A New Use For Teapots!!!!

Any one who has ever been to my house knows how much  I love collecting teapots and tea cups. They are so beautiful and yet practical! I love sitting down in my comfy chair to read with a steaming pot of tea wafting the scents of mangos and peaches around the room. Can anyone deny how heavenly this can be???

Okay, so I do get teased, mainly by my brothers, about my teapot collection (how many does a person really need? they ask) and I just laugh off their teasing, but I am here to share with you how I use my collection to bring joy to my husband!

There is a hysterical Dick van Dyke episode where he finds a bank book that his wife has been hiding away and seceretly stashing money. When he finally confronts his wife she explains that she has been saving up to buy him the sports car he's always dreamt of. He ask his wife where she ever got such an idea and she responds, "From my mother! [...] She saved for years to buy a really big, important gift for my father." He ask what the big, important gift was and her answer was "His own room!" What a hoot!!! She explains that her mother had a den added to their house with a pool table, etc. It's a very funny episode and you can watch the final scene on youtube here

What does that have to do with anything??? Well, I think I've seen that episode a few too many times over the years, because last autumn I decided to try doing the same sort of thing. Everytime Paul had to go out on the road without me I would take on odd jobs to make some money while he was away. I would take all the money I made and I would hide it in a teapot (Paul would NEVER go looking in a teapot) so that I could buy him a "really big, important present".

While we were on our honeymoon, we rented a motorcycle and really enjoyed riding it. Paul's been wanting one ever since and he spends alot of his spare time researching them and looking into used ones on craigslist. As I've said in previous posts, we are huge Dave Ramsey fans and worked really hard to save up and pay off all our student loans and credit card debt during the past year and a half. When received our letters saying that our student loans had been paid off, I felt like having them framed!!! We only have one small amount left to take care of before we are completely debt free and that we've been socking away money for and will take care of very soon, so I had no qualms with using my extra earnings to surprise Paul with something special.

For Easter I was able to surprise my hubby with a beautiful (though used and almost as old as me!) silver Honda Goldwing Aspencade! Honestly, at this point I don't know who is more excited- him or me??? It was at a reliable dealership that had just marked it down and it was an amazing deal! I felt so happy to be ab;e to surprise my husband and see my hard work make him so happy! We are both looking forward to a summer of saving money on gas while seeing the country and having alot of fun together. Our life together is such an adventure- its truly exciting!

So, for all those who have never found a reason to appreciate a small piece of chinaware used to hold hot water, let this be a lesson to you! My husband now has a new found appreciation for my china (even though it will ONLY be holding hot water for quite a while now!) and I am happy to be on the receiving end of his gratitude! =D

Have a cup of tea and think of all the exciting inspirations that little cup could hold for you!

On a closing note, I have an aunt who really wanted to have a little book published, so in her spare time (I can't really imagine her having any spare time since she has 12 kids!) she cleaned houses so that she could
earn the money to make her dream come true! There are so many ways to make things that seem impossible happen. It just takes a little creativity and a lot of patience! I'd love to hear if anyone else has done anything similiar and how they did it.