Thoughts on a First Birthday

My baby is 1!!

Happy Birthday, John Dixon!!

A few things I have learned after hosting three 1st birthdays:

1). Hobby Lobby makes great invitations.

2). Nekkid birthday child is ideal. Outside (or on a porch in this case), even better.

3). Smash cake can be smashed before birthday boy even touches cake. For our third child, a hectic trip to the grocery store with three boys in tow, resulted in the smashed smash cake before it even reached the party. Thank goodness for the memory of a one year old!

4). Birthday boy may not act surprised to see an entire cake sitting before him. Cake may have been previously employed to keep said child entertained/quiet so that mama could finish a meal. Sitting down.

5). Elaborate treat bags? Last minute cookies made from a mix with ziploc bags will suffice. And if you go to all that trouble and then forget to hand out said cookies in ziploc bag? Your guests probably won't even notice. Then you can surprise your Sunday School class the following morning with??!! Cookies in ziploc bags.

6). Kids just want cake and juice boxes at a party. Keep it simple. The most fun parties we have attended included bags of mulch spotting the yard, a trampoline without a net, and a giant jar of laffy taffy. 

7). With multiple brothers and cousins opening birthday child's presents and playing with the new toys, some gifts may get misplaced. Which will later result in a frantic phone call to locate some very nice books. The books will mysteriously appear in birthday childs' bedroom.

8). An ideal location for a first birthday is a grand parents house. Especially one that has a pool.

9). Everything that needs to be accomplished at this bash can be done in about 45 minutes. Which leaves plenty of time to play on that trampoline without a net.

10). If mama wants to hide left over birthday cake from all other members of the family and eat it quietly by herself while all children sleep....you go girl!! You deserve it.....it's your third 1st birthday.

11). If your smash cake gets smashed, you forget to hand out last minute thrown together treat bags, and some gifts go rogue for a few hours, I can promise you at least one person at the party did not notice....yep, your precious one year old!!