Madeline's 7th birthday- an Indian Tea Party

You know how your first baby makes you a mom- the anxiety, the learning curve, the joy, and the wonder of it all...and how your second kid makes you a better mom?  Well, Madeline made me a mom.  A gift I can't even begin to describe the awesomeness of.  And Tucker has made me an easier going mom.  But Madeline makes me a better mom every day.  She teaches me more than I knew I needed to learn and she surprises me every day with her insight, empathy, and soul.  So, my baby has always loved Indian culture.  She has always wanted her very own saree.  And she wanted an "Indian Tea Party" this year for her birthday...so that's what we did!  All of the ideas are Madeline's.  My job was to execute them according to her instructions and keep it all within a budget per Tyler's request.  It was such a fun day.

 Each little girl got a pouch with a mirror and bangles in it.  Then they all picked a bindi and I draped them with scarves.

 Madeline's Mimi was the first grandmother to respond to my "grandmother 9-1-1" email and she procured Madeline this AMAZING saree and jewels via Chasing Fireflies.  The bindi were from the BindiShop on Etsy.

 I have always loved Indian food but had a very limited amount of knowledge about Indian customs and culture.  I wanted this to be a real learning experience for all of us.  We went to a local Indian restaurant where Madeline and I had arranged for them to serve kheer, gulab jabun, and Indian chocolate mousse. This restaurant is beautiful.  They have huge crystal chandeliers everywhere, high archways, tall brass teapots, and a big mural of the Taj Mahal.

In an effort for all of us to learn a little more I made the girls coloring books about India.  I found simple images of the Taj Mahal, Mehndi, Bindi, and Indian elephant, a Bengal tiger, and two Indian mandala- a peacock and a lotus flower.  Madeline and I watched The Life of Pi last week and the timing of its release was perfect.  Great for a first discussion about other places, religions, customs, and beliefs.  Each image had a brief and simple description of its origin and meaning.  The girls had colored pencils and they worked on their coloring books while we waited for our "brunch sweets" as Madeline called them.

 Madeline LOVES the mousse.  The girls were great and tried everything including masala chai which they each used about 12 sugar packets to sweeten.  I had packed along cupcakes as well just in case some of them didn't like the Indian treats.

 Happy birthday to Madeline!

 Posing.

 Madeline loves her SWEET masala chai.

 My precious angel.

 Everyone says Madeline looks like me.  Here I can really see it.

 M PRETENDING to serve from the giant tea pot.

 We are so very fortunate to have precious friends that would travel to the end of the earth, rearrange schedules, and move mountains to be sure to be with us on special days. Thank you Tandee and Brandy.

 I love this- Mary Claire was collecting the tissue as fast as M could open her presents- I thought- how helpful! It was actually so she could shower Madeline with it after opening everything- which was equally special and sweet.

I love our girls and I loved this day.  They were all so open to a new experience and Madeline had so much fun.  It was a very special birthday!