Max's First Birthday (Party)

Saturday, May 12. From 3-6PM.

Invitation was as follows:

Pizza, beer, cokes and juice boxes.

Smashcake for Max and cupcakes for all!

Bring your kids, bring your spirit, bring no gifts.

Informal backyard get-together to celebrate Max's survival of year one.... so many more to go.

***kid activity warning!

I have some flower pot/dirt/painting activity for the kids so be prepared for a potential mess (I have gardening gloves, hand shovels and washable paints to help minimize the impact)*** 

The day was to include a pinata, a craft, pizza, cupcakes and be rather basic. Once again, I planned for none of the chaos that comes with hosting any kid birthday party. 

I had arranged for a kiddie activity that included washable paints, foam stickers, terra-cotta flowers pots, a ginormous bag of potting soil, a selection of three kinds of small flowers: yellow marigolds, pink impatiens and purple petunias, and a large electrical wire spool as a table (thanks for the idea, KG & EG, bonus that it was FREE at Dominion Power).

The craft went well. Kids under 3 were incredibly messy but very determined to try the paints, the stickers and to do a good job. The one container of wipes I bought proved futile after a few minutes in but, thankfully, all the moms were OK with it knowing the paints were washable.

Kids over the age of 3 were extremely messy! They mixed paints, poured the paints directly into the pots and tried to fill with water, ripped stickers in half, and basically mauled all the craft supplies.

In general, the activity went well. Even better that I pulled the large trash bin alongside the table and tossed everything when they were done. Better still, when it rained a few days later it essentially "cleaned" off the table with all the washable paints.

Max and daddy

Max did pretty well out back. He still doesn't walk (in fact, he HATES to have his hands held and will hold his legs out straight in front of himself in defiance). He'll stand on both feet and find things to hang on to... but mostly he crawls or just observes. He couldn't be left unattended for very long or he'd be eating leaves, rocks and other exciting tidbits he'd discover lying about.

Here's me "lugging" Max away from another discovery of what to eat off the ground. You can tell by his and my casualness that this is a rather common occurrence.

The girls got started in the sandbox before all the party goers arrived.

The pinata was a huge hit. It contained 4lbs of candy and all of it was accounted for moments after the "#1" finally succumbed to its multiple beatings by all.

I made Max some fun monkey cupcakes I had seen at a baby shower and online. Easy to make, fun to decorate and the kids seemed to have fun choosing which silly face they could eat.

As you can see, Max thoroughly enjoyed the chocolate frosting on his cupcake. I had originally intended to get him his own smash cake but completely forgot to order one until it was too late. Frankly, no one noticed, least of all Max, and he seemed content with getting a small cupcake just like all the party goers. This was his very first cupcake/cake treat ever.

Sadly, we ran out of time before we could open any of the presents some people brought... scratch that... EVERYONE brought a gift (very nice of everyone to do even though they were asked not to - we have great friends). We continued to sit out back and open them up.... all great things we will enjoy (diapers, bubbles, stacking/knock-over blocks, knitted toys, bath toys, a shirt, board book, and more!). Here's Max playing peek-a-boo with the handmade quilt Kelly designed & created. 

All in all, Max had a very fun time and seemed to thoroughly enjoy the entire event. He never fussed or squired once (also a general mood of Max - he is rather laid back). And honestly, the clean-up afterward was rather quick and easy, too! Phew! Now let's go get ready for bed...