HA!! Little did I know that an even more serious bug had established a base in my body, and that the next several weeks would be spent battling an
awful fever, extreme aches, utter exhaustion, and a serious bout of pneumonia.
I have been very sick but I am on the road to recovery and have enough of that latest black-listed antibiotic Azithromycin in me to be a government test case.
And although I don’t have a drop of lucky Irish blood, the medicine is working!
~~thank you to all of my friends who were worried~~
I wasn’t sure I would make it to the annual blog crawl party at Cuisine Kathleen, as the only things I have been doing for the last month are lying on the sofa, aching, occasionally hallucinating, and when I could finally get up, playing the piano, which is part of my finger therapy after I crushed my left index finger in a window last November.
(I have the most wonderful therapist who makes me play with silly putty and blocks and velcro and my piano!)
But I knew I was getting better when one day recently, after I finished practicing, instead of wondering as usual if I would have to crawl from the piano bench to the sofa, I spied the shamrock on the piano ~~ and thought ~~ hmmmm….CENTERPIECE!
I couldn’t do anything as strenuous as dish shopping (see how I suffered??) but I did hear “use us, use us!” coming from some dishes tucked away in the cupboard. Suddenly I was determined not to miss a party celebrating all things GREEN !
Slowly, over several days, I set a pretty table with my well-used green checked V&B placemats, Pottery Barn chicken wire chargers, my everyday white Wedgwood Nantucket Basket dishes, and then added the fun with these “instructional” dishes.
It’s easier to
~~ “go green” ~~
if you can
~~ “tip your glass” ~~
and get a
~~ “kiss for luck” ~~
!
Where would you choose to sit? Are you perhaps looking for your own Prince Charming?
I banished him to the garden and topped each setting with tiny Pier 1 green-footed glasses filled with flowers.
~~ thank you Mr. Fun, for bringing them to me ~~
(I didn’t catch a leprechaun but I did catch the blue hour!)
~~ tip ~~
~~ If you are using a tiny glass or dish for appetizers or dessert, put it on your saucer instead of on a bread or dessert dish, as the little circle will hold it securely in place! I do this all the time! ~~
Using the same flowers at each setting seems more formal to me, so I varied them to add a more whimsical touch.
~~
I thought about using my gorgeous purple oxalis, which is in full bloom, for the centerpiece,
but it is just too huge!
So the shamrocks which started it all traveled from the piano to the table.
~~
Then I went to rest.
~~ another tip ~~
~~ Even when I’m healthy I always try to set my table over the course of a few days if time permits, as fresh eyes can see things … you know how that is! ~~
But this time when I returned I couldn’t quite believe what I was seeing.
I’m blaming mischievous leprechauns, attracted to the shamrocks and whimsical dishes.
Place cards with strange, unpronounceable names!
The
Misses Bewley, Bailey, Jameson and Guinness were at first unfamiliar to me, but then I saw what the little green men had planned …
Obviously they did not approve of my plans to serve sparkling water! After all, my glasses are french. I don’t have any Waterford glasses!
Those good Irish surnames are familiar, but what about the others
… Fianna, Ciara, Maire, Grainne…?
*****Luckily, Pulitzer Prize winning author and storyteller extraordinaire,
Frank McCourt, can tell us*****
~~~~~ HERE ~~~~~
All the wonderful Irish names and our American versions, with descriptions,
pronounced properly with the charming Irish brogue, by Mr. McCourt.
You MUST visit! You will feel lucky to have heard him.
Well, I’m off to visit Mr. McCourt again and if I can get him to say “Colin Firth” or “Ciaran Hinds” I will SWOON.
I can blame it on the pneumonia but you and I will know the truth. Any other fans?
~~~~
Now it’s time for you to choose:
~~ place setting ~~
~~ beverage ~~
~~ a little flower ~~
I’m going with:
the “go green” dish
(required when your prince is named Green)
a drop of Bailey’s (don’t know about the drugs, though … might have to choose the Bewley’s today)
and that luscious yellow mum (I could dive in and roll around in it, and luckily I’m not allergic!)
So what are your choices?
And was your name on the Irish list?
Or did you choose another, like I did?
Since there is nothing even close to LINDA there, for the next few days I will be answering to AINE. She’s the Queen of the Fairies!
Love this, Linda, and so sorry to hear you were really sick. Glad you are doing much better. I bought a shamrock plant Monday and tody it looks dead. Couldn’t use it in my post. Be well, and Green! xo
Linda~ What a creative and fun post and table for you to pull together when you were on the road to recovery! Sorry you have been under the weather~ hooray for Z-packs if we all don’t have heart attacks. Hope you’ll be able to tip your glass with more than tea soon! Loved your mixed flowers at your place settings and Mr. McCourt’s pronunciations! Yes, I am a Colin Firth fan and call me Moira until after St. Paddy’s Day 🙂
Fun plates, can I sit at the ‘tip your glass’ setting:@) So sorry to hear you’ve been so sick Linda! Glad you’re on the mend, take care!
Oh my, I do hope you are feeling better. I just love those chicken wire chargers, I am really crushing on those – along with the cute green plates!! I am so glad you were able to get this table set. I hope you have a wonderful St. Patrick’s Day.
Well…you have certainly outdone yourself on this post, Linda…
Considering how sick you have been…
Love your table…
I will be cooking corned beef and cabbage on Sunday…my husband is 1/2 Irish!!!
Enjoy the rest of your evening…
Cheers!
Linda :o)
Oh dear, Linda, I’m so sorry that you’ve been so sick. Hopefully you’ll be feeling much better soon. What a cute post you put together, all while not feeling up to par!! Happy St. Patrick’s Day to you!
I’m so very glad to hear you’re up & about & feeling somewhat better. You really worked hard on this beautiful & fun tablescape. It takes me days to do them, too. I have to hunt the house for various items to work with others.
I’m off to listen to Frank McCourt…loved the movie, Angela’s Ashes, about his family coming to Ireland. Can’t wait to *hear* him…thanks for the link.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Rett
My high school best friend who now lives in NYC has been sick with the same thing. It must be the winter for it, Linda. I’m so relieved you are better.
My Irish name is my name, Sheila. They spelled it Sheela, but I spell it like O’Reilly with the e before the i. It means musical and pure. It’s taken from Cecelia who was the patron saint of music. I knew this, but I loved hearing Frank say it. Very cool.
Sending love and get well wishes your way. Love your table!
XO,
Sheila
Don’t we all love to tablescape even with an being seriously or other complication! Mine is my mother being in the since a week ago! I love your entire posting and the lovely table settings! The cute go green plates and just great forSt. Pat’s Day! Have a happy March 17th! Get well soon! Pam
Glad that you’re feeling better and able to set such a lovely table!! Green everywhere!! My husband has had the “crud” for the last 3 weeks and isn’t able to shake it!! FINALLY got him to go to the Dr. today and he said that it’s almost played out and to go home and keep on doing what he’s been doing! It’s going to take awhile for you to come back with full strength!! Take it easy!
Aine.. so lovely indeed.. Hopefully you will get well soon. It’s been a long bout for sure. I am amoxicillan and didn’t get the no driking warning! sigh. not sure about yours. Omg, your table is soo wonderful, what happened to poor Mr. Frog? Your Shamrock plant is so pretty. Mine kind of didn’t make it through this last year.. did make the year before, but I guess it got too “stressed” out living with the queen of brown thumbs.. Wishing you a very Happy St. Patrick’s and may all the Irish blessings come your way! xo marlis
First and foremost…SO glad you’re on the upswing. That stuff is nothing to play with! It’s not only very serious, it’s just plain ol’ annoying as well!!! Please don’t overdo it. Get yourself 100% well!!! And don’t worry ’bout it…I’LL drink your Bailey’s for you!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 Next, SO happy you banished that frog to the garden!!! What a scary little dude he is!!! I mean, REALLY!!!!!! Ugh! 🙂 I visited the site and couldn’t believe a variation of my name was actually there! How cool is that??!?!?!! I’ll dream of him speaking my name tonight! 🙂 You did a wonderful job on your table with those super fun & cute dishes! I totally agree with your advice on tablescaping…I try to start at LEAST 2-3 days out so that I can walk past it a jillion times and edit as needed. There’s just no other way in my book! Rarely has a table just come together for me in a single day. A believe that’s spelled a-n-a-l, if I’m correct! 🙂 Feel better, may God AND the luck o’ the Irish be with our new Pope, and have a wonderful St. Patrick’s Day!!!
Glad you are feeling better. Tablescaping is good therapy! It’s all very pretty, especially the fresh flowers, and the real shamrock plant!
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Katherine
Linda, I’m glad you felt like joining in the fun of the St. Paddy’s Day Crawl because your tabletop is one of my favorites. Love your little green plates. We share the same favorite white china, the Nantucket Basket. Used it for our St. Pat’s table too. It’s been in our cupboards for many, many years and what we eat off every day. Also have the PB chicken wire chargers that are favorites.
I like your tip of stretching a table out over several days. I like to do that too if time permits. Fun photo of the special effects. Which one is that? Oh, and I’ll have a Bailey’s on ice or better yet, over some vanilla ice cream. Happy St. Patrick’s Day! ~ Sarah
I am so sorry you have been so ill Linda.
It sounds like you’ve really suffered.
In spite of all that you still can create a lovely table and story to go with it.
Here’s to continued healing,
hugs,
Cindy
p.s. I love my bag I won from you. I used it last weekend, it’s perfect!
Well, bless your heart! So sorry you’ve been SO, so sick! That sounded horrible! But surely you are on the mend now, if you’re interested in setting a pretty table. What fun salad plates those are, and I adore the flowers in tiny glasses — they really add a lovely touch! Too funny about the Irish names showing up! I know my son-in-law would love to be Mr. Guinness. He and my daughter visited the Guinness plant while on their honeymoon! Thanks for visiting my table, too!
So sorry that you have been ill, but I do think you are on the road to recovery! You certainly have your sense of humor. Love this post. Those instructional plates are so much fun! I am definitely going with “Tip you glass”!! I hope you are feeling well enough by Sunday to enjoy this tablescape – keep us posted on how you are doing.
I am sorry you’ve been sick, Linda, but glad that yo u;re on your way to recovery. Wow oh wow! You set a perfect table in spite of how you feel. It’s so beautiful, love the centerpiece and the plates and the flowers!…Christine
Linda,
So happy to hear that you are on the road to recovery , first of all!!
What a great post!! And yes, we do have a new Pope!!!
Somewhere in Time is a wonderful Movie!! I saw it on TV about 25 years ago and loved it. I love the music from it too and have some of it on my blog!!
There are clips of it on You Tube too , I beleive….
Thanks so much for stopping by!!
Hugs,
Debbie
First of all, fell better, secondly, You set a beautiful table while you are in a slump!! Love that frog!
I am sorry you have been ill. Your table is just lovely, and so creative. I like the shamrocks centerpiece on the table along with your glassware.
Very pretty! Love your plates and shamrocks. Sorry you have been under the weather hoping for a quick recovery for you. Thanks for sharing, visiting from BNOP.
Very pretty…love the green salad plates…when I was first reading the plates, I thought it said to top your glass! Hope you are feeling better, Linda.
What a wonderful job-esp. when you don’t feel well. It always takes me several days or even a week to get my tables done. Loved the tiny glasses with the flowers and both your shamrock plants were gorgeous. We are topping off our Irish meal with some kind of Irish drink we call a wooley mitten- equal amounts of Bailey’s, Frangelico, and creme de cacao stirred into a piping hot cup of coffee. Perfect ending to an Irish dinner of any kind!
This is such a pretty table! I’m so glad you got to play with your dishes. I love the checkered placemats & the chicken wire chargers.
Hope you’re feeling better soon!
You just slipped that little reference at the end about our new pope, I almost missed it! I love the name he picked. My first born is named John Francis, and I’ve always had a soft spot for that name. Let’s hope he lives up to his name. I’m so sorry you haven’t been well! Yuk! Hopefully, you’ll be able to get rid of the last vestiges of “the evil bug” soon. I smiled at your “suffering” and not being able to shop for dishes. I totally sympathize! Even when I don’t buy anything, I love to go and look! I love your shamrock plant. I despaired of finding one this year until today!!! Don’t you think this is a sign? I hope I can keep it healthy for next year. Take care, Linda!
Aine, How awful that you have been so sick. Glad you are finally on the mend. You certainly did set a nice table. Love that you used the shamrock in the center. And how nice of the little leprechauns came to do their part! 🙂 It was a good thing that you provided the audio Frank McCourt (love him!) pronunciation for the names, because I only knew how to say a few of them, and the rest I completely ruined. I’ll be “Gael” for today (my own name, different spelling.)
What a great post, Linda. I enjoyed every bit of it. So sorry that you have been so sick but it sounds like things are improving. Your table is so festive with its pretty shamrock centerpiece.
I love your pretty plates, Linda! I’m so sorry that you’ve been so very sick! It’s been a nasty winter for bugs.
I loved the link to the names! Both my names are there (Maire and Mairead), as is my daughter’s (Kathleen). I must say that if I had a choice, I’d love to be Naimh — who wouldn’t want to be named for her “radiance, lustre, brightness? I also loved the book Son of the Shadows by Judith Marillier, in which Naimh is a major character.
Thanks so much for contributing to Thursday’s Inspiration. Feel better soon! xoxo
Hi Linda, You did get bit by the bad bugs of this season!
What an adorable St. Patrick’s Day tablescape. I love the fun whimsy plates with the white and the PB wire chargers. For a sick girl you sure do set a beautiful table. I sure hope you are feeling much better and off the meds so you can pull out the Baileys tonight. That’s what I’ll be doing………..Take care and I hope you are feeling much better now.
Blessings,
~Emily
The French Hutch
I love the pretty plates! When I saw that bottle of Jameson Irish Whiskey, I thought of the cupcakes I wanted to make but it is so darn expensive just for cupcakes. LOL
I hope you are on the road to recovery.
So sorry you’ve been ill….hope you’re feeling much better! Thanks so much for visiting my blog, so I came over to visit you. I’m so glad I did, you’ve set such a lovely table!! Love your dishes, and the shamrock!! Just a beautiful, cheerful and inviting table!
I noticed you also like sheep 🙂
That was wonderful! I could give you a few Irish names that would tie your tongue in a Celtic Knot! 🙂 Then there’s my 5 Irish gkids, and people mangle a few of their names, !
especially, Declan, Seamus and Eamon, we get all sorts of renditions! 🙂
I love your table, those green dishes are perfect! And the flowers look so pretty as well as your shamrock. Mine didn’t spring to life yet, it usually is good by now.
I am so sorry to hear you are ill! Pneu is NOT fun, on top of finger troubles! I had pneu 2 yrs in a row, finally gave in and go the shot. But it only works on some strains.
I hope we get a few mild sunshiney days so you can get out and get some fresh air!
Thanks so much for the extra effort to get up and take part in the 5th Annual Crawl!
Slainte’!
So sorry that you have been so sick! And you still managed a lovely table and lots of Irish humor in this delightful post! I checked and my name doesn’t make the list. I have enjoyed stopping by to visit with you!
Kindly, Lorraine
your picture of your whole table setting is beautiful….you deserve a blog medal for setting such a lovely table after the pneumonia and the bad finger….my daughter just got over pneumonia and her daughter…the grandbaby also just like you injured her finger…not only did it get severed but it broke as well…..in her kindergarten class after a little boy fell on top of her…I wondered why they haven’t given her any type of occupational therapy for her recovery since she is just learning to write and it was her writing hand…..Glad you are recovering…this has been a bad year for everyone…..
Beautiful pot of shamrocks on your piano!
I hope your finger is improving – ooh sounded like a nasty accident.
A lovely tablescape – very inspiring thank you Linda.
Happy St Paddy’s Day to you and yours too!!
Get well soon.
Have a lovely relaxing weekend and enjoy your blog crawl!
Shane ♥
I so enjoyed my visit here! Poor you! Too sick to go dish shopping – that’s sick! However, I can see the healing powers of a good tablescape have brought you around! Such a pretty table and great tip on the saucer for holding individual floral cups or candles, etc. Loved your Irish “booze” names – so clever!
DD
What a delightful post, Linda! I am so glad you are feeling better! I love your green dishes. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Oh, Linda! I’m so sorry you’ve been so sick and glad to hear you’re feeling better. You outdid yourself with your pretty table! I love the tiny little glasses with a flower! You get your strength back now and take care.
Be a sweetie,
Shelia 😉
First rhings…I’m so glad you are feeling better, darling! Your table is gorgeous, the layers of dishes are fabulous, I love each one! Yeah, when I buy something for a tablescape I get cured immediatelly, lol.. I love the tip for the saucer holder for making small indidual holders..awesome! Happy St. Patrick’s weekend.
FABBY
Lots to read in this post! I’ve just sent off that list of names to my son and DIL who are expecting twins. Their two little boys have Irish names, so this may help them to choose two more!
Such a charming tablescape. Love your clover plant and all your other St. Paddy’s day touches. So nice to read you are on the mend from your illness and thanks for stopping by for a visit!
Such a fun post, {except the part that you were sick!} and I am a big fan of the dishes with words, love that! I swear the best tablescapes some together when you just start with one thing and let your mind run amok! Pretty table, love the flowers!
Jenna
Love your St. Patricks inspired table setting. Tonight, we are going to a St. Patty’s party complete with Irish dancers and fiddlers.
It’s a lovely St Paddy’s post, Linda!
So good to know you are on the road to recovery. I think my cough will be of the lingering kind. I intend to cram a couple dozen drops into my pockets, before the wedding.:-)
Happy you’re better! 😀 What an adorable post. I love, love LOVE your plates! And your special Irish lassies guests are definitely the life of the party, LOL! So cute.
This is probably one of my favorite St. Patrick’s Day posts so far!!!
xo,
RJ
Linda, I am so sorry that you have been so horribly sick. I’m glad you’re on the mend, but it does sound like you have really had it. You didn’t lose your creativity though. This table is wonderful, and I LOVE those plates with the instructions on them. Take care of yourself. laurie
You did a really nice post for being so sick!! Love it. Hope you are feeling better by now.
I don’t know how I missed this back at St. Patty’s day, but I’m happy I caught it now. I’m so sorry to learn of the awful winter you’ve had. Thankfully Spring and better health is on it’s way to you.
I hope you have a Happy Easter and hope to see more of you in the next few weeks.
– The Tablescaper
How did I miss this post and learn that you were under the weather? I hope all that is behind you now and you are able to enjoy a wee dram of Baileys without worrying about it conflicting with the drugs.
I’m glad to know the name of the purple leafed flowering plant. My mother had one outside her door for years and I never knew what it was.
Nope, didn’t see my name there either. We both are not likely to be confused for Irish.