By Lanell Downs Smith

The best tea I ever had was not actually tea at all. It was diet cranberry juice, but Caroline did not care and neither did I because the company, rather than the tea, was what mattered.

Caroline adores shopping for treasures at Tayla and Pearls Attic Finds in Greenville and sampling Cookie Monster ice cream at Dips and Dogs in Luverne. She also delights in watching and tasting candy made on site at Priesters Pecans in Fort Deposit.

My three-year-old granddaughter loves tea parties and requests that we have one every time she visits. Just like her mom and Aunt Angie, she takes delight in “tea” and cookies, breaking out the fine china and practicing her skills at pouring out.

“Pinkies up,” she exclaims as we both giggle, attempting to hold both cup and saucer with one pinkie finger gracefully extended..

On Saturday, Caroline and I were enjoying our second tea party of the day when she expressed her joy at the day’s events. Our first adventure was a “pretend tea party” where we sampled tea from her miniature set poured from a tiny teapot stuffed full of Cheetos while Barbie’s plastic pet savored imaginary cookies from the delicate, quarter-sized plates. The second tea, held after fingerpainting and a “Paw Patrol” matinee, featured frosted animal crackers, grapes and cranberry juice poured from Caroline’s special tea-for-one china pot.

“This is the best tea I ever had,” she exclaimed with a sigh. And I agreed because for that day, it was just the two of us enjoying the simplicity of playing together with nowhere to be and no deadlines to meet. We lounged in our pajamas, baked blueberry muffins, almost napped and sat on the porch to watch the rain.

Caroline is always up for shopping or treats, but on Saturday she simply wanted to hang out with her Nana. It was a precious time.

Grandparenting is everything I heard it would be, truly the opportunity to love our children all over again by loving their children without the responsibility that comes with parenting. It is the experience of loving unconditionally while molding a little life by supporting them through skint knees, potty training, baking muffins and enjoying tea without spilling it in our laps.

It is also filled with moments when we can help our grown children by being present to hear all the challenges and concerns young parents face. I relive the early years of Jamelyn’s childhood each time she recounts the many nights when Caroline cannot sleep, or describes the funny phrases she delivers. She is just like her mother, with a bit of her father sprinkled in after all.