40th Birthday Surprise Tea Party
Yesterday I mentioned that I recently turned 40. And I think it has actually been the best birthday I’ve ever had!
At the beginning of February, my two oldest daughters began talking about what they could do for my birthday. They decided on a surprise party, knowing full well how much I hate to be the center of attention. I mean, I really don’t like to be focused on at all, and they know this. So, they hesitated at the thought of throwing a big party for me, but they went ahead with it anyway. And I’m so glad they did!
I really would have never guessed what they were planning. My oldest daughter goes over to my parents’ house once a week to clean for them, so she was able to do a lot of the planning over there, and I didn’t notice anything unusual happening at home.
Around Valentine’s Day, when my husband and I had a couples-only dinner party to go to, my mom came over while we were gone to do a bit more planning with the girls (again, I was completely oblivious to this!).
They planned the entire menu, which included chocolate-dipped strawberries, whipped cream and scones, cucumber sandwiches, cake, and of course tea!
So many friends chipped in to help, and our very sweet friend Kristin supplied the most beautiful tea pot cake I’ve ever seen (made by her mother-in-law, who makes cakes professionally). That cake (and the cupcakes that went with it) really made the whole tea party super special–I loved it! Thank you so much, Kristin! Another friend made the delicious scones, a friend made cucumber tea sandwiches, and other friends helped decorate and let the girls borrow some of their tea things, including tiny tea cups for the little girls’ table.
It was such a nice afternoon just enjoying being with friends and feeling blessed.
The gifts were so special and thoughtful. Handmade soap, handmade candles, a beautiful tea cup and saucer (and a box of tea), handmade jewelry, chocolate, a lovely vase (photos of that are in yesterday’s post), a $40 gift card to Hobby Lobby (one of my absolute favorite stores!), money for paint and the offer from another sweet friend to help me paint my kitchen (so sweet and creative!).
My mom gave me this very lovely Willow Tree figurine:
I love that it’s called “Simple Joys,” and says, “You’re simply a joy in my life.” ♥
And two other friends (a mother and daughter) made this beautiful hand-quilted table runner:
I love that they embroidered my name and the date on the back:
And then my precious children chipped in to make this beautiful basket of gifts for me:
They bought me a Lily’s chocolate bar (my favorite!), a vanilla candle (another favorite!), a pretty journal and some special pens, a Burt’s Bees chapstick, a handmade bracelet, and this pretty necklace:
I felt so loved this past weekend, and I’m so thankful for my wonderful friends and family! These girls did almost all of the planning for the party, including making the cloth birthday banner behind us:
My husband and other children also contributed a lot to the planning, including getting me to the party! My oldest son was our sound man, and kept lots of beautiful classical music playing in the background. My family also made a beautiful birthday video for me that they played on a video screen during the party.
So thankful for my mom and three daughters:
And I’m so thankful to my friend Kristin for this photo and several others in this post!
“I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.” ~Philippians 1:3
What a beautiful day and the most gorgeous cake ever!
Thank you! I know, that cake was just amazing! I'm so glad we got pictures of it before we cut into it!
Oh my! I couldn't get enough of all the exquisite beauty in this post! The pretty tea cups…the table settings…the cake! Oh! The cake – how beautiful and special! What a blessed birthday celebration and aww! Such lovely gifts, too! I'm so pleased to be visiting from The Art of Homemaking Mondays today!
Blessings and thank you so much for sharing this truly lovely post:)
Oh, thank you so much, Kelly-Anne! And thank you for visiting!