new mug

I woke this morning and decided to meet up with an old pal I haven’t seen in a while, Mr. Stove Top Oats.

This bowl was the standard oatmeal / oatbran combo with 1/2 a banana cooked in and topped with Zaydie’s Almond Blueberry Granola, sunflower seeds and TJ’s Sun butter! It’s funny because all the almonds and blueberries have been picked out of my granola at this point, but it still tastes sweet, nutty and delicious.

In other news, I received the coolest gift for Christmas from one of my best friends who spent the majority of 2009 working in Estes Park. Both items she gave me- a mug and loose leaf tea, were from Colorado.

I’m a sucker for pretty mugs so I absolutely adored this gift.

And the tea she gave me is from The Tea Spot, a Boulder, CO based company that was founded by a cancer survivor drawn to the health benefits of tea during her recovery. Their line of full leaf teas include organic and Fair-Trade Certified™ estate teas and hand-crafted signature blends. The company is committed to clean, sustainable, and fair manufacturing standards and 10% of every sale is donated in-kind to cancer wellness and community programs.

She got me The TeaSpot Red Rocks, Rooibos Loose Leaf Tea With Vanilla & Almond Bits, as it was a favorite of hers while in CO.

It’s a caffeine-free, South African red rooibos tea with vanilla, and small pieces of almonds. I love naturally sweet teas and I think it’s so cool that this one has bits of real almonds. The tea is relatively sweet on it’s own but I added a couple drops of SweetLeaf Stevia and the extra sweetness completely enhanced all the flavors. I’m excited to have this tea on hand as it will be perfect when I’m craving something sweet after a meal.

Here’s the description from The Tea Spot website: Our blend of naturally caffeine–free South African red rooibos, vanilla, and almond bits is an herbal delight! Rooibos is full of antioxidants and healthy minerals such as calcium, potassium, magnesium, iron, zinc, copper, and fluoride. It has a wonderfully smooth flavor, and is a great cold buster as well as thirst quencher. It brews into a dark red liquor and has a naturally sweet, earthy scent, reminiscent of pipe–tobacco. You cannot over–steep this tea (the longer the better!) and it is fantastic by itself, or with cream and a bit of sweetener. Red Rocks is the perfect, healthy, all-around herbal tea – a favorite amongst athletes and as mom’s choice for children.

I know I’ve seen The Tea Spot Tea at one of the organic grocery stores that I go to but I can’t remember which. From looking at store locations on the website it looks as thought they are in many Whole Food’s locations so that is probably were I have seen these cute little tins before. After trying the Red Rocks flavor and loving it, I’m excited to try out some of the others, particularly the Climber’s High, Holiday Spice Rooibos, and Meditative Mind. They even have one for all you Twilight fans- Organic New Moon Darjeeling.

On a side note, my uncle who was sick passed away. Isaac and I will be attending the viewing tonight, staying the night with my Dad, and attending the funeral tomorrow. With that said, posting may be sporadic.

- Brittany

PS. What are your plans for New Year’s this year? Our plans are still up in the air and we really don’t have many options. Perhaps you all can inspire us with your ideas?!?