Happy 2012 – I’m behind on the whole welcoming the New Year thing, but what else is new!  I’m either early or late – I just can’t seem to just simply be timely.

After the hustle and bustle of the Christmas Holiday, then New Years, my siblings and I got set to celebrate our mother’s “milestone” birthday with a surprise tea party.  It was quite the big to do since we all live in separate states, but (if I do say so myself) it seemed to go fairly smoothly.

I’ve included some of the food pictures (I know it looks sparse, but there was more food – I promise!) and if there’s a asterick (*), I’ll be sending out a future blog post with the recipe!

Here I am with my sister and sister-in-law, hosting the tea.  Hats or fascinators were mandatory.

My husband even pitched in and made his famous Chicken Cordon Bleu.  To let you in on a little known secret about my husband - he’s a phenomenal food stylist.  You wouldn’t think so by looking at him, but he is.  It’s his dirty little secret - just between us.

My sister makes a really great quiche*.  Miniature ones were prepared for the party, but I was only able to snag a picture of the larger one that was made with the leftover crust and filling.

My sister-in-law made these really pretty pinwheels with crescent rolls, boursin cheese spread, ham, and spinach.  Yum!

The dessert shots* are layers of vanilla pudding and Nilla Wafers topped with whipped cream.

Turtle Brownies, Sugar cookies with Buttercream, and Forgotten Meringue Cookies.

Queen of Hearts decorated sugar cookies served as party favors for the guests.

Meyer Lemon Curd*.  This one I was especially excited about.  See I live in a really small town – we basically have a Walmart Supercenter.  So when I discovered Meyer Lemons in the produce section, I broke into a dance.  Seriously, it wasn’t pretty.  So I grabbed two bags, made a batch of Meyer Lemon Curd, then shamelessly returned to the store for another two bags of Meyer lemons.

You might be wondering (at this point) what’s so exciting about Meyer Lemons?!?!  Well wait no longer, I’ll tell you!  They are a delicious cross between a lemon and mandarin orange, so they’re sweet and tart, without the mouth-puckering tartness of regular lemons.

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