happiness is a pair of high heels

i love me some groupon/living social/[insert deal of the day site here].  they often have super awesome deals, and i almost hesitate to open the e-mails some mornings for fear of finding something that i just have to have.

case in point:  a fun-looking "mommy & me" tea party deal at some place in nearby claremont that i hadn't yet heard of.  and despite the really dumb name of the joint (well, maybe just the way they spelled it) - sweet & sasse princess tea parties - i bought a voucher and called to make our reservation.  i asked the teen if she wanted to join us, but she passed.  gee, i can't imagine why.  heh.

i didn't even tell the bean where we were going until we pulled up.  these days, when i tell her we're going to do something fun, she assumes we're going to disneyland.  gee, i can't imagine why 2.0.  but she seemed pretty excited when she got a glimpse of the decorations outside of the building we were walking up to.

there was a little gift shop (of course), with a menu of the services posted on the wall.

we were welcomed by the owner of the shop, who took the bean right in to the rack of costumes available for her to wear during our tea party.  slightly overwhelmed at the sheer number of choices, she took her time and finally settled on something familiar.

the place was totally perfect for a princess-style birthday party.  she had such a blast walking around and checking everything out.

then it was time to sit down and have her makeover.  yes, the bean has had her very first makeover at the ripe old age of 4.

hair (complete with pixie dust):

 

make-up:

nails:

and let's not forget the accessories, including her first experience with clip-on earrings.

then she got to choose a hat for me to wear so i could take a picture with her.  yes, i know i look fabulous.  if fabulous = ridiculous.

next, we sat down at the table to work on our craft - decorating a picture frame to take our picture home in.  she had a great time picking out foam stickers and pasting them on all willy-nilly.

that didn't last too long.  once every available surface was covered in stickers, she was over it and moved on to the tea cart for some pretend refreshments.

 it was pretty funny watching her wobble around in her "high heels."

all this excitement worked up quite an appetite.  she was quite delighted with the tiered setup that was waiting for us in the party room.

there was even a bell that she could ring if we needed anything.

and she loved the tiny teacup that she got to drink her "lemonade tea" out of.

she alternated between bites of her food, dancing around to the disney music and posing on the stool in the corner of the room.

cupcake time.

back in the car, she admired her 'do and makeup in the rearview mirror before we headed home for a nap.

kinda makes me want to pick up some fabric and make her some princess costumes for playing dress-up at home.  hmmm.