Impromptu Tea Party

Today, I was in a mood for a change. Lunch this week has been sooo boring to make. They just want the normal jelly sandwich or mac & cheese and I can only do that a few times before I start going crazy. So, I thought I'd change it up a bit. Before my son got home from school, I prepared a quick tea party with the limited ingredients I had on hand.

My daughter was so excited to tell her brother about the surprise that was awaiting them at home. I placed the tea party outside thinking that we would enjoy the nicer weather (no rain)... but it did prove to be a bit cold. While 50 seems warmer when you've been having weather in 30s - it's really not warm enough for a tea party. But the kids were troopers (for the record, I did offer to move it inside), put jackets on and weathered - well, the weather.

I served up: mini jelly sandwiches (I stuck a few decorative tooth picks in them that we left over from Lyssie's polka dot party), grapes (both red and green), string cheese cut into circles, imitation crab pieces, hot dog slices, jello and candy dipped pretzels for dessert. I decorated everything with grapes for extra color.

They had milk for their "tea" since they insist on milk with lunch (who am I to argue). Robbie had a great time pouring - Lyssie tried it once at the end (read not much milk in it) and poured it over quickly like she would normally during pretend play - only a few splashes ended up on the table. I'm sure a few more tea parties and she'll be a pro.

Robbie made mini kabobs with all the finger food. I provided toothpicks which was exciting for them. Any lunch served with toothpicks becomes 100 times more appealing.

It was fun watching through the kitchen window as they talked and enjoyed their afternoon "tea". This was also the first time I combined their lunch and they had to share. There was a lot of negotiating going on - and no fights.

Robbie thinks we should do tea parties every week... and I think it's a great idea for spring and summer (and it'll be fun in the fall and winter - just maybe indoors). And since I no longer do Bento lunches for them on Thursday (they get their bento on the weekend when they go into their dad's work), we have decided to make Thursday - Tea Time Thursday.

I'm hoping with a little more planning, I'll be able to do provide them with some fun lunches. And with the smaller serving size, it'll be a great way for introducing even more new foods. Plus, I have a feeling, the kids will have fun contributing ideas. Maybe we'll even more the location of our tea parties. We don't have a huge yard (we live in one of those new developments), but I'm sure I can find a few other locations that might be nice (once the lawn gets mowed).

Do you have tea parties too? I'd love to hear about them!