"I’m Late, I’m Late, for a Very Important Tea Party"

        In 1862, when Charles Dodgeson (aka, Lewis Carroll) took a boat trip from Christ Church College in Oxford up the Isis River to Godstow with the Dean of the College, the Dean’s three eldest daughters, Lorina, Alice and Edith, and his friend the Reverend Robinson Duckworth of Trinity College, he probably didn’t imagine that he would wind up penning one of the most famous children’s books in history. "Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland" has delighted children since its publication in 1865. 
        The book’s enjoyment continues today and has blossomed into a whimsical theme for a children’s tea party. A marvelous way to celebrate springtime, a "Mad Hatter Tea Party" or "March Hare Tea Party" will bring young children together for good food, good fun and good reading. 
        To set the stage for the event, send out colorful invitations befitting the theme. You can make it traditionally "Mad Hatter," or a "March Hare" motif would be just as much fun. Since Easter is the holiday of the season, bunnies would be an appropriate subject. Below are a couple of invitations that you can print on your color copier, and mail out.

 

       You should send out the invitations at least four weeks before the party. That will give your guests enough time to pencil it in on their calendars and pick out a pretty outfit for the occasion. It will also give you enough time to determine how much food you will need to prepare, based upon the RSVPs you receive. 
        Now, for the food. A variety of sweet and savory treats is in order. You will find wonderfully appropriate recipes in the next three issues of High-SocieTea’s newsletters. "Through the Looking Glass with Eat-Me Cakes," "Down the Rabbit Hole Finger Sandwiches" and "What’s Up Doc . . . Cupcakes?" are perfect for this themed tea party. There are also many more recipes on High-SocieTea.com’s web site that would fit the bill. And, since it is a children’s tea party, you will probably want to serve decaffeinated teas along with milk and fruit juice. There is a wide variety of decaffeinated teas available in supermarkets or online that are safe and healthy for children to drink. 
        To set the table, and the mood for the party, the tablescape should be colorful and fanciful. If you don’t have any Alice in Wonderland dolls, you can use Easter bunny rabbits or other animals, stuffed or ceramic, for decoration. Here, you can see a bunny rabbit centerpiece, a bunny teapot, bunny rabbit cream pitchers, head of lettuce sugar bowl, blue bird candle holders, and even a bunny-rimmed plate all of which depict the "March Hare" theme. To play up a Mad Hatter motif, you can use dress-up dolls with long blonde hair (like Alice), dolls dressed as queens (like the Queen of Hearts), and even scatter a deck of playing cards around the table. And as a take-home table favor, you can place a miniature stuffed bunny rabbit or dress-up doll at each place setting. 
        Here, we see Abbey being served an assortment of sweet treats. If you have a sit-down tea party, this is one way to make your young guests feel extra special. You can also display your sweet and savory treats on a serving tier, or on a side table for a buffet style party. 
        If your children are older, they may pour tea for themselves or you may want to pour it for them. Allowing them to serve themselves and
their guests is an excellent way to build their social skills. Abbey is doing a wonderful job hostessing her "March Hare" tea party. She confidently goes about serving herself and others while maintaining delightful conversation. 
        A children’s tea party is the perfect opportunity to teach proper dining etiquette.   From the placement of the napkin on one’s lap, to the correct way to hold a teacup (pinkies out is not a requirement), to the right fork to use when eating, all of these skills will build self-confidence in children and will carry through to their adult
years. In addition, their ability to interact with friends in a more structured social situation will also build their self-esteem and help to polish their skills for later in life. As you can see, Abbey is the perfect example of a lovely young lady who is secure in her ability to hostess an entertaining party for her friends. 
        When the dining and amusing conversation are finally over, it’s time for fun and games. There are a number of parlor games that your child can host in your home. Here are some ideas that will bring lots of fun and excitement to your child’s Afternoon Tea Party:

        "Pin the Tail on the Donkey" - This is the name for the traditional version of this game, but you can purchase a poster showing any figure, or make a poster yourself. Draw any kind of character on a poster board (a clown, an animal, a cartoon personality) and leave something missing like its nose, a hat, a shoe, etc. Then draw that missing piece separately onto a piece of paper or card stock and use that to "pin" onto the poster board using a thumb tack. Just remember to show where the "missing piece" goes on the poster board. Hang up the poster on a protected surface, blindfold the children one at a time, and watch as they try to "pin the whatever on the wherever!"

        "Bean Bag Toss" - It’s simple to make a Bean Bag Toss. Purchase a large piece of foam board, which is about 1/4" thick, and glue it to one side of a medium-sized box, which is used for the base. Paint a colorful design on the board and cut out several holes beyond the edges of the box so the bean bags will fall through. You can purchase bean bags at toy stores or make your own with scraps of material that you sew together and fill with uncooked rice. They’re easy to make and they can be given out as party favors. Then stand back as the children attempt to toss the bags through the holes.

        "Button, Button, Who’s Got the Button" - Whoever is chosen to find the "button" (or any hidden object) must cover their eyes while the object is given to another guest to hide in their lap or behind their back. The child then uncovers her eyes and has three chances to guess who has the object. All of the children will keep their hands on their laps or behind their backs so you can’t tell who is hiding the object. The hidden item can match the theme of the party. For a "Mad Hatter Tea Party," the hidden object could be a deck of cards or the Queen of Hearts card. For a "March Hare Tea Party," the object could be a little stuffed bunny rabbit or even a pretty little porcelain one. Then, the game would be "Bunny, Bunny, Who’s Got the Bunny?"

        "Charades" - This is the perfect game for a themed tea party. Select a child to stand up in front of the group to act out the character that you whisper into their ear. Simply select a character from Alice in Wonderland (there are so many) and watch as the child tries to bring the character to life and the other children attempt to guess who it is. 

        For a very special way to end your "Mad Hatter" or "March Hare" tea party, you can present each of your guests with a copy of the book, Alice in Wonderland. They can be purchased online or from your local book store. Any child would be very lucky to receive such an extraordinary gift that will bring them hours of pleasure by taking them on a delightfully whimsical journey through its pages. 
        So start planning now to host what will certainly turn out to be your neighborhood’s social event of the Spring Season. Hop to it!