Teddy Bear Tea Party - Start the Tradition Now!

The joy a stuffed animal can bring to a child is a wonderful and amazing thing and I believe every child should have at least one favorite bear in her lifetime. They're cuddly, warm, and cute and they don't make a mess on your living room floor before guests arrive! Children of all ages love stuffed teddy bears and for good reason!
The Teddy Bear Tea Party! Now, combine this great love of all things fluffy with a little girl's tea party and you have the makings of the grandest event of the year for your daughter.
So let's look at both in just a little more detail. the tea and the teddy bears. Obviously the two main elements must be accounted for...

There are several ways you can create this memory-filled event for your little one.
Remember mom; all the little ones will probably have a good toothbrush at home anyway! More sugar is required in the form of cookies, little chocolates and other tea fancies to complete the tea table. Don't make the tea too strong and remember to have plenty of sugar (get the cubes...little girls LOVE the cubes) and cream for those who have not yet acquired the taste for afternoon tea yet.

You can go with the varieties from the tea aisle in the grocery store or find some fine lovely teas at various upscale tea shops or even online. Blackberry, apple or vanilla are a few of our favorites. Choose a tea with some added flavor. Not too much scrimping on the sugar here, mom...this is the event of the year remember? Assuming you're planning your party for the younger of the young ladies, you'll want to keep the tea simple and SWEET!

The tea. 1.
Or, if you want to get even more elaborate, have a make your own stuffed animal event as part of your party, where each guests can build a bear or other stuffed animal to take home. Providing a simple craft for the girls to make a teddy tea shawl (an inexpensive cloth napkin and some fabric makers or rubber stamps will do nicely) will help to make the stuffed animals more at ease at the tea table. The most economical way to include the animals is to ask each child to bring their own favorite teddy or other animal along for the event. As you know, not all children choose a bear as their favorite stuffed animal so you might want to offer some flexibility here!

The Teddy Bears. 2.
Include the picture with your thank you notes so each will have a grand remembrance of the day as well. Finally, remember to take a photo of each guest with the guest of honor and their bears. You'll want to take plenty of pictures of the little ones, pinkies high sipping their tea while enjoying their tea dainties. Keep the entire party short and simple for maximum memory making and remember your camera and film.
At the end of each year's celebration, create a special page for a scrapbook so your girls will have something wonderful to pass on to their daughters along with the annual tradition! One is never too old to love a stuffed teddy bear! and each year you can guarantee the teddy bears will come along too.

I bet you'll find that the tradition you start when your girls are young will continue on into their teen years and beyond... Celebrate the start of the school year or celebrate the first day of spring. Make this an annual event for your girls. Teddy Bear tea parties don't need to be just for birthday parties either.

Tea and Talk

The word "Talk" begins with "T" or "Tea" for the matter at hand. It is not just coincidence. There is connection beyond the common alphabet. But before I go on to explain the subtle link between these two beautiful ingredients of life, let me first "tea" up the topic by talking about talk.
At work, we talk to ourselves too. We not only talk to each other, we talk to our children. In addition to traditional face to face talks, we talk virtually through phone, email and Internet chat. At work, we talk to our customers.

At home, we talk to our spouse, we talk to our spouse, we talk to our spouse, we talk to our colleagues, we talk to our colleagues, we talk to our spouse, we talk to our colleagues, we talk to our spouse, we talk to our colleagues, we talk to our children. We talk every day.
Like foods and drinks, talk is an important part of our daily life. The most distinguishing characteristic that separates human beings from the rest is that we are social and live in a society. Our survival as well as our happiness and triumph are so much dependent upon the interaction among ourselves and talk is the most used form of the interaction we have with each other.
Let's evaluate how effective we are at talk.
But I also find that we are not that good at talk when it comes to the real meaning of talk. We say "how are you" everyday to everyone, to our neighbors, to our co-workers and even to strangers. I find we are great at opening a talk.
When we say "how are you?" we don't really mean it. We don't look at the person in the eyes and wait patiently to listen to his or her response. We don't really care about the answer.
When we do talk to them, we tend to rush the conversation because we are stressed from our long commutes and challenging jobs in addition to mundane day to day chores. We don't talk much to our spouse, to our children and to our parents.
Many of us are sons or daughters as well as parents. We know we should call and talk to our parents on regular basis. But many of us make the calls when we are on the road driving or waiting at the checkout line in a grocery store.
Not to mention about our poor record of talk when it comes to challenging situations such as talking to mediate conflicts, disputes and differences in ideas.
Along with unhealthy junk foods, talks have become hasty and unfulfilled.
Discovering the many health benefits of tea, more and more people are turning to the green leaves for the health of our body, mind and spirit. For the health of our human relationship, let's add tea to our talk too.
Only when we are calm and warm, we are able to enjoy the conversation and bring enjoyment to others. Tea can slow down our pace and even help us pause when we attempt to rush. Tea can calm our temperament down and warm our heart up.
People from eastern culture generally are not as expressive as those from western culture. For example, they hardly show their passion for the loved ones in words like "I love you." That does not means they talk less. They actually talk more. How can you say less and talk more? Isn't it contradictive? Well, the answer lies in the Tao of tea.
Next time before you pick up the phone and call someone; or when you and your friends get together, make a cup or a pot of hot and aromatic tea first. Let the rising mist, the unfolding leaves and the soothing liquor kick off the talk. Infuse the magic leaves into the interaction gradually and take the time to brew the conversation slowly. You will be amazed by the results of a talk infused with tea through time.
Tea, talk and time are the most powerful trio that works in tandem to enrich, enhance and enlighten our lives.
Jay is the owner of TaimuTea.com - an online tea store that focuses on tea knowledge, news and education in addition to providing quality fresh teas from Taimu Mountain and its surrounding areas in Fujian province of China.
http://www.taimutea.com

Why Is Coffee Not My Cup Of Tea? Is It Stale?

Most everyone that I have talked to that does not like coffee said that it is the bitter taste they don't like. Fresh coffee is never bitter. In fact, fresh coffee is smooth and tasty even undoctored. So what is giving coffee such a bad rap? After some research it a cured to me that the problem is lack of freshness, and coffee that was brewed hours ago. Stale coffee itself is horrible to drink. Stale coffee can leave a bad taste in your mouth, but if you buy coffee that is guaranteed fresh when you brew it then it will taste smooth and refreshing. How does coffee get to the point of being stale? In many cases it is due to poor packaging, but in most cases it is due to over stocking.
Poor packaging is when the product is not properly sealed from the manufacture, or the seal is broken along the way. Most containers are plastic these days, but many still use the steel cans. The difference is the cost plastic is much cheaper to produce. Plastic is not as durable and sometimes is easily damaged. If the seal is broken then the coffee is exposed to the air, which dries out the coffee. This is the main reason coffee gets to the point of being stale. Another problem is over stocking.
What about coffee that was brewed 4 hours ago? If you were to brew a cup of coffee will be horrible. I have worked for a grocery store before and I have seen products stay on the shelves for months.

Do you see the problem now? It can vary, but the average length is about 6 months. How long can coffee remain fresh in a vacuum-sealed container? The problem is they can sit on that coffee for month, or even years until it is sold.

Many distributors of coffee buy by volume to get the coffee at a cheaper price. When a store over stocks there products the product sits longer on the shelf or in the back and over time the freshness fades away.
How fresh is your coffee? My wife hates coffee because of her first bad experience, and after I roasted her a fresh batch she admitted that it was really good and not bitter. If it is not fresh don't drink it.

The coffee can have a burnt taste that is also bitter. In many cases the coffee appears thicker because the water is vaporized over time.