Category Archives: Garden/Tea Time

Earth Day 2021…Planting A Garden👩‍🌾

Posted on April 21, 2021 by Marcia Ren

“Smell the sea, and feel the sky. Let your soul and spirit fly.” -Van Morrison Hello, sweet friends… With the warm weather… and vaccines rolling out… in-person celebrations… activities and more in our communities are slowly coming back… specifically outdoor events… I was very excited to receive notice that this year’s summer Garden Tour will go forward as planned… Something wonderful to look forward to… so this week I made a quick trip to one of my favorite nurseries ‘Dragonfly Nursery’ where I picked up a variety of garden starters…lettuce…tomatoes…bell peppers & cucumbers… Along those lines… what better way to … Read the full blog post →

Posted in Coastal Living, Garden/Tea Time, Our Cottage | 1 Comment

September…Autumn…and Apple Pie

Posted on September 25, 2020 by Marcia Ren

Autumn arose and my soul bloomed -Angie Wetland-Crosby Hello, sweet friends… HAPPY AUTUMN!!! Autumn is a beautiful time of year…my summer garden is in transition It’s a time to enjoy what God has given us…the seasons A celebration of the changing of the leaves… to celebrate the harvest…gratitude Autumn is a time to reflect… to find balance in our lives… perhaps more than ever Autumn is a time of looking forward to what’s just around the corner… The trees are changing… and so are we… We are not the same people we were a year ago… May you enjoy this … Read the full blog post →

Posted in 2020, A Quarantined Life, Coastal Living, Garden/Tea Time, Together Apart, What’s Cooking? | 5 Comments

Midsummer Diaries…A Vlog

Posted on July 31, 2020 by Marcia Ren

Hello, sweet friends…Happy August! Today I invite you into my home…where we will prepare a meal…take a walk along the river…stroll in my garden…a drive to the coast…& just spend time hanging around together. I hope you enjoy these midsummer diaries. “Always leave people better than you found them. Hug the hurt, kiss the broken, befriend the lost. Love the lonely.”-Unknown

Posted in A Quarantined Life, Coastal Living, Garden/Tea Time, What’s Cooking? | 6 Comments

The Art of Friendship…& A Recipe For The Best Lemon Bars Ever!

Posted on July 17, 2020 by Marcia Ren

The greatest gift of life is friendship…and I have received it. Hello, sweet friends… At a recent garden tour I hosted… and shortly before my guests arrived… I placed a basket of personalized cookies that were an unique art form of me and my home. That is until my neighbor came early and was shocked that I was about to serve them. She exclaimed “those should be out in a shadow box!!!!’ I was in a dilemma…what was I to serve? I had prepared lemon bars as a backup and she said to me “you put those away…and I will … Read the full blog post →

Posted in A Quarantined Life, Coastal Living, Cooking, Garden/Tea Time | 4 Comments

Rose Castle Cottage…2020…& A Garden Tour

Posted on July 10, 2020 by Marcia Ren

The kiss of the sun for pardon, the song of the birds for mirth, one is nearer God’s heart in a garden than anywhere else on earth-Dorothy Frances Gurney Hello, sweet friend… For several reasons I thought today would be a perfect day to share our garden. As you know shortly after moving into our home last September we were asked to participate in the 2020 garden tour. I felt honored & excited since the date of the tour coincidently marked 5 years since moving from California to the Oregon coast… With the concerns over the pandemic this year’s tour … Read the full blog post →

Posted in 2020, A Quarantined Life, Coastal Living, Garden/Tea Time, Together Apart, What’s Cooking? | 7 Comments

A Quarantined Life… Afternoon Tea

Posted on April 24, 2020 by Marcia Ren

During this time of quarantine our world can still bloom with breathtaking loveliness… Read the full blog post →

Posted in 2020, A Quarantined Life, Cooking, Garden/Tea Time | 2 Comments

While Visiting California…

Posted on February 7, 2020 by Marcia Ren

“When I’m alone I’m actually hanging out with my soul” The Minds Journal Hello, sweet friend… I have been vacationing in California… Sooooooo… I thought this would be a perfect time to re-edit a previous post from 2014 and share a Valentine’s Tea Party I hosted in my California home.❤️ A re-post from February 2014 Everybody Needs Love By Marcia Ren Oh!Oh!Oh! Sometimes I wish I had a HUGE Cottage, so I could invite a zillion friends to my teeny tiny tea parties. Because I think everybody likes to feel loved, and special. ESPECIALLY on Valentine’s Day. I know I … Read the full blog post →

Posted in Garden/Tea Time | 2 Comments

Heading Into February…

Posted on January 31, 2020 by Marcia Ren

“Live life in full bloom & let your dreams blossom” -Marcia Hello, sweet friend… I hope you are having a wonderful week… Surrendering to the brrrrrr of this season… I have taken time to put my nose to inhaling the scents of wood smoke and the frost of the cold air… I’ve walked by those bare trees… listening to the sounds of silence after a winter storm… a storm that came in the wee hours…awakening my small town with it’s blustery wind, thunder and lightning. I appreciate the treasures of this season and it’s tidbits of beauty… realizing that even … Read the full blog post →

Posted in 2020, Garden/Tea Time | 6 Comments

Vacationing…Part Two…A Downton Abbey Kind of Tea Party

Posted on November 15, 2019 by Marcia Ren

“The business of life is the acquisition of memories. In the end that’s all there is.” -Carson, Downton Abbey, Season 6 Hello, sweet friend… Eat your heart out Mrs. Patmore. (aka…the cook at Downton Abbey who believes she runs the house) Today I thought It would be fun to share with you the highlights of a recent Downton Abbey Tea party I attended in California at my California girlfriend’s house with my California girlfriends! I felt so privileged to be included in this special afternoon…and even more excited that I happened to be in California when it was being hosted. … Read the full blog post →

Posted in Garden/Tea Time | 3 Comments

An Autumn Tea…Part Two

Posted on November 1, 2019 by Marcia Ren

A Teatime Blessing🍂 Lord grant that our time together be steeped in serenity, sweetened by sharing, and surrounded by the warm fragrance of your love. Amen Hello, sweet friend… This week I wanted to share with you the menu from a recent tea I hosted… (and just incase you missed it click on the link)…https://marciascottagebythesea.com/an-autumn-tea-part-one/ I had originally planned to prepare all the food myself… However…as the week had been a little cray cray… I opted instead to prepare just a few things…and purchase everything else. (trust me your guests will love anything you give them!) Menu For an Afternoon … Read the full blog post →

Posted in Garden/Tea Time | 5 Comments