We made it through the RAIN!

Willowbrook Manor weathered the 100-year flood this past week. (We actually built our house high enough to survive a 500-year flood.) Notice the emergency kayaks ‘just in case.’

The Skagit River crested at over 37 feet Friday, December 12th. The water you see in the pictures is not from the river, but from Coal Creek (that still has beaver dams) and rain water.

The greenhouse flooded, as did the barn…

…and chicken pen.

The chickens were ‘cooped up’ until the water subsided. They were cozy and dry in their adorable red-barn-like chicken coop.

Kris, Rachel, Jolene, and Denise came over and joined in preparing food for flood volunteers. We delivered soup and scones to a sand bagging station and sandwiches and cookies to a couple of shelters. It was moving to see the outpouring of community volunteers working hard to minimize the damage from this natural disaster.

Of course we had to take a selfie by the mighty Skagit river. This was about ten hours before it crested. Kris and her daughter Rachel are my right-hand helpers. Their family actually waited out the flood at Willowbrook, and we had the best time.

Mom and Me ~

I kind of got ahead of myself. For those of you who are new to The Willowbrook Word, I’m Terry, owner and caretaker of Willowbrook Manor English Teahouse and Farm Stay. My mother, author Liz Adair, lives here as well. (This picture is of the two of us filming for our YouTube channel Red Falcon Road, and having to do a re-take) Mom has her own corner of this newsletter. We always have a giveaway, so make sure to read to the end. (If any pictures are sideways, click on the link at the top to view in your browser.)

Holiday Tea ~

We canceled Holiday Tea the Friday when the Skagit River crested. But the water had subsided enough to allow us to welcome guests for tea on Saturday. We opened a reservation portal for Friday, December 19th as an additional day to come for Holiday Tea. Click HERE if you would like to attend.

Winter Tea ~

To accommodate canceling Holiday Tea, we are hosting a brand new Winter Tea on January 17th. I am even going to leave the Christmas tree up! If you like to give experiences instead of gifts, booking a tea time at Winter Tea is a wonderful idea for the special person in your life. Click HERE to reserve your table.

Red Falcon Road ~

Mom and I created twelve Red Falcon Road YouTube ‘shorts’ that share where to find fabulous ‘Skagit Valley’ unique gifts. These short videos garnered 6.8K views! Click HERE for the playlist. Each clip is under two minutes. We encourage you to watch, like, and subscribe.

A special thank you to all who responded to my request to watch our very first episode of Red Falcon Road featuring our home-town of Sedro Woolley. You brought the viewing count for that episode to 1000! We are waiting to hear if our grant proposal was accepted so we can highlight a dozen more must-visit places in this fabulous small town of ours.

Gift Certificates ~

A gift certificate to Willowbrook Manor is just the right sized present for any of your tea-loving family or friends. Gift a tea for two, bike tour, or a weekend stay. You can choose the amount for this e-gift card. (If this is something you yourself might like, I suggest forwarding this newsletter as a ‘hint-hint’.) Click HERE to purchase.

Tea and Tulips ~

Many of you have asked if the letters that were written in to the county commissioners on behalf of my agritourism business made a difference. I’m glad to report that the county is allowing me to stay open through the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. The reservation portal for Tea and Tulips is live now if you would like to book a table. Mothers Tea is still up in the air. I will let you know as soon as I know. Thank you for your support.

Time for Liz ~

This is where I typically turn the pen over to my mom. But I’m giving her a ‘pass’ this month. She made gallons and gallons of delicious soup for flood volunteers this past week and is recuperating.

Liz’s Memoir ~

But I’m happy to let you know that her memoir No-Town Girl is available on Amazon for Christmas gift-giving! Click HERE to order on Amazon and get free shipping if you are a Prime member.

Book Launch January 24th ~

In my last newsletter we announced a FREE book launch with tea and scones for No-Town Girl. Also, local author Terry Deighton will be there with her newest cozy mystery Painted Into a Coroner.

This double book launch is free, but reservations are required. Click HERE to sign up for this book-signing, tea-sipping, author-reading, scone-munching good-time.

This Month’s Giveaway Winners ~

Just in time for Christmas, my mom’s book Amy’s Star is going to five winners. They are:

• Vicki N. from Tumwater, WA
• Carol G. from Providence UT
• Vikki W. from St. George, UT
• Carol R. from Salem, OR
• Barb K. from Vancouver, WA

For those of you who entered but didn’t win, Amy’s Star is available on Amazon for $6 if you would like to order a copy for Christmas. They make great gifts for neighbors, co-workers and family. Click HERE to order on Amazon.

Just a note to last month’s winners. Your packages will go in the mail this week — we got sidetracked a bit.

This Month’s Giveaway ~

This month’s the giveaway is Oley, the children’s book I wrote about a bear who makes a wish for a friend, then adventure ensues. There will be five books given away! Click Here to sign up to win. Make sure to include a little note to let me know how you are doing. I love hearing from you.

That is it for this issue ~

Thanks for reading to the end. I appreciated all who wrote in with name suggestions for the newest Willowbrook Woolley doll, a plaid beaver. The name Boniver Beaver was sent in by Mary W from Warner NH! When I asked Siri if the name Boniver has a meaning. She responded that in French (bon hiver) means ‘good winter’. That is the perfect name for our newest little woolley friend. This new children’s book will be about resolving conflict…with tea of course.

Hoping this newsletter finds you well.
-t

PS: I’m including a link to the Twelve Days of Christmas if you missed it above.