Two years ago my family and I went down to LA for my aunt’s wedding. Before the rehearsal dinner we went to the Old Trappers Lodge, visited by great Tia on my mom’s side, and then wanted to get a cool drink. I had wanted to stop by a tea place and suggested this one I had seen online, Bon Bon Tea House in Northridge, CA.
Bon Bon Tea House’s website isn’t connecting but I was able to see on their Facebook page that they are a Boba Tea House that has been operating since 2014.
They have a ton of different boba tea options; along with smoothies, tea lattes, coffees, etc.
I of course ordered a matcha boba tea, no boba (as I have said before I don’t care for tapioca).
It was delicious and has a cute little outside area you can sit in while you enjoy your drink. I definitely recommend if you are in Northridge.
The story begins with the worker at Swinings Tea House bringing in a customer for tea. It starts with one pig, but then keeps growing in numbers until it gets to 10!
It’s a super cute rhyme, but our poor tea host is stressed with planning for this party; until they order the whole menu. Which looks delicious.
My sister said we should make all the recipes, and we have made quite a few already; but I’m up to getting around to that challenge (eventually).
It’s an adorable read that kids in a wide range of ages will enjoy. It’s also perfect for kids who like tea, or for children you are trying to influence into liking tea.
They decided for the summer they would be sending Flat Jane about, she staying with a person for a week and then moving onto the next home to visit. They asked people on instagram if they wanted to sign up and I was like, yes please!
This became so popular that they made multiple Janes and allowed people to have Jane revisit, which I requested. Now this visit didn’t happen recently but two years ago!
Yes, I’m really behind in my posts. Jane’s second visit happened in October 2021 and I was sidetracked by Horrorfest X that I didn’t get a chance to post it. Then I completely forgot about it as I was sidetracked by other things.
From Clueless
This visit happened from October 6th to October 20th 2021. I held on to her longer than a week as I was in the middle of moving out of my apartment and didn’t get to give her as much attention as I would have liked.
The parts that are italicized are from 2021 (my postings on Instagram) while anything not italicized are my current thoughts.
Day 1) Wednesday, October 6th
Today Flat Jane returned to me, and just in time for our tea party/book club/Bible study. I was also gifted some Pride and Peppermint tea that I cannot wait to drink while I read all about what Jane has been up to.
While I was in the middle of writing Horrorfest X, I also started my own 31 Days of Hallotean on Instagram when Spilltheteawithlucy choose not to do it again.
Day 6/31 of the 31 Days of Hallotean. Today’s prompt is Apple tea and we had a homemade apple, calendula, and green tea blend. “Indeed they are very delightful apples…”-Emma Jane thoroughly enjoyed this tea, and the lovely teacup (a birthday gift). I can’t wait to see what we end up doing this week! I know I will be busy as I have a lot of moving to do, but I’m hoping we can still have some fun.
Day 2 & 3) Thursday, October 7th and Friday October 8th
On Thursday I left Flat Jane occupied at home watching The Moonstone while I packed and moved things to my new place. I was going to leave her again on Friday, but she insisted on coming with. First we stopped at Walmart to pick something up and she was amazed at all the Halloween things as she had no clue what Halloween was. Afterwards we packed up my remaining miscellaneous items and then used my matcha wipes to relax after all that hard work.
Day 4) Saturday, October 9th
Day 9/31 of 31 Days of Hallotean prompt is Fall Flatlay! I meant to post this last night, but I fell asleep-I was so tired from moving. I had just received my September Quaintly and Co Jane Austen box and decided to use it for my fall Flatlay. It included all the items seen here (minus Flat Jane and the teacup).
Day 5) Sunday, October 10th
Yesterday Jane and I went to church and then she took her daily constitutional in the cemetery. She was surprised how “young” the graves were as none were earlier than the 1870s. Afterwards we went to the Dollar Tree to get some movie snacks, and boy was she surprised at all you could get for a dollar, and at all the candy available. Then it was movie time! My niece and I went to see Scream, but Jane declined as it wasn’t her type of film. Instead we met her in the lobby after and she told us she saw a movie with a character named James. She said he had a British accent and the film made her cry. After the movie we dropped my niece off and it was back to Wal-Mart to exchange my purchase for new drip pans and more cleaning. I feel bad that she came when I’ve been moving, but I do have a few fun things planned for later this week.
Day 6 & 7 & 8) Monday, October 11th; Tuesday, October 12th, and Wednesday, October 13th
[Monday] was Game Night! Last time Jane visited she and I played my Pride and Prejudice board game (as I had just received it as a Christmas gift). This time we played Clue: Mysteries and the very fun card game, Marrying Mr. Darcy. I won at Clue Mysteries, as I figured out who revealed Miss Scarlet’s secrets. Jane won Marrying Mr. Darcy as Georgiana Darcy; although it was very close as I played the nearly unbeatable, Caroline Bingley. I tried to sound her out as to which of the single Austen men (from any of her novels) would she set Georgiania up with (I lean toward William Price, the best man in Mansfield Park), but she said she was too tired to comment and went to bed. Maybe by the end of the week I’ll be able to swindle it out of her (or maybe not).
[Tuesday] my mom made albondigas (Mexican meatball soup) and I told Jane she had to try some as she had never had Mexican food before. It was different than the soups she had growing up, but she enjoyed it! It turned out to be a soupy day as she then helped me prepare the soup we will be having for tea, when we have our tea party/book club/Bible study.
Today [Wednesday] we met for our tea party/book club/Bible study and had a good time discussing The Power of Six, drinking Thai Green Milk Tea, eating Iron Rich Black Bean Soup, Roasted Carrots, and gluten free lemon and chocolate chip cookies. Flat Jane of course joined us, and enjoyed the tea and the soup she helped prepare the day before.
Day 9 & 10) Thursday, October 14th and Friday, October 15th
[Thursday] I had to work and do some moving out errands, so I left Jane at home with my cat. My cat hates getting her picture taken, but I managed to get a cute shot.
[Friday] Flat Jane and I went to a Halloween party. We ate spooky snacks and watched some horror comedies! The only downside was the fact that we ordered dominos and it was late, then the delivery person gave us the wrong order, they told us they would remake it but only IF we didn’t eat the pizza, and then it was another hour and a half until the new pizza was delivered. I am never ordering from dominos again. Jane was fine with it as she was having fun enjoying the food and watching the movies.
Day 11) Saturday, October 16th
Day 10 Road trip! Jane is buckled in with a snack as we head out to visit with some friends. It’s nice to have company on this trip.
I used my current reading stack of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, To Kill a Mockingbird, Katie the Catsitter, and Mexican Gothic so that the seatbelt could actually fit around her.
Day 16/31 of 31 Days Of Hallotean! Today’s prompt is Tea for a Halloqueen so I thought what better thing to do then a trip to Royal Tea Garden. I highly recommend this place as it was beautiful, had wonderful food, the staff was extremely friendly and efficient, and the tea delicious. It was a delightful experience and I will most definitely be back. We had Lavender Earl Grey Tea, Duchess Grey Tea, Irish Blend, Scones (with clotted cream, jam, and lemon curd), chicken salad sandwiches, cucumber cream cheese sandwiches, egg salad sandwiches, a mini hand pie, spinach puff, and corn & bean salad. Everything was so good, I couldn’t even have dessert!Unfortunately I brought Flat Jane with me but she’s missing from all my pictures. I don’t know how that happened. Oh, well. 🤷🏻♀️
Day 12) Sunday, October 17th
Day 17/31 of 31 Days of Hallotean. Today’s prompt is an autumn bake and I made pan de Muertos por la dia de Los Muertos y té de Rosa aźucar. This was my first time making Pan de Muertos and it was fun, although I didn’t squish the bread down as well as I should have. I paired this autumn bake not with hot chocolate like you are supposed to, but with the dia de Los Muertos tea blend that Madsen Creations made and is currently selling a limited amount of. I bought three tins, two are to send to friends and the third to go with flat Jane on her next travel. Of course if the theme of the bake is Dia de Los Muertos, then of course I also had to use my Madsen Creations Jane Austen Catrina mug. (I love that mug so much!) I’m glad for my first try these came out well and plan to freeze a couple to save and use when I set up my ofrenda.
Flat Jane did help with the baking of the Pan de Muertos and was grateful for this view into another culture.
Day 13, 14, & 15ish) Monday, October 18th; October, Tuesday 19th; and Wednesday, October 20th
My time with Flat Jane has come to an end. On Monday we had game night, where we played the Pride and Prejudice Board Game and Loteria (she won the first, I won the second).
On Tuesday we had a movie night (the films pictured may or may not be part of this years’ Horrorfest X, you’ll just have to wait and see. 😉) They were Northanger Abbey (1987) and Ghostbusters 2.
Today I helped get her ready for her next destination, taking a welcoming gift to her new hostess. It was sad to see her go, but I know she has plenty of adventures ahead.
It was a ton of fun having Jane and now that I finally reviewed my last trip, I’m itching to ask for her again.
If interested in having Flat Jane visit you then contact JASNA EWANID to signup. I recommend it as it is a lot of fun.
Two years ago some friends, my niece, and I made plans to go to the Tudor Rose Tea House in Santa Rosa, CA; but some things came up and we were unable to go there.
Instead we tried to find something that was a little closer and headed out to the Tea Nook in Lincoln, CA. Unfortunately, we didn’t call to see if they could fit us in and when we arrived it was closed for a private party.
We were all disappointed and decided to search online for a nearby tea house that would be open and while we didn’t find a high tea place, we did find this cute Boba place; B & B (Bakery and Boba).
I don’t know a lot about the place as they do not have a website and their Instagram was hacked so they had to recently create a new account. I did discover that they opened in 2018 and since then have served baked goods and boba tea.
They had a lot of different teas to choose from. My niece is a fan of taro and that’s what she went with and loved.
I liked that they had so many options, even though sometimes I can be terrible at making decisions. I, my sister, and friend all decided on Rose teas (mine with no boba as I don’t like boba), and I loved it as did others loved theirs.
I can’t recommend the baked goods as we didn’t order any, but otherwise we all really enjoyed being there, and the cafe is super cute. I definitely recommend this place if you love Boba and are in the Lincoln area.
I’m not one of those people who likes to take their holiday decorations right when the holiday ends and set up for the next one. I also celebrate Valentine’s Day until February, but last year I threw a Valentea party in two weeks and wanted to share it with you all. However, I know people need more time than that and wanted to share it with you all.
Christmas 2021 my friend was given a book that had ideas to hold a tea party every month. She held the first party on January 29th and no one wanted to do the next one, the Valentine’s Day party. I agreed and of course had to change the direction to Valentea and Jane Austen.
Invitations:
So the first thing you need for a party is invitations. I like to make my own cards and sent everyone a Valentine. I used romantic and love quotes from my favorite books.
Decorations:
After planning that came decorations. I’m lucky that I still have the ones from my bridal shower. I have reused those so many times! Yep, I used my pink floral table runners, framed Jane Austen quotes (which can be purchased from this shop); along with pink and white flowers.
Menu:
I was able to figure out my menu pretty quickly as I have a Tea Time magazine subscription, a Betty Crocker holiday cookbook, a Nancy Drew Cookbook, etc. I had a lot of recipes to choose from.
Tea Choices:
I wanted everything to be pink and red as it was a Valentea party so I had MadsenCreations make a Red Chai and Pink Moon Tea. I also picked Tiesta Tea Nutty Almond Cream Tea (which turns the water pink).
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon cold heavy whipping cream, divided
2 large eggs, divided
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375°. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and orange zest until combined. Using a pastry blender or 2 forks, cut in cold butter until it resembles coarse crumbs.
In a small bowl, whisk together ½ cup cold cream, 1 egg, and vanilla extract. Add to flour mixture, stirring until a dough begins to form. Working gently, bring mixture together with hands until a dough forms.
Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, and knead gently 4 to 5 times. Using a rolling pin, roll out dough to a 1-inch thickness. Using a 2-inch fluted round cutter dipped in flour, cut 13 scones from dough, rerolling scraps as needed. Place scones 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheet.
In a small bowl, whisk together remaining 1 tablespoon cold cream and remaining egg until combined. Brush egg mixture over tops of scones.
Bake until edges of scones are golden brown and a wooden pick inserted in centers comes out clean, 18 to 21 minutes. Serve warm.
Optional: Add a glaze.
Tea Time Magazine Lavender White Chocolate & Cranberry-Raspberry Scones
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, divided
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon dried culinary lavender
½ teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons cold salted butter, cut into pieces
1 cup chopped dried Cranberries and Raspberries
1 (4-ounce) bar white baking chocolate, such as Ghirardelli, chopped
1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, combine flour, ⅓ cup sugar, baking powder, lavender, and salt, whisking well.
Using a pastry blender, cut butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add cranberries, strawberries, and chocolate; stirring until combined.
In a liquid-measuring cup, combine cream and vanilla extract, stirring to blend. Add to flour mixture, stirring until mixture is evenly moist. (If dough seems dry, add more cream, 1 tablespoon at a time.) Working gently, bring mixture together with hands until a dough forms.
Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently 4 to 5 times. Using a rolling pin, roll dough to a ½-inch thickness. Using a 3-inch heart-shaped cutter, cut 12 scones from dough. Place scones 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheet, and sprinkle tops with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
Bake scones until edges are golden brown and a wooden pick inserted in the centers comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes.
Games:
Game 1: Who Said It?
For this game I took all the romance quotes I had used on the Valentines and people had to match up the quote with who said it.
Game 2: Who Can Name the Most Romance Movies?
For this game I had everyone turn their sheet of paper over and write down as many romance films they could think of in a minute. This was a ton of fun as afterwards we all talked about which ones we liked and what films were our favorites to watch.
I had a lot of fun with our tea parties, and I hope this helps if you want to plan a Valentea party.
janeaustenrunsmylife 