Rabbit-Rabbit Girlfriends! Good Morning! MUSICA It’s the glory of love!
Everything good here ~ so far it looks like it might not rain today! A minor miracle on this first day of June considering that it rained all May ~ but, so far, so good, it’s dawning with blue skies! 
Time to turn over the new page on our calendars ~ It’s tea! Perfect timing (how did I know?), because today I’m having twelve best friends for a Farewell Tea Party Twine for a girlfriend who’s moving south! I’m hoping that maybe, just maybe, if the sky stays blue, we’ll be able to have it outside under the arbor!
Our party is at four, so I doubt we’ll need the twinkle lights. But every time I look at that little spot, I think of Mr. Bowditch, who I never met, the man you lived here before us, who built the arbor with his own hands back in the 1950s. He doesn’t know it, but he has given us YEARS of pleasure. He and his wife called the arbor the “Teahouse of the Vineyard Moon.” Romantic people that they were.💞
But I’m still waiting to see if the picnic table gets dried out enough! We cleaned up the dining room just in cases. Jack’s been helping me get ready, but we still have a lot to do. I know everyone is waiting for the drawing . . . So I thought I’d say hello and give us one last day to make sure everyone is signed up for our Luv-lee beautiful cup Giveaway.
Be sure to sign up your sister, your daughter and your mom! And you! Do it today ~ just leave a comment below and you’ll be entered ~ because Vanna (our very interesting “random number generator”) is on her way back to the Island so we’ll try to do the drawing tomorrow depending on what kind of shape she’s in. 😜 You know how she is. (If none of this makes sense to you, read down the next post ~ for drawing explanation.) Until then, off I go . . . Let’s see, where’s that recipe . . . Oh yeah . . .
I’ll take lots of pictures today, between setting the table, cutting chives in the garden for the tender little egg salad sandwiches and dipping the perfectly ripe strawberries into melted chocolate. Ahhh, tea parties. How I love thee. Have a wonderful day everyone . . . It’s true, to know you is to love you!
P.S. Just saw this photo, wasn’t Jack the sweetest little kitten? He’s under the bed in the Peter Rabbit room in this photo, on his first day home. All ears and mustache! Intelligence shines out around the eyes, don’t you think? 😘
Happy first day of June. As always, thanks for the joy you bring to all of us!
Hi Susan, Love your blog and those cups are awesome. Thanks so much your writing makes my day. arlene koktavy
I just flipped my calendar and boom here it is on your blog also. What a nice treat this sunny morning. Enjoy your tea party but now I’m inspired to plan my own 🙂 Also I LOVE my 3 mugs that I received as a Mother’s Day gift and now I’m campaigning for Santa mugs for Christmas. Love them. As always the best from K&G.
Thank you, Susan, for another chance to win these wonderful mugs! I hope the rain holds out for your tea party and you’re able to dine under the arbour that Mr Bowditch built. I look forward to seeing some more pics! Lots of love from Sydney, Australia. Natalie x
Would be over the moon to win the cup giveaway!! Just adore them!!
Blessings!!
Love the mugs so much! Would bring me joy sipping my tea out of one! Best wishes for a sunny day for your tea party!
What a lovely gift for a cup of earl gray!
Please draw me–I’d love to see a Tennessean win your drawing! Judy
Hi Susan, please sign me up for the drawing. I would love to win, but wouldn’t we all? Of course we would!@! I love love those dishes, i have looked them up- Johnson Brothers? You bring me endless joy with your art, books, blog and all….you are like a member of my family. Have a wonderful day, Hello to Joe and kisses to Jack……xoxoxo
And what is so rare as a day in June? Then, if ever, come perfect days! I’m entering for my Mom–Beth
We never grow to old for tea parties!
How did June sneak up on us so soon? Month number six already! How did this happen?
Oh, Susan, Mr and Mrs Bowditch were indeed Kindred Spirits ~ such a romantic name for the arbour ~ sighs ~ I can just imagine them out there, dancing, in each others arms, by the silvery light of a full moon in summer, sipping on a glass of champagne to celebrate just being, and just so much in love with each other dancing underneath the stars in the heaven and surrounded by fragrant flowers galore in the Teahouse of the Vineyard Moon ~~~ it sounds so exotic ~~~
Go for the twinkle lights ~ it’s never to early for twinkle lights!
~~~Waving~~~from Across the Pond and a not so summery Wales! ~~~Deb in Wales
Your house and yard are an oasis from the awful things happening in the world today, so lovely.
A tea party sounds lovely, you all will have a new place to visit. Good luck to your friend on her move.
Thank you for bringing joy to June with your lovely post.
Thank you for bringing joy in June with your lovely post.
I agree! Jack was the cutest kitten ever..
Reading your blog this morning,a great way to start a June.
Beautiful picture of “baby Jack.” Don’t you wish they could stay young forever? I know I do.
Treese/Colorado Cowgirl
Oh boy, how I would love to win a mug. Mmmmmmmmm sitting outside with a lovely cuppa tea, enjoying a lovely afternoon. Reading one of your books – it would all be perfect.
Tea with ones you love is the best! My daughter leaves Texas tomorrow for a 3 month internship in Brooklyn, so we are having a goodbye tea breakfast this morning.
…rabbit,rabbit, dear kindred spirit(s) !..thank you for inviting us all to a tea (to twine) party !..what a delight !!..’can’t wait to see the pictures you will be taking !..the last splendid tea party I attended was with Anne with an E..and does she know how to give a party as well !!.. I absolutely adored it !!..let’s have a wonderful time !!..’keep thinking of that quote to simply “take joy” !!!..with love, as always..
A tea party and a free tea mug! Couldn’t be better! Rabbit, rabbit to you, too. 🐇🐇
Being a June baby I’ve always adored strawberries. Can’t wait to try your chocolate covered berries. Yum! Ellen
Have a wonderful tea party with your girlfriends the sun is shining just for you.
xo
I love reading about your life.
Rabbit-Rabbit!! Tea party, twine party sounds sweet (haha) and fun, but sad, you’ll miss your GF! I told my daughter I had to let you know….she has discovered Peah Cidah, taste tested at a fundraiser for the local animal shelter! It’s from a local grower, and I like the graphics on the bottle (I’m like that – packaging matters), had my first taste & oh my it’s good!!! I too don’t know how it got to be June so fast…I’m not finished spring cleaning! Yesterday, I spent the day reading “Once in a Blue Moon Lodge”, so good, & I liked it better than cleaning!! Enjoy your prep & party! xoxo
Beautiful wee Jack kitty! Susan I so would love one of those beautiful cups as I begin again my new life at the wonderfully ripe old age of 63. Have a gorgeous tea party!
I was never a fan of cats. I’m currently reading the archives and I am reading about when you got Jack. I fell in love! Could this be? His little Monsieur moustache and shanaegans. What a sweety. I am enjoying the archives so much. Jack I see is all grown. Beautiful place to visit with morning coffee….just finished Martha’s Vineyard book. So good! The part about ancestors in Salem. Awesome. Have a beautiful June. As Alan Jackson is in my head today….keeps pouring here In Nova Scotia…”It’s a rainy day in June…sky is grey and I am blue…” ( not really but it’s stuck in my head. Have a beautiful tea party!! 😀
I wasn’t a fan of cats either… but I lived in California in a garden with about 10,000 gophers, so I got a kitty to take care of them organically. Then I fell madly in love with her. To know them is to love them. And kittens! Nothing like them! They potty-train themselves! They walk sideways! Need I say more?
What a lovely send off for your friend, have a wonderful time.
Your tea party sounds so precious. Cant wait to see the pictures!
I love june!!
Your tea party sounds lovely! Jack is a handsome cat, really!
Though I’ve been to some nice ones out, I’ve never had a tea party as an adult. You’ve got me pondering how lovely one would be.
It’s like playing house.💞
Hi Susan!
You’re quite the Queen of Tea, & if “Friendship is a Sheltering Tree” (Samuel Taylor Coleridge), then you are certainly the most comforting “Branch”…
the truth is, wherever you walk, you leave a trail of glitter behind!
Happy June! ;))
Love & hugs,
Bunny
S W E E T N E S S 😘
Yes, please enter my name into the give away! I’m actually visiting Martha’s Vineyard next week….so excited.
Hope you get a little bit of our lovely month of June, and no rain!
Good morning dear Susan!
what a treat it is to be reading a new post on the 1st. of June, a most wonderful month for me :), because I’ll be celebrating my b-day in a few days! doesn’t matter how old I get just looove birthdays and I hope you don’t mind I’ll be borrowing your tradition of the rings on the cake candles! ~so lovely idea!
Have a wonderful tea party!
Love, Patricia
Love the dishes too!
Jack reminds me of my tuxedo Nicky eighteen years ago. All ears and paws back then. Now it’s his big heart and spirit that we enjoy every day.
Good Morning Susan. I’m really looking forward twittering along at your tea party today❣️
Your cups are very cute and interesting….
and I also am very happy June is here!
Hope your tea party is wonderful!!!
All I can say is your posts make me happy!
Rabbit, rabbit Susan! Enjoy your tea party!
“You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”
― C.S. Lewis
Dreaming of winning a mug from which I can drink my tea and connect to you!
Tea parties are such good fun! Love reading what’s happening at your house! Delightful blog I’ve been reading for a couple of years now. Thank you so much for sharing all the little ways that make a day special!
Hi Susan,
I have nothing very profound to say other than Thank You for your lovely blog. It continues to feel like a haven from “the outside world”.
Linda
P.s. I know you must love the movie Love Actually because we say “just in cases” at our home too. Did you see the Red Nose Day Love Actually reunion special last week? If not, do a google search….16 minutes of smiling. 😊
I ordered, and received, my cup from the first design series. I LOVE it, and I feel very special every day I use it. Beautifully crafted and of course the art work is the best.
So I would love to win one for a mate to that one!
Happy June 1ST…
Gerri
PS: Is that a resident bunny? Looks right at home…so cute and such big ears!
Gerri
I do so hope we get lots of tea party pics so i feel like i was there too!!!! Fingers crossed for sunshine dear Susan. XXX
So sorry to see that the ‘I love Nature’ mug is no longer available, any chance of them coming back??
Enjoy your tea party Susan! You have inspired me to try to plan one this summer………..thank you always for your positive words. My husband and I are in a dark dark place right now and I am doing all I can to remain positive and supportive. Let’s hope for endless days of sunshine…………….
Every morning I have tea and a muffin, using the new ‘nature’ cup, which I absolutely love; it’s a pleasurable, cozy start to the day. (My dog, Coco, knows, too, when he sees that cup coming out, he’s getting muffin crumbs.) It’s definitely the little things in life! Thank you, Susan.
I collect mugs and cups. The teacup would make a great addition!
Jack is the cutest kitty ever!
I love your posts. They are so personable. You are talented with words and paint!
I absolutely adore your work. It has been such a blessing of love and comfort to me.
Don’t know where your friend is moving to or how far south but when we left Ct for Alabama back in the 70s…it was absolute, total, culture shock. Honestly, it was awful for the first 3 yrs (I was 19 at the time) and I just wanted to leave. Now it’s been over 40 yrs and I’m totally assimilated. The world is so much smaller now and there are so many transplants in the area I’m in that there’s very little culture shock anymore. Have fun with your tea party!
It was a culture shock when I moved from California to New England . . . so surprising (and interesting, and informative) to see how different we are in other parts of the country. You really get to see it when you cross the country on a train.
Enjoy your tea party!! It sounds like outstanding fun! May you have the perfect day for it!
Aw, he’s such a smart boy. Love his baby picture! Can’t wait for pictures of your tea party ( & the prep). Have a lovely time. And can’t wait for Vanna!! Lots of ♥♥♥
Oh my goodness, I forgot rabbit-rabbit!
Tea, chocolate covered strawberries and a tuxedo kitty cat. What could be better?
Rabbit Rabbit to you, Susan!🐇🐇❤❤ Wishing you a joyous afternoon tea party today. LOVE your June calendar page! Wishing for a teacup…😉😍 Happy June!
Hope your skies remain sunny! We’ve had a really soggy May here in SW Wisconsin. (So much so that the land bridge that leads to the iron bridge over the Mississippi that we take whenever we drive into Iowa was washed out this week and unfortunately a car missed seeing it in the dark and the man on his way to work tumbled into the river. Looks like we won’t be using that crossing for many weeks to come.) But it’s sunny today, even sunnier since reading your post this morning. Have a wonderful farewell tea party (isn’t it hard to say farewell to a dear friend?) and I hope it’s out of doors under those magical fairy lights. And yes, Jack was a sweet little kitten and has grown into a very dapper fellow. How lucky you are to have him AND Joe in your life!
Best wishes.
I’d love to win a beautiful teacup. Today I saw a cute saying: “I love to party and by party I mean stay home and drink tea.” Have a wonderful tea party today.
Wishing you blue skies all day — leaving this comment as I don’t think my first attempt last week made it through. Thanks for the opportunity and have a wonderful day with your friends!
Happy first day of June!!! We will gladly take your rain : ) We have been very hot and dry in our very small corner of the world (South GA). So dry that three weeks ago today a passing train sparked and caused a fire that burned a small section of our tree lined fence row in the field where we keep our two donkeys – Molly and Jackie (Mother and daughter). Our dedicated volunteer fire fighters along with the railroad fire crews from two neighboring towns (they came down the railroad tracks) fought the fire for well over five hours; it was difficult work due to the steep embankments that drop to the tracks. The volunteers were called back a little after 11 when some trees caught back up. They did a fantastic job!!!
I was so happy to see you briefly check in this morning. The girlfriend tea party sounds magical!!! Please share every minute, decoration and delectable recipe. It always inspires me when you share with us; even the small things such as spring cleaning : ) I hope Vanna makes a safe journey home. She sure does live a charmed life! I ordered the three mugs which I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. Winning one would allow me to share with my Mom as I just can’t seem to part with one of the ones I had ordered. Have a wonderful party!
Love the new tea cups! 💖 Love that you’re having a garden tea party ☀️☕️🌷…very civilized! :}
Happy First Day of June to you, Susan! The sun is shining here, too, after a rather chilly and damp month of May.
How I miss our bunnies — when we first moved here a couple of decades ago, there were quite a few wild ones hopping about. However, all the housing developments over the years have destroyed their habitats, and I see only one or two in late spring/summer/early fall. Makes my heart sad.
Little Jack! What a darling baby boy! My cat does that same pose, with one paw (almost always the left one) partially raised like that. I’ve often wondered at the significance.
A tea party in the arbor would be perfect, but if you must celebrate in the dining room, it won’t matter — the same beautiful faces will be beaming around the table in loving support of your friend and her new adventure. Have a wonderful time together!
I’m not sure if I posted a comment before, so, I’ll do it again (age and memory loss!).
A tea party is such a wonderful idea, I can’t wait to see the photos. About six of my friends and I get together once a month on a Sunday afternoon to knit. The next time it’s my turn I think I’ll pull out the stops and make it a tea party with a bit of knitting instead of knitting with a cup of tea.
Rabbit-Rabbit!
I love seeing pictures of your kitties. It warms my heart to know they are living the good life there on the island. Another reason to celebrate with tea!
Have a wonderful tea party today. I’ll be thinking of you while I drink mine here on the west coast 🙂
love tea and love hearing about tea parties…:)
Dear Susan,
I always look forward to your next blog post. I love the photos, drawings and of course what you write! I am a big fan and have many of your books and cookbooks. Your book, A Fine Romance, made me fall in love with England and I have talked my husband into going in 2018. Your love of Heart and Home, is so near and dear to my heart also. I look forward to your next book!😊
Rabbit Rabbit to you Sweet Susan!
I’m wondering if the Bowditch’s have any children? If they do I bet those kids are so comforted and delighted with how much you and Joe love that home. Have a wonderful tea party with your lucky girlfriends!
❌⭕️❌⭕️,
Tawni Urrutia in Lodi, Ca
They had four. I was honored to have Mrs. Bowditch come for tea after she’d lost her husband, maybe two years before she herself passed to heaven. As she walked through the house, talking about her life here, I could almost hear the four pairs of little feet running on the wood floors upstairs, laughing in their beds at night. That’s the house I live in now, and one of the main reasons I love it so much.
Enjoyed your message and pictures today.
I always try to remember Rabbit on the first of each month. I even leave post-it notes by bed.
It’s good luck!
I can’t wait to see your pictures, enjoy every minute with your friends!
How I enjoy your blog! Also your calendars, books and recipes! Thank you Susan! You add to the enjoyment of each day! Happy Tea Party!
Always enjoy reading your blog. And thank you for the chance for a pretty cup!!
Happy June Susan. I hope you have sunshine for your tea party. We have had lots of clouds here in San Diego in May and June is starting out cloudy also. They call it the “marine layer” but yesterday it never rolled back. Here’s hoping for today. Jack is the most handsome tuxedo cat I have ever seen. I think it’s the mustache.
Susan,
I have had my signed copy of “A Fine Romance” sitting temptingly on my bedside table since last May when I saw you in Denver. I have not allowed myself to read it because I have been working on my masters degree. I completed my final paper (until fall) yesterday. the first thing I did was grabbed your book. Just finished reading about your lovely visits to Hill Top! 🙂 Such a lovely way to start my summer!
Your cups are adorable! I’d love a chance to win one!
Libby
I took a tour of your PETER RABBIT ROOM today. What a wonderful room to share all your treasures! As a retired school librarian, it took some selling to get my students in to all of Miss Potter’s books, but once it happened, those particular students came back again and again to read those ‘little’ books about the adventures of Peter and his friends. Great memories . . .
If you ever get a chance to share what Beatrix Potter’s real LIFE was like, that is the true story. She is a hero. xoxo
Enjoy your tea party!
Happy June, Susan! Birthday month for both hubby and me. 🙂 Please enter me in the drawing for the mugs. Thank you! Love to you, Joe and Jack. <3
Id love to win a mug!! Love your blog so much!
Susan,
My mother is also a fan of your work! I’d love for her to have a chance to win a mug as well!
Her name is Cathalee.
(Mother of Libby)
Happy June 1st!!! Hello from NH. Hope everything is starting to bloom and that the rain has stopped for a while so we can enjoy Summer in New England.
Pam (a fan from the very first Xmas book).
Susan,
I hope the rain stops and you have a wonderful tea party! I love all the beautiful new cups and can’t wait for the drawing,
Happy first day of June.
Dawn R.
Rabbit Rabbit! It has been continually raining here (up-state NY) as well. So gosh darn dreary…gets to me after a while. Last night we had a monster of a thunderstorm with hail. Luckily it didn’t do damage to my beautiful Hostas. This morning is all bright and beautiful sunshine. I have been out in my garden since 7:30 and came in for a cup-a and some oatmeal. Thought of you while I played in the dirt and listened to the birdies. A hummingbird came zipping through and buzzed right under my hat! I jumped a mile! So cool. I love your pretty dishes for your tea party. What fun to plan and play! Have fun with your lovely girlfriends and I hope things dry out enough for you to sit under that lovely arbor. <3
I hope you have a lovely day for your tea party! I am enjoying my coffee in my SB cup which came a couple of weeks ago and I absolutely love it….it’s awesome!
Dear Vanna…pick me, pick me…pls!
A luv-lee beautiful cup needs to arrive in my mailbox…fingers crossed.
Hi, Susan!
Tea parties, and chocolate covered strawberries, and arbors, oh my! My Grandparents had such an arbor at their home under which we spent many wonderful family times….what memories! Hope the sun is shining there as it is here today! Best to your friend who is heading south! Enjoy your celebration!
Hi Sue,
Hope it doesn’t rain, tea is so extra special outside. I had a little tea to welcome back one friend and send off another, from and for trips, yesterday. We almost had it on the porch but the sun just couldn’t stay out long enough soon enough here in Northfield. But, no matter, the company and conversation sparrkled, as always. Wishing you sunshine.
Lillian
A tea party! How exciting! You are so right – June 1st is the perfect day!
Will be thinking of you and hoping for fair weather. XOXO!!
Dontcha just love little kitties. Jack is still adorable. Your tea party has inspired me to dust off my 3 antique tea pots and have a party. You taught me to mix my old china and now I can enjoy my grandma’s and my aunts china together. Who knew? YOU! Hoping I win a sweet cup…but have already won just enjoying your blog and tweets. Have a FUN party and God bless! PS…it is beautiful in Rochester, Michigan today. 😘
HI Susan! Hope you get a wonderful day outside for your tea party. I love seeing pictures of Jack, and how helpful he is around your house. A house is not a home without a cat there to bring it to life! and chaos! and love!
Oh my, we must wait one more day for the drawing?! Oh well, GOOD things come to those who wait. I just baked an Amish coffee cake this morning for breakfast–so good when eaten still warm with a cup of coffee. My husband and I enjoyed watching the birds as we ate breakfast. And I’ve got a strawberry/rhubarb pie in the oven as we speak, er, type. It’s a beautiful day and I’m pretty sure you’ll have good weather too as what we get seems to head your way. Enjoy your party!
I adore those mugs, and can’t decide which I like best, so I haven’t ordered one yet. Maybe if I win one, it would help me decide. 🙂
Also, Jack is so much fun to see in your photos. I love to see what he’s up to. I lost both of my cats in the last few years (ages 17.5 and 18.5, respectively), so I have to live vicariously through others’ cats, since my German Shepherd is not cat-friendly.
I am sure the tea party will be bright and beautiful! Everything is so pretty! I’m sorry your friend is moving. Weep.
Oh Jack! Such a doll!
Prayers for sunshine, Sue!
Tea parties are the best! What fun you will have with your friends…hopefully no rain and you can have it outside…so pretty there. Love your dishes! 🙂 Enjoy! 🙂
I’m hoping to do a tea party in the garden soon! A friend, who is a tea party Queen, will help me host. We will fill a table with friends.
Have a fabulous time at your tea party….I know you will ! 💕 I can’t believe that it’s already June. I changed my calendar this morning. And read the page, and thought of you having your Tea. Perfect planning. 💜 Jack’s baby pic. He was such a darling kitten and has grown into such a handsome cat ! Happy June, Susan ! xoxomary