Even though we love Mom all year long, May 8th is a wonderful time to go all out and show her how much she is appreciated.

If my Mum lived closer to me here is what I would do to put a smile on her face.

Being of English decent I’d start day with a tea party in early afternoon – it does not have to be precisely at stroke of 4:00pm. – Followed later in evening with a barbeque.

The Tea Party:

Ideally best place for this event as long as weather cooperates is outdoors, however it can be just as nice indoors.

Going on idea that it’s to be outdoors here is how I’d proceed.

Setting The Table:

I’m going to start by using a layered effect with table linens. As my Mum loves Lavender I’ll start with a solid deep lavender cloth, over top of that a second cloth in pale Lavender, possibly a small check with soft greens and yellows mixed in. Finishing off with a floral pattern keeping with lavender, green and yellow color scheme.

Napkins in one of three colors, folded and tided with a pretty coordinating ribbon and a floral centerpiece will finish it off.

Nothing fussy for centerpiece, a white pitcher filled with either Tulip's from local grocer or silk Roses, Mum’s favorite flower.

The Tea Set:

The perfect tea set would be Piper Collection from Royal Doulton. This set has rich heritage of traditional England. The white background and gold accents can take it from afternoon tea to a formal dinner party. Contents would include teapot, cups and saucers plus salad plates.

The reason for small salad plate is your not serving a complete dinner, just finger food, more on that later.

Refreshments:

The whole "keep-your-room-clean war" happens in just about every household, but believe it or not, there are ways to make it not such a headache for both kids and parents.

The first thing you as a parent must remember is that every kid is different. Just like every adult is different. YOUR idea of clean is most likely not same as your child's.

Also, all people (adults and kids) organize a space in their own way.

Let me give you example: My five year old son's idea of an organized room is that everything is in it's place. He likes things lined up where he can see them and when he cleans his room, everything goes back in same spot where it belongs.

Now my 7 year old daughter, who is creative type, doesn't really care where it goes. She has "out of sight, out of mind" mindset. So trying to get her to put things in same place every time is like pulling teeth!

After realizing and accepting that both kids are completley different I had to come up with different ways to help them keep their room clean.