FRONT PORCH TEA

Mary Marcia 
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking


Wish you could share some FRONT PORCH TEA with me today!  
   

We downsized to a small cottage in 2004. 
Our front porch is so tiny....so I expanded the "porch-space"
by adding a porch swing to the side, stepping stones and a rocking chair in front of the porch.
July 2011

My Granny Lucille always had red geraniums in pots on her front porch, and I continue the tradition.
Nothing says, "Welcome!" like a pot of  bright red geraniums!

This is my favorite seat on our expanded "front-porch-space!"
Don't you just love a rocking chair?
Can you find the daisies, geraniums,  petunias and boxwood?
July 2011

It just isn't possible for each one of my friends around the world to sit with me on my front porch today - so let's try the next-best-thing! 

What if we each made a batch of FRONT PORCH TEA and shared it with someone in our own neighborhood? 

Spring TULIPS on my front porch.  Copyright 2014 Marcia Norwood

Spring TULIPS and PETUNIAS on my front porch.  Copyright 2014 Marcia Norwood

Spring TULIPS and PETUNIAS on my front porch.  Copyright 2014 Marcia Norwood

Spring TULIPS and PETUNIAS on my  front porch.  Copyright 2014 Marcia Norwood

Spring TULIPS and PETUNIAS on my front porch.  Copyright 2014 Marcia Norwood

 Ask GOD to put someone on our heart.  The mail carrier?  The neighbor down the street?  Your son or daughter? Husband?  Friend? Grandchildren?

My recipe for FRONT PORCH TEA serves 8 to 10. 

Who will you serve today?

RECIPE:  Front Porch Tea

FRONT PORCH TEA
(Serves 8 to 10)

Ingredients

• 11 Cups Water:  Divided into 1, 2 and 8 Cup Portions
• 1 Cup Sugar
• 2 Large Family-Size Tea Bags
• 1 (12-ounce) Can Frozen Lemonade Concentrate (Thawed)
• 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
• 1 Tablespoon Almond Extract
• Fresh Peach Slices

Preparation

1. Combine 1 Cup Water and 1 Cup Sugar.
2. Cook and Stir until Sugar Dissolves to Make Sugar Syrup.  Set Aside.
3. Pour 2 Cups Boiling Water over Tea Bags in a 4-Quart (Gallon) Pitcher.
4. Let Stand 5 Minutes, and Remove Tea Bags.
5. Add remaining 8 Cups Water, Sugar Syrup, Lemonade Concentrate, Vanilla and Almond Extract.
6. Serve Over Ice, and Garnish with Fresh Peach Slices and/or Fresh Mint Leaves.
7. ENJOY!!!

Peppermint grows wild in my front garden in the midst of coneflowers,
iris, Dwarf Alberta Spruce and ornamental grasses.
It's fun to sit in the middle of the garden and take in all the sights, sounds and scents!
The red chair is comfy and also the "red" draws hummingbirds. 
Just behind the chair are three fragrant butterfly bushes.
Hummingbirds, butterflies, birds and bees dart to and fro!

We grow two varieties of  mint  in our gardens to use in this recipe.  Mint can become a nuisance in the garden, so you may want to plant it in pots rather than in the midst of your garden.

The scent of the Knockout Roses on our streetside garden is intoxicating!  I planted the roses between
Dwarf Alberta Spruce, Daylillies, Salvia, Mint, Liriope, and Lemon Basil.

Mary Marcia 
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking