Teacups and Memories

I love tea. Maybe it's my English roots. I have a cup almost as soon as I wake up. It's my little morning ritual. A hot cup of tea can calm me down almost instantly when I'm feeling stressed. A hot cup of tea while reading a book is my happy place.

I mostly love black teas. English Breakfast. Earl Grey. Black tea with vanilla. Add a little milk and a spoonful of sugar. It's delicious to me.

Almost more important than the tea is the mug. Between Chapters and Starbucks, I can't seem to stop buying new, beautiful mugs. And now I have more than one favourite. Mindy Lahiri said that "a best friend isn't a person, it's a tier." Well, the same philosophy could be applied to my tea mugs. I probably have more pictures of mugs and teacups on my Instagram account than I do selfies.

My most recent addition is the Best Day Ever mug from Starbucks that I received as a Christmas gift. I can't be not happy when I drink from that mug. Plus it makes taking my tea "to go" so much fancier.

Last summer, I bought a San Diego mug from Starbucks' You Are Here collection. You can't really see it in the photo, but it's back there. I love this one so so much because it always reminds me of the amazing family vacation we had there in June. We played at the beach, visited the zoo, had delicious dinners. And using this mug reminds me of those really happy memories.

I really love the "but first, Tea" mug from Chapters as well. There are so many "but first, coffee" mugs that I was dying for a tea version. There was no way I could leave this in the store when I saw it.

The yellow floral teacup I don't use often, but it holds a special place in my heart. This teacup belonged to my grandmother and is from her collection. She passed away shortly after I got married, and I love this mug because every time it catches my eye, I remember her. I remember how she used to always love gifting my sister and I the latest Disney VHS at Christmas. I remember her visits and when she would travel with us. I remember her loving smile and how proud she was of her family. The unassuming, yellow, floral teacup is powerful.

I even use this mug in my bathroom to hold all of my lipglosses! My sister bought it for me for my birthday after she and my mom took a special trip to LA together.

Within my beautiful collection, there are two mugs I am drawn to over and over again. The turquoise, floral mug and my Paris mug. Tea just seems to taste better in them. When I think about it now, those two mugs have been with me at some of my highest and lowest moments. I bought the turquoise mug shortly after Rob and I moved in together. Lots of wedding planning happened over that mug. That was the mug that caught more than a few tears during my miscarriages. But it was also the mug that I drank a lot of decaf tea in during my pregnancy with Sebastian.

The Paris is a good idea mug is one of my all-time favourites. If you've ever purchased one of these giant Chapters mugs, you know what I'm talking about. Not only is the Audrey Hepburn quotation on the mug very on point (I may also have a thing for Audrey Hepburn), but this mug holds a ton of tea and is perfect for early mornings. This mug has sat beside me on late work nights, and risen with me when Sebastian declares it "wake up time, Mommy". All of my mugs have sat with me while I've read the latest book I'm devouring.

So, I continue to buy and love these gorgeous mugs. Even if I don't really "need" anymore. It's a small way to add joy to my day, something of which we can always use a little bit more. And these mugs start to really hold not just tea. They hold memories and stories from my life.

xo
Jenn