Tuesday, February 10, 2015

A Valentine Tea



"Teatime is, by its very nature,a
combination of small luxuries
arranged in social symmetry.
And although tea for one 
is certainly a fine thing,
the addition of a circle of'dear
friends to share it with 
ensures the whole is larger
than its parts. 

Author unknown



 



Each year around Valentine Day, I have a Tea for my girls, granddaughters and myself. This past Saturday I put together a simple causal tea for us. Unlike the author above, it wasn't luxury at all but kind of a country theme.  I decided to use red and pink colors.


 "Everyone needs beauty 
as well as bread,
places to play in and pray in,
where nature may heal and cheer
and give strength to body 
and soul."
 John Muir

 I can't think of a time or place than with my family 
to strengthen me, body or soul! In Philippians 4:11-12 we are encouraged to be content with what we have. I believe where there is Love there is Contentment.
 Since it was a family Tea, I didn't think it would hurt to use paper plates and napkins, along with plastic spoons and forks. The napkins reminded me, in a way, of a bandanna.


I found these heart shaped spiral toys at the dollar tree and thought "wow they'd make a good napkin ring" but when I put the napkins in them it didn't look like a heart so I cut off some burlap and tied them onto it. 



There were pink ones and red ones.






I went outside and cut a couple small branches, placed them in a vase and hung Valentine hearts on it. I placed several pine cones and other hearts in it for a decoration.

 

On the left of the food you can see where I bought a small burlap lampshade, I turned it upside down and placed a candle where the light bulb would be and added some basket filler, then placed it on a clear glass saucer. We didn't light the candle since that would not have been safe.
  
We had Bacon and cheese Quiche,
 Spinach and cheese Quiche 
Sweet Scones with Lemon Curd
Honey Ham and Provolone Cheese Croissant Roll ups

 Strawberries







Peppermint Bark, Oreo Truffles and Cream Puffs.

And a Collection of Teas!



I found these pretty cups at Marshall's a few weeks ago. 
They only had these two and that was prefect since my
two granddaughters names are Anna and Morgan.


Then a week later I was in the Dollar Tree and found these cups for my 3 daughters. How perfect, I just filled all the cups with candy hearts and they loved them. I loved the writing on them! Oh, I bought myself one too!



I was blessed with this Blue Willow cup, made in England, a pretty heart shaped plate and a basket of goodies from my daughters. I didn't get a photo of the goodies. (They were eaten right away!)

"Memories of our lives,
 of our works,
 and our deeds 
will continue on in others"
Rosa Parks

My soon to be 13 year old granddaughter wants to have a Tea Room when she graduates. I have enough collectibles to get her started.


My daughter, Debbie, had to take a selfie!

"At times our own light goes out and is rekindled
by a spark from another person.
Each of us has cause to think with deep
gratitude of those who have lighted the
flame within us."
Albert Schweitzer


My girls are a blessing and encourager for me.
I am so blessed to have been given them.
God is so Good!

"We Thank you,Lord, for blessings
You give us on our way.
May we for these be grateful,
And praise You every day."
Roworth



Have a Blessed week!

Sylvia



Linking to 

28 comments:

God's Grace Overflows said...

Oh my goodness, Sylvia! What a fun Valentine's Tea you had! I love all that you did and what you decorated with. So very cute and full of Love! That's what Valentine's should be all about. Family, friends, tea and lots of love and pink! You just can't go wrong!

We will be having our Valentine's Tea on Thursday! I can't wait. We have been doing a Tea party party for years and it makes it so special for me especially since I am a Valentines baby!! The memories and treasures we create are just priceless!

I hope you have a lovely day!

Happy Valentine's Day too!

Hugs,
Amy

Linda Jennings said...

Beautiful and fun Valentine's Tea with special ladies. I hope your granddaughter can open a tea room some day.

Sandi@ Rose Chintz Cottage said...

What a lovely, lovely post, Sylvia! Everything looks just marvelous and I enjoyed all your quotes and scripture. You have a wonderful family and yes, a family is a blessing! You created a bountiful table of food and love for your girls. The Blue Willow mug is very cute and a thoughtful gift. Thank you for sharing this with us and joining me for tea today. Happy Valentines week, dear friend!

Blessings,
Sandi

Thelma said...

Everything is so beautiful Sylvia, I love your decorations and your quotes. The goodies look so good. Your children and grandchildren are fortunate to have you in their lives. Happy Valentines Day.

Visits With Mary said...

What a wonderful event for you and your girls. Everything was just beautiful, from the tablescape to the decorations to the food! Your Valentine Tea Party must have given all sweet memories to treasure.

The Tea Lady's Journal said...

Sylvia you are so blessed to have such a beautiful family. And what a pleasure to have a special tea with them. You made everything look so festive and I am sure it was enjoyed by all. Happy Valentine's Day to you!

Marilyn Miller said...

How lovely to celebrate tea time with your girls on Valentine's.
The table is beautiful.

Christine said...

What a wonderful tea time! Everything looks delicious and I really like the twigs in the vase and just all the hearts! Thanks for sharing!

Judy Goddard said...

I'm very fond of John Muir. A real man of God who understood the importance of acknowledging our Creator in his creation.
I hope your granddaughter gets her tea room! That would be a wonderful ministry.

doodles n daydreams said...

What a wonderful way to celebrate Valentines day. Everything looks so pretty and enticing, I'm sure everyone must have enjoyed it.

Diana

Susie said...

Sylvia, Everyone is polished and pretty. What a wonderful, fun thing to do with all your girls. I need to do that with my daughters. Blessings, xoxo,Susie

Linda said...

What a pretty tea table and yummy looking snacks. I have only one other friend who likes tea and she does not live close so I don't have tea parties..what fun to do with your girls.

Beth in NEPA said...

What a fun and special day you had!!!

Nora @ Teacup Tales said...

What a wonderful Valentine's Tea! You certainly thought of everything to make the day so special and memorable.

Julie's Lifestyle said...

What a lovely tea party with your daughter and granddaughters! How nice I would love a special tea like that - what fun!

Margie said...

What an awesome tea party! The heart plates and napkins are just delightful and the yummy foods made my mouth water. The "M" mug is also perfect for me!

Two Cottages And Tea said...

What a lovely Valentine tea and how special to have it with your "girls". You indeed are blessed! Happy Valentine day to you!
Nancy

Dianna said...

Sylvia, what a joy to have been with all of your girls! The Tea sounds lovely and I enjoyed all of the beautiful pictures that showed your hard work...which I know you consider to have been a labor of love. :) Thank you so much for sharing this precious memory with us...and I loved the picture of all of you!

Melanie said...

What a special time with your girls! I would love to do that with my grand daughters. Such pretty colors and the eats look amazing!

Wilma said...

Sylvia, I enjoyed this post so much. What a wonderful idea to have this tea parties with your girls and granddaughters.
You have such a lovely family !
Love the quotes. Thank you for sharing !!

Blessings to you and your loved ones !
Wilma.

Judith @ Lavender Cottage said...

A lovely Valentine's tea shared with your family. The menu was delicious and I'm sure everyone enjoyed being together.

Tessa~ Here there be musing said...

gracious but you do put on a "spread," as we used to say!!! lovely and delicious...

and a perfect selfie of you all!!!!!

Tessa~

Pamela M. Steiner said...

That was just perfect! What a fun time together with your "girls". I know they will cherish these happy memories spent with you. Happy Valentine's Day sweet Georgia friend of mine!

Martha's Favorites said...

What a wonderful idea! It would be something that they look forward to and will always remember. You are a great Grandmother! Hugs, Martha

Stephanie said...

Oh how fun, my friend! I love the selfie of all you pretty ladies :)

Your Valentine's Tea is truly lovely and very special. Everything looks wonderful and I love the napkin rings - what a brilliant idea!

Thanks for sharing, lovely friend. Hugs to you!

Lady of the Manor said...

This looked like so much fun! Your table was lovely and the menu sounded delicious!! Happy Valentine's Day to you, Sylvia!!

CatieAn said...

How wonderful tea. It is always so special to share any kind of party with the grands isn't it? Whenever mine get to visit from out of town I have to plan a special tea party.

Alex said...

WOW, Sylvia, how lovely~ you made a fabulous tea-party, so very thoughtful. I bet it brought you a great deal of joy!
Your family (especially the grands ) must love coming to visit you, they are fortunate indeed.
Contentment is at our fingertips if we just think creatively.
I love the quote about re~kindling another's spark.
I am glad to be following you.
x