Happy Second Birthday, Stella!

By Liv

Stella's birthday isn't actually until July 20th, but since we left Oxford on July 17th, I decided we should host a birthday gathering before leaving England, so we could celebrate with all of our new friends.

And what's more appropriate for a little girl living in the romantic English town of Oxford than a proper Mad Hatter's high tea birthday party? Especially since Stella enjoys having her very own high tea at home every single day.


As I have mentioned about 39 times in my previous posts, I have made some amazing friends during our time in Oxford. I have met people who I know we will be friends with forever. Some of those friends came to the rescue on Stella's big day and helped me to put together a fantastic gathering. We had over 20 people join us to celebrate and we served a completely gluten/egg/dairy free menu that was delectable and delicious:

• Tea Sandwiches •
Chopped olive & cucumber
Wafer-thin turkey & hummus
Almond butter & strawberry jam

• Fruit •
Strawberry, banana, grape and peach fruit skewers

• Treats •
Ginger cookies
Brownie bites
Chocolate chip cookies
Chocolate cookie sandwiches filled with vanilla frosting
Shortcake fingers

• To drink •
Mimosas
A selection of fruit and black teas

The decorations were perfect, the food was delicious, the weather was delightful and the company was wonderful. We couldn't have asked for a better day to celebrate our daughter's 2nd birthday.

 My helping hands: Vini, Thanzeem, Yuvi, Neelima, Lakshmi and Mahdieh.

 Taste-testing every single flavor...

 The ever handsome, Jamal.

 Gluten free and still delicious!

 Ellie Claire sporting her Mad Hatter Hat.

 The Royal Tea party and the birthday girl at the head of the table :)

 Stella sat in her chair at the table for almost 2 hours, sipping tea and eating cookies!

 Anas & Thanzeem :)

 The Gareys: looking fabulous as usual!

 Enjoying some tea and treats.

 Neelima loves Stella.

 The whole group.

 Rahul is one of Stella's favorite new friends. 

 Stella loves Anas and Thanzeem.

 Vasu & Neelima are always so happy to see her, too!

 Stella loves Laka and Ash!

 Mahdieh did most of the decorating and did a fantastic job. Stella says, "Thank you!"

 Anas trying to convince Stella that he's cooler than Rahul :)

 These girls love the bambina soooo much!

How many tea sets does a girl need? In Stella's case, the answer is three. This is just one of them :)