The Old Swan Hotel

It is only Tuesday evening and I'm already looking forward to Saturday. It has been a very hectic schedule and I do not see any relief approaching until the weekend. However, tomorrow I'm scheduling a little hour of down time. My down time consists of two very important things; a pot of Chamomile lose leaf and an episode of Poirot. I've purchased every episode that has been released to the public. I'm a huge Hercule Poirot fan. However, I'm only interested in David Suchet episodes. He makes a fabulous Poirot and I love his expressions with his witty humor. I believe I've seen every episode at least three times. My favorite episodes are with Caption Hastings, played by Hugh Fraser. They way they play off each other is hilarious. Not everyone understands why I love this little Belgium detective but I honestly feel that if he did exist we'd be very good friends.

I'm sure he was more realistic to Agatha Christie. She was such a talented author. It amazes me how many people do not know who she is. That's always a shock. However, less and less people read novels these days (shameful). Agatha Christie's books are truly a classic. I find her story plots more fascinating than an episode of CSI.


One day I would like to travel to London and to the English countryside. I would love to have high tea at the Old Swan Hotel. Did you know 1926, Agatha Christie hid out there? Yes, the entire country was looking for her. She checked herself into the hotel under a false identity by the name of, Teresa Neele. Everyone had thought she might have committed suicide after learning of her husband's infidelity. However, she was held up for eleven days coping with her divorce out of the public eye (I'd hate to be famous).

Let's a take a tour of the Old Swan Hotel in Harrogate, in Yorkshire, England.







Another place I'd like to see is Whitehaven Mansion located in London. This is where Poirot lived on the show. This is not only the character's home but his office as well. This would be a fantastic trip that I absolutely will be taking in the near future.

I hope everyone is having a fabulous week full of many wonderful things. Remember, always take time to find an hour or two to treat yourself to something that you enjoy doing. Life is too short not to enjoy the little things.

Our Valentine's Day!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day. I had a great one. We celebrated Valentine's Day on Saturday night. My husband had to see some patients on Saturday afternoon so he didn't get home until a little after 5 PM. I decided to surprise him with a romantic dinner. I decided to transform our sofa table into a Japanese style dining table (pillows/floor). I had purchased a really cute Valentine's Day table linen last year on sale that I was dying to pull out of my linen closet. It draped over the sofa table a tad bit but with the white throw pillows and packages you hardly noticed. I made a fabulous chicken and rice meal. It was lemon chicken baked in a white wine, cilantro, and lemon wedges. It was awesome! I just came across the recipe last week and I was surprised how easy and delicious it was. I promise I'll post the recipe this week. It really worked out because we cuddled on around the table and watched "High Society" with Grace Kelly, Frank Sinatra, and Bing Crosby (such a classic).

Here's our tiny little table....







I'm sure you've noticed the monkey theme. My husband's nickname for me is "Monkey." He gave that name when we were first dating. A long story but I love it. He's always buying little monkeys.

These are sooo good. I made chocolate almond and butterscotch pecan truffles. YUMMMM...And they are so simple to make. Perfect for any holiday. Again, I'll post the recipe once I have more time this week.

Look at the lovely gifts my hubby got me for Valentine's Day. I'm a huge Southern Lady fan so now I have their fabulous 2010 calendar, adorable Mary Lake Thompson towels, a book on Tea (stunning photos), and a fun Southern book written by Shellie Rushing Tomlinson. He also got me a beautiful Villeroy & Boch colander and tray but I haven't taken a photo of them yet. I bought my hubby two new shirts that look great on him. And a fantastic new jacket from Michael Kors. What I didn't tell him is that I purchased a new wool coat for myself from Michael Kors (wink).




I can't believe the steal I got on these red roses today. I ran out of milk and ran to the grocery store this evening. These roses were on sale for $5.00. I love roses and thought for 5 dollars why not. They had a ton of bouquets but I already have three vases full of flowers. Otherwise I would have purchased a few more bouquets.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!

Dreaming for Spring

Personally I can't wait for Spring. I'm already tired of these cold snaps and freezing temps. I feel horrible for our friends up north. It's strange to see the White House surrounded by huge piles of snow. I heard that this is one of the largest snow storms ever recorded for that region. I do hope that everyone is staying warm and safe up there.

It's a whopping 45 degrees in Houston, Texas today. I've been dreaming of those lovely mid to high 70's temp Spring afternoons. Those are my favorite days. Filled with crystal blue skies, chirping birds, butterflies, and all the beautiful flowers coming into full bloom. Yes, I'm fantasizing of a Spring afternoon today.

I've decided to turn off the tele (except the news) and spend my evenings reading books these past couple of days. I came across a fabulous book called, Southern Gardens. It has so much information on gardening. Last year I dabbled with my first flower garden. I must say, I'm totally 100% addicted. This year I'm planning on stepping out a bit of my comfort zone by planting Camellias, pink Roses, and Gardenias. Oh the Camellias will look so lovely in my crystal vase. I enjoy clipping my own flowers during the Spring/Summer months. My grandmother was quite the Gardner. How I wish she was still with us today. I'm sure she and I would spend hours discussing gardening tips. Life is funny that way....once you get to an age to truly appreciate your grandparents it seems they are gone. My grandmother had one of the most beautiful gardens I've ever laid my eyes on. Hopefully I will inherit that gene and keep the tradition alive with my own.

One of the many tips my grandmother shared with me before her passing is that there is a special technique in clipping flowers. Not everyone knows this and often will just break and tear the stem. This would make any gardener shudder at the very thought.

Here's my grandmother's advice:

1.) Harvest flowers early in the morning. Flowers cut in the heat of the day will be droopy and floppy from the mid afternoon sun.

2.) Immediately after cutting the stem (with clippers), immerse the stems in a bucket. Be sure to always fill the bucket with room-temperature water. She used a small plastic bucket to carry around the garden with her.

3.) Once inside, fill the kitchen sink with water and recut the stems underwater.

4.) Remove the leaves and other foliage that will be submerged under the waterline. This will help to avoid rot and fungus.

5.) Try to avoid putting flowers in the refrigerator because it will dry them out. Obviously florist shops can't avoid putting arrangements in the cool temps for shipping purposes.

6.) Fill your vase with room-temperature water and add an aspirin or a bit of lemon-lime juice.

7.) Be sure to always change the water daily. It keeps it from forming bacteria causing rotting.


Camellia - These beauties are often found in the Southeast region. They mostly prefer part-shade. They grow very well in containers/pots. Camellia's should be moist not soggy when watering. When digging a hole make sure it's at least 1 1/2 depth of the root ball. This will keep it from suffocating and not getting the oxygen it needs to grow. Pack with loose mulch, such as bark, after filling in hole with amended soil. Mulch keeps from weeds growing, keeps roots cool, and moist in the summer and warm in the winter.

Pink Roses- When you plant roses you want to place them in a liquid fertilizer from the beginning of the growing season. Be sure to water the Roses diligently because they require a lot of water during the first stage. As the roses begin to bud place mulch around the bushes. Roses need less weeding and watering and have fewer diseases if you lay down 1 to 2 inches of organic mulch.


Gardenia- Gardenia's needs lightly shaded area. Make sure that your Gardenia plant is planted in a moist soil. Work in a lot of peat moss into the soil. Be sure to keep the soil moist every day for good growth. As roots begin to show you can back off watering every 2 to 3 days. Gardenia's are heavy feeders so be sure to give it a good healthy dose of fertilizer every 6 to 8 weeks.

WHO DAT!

WHO DAT!!! GO SAINTS!!!

Luxury trains

My husband has always had a fascination for trains. I believe his love for trains began at a very young age of 2 years old. Reminiscing through old childhood photographs I've seen practically half a dozen train theme birthday cakes. And he has had several train sets from little toy ones to top dollar. I began this previous week searching for a train trip that we might be able to take. Train travel use to be very chic and luxurious. There are still some very expensive trains presently. I know when we've been traveling through Europe these magnificent machines were much more relaxing than any first class flight I'd been on. It seemed odd to hop from one country to another in a matter of hours. And it what fun to watch the foreign countryside out the windows as we flew by.

I'm searching for something in the states but perhaps we'll have to go out of country to have a true train experience. Some of my favorite finds are:

1.) Royal Canadian Pacific - The Royal Canadian Pacific is one of the most beautiful trains in Northern America. It consists of 10 Canadian railways. The train is made up of silver, brass, walnut paneling, gourmet cuisine, and fine wine. Beautiful!

2.) Golden Chariot- The Golden Chariot was named after the famous stone Chariot in Hampi. This train travels through parts of South India. Each coach is named after the dynasties. They have beautiful luxury suites, piano lounge, grand dining room filled with fine china and silver, and finally a spa to get your mid afternoon massage. Definitely makes my list.

3.) Orient Express- The Orient Express is my favorite train of all. It's very famous and has been in several movies. As most of you know that I'm a huge Hercule Poirot fan and James Bond. Both have been on the Orient Express. Yes, Agatha Christie put the center of location aboard the Orient Express in her murder mystery. And James Bond traveled on the infamous Orient in the movie "From Russia with Love." Look at the lovely wood paneling. Absolutely stunning! One day I will travel on this gorgeous train.

I also wanted to share some great news I found out about an estate piece I picked up during my trip to Dallas, TX. Previously I posted about a small bee pin I managed to come across. Here's the photo.

Well, I came across another and found out that this one (of course it's a bit more glamorous) is worth $800.00! I have yet to have mine priced but it's such a conversational piece I was thinking of wearing it on my lapel of my wool coat.


I adore estate jewelry but knowing that I found such a great piece makes me enjoy my little bee that much more.

Austin, Texas

I just got back from our little outing to Austin, Texas. We had a fantastic trip but I wish it would have lasted a bit longer. My husband had a meeting that lasted a good portion of the afternoon but I had a fabulous day visiting my old favorite little shops. To tell you the truth it felt sort of strange for me to be driving around Austin once again. It feels like we really haven't left. Like I've been on a long extended vacation but I was home once again. I suppose it's because we've been living in Austin for the past 5 years. I still don't feel like a Houstonian yet. Sort of a fish out of water but it will take time to be truly be acquainted with this city. Houston is so large.

After I dropped off my husband I scurried down to the Tea House, Tea Embassy. I had a lovely vanilla and raspberry loose leaf. It was the perfect day for a nice cup of hot tea. It as in the 30's in Austin and drizzly all afternoon.

Since I had the afternoon to myself I decided to do a little shopping. I found the most gorgeous black wool jacket. It's so adorable and I can't wait to wear it. I also found 3 cashmere sweaters and a beautiful ivory silk blouse. I believe that you can never go wrong with cashmere. It's always a classic look that seems to be timeless.

Afterwards I had lunch at one my favorite little Greek bistro. I had a Lamb Gyro, Pilaf Rice, and a cup of Jasmine tea. It was a lovely quite lunch and I enjoyed "people watching." Does anyone else enjoy "people watching?" I love to watch people and in Austin you're almost always in for a good show. I quickly ate my lunch and decided to keep warm by catching a movie. I went to see Sherlock Holmes. I thought it was bit slow but I enjoyed it. However, it wasn't anything like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It was entertaining but not your classic Sherlock Holmes (which I prefer).

However, I did appreciate the furniture, artwork, and tea set. They had a lovely tea set. I wish I could get my hands on it. Now that I'm back it's getting back to my normal routine. I'm off to the gym. Wishing everyone a beautiful start to a lovely week.