Table Cloth Fort and Tea Party

I have girls. My oldest, especially, is all girl. I promised myself I wasn’t going to let “princess” enter this house. I can’t tell you my shock when we walked into a toy store when she was little, and she declared, “Princess!” while pointing at the display. Gasp! Well, as any good mom does, I have embraced her interests. So today we had a tea party.

Baking with Kids

Baking has so many teachable moments built into it. From measuring and learning fractions to learning to read ingredients and recipes. I help my oldest try and find words she might be able to sound out like “eggs” and have her tell me how many we need. I put out the baking soda, salt and baking powder and have them try and figure out which one says “baking soda.” Baking has the tactile element kids crave too. I’ve found the more I do tactile activities, the less my kids are putting their hands in the toilet, dumping out all my lotion or coloring their bodies with permanent markers. So, we bake.

For our tea party, we made banana bread and cookies. If you want my favorite sugar cookie recipe you can find it here.

Why banana bread for a tea party? Well, just look:

Here’s my favorite recipe for banana bread. Baking is not made easier with kids. Let me just put that out there. There will be messes (as proof by the pictures below). When there are accidents, I just say that it’s fine – accidents happen and try not to make them feel bad about it. However, if they’re not being helpful (i.e. not obeying, grabbing at things they have asked to grab, not sharing) – they’re done “helping.” They’re kicked out of the kitchen. Abby can crack an egg without shells better than I can because she’s been doing it since she was two. Even my one year old gets in the mix while I hold his hand as he dumps ingredients.

When the bread was cooled, we cut it into shapes for the tea party.

Let the Tea Party Commence

The girls are always wanting to wear their fancy dresses. Here’s their opportunity. Guess what – I decided I’d dress up too. I decided to throw the party in their new play house. All you Pinteresters are going to love this. We set it up with special dishes, cookies, banana bread, strawberries and lemonade. The girls even made some things from their own kitchen. We read “Fancy Nancy” books, talked in fancy voices and dined together.

The play house? Yes, it is over our dining room table. I thought something like this would be fun for the girls. When I say “like this,” I imagined I might sew five rectangles together and cut a hole for the door. Luckily, I asked grandma if she’d want to make one. This was her creation.

How do I get a table cloth playhouse??

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The pattern is out of print. I am working on getting together a pattern to be purchased through Meaningful Mama. I am also working on a way to be able to get these custom made for your children. Details to come. If you are looking for something immediate, Amazon (affiliate partner) does sell these Pacific Play Tents Cottage House Tent and a card table version – Table Fables Fabric Play House (Pink Play House) – This might be exactly what you are looking for.

Does this all seem too involved?

Make it easy!! Don’t make anything from scratch. Take left over cookies from Christmas or Oreos and put them on a fancy tray. Have a tea party at one of their small tables or set your table special for the occasion. Throw a couple sheets or blankets over the table like I used to before we received the gift of this amazing play house. Make it easy for yourself, but have a tea party.

If you are looking for a great resource full of more ideas, you should check out these weekly activity plans for early childhood.

Here’s a picture of just the house:

Another Fort Option

My kids love forts. Any place that can become their own little space is a win. We recently were able to get the kids their own teepee, and I will tell you why I love it.

Teepee Joy has both pre-designed and custom made options. Their fabrics are not only sturdy but have a chic designs that come with patterns or solids in a variety of colors to match any decor. There are cute details, like tie door flaps, windows and roll down or tie up window shades. A padded mat adds comfort to the ground, and you can choose from a variety of pillow options. The quality of these teepees is top notch, and they are easy to put together. My kids can easily move the teepee to different areas of the house or outside for more play. These are handmade in the USA.

My kids are going bonkers for theirs. It’s not only a cozy place to rest or read books, but it provides opportunities for hours of creative, imaginative play.