Some people have a purse collection (…oh wait…I have that), some people have a shoe collection (…have that too), some people are me and have a mug collection. If you follow me, read my posts, look at my social media, or really just any of my pictures anywhere, I usually always have a mug in the picture. And usually…it’s a different mug almost every time. There are multiple reasons behind this, not just because I like my tea, or because I take life…One Cup at a Time (yep just went there), but also because I collect them. Today we are going to focus on my collection of Mugs!
Yep, that is my random collection of choice. I do collect handbags, shoes, books, tea, but the collection that typically gets the most questions/comments is the mug one! I definitely think it might be the craziest things I collect…
I started doing this a few years back when I was gifted a teacup and saucer as part of a wedding gift. It was such a beautiful piece of fine china and I had decided (quite on the spur of the moment) to get the matching larger mug. I loved that mug (still do, see below) and drank from it very regularly. It started this love of not only what tea I was drinking, but what I was drinking out of. I know it’s silly, but it’s just something that I fell in love with.
I figured it was time to share my “collection” with the world…or with the few of you that are subscribed to this blog and those that follow me on Social Media. One place for all of my mugs to live and you can see them all “side by side”. I wont be showing each individual mug as I have 55 (…yes…55…let’s let that sink in for a minute) and it would just end up being a really big, really long post. Instead I am going to highlight a few special ones throughout my collection.
***I feel like I should interject something here. 55 is a crazy number. I totally see that. It’s just one of those things-almost like a guilty pleasure. I do use all of the mugs that I own and I do try to be realistic when buying. I try to limit my mug purchasing by only purchasing mugs that I really like, and can see myself enjoying. I try to avoid impulse buying. This is something that I actually extend into all of my money spending habits.***
First I am going to touch on where I “display” them all. I’ve got a cabinet that is in our living room, and most live on the top two shelves, with a couple on the bottom shelf (the bottom display shelf is mostly tea). I’ve got them grouped together: the top shelf being my The Cosy Book Shoppe Mugs, my Rae Dunn larger mugs, my Inky and Indigo collection, and the middle shelf being my Anthropologie, Emma Bridgewater, and miscellaneous (which changes as I pull out the couple of seasonal mugs I have…yes I have a couple of seasonal-aka Christmas-mugs). The rest of the mugs live in the inner cabinet (not shown here) and they are the mugs that are lesser reached for at this time, there is one mug in there that I still reach for semi regularly), or have sentimental value.
So, without further ado, let’s look at some of the mugs.
The one that started it all:

The two that I consider the most special:
My recent favorites (that I’m reaching for most currently):

My most recent addition:

So, there you have it! If you want to see a specific one, or having questions on where I bought one, please just comment or message me! I’m always happy to share!

Breakfast: Nothing too terribly exciting, I tend to stick with the standard of eggs for breakfast. This particular morning I decided to go for Scrambled Eggs with ground black pepper on buttered toast. I normally like to have some berries or melon with it, but we didn’t actually have any in the house on this morning. I drank a breakfast tea blend (a personal signature raspberry blend with some Scottish Breakfast mixed in) as well as some more water.
Lunch: My favorite thing to eat for lunch is salads. I’m a big salad fan and find it a perfect halfway through the day meal. It’s filling enough, and a healthy go to. This is just a standard, almost garden salad. It’s got lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, croutons, parmesan cheese, and a yogurt (or dairy free) based dressing. Again, to drink I have some water.
Mid Afternoon: I tend to have a little bit of a snack in the mid afternoon. I am not necesarily very hungry, but it is a good pick me up when I am hungry. I try to keep any snacks I have light and healthy (although I have been known to have a cookie every now and then instead of fruit) and stick to fruit. I am a big pear fan and will normally chop one up to snack on as I work. I also typically have an earl or lady gray cup of tea.
Dinner: Ah, dinner. This is the time that I “shine”. I love to cook and love to make homemade meals for my family 6 out of the 7 nights a week. I try to vary it as much as I can, although we are all big Italian food fans. This particular evening was our Anniversary so I made a family favorite, Lasagna Stuffed Shells. These are super easy to do, relatively quick (minus the oven part), and like a said, always a big hit.

Ah something new. I’ve been thinking long hard about this. Do I want to do it. Can I do it. How do I do it. All thoughts that have been swirling around in my head for the last couple months. I’ve come to a decision that rather than just continue to wonder about it, that I would just take a chance. Give it a shot. If it works out and goes the way I am planning, then perfection! If not, then maybe timing just wasn’t right. Either way, I’d rather at least try then continue to sit and ponder and wonder what if. That’s not something I’m good at (although sometimes I am, and in those case I almost mull it over for too long and then the spark passes).

Before I was a mom I never thought I would be the mom who said: “Send (insert:caffeine,wine,junk food, etc) it helps” (In my case it’s tea and It totally does help).
I’ve said it before- I like a clean house. I strive for a clean house 97% of the time (the 3% being the time that my kids are awake and trashing everything 😅). A clean home makes me calm (no joke). What I really pride myself on though is my kitchen. I strive for clean counters, floor, dishes in either the washer, drying wrack or put away. Perfection in my kitchen is heaven/less stress to me. BUT (and this is THE BUT of life really), there is a time and place for that.