Deerey me!: More cats than crafts...

The Tea House Emporium, Bath

I am going to start with one of my favourite subjects; tea shops. Well, just one actually - the Tea House Emporium in Bath. I first visited this tea shop the week it's cellar tea room opened and I have been steadily working my way through the extensive selection of teas (and coffees) ever since. It has Moroccan style lanterns, displays of tea pots I can only dream of owning, wonderful staff and amazing cakes (honey layer cake...mmmmm!). This visit I had a pot of green chai - the tea pot and cup are always chosen to complement the tea ordered and are brought to the table along with a timer set for the perfect infusion, so when the timer goes off you can take out the filter with the tea leaves so it doesn't stew. Some of their teas open up in hot water to look like exotic flowers, and these are served in glass tea pots, so they can be admired. I mentioned to the waitress on Thursday that I had n't been sure I liked green tea because it is often too bitter and she took the time to explain that the water must not be boiling, or it will release too much tannin, and then let me sniff canisters of different green teas. I tell you, this place is a tea-lover's dream!

Note the Christmas stockings hung by the chimney with care...

Bath Tea House Emporium

A sea of golden leaves

We have a beautiful sycamore tree in our garden. In the Summer it provides welcome shade and in the Autumn it turns golden. Unfortunately, every time we clear up the leaves, within a couple of days the lawn is covered again.

sycamore leaves in the garden

They do look lovely though - and Rio the cat loves them! He dives in to them and chases the leaves around the garden...

..and Max just watches, superciliously.

Max the (smug) cat

On Friday I cleared up as many leaves as would fit in our green bin and left the others in tidy piles around the garden. Or at least tidy for now until Rio gets his paws in to them...!

our garden in Bath

This morning it was wonderfully frosty, so I was out there with my camera. This blog is a perfect excuse to take loads of photos...my 'public' needs to see frosty leaves! tee hee.

frosty Autumn leaves

frosty clematis

frosty sycamore leaves

Christmas preparations

Yes, I know it's early but it is easier to wrap presents now than risk Mark or his parents stumbling across things for them. The cats had other ideas...

Rio the cat in the way

Rio the cat tries his paw at gift wrapping

cat at work

cat complaining when the ribbon is taken away

And - as usual - Max sleeps through (and on) it all!

Max asleep on wrapping paper

More cats: Leo and Tiberius

Last year we gave our friend Lesley a copy of our Max and Rio calendar, and she asked if we would go over so I could take photos of her beautiful bengal cats for this year's calendar. Leo just wanted to be fussed and stroked rather than have his photo taken, while his brother posed shamelessly for the camera.