I must say that the older I get, the more exciting my birthdays have been, and even more so since Char has been in charge of organising any surprises…this year being no exception!

I always know I’m in for a real treat when Char starts being all secretive, and spends hours out in our garden shed crafting (which from the size of it is more like a garage) despite it being bloody freezing! Char is, if nothing else a perfectionist, and I knew that her heart and soul would have gone into whatever she was planning for me, as it does with every project she gets stuck into, and I for one couldn’t wait!

The morning of my birthday came and in came Finley greeting me with the words “Happy Birthday Angel!”…he comes out with the cutest things sometimes! Then I grabbed my dressing gown and headed down to my surprise….

There in front of me was a giant penguin balloon (and a Minnie Mouse one too) some homemade kites hung at the window, London scenery, a ‘17 Cherry Tree Lane’ sign, and a Mary Poppins & Burt outfit, with props included, yes really!! My first thought was ‘I’m not bloody going out dressed like that!’ 😂 but then I noticed the table had been dressed all pretty with cake stands and a teapot with matching cups, and I suddenly guessed that we were having a Mary Poppins themed afternoon tea! I was informed that we were going to be receiving a special delivery at the door, as Char had brought in some help for the actual tea itself (believe me, if you saw her skills in the kitchen you’d know that this was a good thing) and I was even more excited when I got the knock at the door and realised it was the hubby of my friend, who is one of the absolute best bakers I know, dropping off the goods!

It was time to rush off to the school run, and Finley was of course a bit miffed that he’d be missing out, but we promised him a cake for after school which seemed to do the trick, and I tell you what we couldn’t get him through those school gates quick enough, and back home on the double to check out our tea hamper!

Well I may as well admit it now, after seeing what was in all the boxes there was no way we could wait until lunchtime, heck, we wouldn’t even be able to make it to elevenses…it was all just too inviting! So yes, we started our ‘afternoon’ tea at 9.30 in the morning, and we don’t even feel bad!

I let Char set the table up, while I went upstairs to get into character, and I must say I absolutely adored being transformed into one of my fav characters, and the day was made even better when I was greeted by my very own ‘Bert’!

It was hilarious, as always and we couldn’t stop giggling as we sat across from each other at a table filled with the most gorgeous and delicious treats you could ever dream of, with a selection of homemade sandwiches, cakes and scones with clotted cream. There was literally enough to feed a small herd of elephants and it was just amazing. So much effort had been put into everything, and although Char hadn’t made the food, she’d planned and organised the entire thing and I absolutely loved it. We were stuffed by about 10.30am, but we packed it all away with the intention of just grazing all day…then out came the camera for us to pose in front of, and capture this fabulous morning!

It was such a beautiful day out, like really hot and probably my hottest birthday ever, so we decided to pack up our picnic and head to Hamble (after changing into ordinary clothes of course!) to enjoy the view across the river while continuing on with our delights, and it was simply gorgeous!

After school, Finley as always had to get in on the act, so as a surprise we set the table for him with a KFC (because I wasn’t cooking on my birthday) arranged on the cake stand, along with leftover cakes and juice in the teapot, and it absolutely made his day! I just hope he’s taking notes for when he’s older so he can enjoy surprising any future partners of his own!

We finished the day with a meal out with family, I know, more food! And a traditional caterpillar cake thrown in as well!

So as you can see, my birthdays are anything but dull, and I only look forward to each year as they just keep getting better and better!

And I can honestly say that my Mary Poppins themed birthday was ‘Practically Perfect In Every Way!

“Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down…in the most delightful way” ~ Mary Poppins

Much Love,

2 Birds 1 Love

Xxx