Tea Party Birthday

   When my (then) 8 year old son said we should have a tea party for his sisters birthday last January, and she agreed, I was soooo happy! I have a "thing" for  tea cups and tea. 

   In my defence, my hoards of tea cups and antique china are our only dishes, beside a few Ikea dishes for the kids, and 4 coffee mugs. So, although I am a smidge obsessed, at least I'm not being a useless hoarder! I see my china collection as a revolving door. If I see something new I love, I get rd of something I already have.   
 

  Anyway, back to the tea party for my 3 year old!

   I bought a set of tea cups, saucers, and plates from our local St.Vincent DePaul for $8. Yes, I know I own tea cups already, but I didn't want to have a bunch of children breaking my lovely "made in england" mostly antique tea cups. I know, I'm such a party pooper.

Each child had a tea cup place setting with their name on it

   For the food, I thought of classic british tea party foods: crustless sandwiched (including cucumber sandwiches), and other little nibblies. Tiny quiches, bite sized sausage rolls, sweet mix and bread and butter pickles. Crackers and cheese, and veggies and dip were included as well.

   Of course the tea is an important part of a tea party! We made a pot of decaf tea, and let it cool a lot before setting on the table for the kids. 
   
    For the grown-ups, a kettle and lots of tea, and hot chocolate was set out. Adult guests were able to choose their own tea cup from my collection. 

   The sweets (though there were many) were not a stressful part of the party. I literally wrote on my calendar what I needed to make and when so that I was slowly adding fresh baked goods to my freezer to be able to pull out the night before the party. 

   So, the party went great, and all the kids really enjoyed themselves, even if (as my husband pointed out) they probably didn't notice all the details. 

   Really, I love the details. As a stay at home mom, I love having a "project" to work on, and look forward to. 

   And to me, celebrating birthdays is important. Life is a gift, our day of birth is a gift! Celebrate it!