Girls of all ages love to receive encouragement. Whether it’s a simple note tucked under their pillow or a flower at the breakfast table, encouraging the girls in your life is important, no matter the age.
Today our food for thought is hosting a tea party to encourage the girls in your life.
While teens might enjoy special coffees and teas created while acting as baristas, younger girls may gravitate to a sit down table tea or tea served on a tray. Obviously there is no right or wrong way to have a tea party, but thinking outside the standard can be a fun way to enjoy time with the girls in your life.
Today I have a few ideas to help get you started with encouraging your girls through a tea party:
1. Remember that “special” doesn’t necessarily mean “complicated.”
The two youngest girls of my seven children are ages 5 and 3. They love to have pretend tea parties with their toy tea sets. Taking their simple imaginative play to the next level can be as simple as washing the cups and allowing them to actually pour and drink juice.
Simply being involved in their play and offering a choice can transform everyday play into memory making.
2. Read a book at tea time.
Our last tea party included one of our girlie favorites, My Pretty Pink Bible Purse. The pink book matched our pink tea cups and was the perfect discussion book for our “Tea Book Club”. We had a great talk about our feelings. I just have to share this little snippet with you:
Peace is a feeling; it’s hard to explain. It’s quiet and gentle and does not cause pain.
You could also give your child the opportunity to choose the book you read “while the tea is cooling”.
3. Provide the opportunity to sample new flavors.
Trying a new cake or cookie or even tasting tea for the first time can be such an enjoyable experience for children. This is the perfect time to discuss likes and dislikes or how God created all of us unique; even the way we interpret flavor is not exactly the same.
4. Use Scripture tea tags and discuss the Bible verse attached to the tea.
We enjoy choosing tea tags in colors that accent the tea cups we choose to use for our little party. We practice “being still and knowing that He is God” while we sip our tea. We’ve also created sets of Scripture tea to give as gifts.
5. Dress up and have fun!
Many girls love to dress up. My girls love to wear a pretty dress and have their hair pinned up, even if it only lasts a little while. This is a great time to teach manners by example.
6. Use the power of words to encourage their hearts.
Need a quick way to encourage your girl? Choose words wisely. I need to be reminded of this daily so I like to use this list of 20 things to say to encourage your children.
We all know encouraging girls is important, but it’s how we encourage our own girls that ultimately matters.
Whether it’s through a tea party at home with your little girls or a coffee-house date with your teenager daughter, the important thing is that you take the time to encourage her heart in a way that speaks to her and shows her love.
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Your Turn
How do you encourage the hearts of your girls? Which of the ideas above is your favorite? Leave a comment! We would love to hear your ideas!