Wednesday Tea Party

Another tea party for J's two young granddaughters today.... and the tea parties keep getting better and better.  We all started this a few years ago now..... an idea to give the out-of-state granddaughters something different to do during their visit.  With each of the parties, the guest list grows a little longer, and the laughing get louder, and the menu gets more varied because everyone brings something to add to the afternoon buffet. We started this for the little girls, but the big girls have just as much fun.

Tea for the ladies, chocolate tea for the little girls, and tiny sandwiches and rich desserts. Plus the decorations...... "Drink Me" tags on tiny glass bottles filled with bright pink cranberry juice; "Eat Me" tags on fancy picks stuck into the sandwiches.  All we needed was the Mad Hatter to show up, along with Alice. (Johnny Depp.... where were you??)  I bought very small gold picture frames that I filled with a picture or a fancy initial for each of us, which was everyone's place-setting surprise as they found their place card around the table.

The young girls always like to play the 'tea bingo' game ("Teago," actually, which you can buy on-line), and I had books for them to pick out as prizes. Both C and J love to read, and they started looking through their storybooks minutes after choosing them. (I do love kids who read!)  Each of the tea parties has had a theme of sorts, and this time I asked everyone to wear a dangling pair of earrings or a sparkling crazy necklace.  JD wore so many Mardi Gras beads around her neck that you could barely see the blouse she was wearing. And the little girls made their own earrings from tiny colorful elastic rings.

Special gifts for all the ladies, as a thank-you for bringing goodies to add to the table... and I picked out gifts individually this time, rather than giving everyone the same party-favor. Everyone walked in with a smile, and left with a bigger smile. (Aunt Dolly would be proud.)

JAS brought along her little Bella.... a precious little Chihuahua wearing strands of pearls.  Bella, being the star of the afternoon, had her own special chair and a doggie place card, but she preferred sitting on her mama's lap so she could watch all of us. Too cute for words, that little dog, and possibly the most well-mannered Chihuahua on the planet. When Bella got bored with all of our chatter, she buried her head into JAS's arms and went to sleep.

Another great tea party, with the nicest compliment from J's granddaughter C:  "Coming to the tea party is my favorite part of visiting Texas."  Awesome kids.... and they love books!