very favorite kind of cat. The next thing I knew, these two babies were sitting on my sofa...



...And eating their first meal on Fiesta.



Originally we were supposed to take a pair of older kittens, but on the day that we went to pick them up, they hid under the bed and would not come out. The owner offered us these two "girls" instead, and we dubbed them Kate and Marni. A trip to the vet revealed that the kittens were only about five weeks old, a little too young to leave mom, really. Because we got them at such a young age, we had to help them learn how to groom and feed them special food. All in all, it's worked out very well, because the BOYS are very bonded to us.



S&F have always enjoyed the dishes...





...And the bathtub~



...And being photographed!





Oh how we've enjoyed watching them grow!









Sparkle weighed 1.5 lbs when he came to us, and Fizz was only .9 lbs! Today they are great big boys at 14 and 15.7 lbs respectively.



They really enjoy cardboard boxes.









They're still Fiesta fans, too. Sparkle paws at the door of my Hoosier each Saturday morning in anticipation of tablescape time. Only a Fiesta mug will do for drinking these days.



Happy Birthday, S&F! I promise to share more of your adventures this year.