My Beautiful Breakfast

I have a thing about setting trays. Maybe it's because I tend to collect tole trays and individual dishes when I see them, at thrift stores and rummage sales. Maybe it's because we don't entertain very often.

It's a chance for me to "play" with my dishes... a creative outlet, if you will.

I set this breakfast tray yesterday, and sat in the sunny library window for an English muffin and orange juice. :)

The blue transferware dish belonged to my mother. It's a little chipped and worn, but I love the scene on it, and as it's the only one I have, I like to use it occasionally for a single setting like a tray.

I used a Waterford water goblet for my orange juice. My husband's family and my mother gave us a few pieces for Christmas and birthdays for the first few years after we were married. It's lovely to use them and think of all those happy celebrations years ago.

I love monogrammed silver. This tiny piece was given to me by my dear friend Robin. It fits perfectly in my Waterford jam jar.

German silver spoon and bone handled knife, from local antiques stores. Are you getting tired of seeing these in each of my tablescapes? :)

Here is the jam jar, a gift from my mother. Do you use pretty pieces every day? I often think I should not save these things for a special occasion. How much more gracious would life be if we dined on Spode and Waterford every day?!

Actually, it would be a lot more work, because I wouldn't dare put Spode and Waterford in the dishwasher! lol

So here is my breakfast tray -- a little bit of elegance for my English muffin. ;)

The flowers are white azaleas, from shrubs that grow in our yard. The bud vase was a gift from a very sweet blogging friend, Sue of Rabbit Run Cottage.

I'm linking (late!) this little "trayscape" to Susan's Tablescape Thursday. Thank you so much, Susan, for being such a wonderful hostess! I am also linking to Cindy's Show & Tell Friday. Thanks for having this wonderful party, Cindy!

BTW, the tray shown here was a gift from Cindy, who was so kind and helpful to me when I first began to blog. I will be forever grateful to her for her kind and encouraging words and her generous support. :)

A Walk in the Park, 2010 Edition

Can you tell I love to be outdoors this time of year? So many of my posts over the past few weeks have been based on pictures I've taken outside. lol

I LOVE SPRING!

After a few days of dark and rain, I took advantage of the beautiful sunny weather yesterday and went for a walk at my favorite park, Natirar. I've posted about this lovely park in the past. They have opened a new nature trail, and I brought my camera with me so that you could come along for the walk.

Pictured above is what you see as you get out of your car in the parking lot. Not bad, huh?

Here is the scene as you enter the new nature trail (above). Yes, the grass really is that impossibly green. We had three times the normal rainfall last month in our part of New Jersey, and it is showing. :)

I actually brought my camera because I wanted some sky photos for my 365 blog,

beauty unspoken, but I couldn't resist the beautiful fields and trails, too.

My walk ended next to this picturesque scene of the Raritan River. I hope you enjoyed coming along with me. For more information on Natirar, please visit this website.

I am linking this post to Outdoor Wednesday at Susan's beautiful blog, A Southern Daydreamer. There are some wonderful links this week -- go check it out! :)

Historic Morristown, NJ

Remember a few weeks ago, when I visited Macculloch Hall? The neighborhood around the museum is filled with beautiful old houses. I took a moment to walk up and down the street and take a few photos.

Pictured above is the historic Admiral Rodgers house. It was built in 1852 for Christopher Raymond Perry Rodgers and his wife Jane Slidell. Rodgers was the nephew of three naval commodores and served in the Mexican Wars, as Superintendent of the US Naval Academy and Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Squadron. The wisteria which clambers over the front porch is said to have been a gift from Commodore Matthew C. Perry after his famous 1854 expedition to Japan. Rodgers died in 1892. The house is a private residence today.

There are many beautiful private residences on the street, including this lovely yellow Victorian pictured above.

The Thomas Nast House, also known as Villa Fontana, is pictured above. Nast was a famous political cartoonist in the nineteenth century. He created popular and enduring images of the Republican Elephant, the Democratic Donkey, Uncle Sam, and Santa Claus. He also drew cartoons exposing corruption in the New York City government under Boss Tweed. Contemporary visitors to Thomas Nast's home included Ulysees S. Grant and Mark Twain. The house is listed on the National Register of historic places, and is privately owned.

As you can see, this is a neighborhood filled with gracious residences, some of which have been converted to office space (below).

It was a beautiful day for a stroll, and the street is quiet enough that I did not feel too strange walking along with my camera.

Pictured above is The Kedge, built between 1870 and 1880 by Henry Miller, a grandson of George Macculloch of Macculloch Hall (see below). Miller served as a lieutenant commander in the United States Navy, and named his home "The Kedge," which means a small anchor. It was originally built as a summer cottage and later enlarged to serve as a permanent residence. Today The Kedge remains in the Macculloch family.

Macculloch Hall. pictured above, was built in 1819 by George Perrot Macculloch, who was known as the "Father of the Morris Canal." The canal connected Pennsylvania's coal mines to Morris County's iron foundries. The canal was in operation for approximately ninety years, and was a major factor in the development of the city of Morristown, NJ.

The Federal-style mansion is currently a museum of 18th and 19th century furnishings and decorative arts.

For a virtual tour of more historic buildings in Morristown, visit the website

Morristown's History.

Mosaic Monday: Pasture Hijinks

I was trying to think of a subject for my mosaic this week when I happened to drive past the pasture of a local riding stable. It was a beautiful day, and the horses were close to the fence. And I actually had my camera in the car.

Eureka!

At first, a few of the more curious horses came close to the fence to say hello. Or maybe just to see if I had brought any treats. But then a few of them started feeling frisky. They began to cavort in the sunshine.

Don't you love the word "cavort?"

Anyway, I got a few cute pictures, so I thought I'd share them with you today. Happy Monday!

Now let's have some mosaic fun! Here are the instructions:
1. Publish your Mosaic Monday post.
2. Once it is published, click on the title of the post. This will lead you to the static link for your post. The static link is the page with only that post on it. Copy the url from your browser at the top of the page.
3. Paste the url into the appropriate Mr. Linky box in this post.
4. Type your name in the appropriate Mr. Linky box in this post.
5. Click on "Enter."
6. Please link back to this Mosaic Monday post so that your readers can find other wonderful mosaics.
That's all there is to it! It's always a good idea to then check and see if your link is working. If you have any questions, feel free to email me: mrcarroll(at)optonline.net. I can't wait to see your mosaics! Here is Mr. Linky:

Big Plans for the Weekend

The house is clean, but the silver desperately needs polishing. And what am I doing? Picking flowers and taking pictures. lol

We've had some beautiful sunny days this week, and our lawn is strewn with blue bugle, violets and dandelions. I'm sure our neighbors are not thrilled with the dandelions, but what can I say? We are just not lawn nazis here at Little Red House.

More like laissez-faire lawn people.

We welcome all blooms. ;)

So anyway, I've got some silver polishing to do this weekend. Exciting, right?

What do you have planned? Please tell me. I need to live through you vicariously.

But that's not pathetic or anything, right? ;)

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Please join me for Mosaic Monday. Mr. Linky will be up by 8:30 pm Sunday, Eastern time, USA. That's 12:30 am Monday, Greenwich Mean Time.

I think.

I'm still visiting all the wonderful posts from this past Monday. You guys are amazing -- you really are! Thanks so much for making my Mondays special. :)

A Moment of Grace

First of all, you have to understand that I hate to vacuum. I mean I really hate to vacuum. As a reward for finishing that hated task this week, I decided to treat myself to a carrot muffin and a cup of tea.

So I took a moment and set a tole tray with a small Limoges plate from the consignment shop, a linen napkin with lace edging that I bought on a strange antiques-buying expedition, and a thrift store fork.

The tea cup belonged to my mother. Both cup and plate are strewn with pink roses. Sometimes a girl just needs some roses, right? ;)

Oh, and I almost forgot the monogrammed coin silver spoon -- one of my favorites.

I added some Bridal Wreath spirea in a tiny milk glass vase. And so a ten-minute tea break became a moment of grace in a busy day.

Don't you love it when that happens?

I'm linking this post to Susan's Tablescape Thursday and Cindy's Show and Tell Friday. Both Susan and Cindy have the most amazing blogs. Be sure to visit them!

Happy Friday, dear bloggers! :)

A Spring Garden

My daughter and I paid a visit to the Leonard J. Buck Garden last week while she was on spring break. We took two cameras, and strolled through the beautiful rock garden, recording the sights, big and small.

I've written about the garden for several years now. And I've visited it in spring and fall. But I have to say that it is at it's most beautiful in the spring.

The shrubs are covered with fragrant flowers, and everywhere you look there are beautiful leaves.

Don't you love the fresh bright green of skunk cabbage? It's always been one of my favorite signs of spring.

There are trails all through this naturalistic rock garden, and vistas wherever you look.

And in addition to the sweeping vistas of grass and water, there are also hidden pockets of beauty everywhere you look.

Leonard J. Buck Garden

11 Layton Road

Far Hills, NJ 07931

Mosaic Monday: Crabapples in Bloom

I don't know whether it was all the snow this winter, or all the rain this spring, but the flowering trees have been especially beautiful this year. Or maybe they just seem more lovely because it was a rough winter.

Here are a few photos of the crabapple tree in our front yard. It's getting a little old now -- I won it in a poetry contest when I was in first grade. Yes, that is a long time ago. lol

But even though the trunk is gnarled and the blooms may not be as numerous as on younger trees, it is still the belle of the ball come spring. And it smells divine!

Now let's have some mosaic fun! Here are the instructions:
1. Publish your Mosaic Monday post.
2. Once it is published, click on the title of the post. This will lead you to the static link for your post. The static link is the page with only that post on it. Copy the url from your browser at the top of the page.
3. Paste the url into the appropriate Mr. Linky box in this post.
4. Type your name in the appropriate Mr. Linky box in this post.
5. Click on "Enter."
6. Please link back to this Mosaic Monday post so that your readers can find other wonderful mosaics.
That's all there is to it! It's always a good idea to then check and see if your link is working. If you have any questions, feel free to email me: mrcarroll(at)optonline.net. I can't wait to see your mosaics! Here is Mr. Linky:

Spring has sprung...

What a difference a few months makes! The photo above was taken on January 28th, out the window looking toward our front yard.

Here is the same view, taken earlier this week. I bet you can't figure out which one is my favorite. ;)

Have a wonderful weekend, dear bloggers!

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Won't you join me for Mosaic Monday? Mr. Linky should be up on Sunday by 9:00 pm Eastern time, USA. I can't wait to see what you all have in store for us this week! :)

Violet Tea

I know I just posted about violets last week, but I thought I would show you these violet teacups that belonged to my mother. I am so lucky that my parents kept and passed on such cherished belongings.

I have a set of four cups and saucers. I think they are hand painted, and they have delicate gold rims. As you can see (below), they are also painted inside. They were made in Japan. There is no visible company or maker's mark on the bottom. They have got to be at least 50 years old, though, because I remember my mother using them when I was quite small.

The cups themselves are very thin and fragile. I'm almost afraid to use them myself. And after all, how many times do I really have the opportunity to use them? It's not like I'm serving high tea every afternoon.

But wouldn't that be fun? ;)

Pass the cucumber sandwiches, please. :)

I'm linking up to Show and Tell Friday at Cindy's beautiful blog, My Romantic Home. Be sure to visit Cindy and all the wonderful participants.

A Visit to Macculloch Hall

Last week I visited Macculloch Hall in Morristown, NJ. It houses a beautiful collection of 18th and early 19th century American and English furniture and decorative arts.

The museum is housed in a Federal-style brick mansion built by George Macculloch, a Scotsman who was born in India and emigrated to America in 1806. He was a businessman and visionary who is known as the "Father of the Morris Canal," which was known at the time as an international engineering marvel.

Five generations of the family lived in the home. It was purchased by W. Parsons Todd, a local philanthropist, in 1949. He embarked upon a restoration of the house to contain his collection of furniture, decorative and fine arts from the 18th and early 19th centuries.

As you can see from the photos, the rooms are decorated to appear as a nineteenth-century home. While the furnishings are grand and elegant, they are combined with lamps, dishes, glassware and even toys from the period to create a feeling of casual family life.

The rooms are large, light-filled and airy. There are ten period rooms, including this beautiful yellow bedroom (above).

The formal dining room contains a fine collection of porcelain, crystal and silver, including several settings of American presidential china housed in this corner cabinet.

The central hall is graced by this beautiful chandelier (above), and a gracious curving staircase.

Here is another photo from the dining room (above), with beautiful hurricane lamps on the lovely formal mantel.

The beautiful parlor (above) is decorated as a gathering place for gracious nineteenth century entertaining, with comfortable chairs and musical instruments including a harp and a harpsichord.

The fine china collection at Macculloch Hall includes examples of French, German, English and Chinese export porcelain from about 1750 to 1850.

For more information about Macculloch Hall, visit their website.