We hit a milestone this June, when our younger child finished kindergarten. I kind of scoff at the idea of graduations for tiny kids, but when faced with a gaggle of six year-olds serving tea and cake and awkwardly reciting poetry, it was tough not to get a little sniffly.
Kindergarten is pretty awesome. You get to make a ton of stuff with paper, paint, glue and glitter and somewhere in there, learn to read and write. This year, the kids also made pickles, dog biscuits, seed bombs, scarves, and so much other stuff we were loaded up like donkeys taking it all home after the “poetry cafe”.
Speaking of the cafe, the kids served us some really delicious spiced iced tea. I forgot to ask the teacher what was in it, but when I got home, I made a version from what I had in the cupboard that I like enough to share here. With just two ingredients it couldn’t be easier – the fresh orange juice brightens it up sweetly, although if your juice is on the tart side, you could always add some honey.
With the whole summer stretching out ahead before first grade, we’ll be drinking this a lot, I think!
- 4 bags rooibos chai tea (we used Trader Joe's Ruby Red Chai)
- 6 oranges, for about 2 cups juice
- Place teabags in a teapot or other heat-safe container.
- Bring 3 1/2 cups of water to a boil.
- Pour water over tea, and allow to steep.
- While tea is brewing, juice the oranges; strain out seeds and pulp, if desired.
- Allow tea to cool, remove teabags, then combine tea and juice.
- Refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.
