My top album of 2024 is no surprise to literally anyone who came into our shop or paid any attention to the songs I shared in my stories this year. Adrianne Lenker's Bright Future is maybe the Abbiest of Abbi albums I have ever heard and it's chock full of childhood nostalgia - bittersweet memories, grief, but mostly this album is a long poetry book of love.

​The way we love ourselves, love our partner, love our family dog who has long passed, the way we try to love our community and the love that lies buried inside us all as we travel through the weary human experience.

It was hard to choose a favorite song from this album because I have them all memorized, but Free Treasure hits me right now because it's such a deep reflection of where Jordan and I are in our relationship at year 18 - he's cooking dinner, we're processing childhood pain, we are giving each other patience and pleasure - it's simply free treasure. And while I do feel like this album is about all encompassing love and some songs I cannot help but relate to my relationship, the album is mostly sung to a woman. So for my lesbian friends looking for a beautiful love album, this one is a must listen.

​Other special songs on the album for me are: Evol - probably the best written song on the album, Sadness is a Gift - a song for those grieving, and Real House which is the album opener will bring you to your knees with all the feels. Poetry to music, this album is simply incredible.

You can find the rest of my list below along with my favorite songs from each of my top albums. Jordan and I made up a fun Tea & Records playlist that combines both of our favorite songs from our lists. You can see his full list on his Sudden Light Records blog, which is also where our playlist is housed, too!

It's been a couple of years since I have been to a church service. Part of that is on me as I have avoided church after trying unsuccessfully to find a church home that did not elevate an American man and a political movement that does not represent my faith over the truth about who Jesus Christ was as a man, and as a savior. I have felt for a long time a disenfranchised negativity toward church because of the discriminating vitriol that has taken root there. I learned last night, I am just going to the wrong churches.

Over the years, I have missed the community of church, the music, the challenging message of action and conviction that I once experienced weekly. For me, a white lady with a ministry degree, I have watched white churches turn a sharp shoulder away from the true teachings of Jesus and move toward a nationalist patriotism that has left me uncomfortable and disengaged.

I had given up on church and shame on me for it. What a privilege I have to walk away from the "messy work of compromise and community."


​Last night, I felt a tugging in my soul to be somewhere holy where I could pray for our country and whatever is to come today forward. I am glad I followed that calling to go to church. I went to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Unity Service put on at Saint Mark Baptist Church in Little Rock, Arkansas. The Lord, I feel certain, found me there.

I went into that service looking for hope, but I left with a challenge & a conviction. From the spirit led worship from two choirs and a soloist who sang one of my most beloved gospel songs, Precious Lord, Take My Hand. I was already knowing I had come to a place where God was "pulling up."

There were several meaningful prayers from pastors across the city. But, a deep stirring in my heart started when Pastor George Shears, III of New Hope Baptist Church began to pray.

"Lord, we come to you with heavy hearts in a world where peace feels distant, yet our longing for it is deep. We pray for peace in this nation. Peace that is not just the absence of violence but the presence of justice."

"We are living in a time where banning an app is seems more urgent than banning militaristic armament. Lord, help us to see the value of every human life and to act in ways that protect and preserve it. Teach us to prioritize what builds peace, and safety over what divides and distracts us."

"We pray for peace in our nation, where leadership is not measured by crowd size but by character. May integrity and humility replace arrogance and division. Raise up leaders who value truth, justice, and compassion above personal gain. And may we as citizens hold ourselves to those same standards. As we reflect on Dr. King's dream, we pray for the courage to transform weapons of war into tools for building and healing. We ask for the strength to confront the injustices that disrupt peace in our communities to challenge systems of inequality and to build bridges where others erect walls.

Finally, Lord, we ask that your peace, which surpasses all understanding, would guard our hearts and our minds. Let it begin within us, spread to our homes, and flow into our neighborhoods, our nation and this world.
May we remember that the work of peace is not passive but active. Not easy, but essential. In the name of the Prince of Peace, in Jesus Christ, we pray, amen."

By the time Brittany Stillwell got up there to give the prayer of Unity, I knew God had put me in that pew next to Debbie, my new church friend, on purpose. (I went by myself and can't help but make new friends.)

Brittany, said the hard part outloud before her prayer. She said, "My knees are knocking. I have been asked to give the Prayer of Unity, and as a white woman in Little Rock, I do not think I can deliver a prayer on unity without a little confession along the way. So for my brothers and sisters in this room for whom this confession does not apply, would you help me? Will you pray for me and the rest of us that we might be able to own what is OURS to repair?" You can find her prayer & confession at 1:24:50.

The entire service built into an outpouring of hope and conviction and a call to action that requires all of us to be involved in. A strike against apathy and silence in the face of what we know is wrong even if it is "legal." I wish I could quote the ENTIRITY of Dr. Fredrick D. Haynes, III sermon, but I won't because YOU should take the time this morning to watch & listen.

If you are like me, and you feel uneasy this morning, I encourage you to hear that message. You can watch this program from start to finish here: https://www.youtube.com/live/qsWGZJaMsxg?si=i-jyd5KgOykP2Q2M

Dr. Haynes' sermon starts around 2:04:20.

Thank you Saint Mark Baptist Church for challenging and refocusing me as we move into a new era of our country on what not just WE are called to do, but what I am called to do. And thank you always to the beautiful City of Little Rock for showing up time and again to remind me what community really is in service & in action - not just words & feel good quotes.
Be well friends, and be active. And never ever be silent in the face of hate & wrongdoing. Now more than ever, we must speak up, show up, and hold up the strong constructs of justice and compassion that our black brothers and sisters have worked tirelessly to create in the face of hate and apathy without our help.

Just because they did the work, doesn't mean they didn't need our help, and it sure doesn't give us an excuse to let them continue to carry the load of equality & human rights for all without us picking up the weight that is ours to bear.

A new year is upon us, and I can't help but feel the need to make some changes. For most of my time with Abbi's Teas & Things I have used social media to reach, connect & share my thoughts, teas & things. But the root of this little tea story of mine starts with a blog. Before the tea shop ever came to be, when I was in my "hustle" years of corporate advertising - there was my tea blog. It started out as teatumblr dot com, then transitioned to myteasteeper dot com. From about 2011 to 2017, this was where I shared my tea thoughts & knowledge along with a variety of tea reviews from tea shops & tea companies in the US and afar. It was a big outlet for me from the fast paced corporate ladders I was climbing and I got to try a TON of different types of tea which only honed my blending mastery.

Many of you may know about how I hit a wall in the corporate world, and then I took that year off when my dad passed away. You can read about it on this blog post I wrote about putting my heart on a shelf several years ago. And well, I have kept up with the blog here on abbiteas.com off and on over the years but not with great consistency. For 2025, I think it's time to go back to the roots of my love for tea. I'm even thinking about having some guest posts from some of my favorite tea folks! If that interests you, let me know!!

The way I see it, the people who really care will show up here and read - when and if they want to which (for me at least) make it a little more intimate & meaningful.
​
Everyone is talking about 2024 and for me, what a year. It felt like same level of hurdles I endured in 2020. Just a lot of unexpected weird life, family and day to day stuff to overcome. But we are putting that year in a box and moving forward, maybe a little beat-up and bruised, but we've still got a lot of fight left. Some of the things that got me through 2024 were good books, good music, and good friends. Thank goodness for that! Be on the look out next week for my 2024 top lists. It's gonna be a good one with some special songs, books and poems.

In the meantime, here's a few of the winter tea blends now available:

The full line up of my deep winter tea blends is now available under Seasonal Blends on the online store. If you're needing to stock up on some teas, I recommend them all - but these three are a few of my most favorite winter staples! Happy Steeping! 

 Tea Madness Rules & What-not:
The initial bracket is posted below to kick-off the games. Sales data from the last 3 years will determine the winner of each tea match-up; however, each week the updated bracket will be posted and the comments will be open to vote for who you think should win the match. These comments will be added to each tea blend's total as "People's Choice" points. Should any two blend be close, the "People's Choice" points may determine the blends outcome. Comments will be gathered weekly on Facebook, Instagram & that week's tea bracket blog post. The bracket with the most accurate outcomes will win a $100 Abbi's Teas & Things gift card to be used online, in the store or at any tea stand, AND an Abbi's Teas & Things goodie bag!

• Tea Brackets are due no later than 11:59pm on March 2nd, 2024!
• Email a photo of your bracket - fully filled out - to [email protected]. Any incomplete brackets will be discarded.
• No purchase necessary. Anyone can participate, though some working knowledge of my tea blends will be helpful!
• Three brackets per person, but only one is required to participate. Only one bracket & one participant will win.
• Participants can post in the comments on Facebook or Instagram each week to add "People's Choice" points to any blend of their choosing. Only one comment per blend per participant each week. (ie: no spamming the comments to make one blend win, etc.) You may vote for more than one match each week.
  • A sample comment vote might look like: "I am rooting for Turmeric Sunrise, Cherry Fig & Mocha Mate this week!" Each blend would receive one "People's Choice" point in addition to their already calculated sales totals.

The bracket will be updated every Tuesday on Facebook, Instagram & the tea blog at www.abbiteas.com. Comments will be open for People's Choice voting for the FIRST round on Facebook & Instagram next Tuesday, March 5th for this first week's round of matches.

SEE THE DOWNLOADABLE PDF BELOW!

Y'all! I have been wanting to do this for a couple of years, but I needed more sales data and some time to figure out how to make this work! I am SO excited to do this! Here's how it's going to work:

The initial bracket is posted below to kick-off the games. Sales data from the last 3 years will determine the winner of each tea matchup; however, each week the updated bracket will be posted and the comments will be open to vote for who you think should win the battle. These comments will be added to each tea blend's total as "People's Choice" points. Should any two blend be close, the "People's Choice" points may determine the blends outcome. Comments will be gathered weekly on Facebook, Instagram & that week's tea bracket blog post. The bracket with the most accurate outcomes will win a $100 Abbi's Teas & Things gift card to be used online, in the store or at any tea stand AND an Abbi's Teas & Things goodie bag!

• Tea Brackets are due no later than 11:59pm on February 10th!
• Email a photo of your bracket - fully filled out - to [email protected]. Any incomplete brackets will be discarded. Please put your full name & email address at the top of your bracket.
• No purchase necessary. Anyone can participate, though some working knowledge of my blends will be helpful!
• Two brackets per person but only one is required to participate. Only one bracket & one participant will win.
• Participants can post in the comments on Facebook, Instagram or the tea blog post each week to add "People's Choice" points to any blend of their choosing. Only one comment per participant per week. (ie: no spamming the comments to make one blend win, etc.) You may vote for more than one match each week.
  • A sample comment vote might look like: "I am rooting for Turmeric Sunrise, Cherry Fig & Mocha Mate this week!" Each blend would receive one "People's Choice" point in addition to their already calculated sales totals.​

​
The bracket will be updated every Tuesday on Facebook, Instagram & the tea blog at www.abbiteas.com. Comments will be open for People's Choice voting on Facebook & Instagram  tonight for this first week's round of matches.

​It was the fall of 2007, I was a senior in college and Jordan had transferred to the same school for what turned out to be only one semester. I wasn't really dating and had my mind focused on graduating. 

Jordan and I started as friends. Our common interest in music lead to burning mixed CDs and putting them in each other's campus mailboxes. Sometimes there was a note, sometimes the note was the title of the mix. 

I was constantly in and out of flea markets - a lifelong hobby. I had the only record player in the dorm and a large Bob Dylan poster hung in my dorm room all 4 years. To be fair, I had a pretty weird array of interests music-wise. I was always hunting for old Frank Sinatra albums or Barbara Streisand. I was always pretty casual about the vinyl, but after a few trips with me - Jordan got really into it. He liked the rare hard-to-find stuff, he was always looking things up, making lists. He even wrote Tumblr music reviews for a while.

He kissed me for the first time on the back of a church van after I got stung by a wasp on a hayride. It was late October. I remember that kiss like it was yesterday because even with the sting, I floated the whole night. The next day he asked me if I wanted to go steady.

During a long-distance stint, we would read to each other over the phone. One of our favorite books we read to each other was Love Is a Mixtape by Rob Sheffield. Each chapter started with a mix. 

Fast forward almost 15 years later, his kisses still make me float. We still make each other mixes - though they are swapped via music streaming apps & Bluetooth. We just celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary - and while we've seen a lot of hardship, our love has weathered those storms.

I grew up on the Outer Banks, and it's been home for me my whole life. Jordan and I lived here for several years at the beginning of our marriage when I was the Marketing Director for Kitty Hawk Kites. That was 10 years ago. After being out here for a while, we decided that since all of his family and all of my mom's side of the family were in Arkansas - we should move back. We had babies on our minds. Sadly, babies aren't a part of our story. We weathered those losses, too.

Jordan has always wanted to own a record store. When I made the leap 5 years ago with the nudging of my mom and him by my side to open the tea shop the "& things" was open-ended to tack that on once he was ready to leave his career and go for it. In the original design of my very first tea shop website, I even had tea & records on the about page. 

When COVID hit and then never ceased, Jordan and I kept coming out here for little stay-cations. Trying to escape the heaviness of COVID and the surging cases. Every trip out here, we both could feel the pulling of the tides. Then he looked at me and said, "What would you say if we moved back?" I said, "Don't even say it out loud if you aren't serious." He was.

For the last 6-9 months we've been trying to figure it out. Make it work and find a way to do it. Every single door opened back up for us. It was time, and it was time for Jordan's dream, too. 

If you have seen Everything Everywhere All At Once, you may know my reference here. Jordan is my Waymond. He is the kindest human I have ever known. And not kind in a saccharine way - genuinely the best person. He is patient, supportive, and unwavering. I cannot tell you how proud of him I am. 

Jordan's record store will be housed inside the tea shop! A big part of the reason I dropped the restaurant side of things was the blows of COVID and the hassle of the ups/downs/customer rants but also it has made room for Jordan's new adventure. 

The Bob Dylan poster will hang at the shop, and so will the Radiohead poster along with two large shadow boxes showcasing our mixed CDs, notes & concert stubs spanning our lives together. I bet there will be more of those to be made, too.

You can follow his Facebook Page Sudden Light Records. He's on Instagram @suddenlightrecords, too. Help me share the page and get his likes up on both accounts. You can sign up for his e-mail specials & announcements at www.suddenlightrecords.com.

Pinch me, y'all! We're doing it. Tea & Records by the sea - together!
I love you, Jordan. Thanks for being my best friend. 🍵🏝🎸

We found a space with an ocean view and TONS of parking! I honestly cannot express my excitement about the parking lots the shopping center I am moving into offers after years of parking trials and tribulations on the corner of Ash & Kavanaugh. The shop will be retail only - no dine-in. Jordan and I decided this would be best since we still have a lot of uncertainty about COVID 19 impacts going into the next few years. Despite the lack of testing and reporting, the United States is currently in its 6th surge as a nation and as a business owner, I am weary from the constant roller coaster this has brought to my day-to-day operations.

I will be serving 1 hot tea of the day during the summer months and lots of iced tea options. These will be brewed at my off-site kitchen where I will also do all the blending and online orders. The shop itself will be a spot where you can grab a tea to-go, by the jug, or choose from over 100 loose leaf tea blends I create! I've already found local produce & honey so I can be sure to support Carolina farmers and bees!

I’ve struggled all week on when to make this announcement because it’s a bittersweet one that has come with a lot of thought over the last 6 months. Do I tell them before my anniversary? On it? After Valentine’s Day? I decided for the day after my anniversary because I wanted to cap off my 4 years positively and start year 5 with the new changes. Good changes, exciting changes - but really hard changes. 

Thanks so much to everyone who came by the shop yesterday. It turned out to be a pretty quiet day and Mom came by and we got to spend some time together which we hadn’t gotten to do in a long time with our constant busy schedules we have been juggling. 

But - last night, there y’all were for the tea talk! Folks from all over the state and country. Twelve states were represented just from who I could see in the chat and orders afterward. We had a good time. I cried, and then laughed as I poured tea on my computer which was a very ME moment!  I almost spilled the beans in the telling of how my little shop came to be, but I pulled myself together.

So here we are on this Friday before Valentine’s Day and I’m still struggling to put it into words.

When I started this tea shop, this location was like an answered prayer. The building was green, it had this big patio, it was in the perfect spot with the perfect space and so much character. Every single door swung open for me in 2017 and I opened on February 10th, 2018. Those first two years operating, I was profitable and booming. I remember starting 2020 extremely optimistic about the business - we had a huge turnout for National Hot Tea Day that year, too. 

And then COVID hit in March 2020 and I confidently went to the curb with my tea stand thinking it’d be a fun solution that would only last a few months. Boy, was I wrong!  

Over the last two years, I have ebbed and flowed and changed my operations all while putting a considerable effort into growing my e-commerce and national footprint with fellow tea lovers. And, it’s worked. When the weather was bad or when I needed to take some days for self-care, I built a well-oiled online process that gave me the freedom to survive this pandemic without putting my family or my customers at risk. I’m really proud of that. And as I’ve learned in therapy over the last year, I need to acknowledge that success without the word ‘but’ at the end of the sentence.

BUT, it seems COVID is not over and we are in between surges. As many of you know, our family holds several disabilities and health conditions which makes all of this a bit scarier for us. I also have a host of customers who made my shop a safe place before and during COVID as they navigated their own lives, too. 

The reality is, I don’t feel comfortable having people eating and gathering in small or large groups unmasked for several hours a day at the shop. The potential exposure is just not worth it to me for my family or my customers. I can’t even get some folks to wear a mask for 5 minutes as they “just want to look around” right now without them swearing at me or causing a scene. It’s exhausting and depressing.

I am not sure when I’ll feel comfortable with the restaurant side of my operation again - but I know one day that piece will return to me. Just not right now. 

Okay, out with it, Abbi…

With the growth of my online business and the success of my retail and to-go only operation that I’m currently operating in, I’ve decided to let the overhead of this space go so I can maintain profitability.

My last day in Hillcrest will be March 20th, 2022. This isn’t goodbye. I’m NOT going out of business, I’m just “shifting my sails,” as Mom says. Over the next months, I’ll be finalizing a small manufacturing space where my online and blending operations will be housed and expanded! Then I will be transitioning to a smaller retail space to have my day-to-day operations. 

I’m letting go of sweet tea parties, cute little princesses, and the anxiety of having to constantly say no to people who only want to come to my shop for large group gatherings. Tea Talks will be virtual for now, but I’ll be doing some outdoor tea talks when the weather warms up consistently, too.

It’s really bittersweet. 

I’m excited about what comes next, but I’m unbelievably sad about saying goodbye to what has been the best thing that’s ever happened to me - something I built and did and thrived in, despite every hurdle. I feel like the very essence of who I am is imprinted on the walls of this tea shop. And I’m grieving the loss, to be honest about it.

I’ll miss my puppy regulars and the ebb and flow of Hillcrest, but I sure won’t miss the parking issues. 

Y’all have supported me this far, and I hope you’ll continue to support me as I make this transition. You can come by the shop through March 20th. I’ll be OPEN Wednesday-Saturday 10 am-6 pm and Sundays 1 pm-4 pm. 

Come late March/early April, I will have an update on where I’ll be next. That’ll be an exciting announcement we can all look forward to in the future.

Hello, again! Continuing the theme of what's gotten me through 2020/2021, I want to share some television shows, documentaries, and movies that helped me cope these last two years. There are the obvious shows like Ted Lasso that I won't feature since EVERYONE knows about -- instead, I'll be showcasing some favorites that are off the beaten path but are definitely worth the time. I hope you'll drop your favorite TV and movies in the comments, too!

Here we are at the end of 2021 and we all thought we'd be out of this weird and tumultuous pandemic by now. With Omicron variant and Delta surging through the world - STILL - I am spending a lot of time reflecting on the self-care practices that have gotten me through these past two years. From TV shows, to really good books, to favorite songs & podcasts - this is part one of my compiled list of "things" that helped, and of course, I shall pair them all with a cup of tea! 

This started as one post but in order for me to give the time needed for each thing, I am breaking it up into parts, so stay tuned for Part Two: Televison & Documentaries! Hope you find a new book or author in this batch of good books and don't forget to support your local libraries and bookstores!