A GALentine's Themed Tea Party

Once upon a time, long before my husband and I met, I declared to the Lord (and anyone else who listened) that I would birth ALL boys - 3 to be exact. Little boys seemed easier and less dramatic, and Saturday mornings in the barbershop always sounded more tolerable than spending hours washing and combing hair. If only raising kids was really that simple. Anyway, turns out that God had very different plans for my life; plans that included not one, not two, but THREE little girls. So much for our plans, right?

So, not gonna lie - I hate being a kitchen beautician. But I love + have embraced pretty much everything else that comes along with being a girl mom, including throwing together themed mid-week tea parties.  

I threw my middle baby a tea party for her 4th birthday in 2017 so I didn't have to buy much for this very last minute party. I made a quick pit stop to Dollar General for a table cover, plastic cutlery, plates, and balloons, and spent just over $15. 

For the centerpiece, I grabbed a couple $5 bouquets from Walmart and stuck them in this cute little gold polka dot vase I found at Hobby Lobby a few years ago. The gold chargers are from my dining room (I've had them so long, I don't remember where they came from) and the tea pot and cups + saucers are from IKEA (left over from the birthday party).

SN: My friend Kim used paint pens for the monogram on the cups and design on the tea pot and baked them to set the design. Here's a simple tutorial if you want to take a stab at a "custom" tea set for your little one's next tea party.

When they got home that evening, I instructed them to go upstairs and find something fancy to wear for their party. Big sis helped her sisters find the perfect outfit and they all came down looking gorgeous and ready to party!

I filled the tea pot with apple juice (obvi) and they enjoyed salad, carrots, and grapes with their "tea" for the starter course. 

The girls then enjoyed personal-sized pizzas from Costco for the main course. We are seriously so sophisticated around here. 

After dinner, they threw their aprons on for a quick love day art project! (SN: my girls love to color and paint so I always have canvases, paints, brushes, etc. on tap to keep them busy on rainy days.)

To cut down on the mess + fuss, I whipped up a couple dozen (from the box, chile) strawberry cupcakes before the girls got home. I found a Valentine's themed cupcake kit, complete with toppers and sprinkles, at Walmart for $3! I let them decorate one cupcake to eat and I decorated the rest for them to take to daycare the next day. 

Looking back now, I'm so grateful that God gave me exactly what I needed in these 3 little ladies. I mean, who would I throw impromptu tea parties for if I had a house full of boys!? Silver lining, friends. Silver lining. Happy GALentine's Day!