Blog: Remembering Good Times

Even though the name of my blog is Happy Talk, this time of year is always bittersweet for me.  Today is the 26th anniversary of my sweet Daddy’s death – he had a heart attack while working at the polls on Election Day, 1992 – and it’s just a couple of weeks after my Mom’s birthday and the anniversary of her death (only 4 days apart).  While I am sad that I don’t get to see and talk to and hug my parents any more, I am grateful for the happy years I spent with them and for the many reminders I have of them.  I have clothing, furniture, books, and decorative items that were theirs, I have the many years of life lessons and favorite (and not so favorite) sayings that flash through my head on a daily basis, and of course I have photographs.  I love having those tangible reminders of my parents around the house!

During the Generation2Generation crop last month, one of our members, Lynn Vail, posted a couple of pages of the Royal Doulton figurines that she had inherited, and that got me thinking about my mom’s collection of china demitasse cups.  For as long as I can remember, Mom had these pretty little cups of all different sizes, shapes, and patterns that only got brought out when she hosted a ladies’ lunch or some other special party.  Mom was a big sucker for china, from Wedgwood to Fiestaware, and she loved finding a pretty or interesting new little cup.  She also loved to entertain, mostly because it meant she could use her china and crystal and silver!  My sister and I were always called to duty when the ladies were coming for lunch.  Our jobs included doing some of the advance prep work/cooking, setting the table, and serving.  Mom’s go-to dessert for these special events was Chocolate Pots de Creme.  Not only was it divinely sinfully chocolaty, but her pretty demitasse were the perfect serving pieces for this delightfully rich dessert.  She even had tiny little silver demitasse spoons, which made you have to savor every dainty bite of deliciousness.

You’ve probably guessed by now that Kim and I had the tasks of making the Pots de Creme, pouring it into the cups, adding the dollops of whipped cream, and serving the dessert.  Even though we handled those cups and saucers a lot, we were forbidden to wash or dry them.  Mom could not stand it if her guests tried to clear the table or, God forbid, wash the dishes!  If anything got chipped or broken, Mom wanted to be the one responsible for it!  That was fine with us, of course.  I always loved those little cups, and I loved watching Mom unwrap each one before washing them prior to using them.  It was like getting out favorite Christmas ornaments – she would tell us where she got the cup, when she got it, who it had belonged to, or whatever she knew about its provenance.  I wish I had paid more attention to some of those details…

Anyway, back to the crop weekend…like I said, I was inspired.  I moved things around in my laundry room so that I could get the cabinet door open and reach the box of demitasse cups, then I carefully carried them upstairs, set up a ‘black box’, and photographed each one.  Then I spent all afternoon googling for information about the cups, based on the info found on the bottom of the cups and saucers.  I added each photo and whatever info I found into my Forever account, and then I made a page of my favorite cups.  Of course, my favorite cups turned out to be the ones that had little or no information about them, save for a few little notes that Mom had written and attached to the bottom of the saucers!  I used the same Blueprint (#p2PFamilyReunionBP) that Lynn used, and just duplicated it so that I could put the photos of the cups on one page and its provenance on the facing page.  The next time I need a Mom/demitasse fix, I can just look at my page or my Forever album.  Or I could make some Pots de Creme….

#p2PFamilyReunionBP Vintage Memories Mega Bundle by Lucky Girl Creative Everyday 4 Paper Pak and Chalkboard Collection by Cottage Arts Canvas Colors Paper Pack #1 by DesignerDigitals Fonts: Gabriola, KG Manhattan Script

Bonus:  Here’s the Pots de Creme, as we made it.  And no, the eggs were not cooked – it was the 60s!  And instant coffee – ick!  But it does need a bit of coffee, and if you are worried about consuming raw-ish eggs, add the yolks at the beginning.  It’s really good!  And I don’t remember how many little cups this made…

#p2PRecipesForLifeBPCards
Glitter Festive Fall by Cottage Arts
Le Chef Mega Bundle by Little Feet Digital Designs
Canvas Colormix #4 and 16; Canvas Cardstocks #2 and 17
Font: KG Ten Thousand Reasons Alt