Birthday Bidness
Guess what today is? It’s Sherry’s BFF Katie Bower’s son Will’s 1st Birthday! Did you get all that? It’s a lot of apostrophes.
And Clara is doing her best to be a good baby girlfriend, so she sent her main squeeze a couple of items that she loves: tools and clothes. (PS- if your name is Katie Bower and you haven’t had Will open his gifts yet, scroll no further – we don’t want to ruin the surprise).
The first thing that we Clara bought for him was this wooden tool kit from Melissa & Doug (Clara has a few Melissa & Doug puzzles that she loves). We gotta get the babies to follow in their parents’ footsteps early, right? This looks like just the thing for “helping” his mom and dad tackle a few projects.
And since we heard from Will’s mom that they were giving him something special and bike-related (also don’t want to ruin that surprise), we figured it wouldn’t hurt to throw in a t-shirt that he could sport when he gets his big You’re-One b-day gift from the rents (don’t tell Will, but it was on sale at Baby Gap for anyone else in need of one).
So a big congrats to Clara’s beloved baby boyfriend for completing 12 whole months of baby-dom. And an even bigger congrats to Katie & Jeremy for surviving the first year of parenthood (and doing such an awesome job with their little man).
Speaking of hitting the Big O-N-E, our very own Clara is a mere 5 weeks away from her first birthday (craziness – where did the year go?). Which means that we’re starting to slide into party planning mode. We’ve decided not to go crazy-over-the-top (don’t expect to see us on an episode of Outrageous Kid Parties anytime soon) but we can’t wait to host a fairly casual family gathering here at home (it seems like a fitting place for parents who DIYed their own backyard wedding).
We’ve had some people advise us against hosting a kid’s party at home – suggesting instead that we go to a park or other venue where we don’t have to worry about kids running amok and breaking things. But we figured that a one year old and her three under-two-year-old cousins can’t do that much damage with 15 adults around. Those could be famous last words, but after a small family gathering at our house this past weekend we got a boost of confidence that it’ll all work out.
Last weekend was the Monument Avenue 10K here in Richmond and it has become a big old family event for Sherry and me along with my siblings and parents (one year over a dozen of us either ran or walked it) and this year there were ten of us in town to celebrate. So we volunteered our house to be the post-race lunch spot as part of our concerted effort to host more gatherings in this house (now that we’ve got the space for things like that- heck Karl the giant sectional was made for groups like this).
It was amazing how plopping down a pile of toys and books in one spot kept Clara and her 17-month old cousin Emanuel busy, which started to make an at-home birthday party seem a lot less daunting.
We even dragged Clara’s highchair into the living room so she could have lunch with the rest of us (including Blurger, Burger’s blurry alter ego). Clearly she was excited to have been included.
Besides “finalizing” the party location (looking each other in the eye, saying it would be at home, and nerdily shaking hands) and prepping the invites (more on that later) we haven’t done too much else yet. Though we did take a spin through our local Party City to see if anything caught our eye – and of course things did. Our favorite of which were these “Fiesta” plates that were meant for Cinco De Mayo, but we thought would be fun for the beanette too (since the loose “theme” for her party is just the colorful fabric-filled weekly photos that we’ve snapped of her since she was born).
We were already planning to do something with blue, green, and pink (they’ve just always been “her colors”) so these just take it a step further with a playful textile-ish print that resembles a few of the fabrics that we used for her weekly photo project. And it didn’t hurt that they were 50% off.
So that’s all that’s been happening on the party front for now. And as much as I’d like to end this post here, I promised Sherry that I’d include these pics she snapped during the 10K (she’s very proud of having captured me passing by – even though I look terribly awkward in each shot). Here I am putting on the brakes as I reach the spot where she, Clara, and my other family members were cheering me on…
…and here I am going in to give Clara a kiss for good luck (which I’m pretty sure freaked her out – but you probably would be scared too if a man came out of nowhere and shoved his sweaty face into your stroller). For the record, I gave Sherry a kiss too. She was less freaked out. At least I hope she was.
And lastly, here’s me waving goodbye as I ran 2.5 more miles to the finish line.
Even if Clara didn’t really know what was going on, it was nice having her there to watch the race for the first time – after all, this is my 10th consecutive year of running it. And I got my second fastest time ever (47:21) – woo hoo! Now if only I could beat my 66-year-old father. You think I’m kidding. That man is FAST.
Psst- We announced this week’s giveaway winners. Click here to see if you’re one of them.
Leave a comment
If you enjoyed this post, please leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
Have you read Prudent Baby? They just had a fiesta party for a 3 year old with some super cute ideas/DIYs.
http://www.prudentbaby.com/2011/03/third-birthday-fiesta.html
Of course I’m sure that whatever you do for the party will be awesome too. No pressure:)
Uh. Mazing.
What an awesome party! Wow.
xo,
s
Very exciting! Number 1 is a very special birthday…can’t wait to hear all about it. I always have parties at home. I love it. If you have the space.. why not.
That last pic of Clara is a carbon copy of Sherry!!
Congrats John on the 10k!! I want/need to start running…as baby number 2 did a number on my bod!!
I’m all about at home birthday parties. With kids there and everything! For my son’s first birthday, we had 12 kids under 2 at the house, and it was actually rather calm. All of those kids brought their parents, so it wasn’t like I was in charge of all of them or anything. Even my dad, who was super skeptical of that situation, was amazed at how smooth it went. And I’m all about saving money, and doing things MY way, I mean myself. Sometimes at a venue that can’t happen.
fun!! love the festive plates & napkins.
my friend’s baby turned one in january. her colors were orange, aqua & green. i loved how she got a bunch of balloons in those colors and had them stuck to the ceiling. it was super fun!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jodimckee/5349552272/
Just saw this awesome wall art at another Nuestra Vida Dulce’s blog! Thought about you guys when I saw all the colors! Check em out… :)
http://daveandjoi.blogspot.com/search/label/home
Gorgeous!
xo,
s
I love looking at pictures of Clara and Burger, it makes my day. Home birthday parties are the best!!! Have a beautiful weekend. :)
Sherry, can you tell me where you purchased your white clam shell that displays in your kitchen? I have been looking for one. Thank you!!
It’s from ZGallerie. I think they still sell it!
xo,
s
Love, love baby/kid birthday parties!
Be sure to check out Hobby Lobby for birthday
decorations. They have super cute stuff!
Just had our baby’s 1st birthday party and did the
Very Hungry Caterpillar theme. You can find awesome stuff
and/or inspiration on etsy.com.
Have fun!
We will be having our little guy’s very 1st birthday party in July (just a couple months behind little Clara)! I have loads of DIY ideas for his party (which will also be at home with family and friends) but am SO excited to see what you guys come up with for Clara’s! Oh, and I know Clara already has her man and all, but in case she decides she wants to cougar it up, our little guy is a very eligible bachelor ;) Just kidding. We live on the West coast…the long distance thing would never work out. Haha.
Haha. Love it.
xo,
s
I never understand why people have huge parties for babies in the first place (not you guys, just saying.) Renting a big venue, inviting 50-100 people? i’ve seen it all! Our son begged us to have a party at a “party place”, but for just TWO hours, and 4 children, it would have been over $300! I don’t think so! Maybe I’m cheap (no, I know I am! but I’m not spending that on a kid’s bday party! I prefer home parties anyway.
Amazing post (as usual). I was wondering what are some of your other favorite toys?? LOVE the fabric magnetic letters which I just saw too. We’re thinking of starting a home daycare and want some cool, fun, unusal things and frankly you two are the ones I’d ask!!! =)
Clara pretty much loves anything by Plan Toys, Melissa & Doug, or B (sold by Target). They’re all pretty eco brands (they used a lot of wood and non-toxic inks and dyes) and they just make fun colorful stuff that she seems to gravitate towards. She also loves board books and blocks.
xo,
s
I agree with the others that the pic of your family/friends in your living room is just perfect. Forget the Hokey Pokey, ’cause that’s what it’s all about. (I know, I know. The thing I’m most excited about with moving into our own house in Bon Air is having the space to fit more of our friends and family comfortably. :)
Oh, and I LOVE the magic ball trick video. I LOL’d. :)
what a doll your baby is! her sign cracked me up!
Today is my son’s first birthday too. Also, my husband is named Jeremy. I’m thinking Katie might be my evil twin, or maybe I’m hers. Hmmmmmm.
Woah- it’s possible!
xo,
s
AWWWWW!! Clara is sooooooooo cute!!! I just can’t get over it, she’s just so freakin adorable :D
I saw this and thought of you guys, I don’t know if you are looking for more keys for your entryway or not… but I thought it couldn’t hurt to try to win them for free! :)
http://iheartorganizing.blogspot.com/2011/04/you-are-key-to-my-blog-giveaway.html
Wow- those are awesome.
xo,
s
This is so sweet!
On a totally unrelated note…
I just painted my childhood desk two-toned (stained the top english chestnut and painted the bottom turquoise) for MY daughter Clara, inspired by your Clara’s dresser. Y’all are awesome. The self-deprecation just adds to your charm, though it’s not deserved!
I’m going to submit the desk to Oh Dee Doh and will certainly give y’all credit for inspiration.
Aw that sounds like an awesome desk indeed! Can’t wait to see it on AT!
xo,
s
It cracks me up every time I read one of ya’lls replies where Sherry says, “Off to tell John,” or “Off to check it out.” I picture her getting all excited, jumping up from the office desk, and yelling a cross the house while excitedly skip/running to where he and Clara are.
Haha, it’s probably a lot less graceful and charming than you imagine. More yelling and stumbling. Haha.
xo,
s
Love the picture of Clara daydreaming of Will – too cute!
What highchair does Clara use? It looks so clean and simple. Are you happy with it? We are in the market…
It’s just a travel high chair (sort of like a booster seat with a tray) by Fisher Price. It was something like $20 from Buy Buy Baby. We love that it’s small, easy to store, easy to wipe down, and snaps onto virtually any chair (so we don’t need to make room for a big highchair along with our normal kitchen table chairs). Seems to work really well for the bean.
xo,
s
We have the same one and LOVE it! So easy to clean or hose down in the driveway when necessary!
I think you guys are spot on planning the party to be at home. My kids are April and June babies, and we had just about every birthday party at our house when they were little. It’s the best time of year to throw the kids outside while the adults sit on the patio. Now, we invited family and our close extended family, AKA friends, along with their school friends. So we usually planned the parties at lunchtime to justify having mimosas and bloody mary’s, just an idea. :)
As they got older, we even did most of the crafts and games outside. “Family Fun” is a great website to get activity ideas for little ones birthday parties. My son’s bday (TODAY for my Will!!) always seemed to fall on the 10k or Easter (if Clara’s is near that time, egg hunts make great activities for little ones at a bday party!). I ran it one year, had to rush home and get the party ready before his preschool class showed up…that was exciting. Oh, and his sister had somehow managed to fall that morning and totally bust her lip. Probably should have been a ER visit, but dear husband was trying to set up for the party while I was at the 10k. Ah, good times!
The biggest advantage to having your child’s birthday party at a location away from the house is that you don’t have to clean up afterwards. Once Clara is older (in school) and wants to invite all her friends, it can be more enjoyable to party hard at Chuck E. Cheese and let them pick up after.
You always find the best deals, those party supplies are great! Isn’t it nice to have a big enough space to host things comfortably? My mom now nominates ME sometimes because my house is bigger…it’s funny, we came from our upper-flat 2 bedroom (for a family of 5).
I was thinking of you last night…stalking the blog a bit again. I painted our master bedroom and am freaking a bit. I used a s.w. paint tinted to match valspar Night Wind….it looked great wet but I am not super excited how it dried. Debating seeing if they can lighten my other gallon somehow…mixing it with white? I have no clue. AND I’m not sure I can bring myself to repaint it tonight. I don’t know how the heck you two do it! I’m seriously starting to hate all things diy or home improvement! Didn’t help that this house was a foreclosure in serious need of help when we got it. I’m talking pink walls. Everywhere. So…we got a bit burnt out after that. I just started trying again and now this. Ugh. I’m sorry to go on and on…
So sorry about the paint debacle! You can take your paint to wherever you got it and ask them to “halve it with white” meaning they’ll look up the formula and add 50% white to lighten it up. Hopefully that does the trick. Oh and it should be free since you already bought the paint!
xo,
s
p.s. I totally agree w/ having the party at home. Start as small and simple as you possibly can. I am already struggling a bit with keeping up with parties for 3 children and they are still young! It’s easy to go all out when you only have one to focus on but then the pressure is on (self-induced of course) to keep coming up with great ideas, year after year (times however many children you have)! Have fun and keep it simple!
I don’t know if you have any first birthday traditions in your family, but in mine we have a regular birthday cake for the guests, and a small matching cake for the birthday boy/girl. we present it to them towards the end of the party and let them have at! their looks of utter amazement as they realize that you want them to dive into it face/hands first makes for the BEST pics ever! polite babies need a little encouragement to really tear it up though haha.
Oh yeah, we definitely want to do a little smash cake for Clara! She’s kind of a delicate girl though, so she might need some chanting and miming to get her going. Haha.
xo,
s
Balloons like this would look awesome in your living room : http://www.agirlandaboy.com/journal/archives/002791.html
LOVE THAT IDEA!!! Thanks so much for the link!
xo,
s
This is not spam :) I was looking on zulily.com today and in their “blowout section” the have a couple Melissa and Doug options on clearance.
Sweet! Thanks for the heads up!
xo,
s
Our daughter Naomi’s first date with her little man was at his birthday. They were so cute playing together. He’s 3 months older but he’s big enough to take her rough-housing so they make such a wonderful pair. So adorable!
Happy b-day to Will and almost to Clara!
I’m so sad I missed the Monument 10k – I’ve gone to Richmond to stay with friends there the past several years but couldn’t make it this time. John, did you happen to snag a margarita at one of the houses? Cause that would have been my friends. We offer margaritas from the porch every year ;)
Haha, nope. My only stop was to kiss the wife and child.
-John
I really like home birthday parties for the first 3 years. Upside of a park birthday is that you don’t have to clean your house, but the down side is that you have to lug stuff there, find one with clean bathrooms, etc. Not easy. Have fun!
Don’t be afraid to have parties at home! We’ve noticed that doing it at home removes a lot of the “over-the-top” factor, and lets it become a true, personal celebration of the birthday person, regardless of age. A few friends, a fun activity (for my newly-6yo we made “fridge bug” magnets with paper/magnet tape, and planted seeds to sprout), some good food, and it’s a fantastic day.
I just happened upon your blog yesterday and I have to say that I am now an addict… truly. Your transformations and design style are fantastic!! I have a design dilema (massive wall with a TV on it and that’s it) and would love for you to create a mood board for me. Is there somewhere on your website where I can “buy” one?
Aw thanks so much for the kind words. So glad you found us! Sadly we no longer make custom mood boards (since the baby came along there just aren’t enough hours in the day). But if we ever bring them back we’ll make a huge announcement!
xo,
s
thanks for the party supply tip. my baby’s 1st birthday is May 7th and I’m planning a Siete de Mayo party for him. babies like margaritas, right?
Hi John and Sherry!
I enjoy your blog and your unending energy to keep coming up with more and more ideas for your home. Reminds me of me and my man in our younger days ( we are not as ancient as that just sounded- we are 55!) when we were the same. We still enjoy a good re-do, but they are few and farther between nowadays! ANYWAY! Wanted to give you an idea for your broken ceramic dog you tried to salvage a few posts ago. I was going to comment then, but figured you would have tossed it by then. Saw a couple of posts ago you still wrote about it and I finally figured it was time for my 2 cents— assuming you glued it back as best you could, how ’bout spraying it with that ‘granite-y’ textured spray paint. Any color would do. Just spray it on to give the piece texture and hopefully cover the not-so-perfect joints. Then you could paint over that texture- any color you want- I would pick a grayish/neutralish color to mimic cement. Just my 2 cents! It might work and you could save the dawg fo’ sure! I think it could work!
Always a possibility! Thanks for the sweet suggestion.
xo,
s
So glad that you posted about those plates… My daughter was born on cinco de mayo and we are not exactly going fiesta themed for her first birthday but I do want to include something fun and those will be great! Thanks so much for posting!!!!
I just love Clara, she looks so adorable sitting on that green rug. I love how she looks like a perfect mixture of Mom n Dad =)
My best friend & I have sons that are 5 weeks apart too!! It was fun going through our first pregnancies together…they will 8 this summer…time has flown by. But over the years we have taken their pictures together to document how they have grown up together. Good luck with the 1st birthday festivities!!
clara’s so pretty and looks so much like her mama!
question about your rug since that’s a great close up of it under the diaper tush… i’m thinking of something similar for our family room and now that you’ve had it for a while i’d like to know how it wears and how easy/difficult it is to vacuum that huge pile…
thanks!
As long as you use a vacuum without a beater bar (ours doesn’t have one and the tag on the rug specifies this is a good thing) it’s really easy to clean and wears beautifully. Still looks new about a month in (after many vacuumings).
xo,
s
Just a note on having the party at home. We had our son’s first birthday party at a park and his second at our home. Can I just say that having it at home WAS SO MUCH EASIER???? Everything was on hand. We didn’t have to haul chairs, food, blankets, etc to this location. We brought the cake out right as it was time to sing and celebrate so it wasn’t melting all over the place-his birthday is in August and the 1st one saw my cake masterpiece become an ooey gooey mess in the heat. I think you will be glad you are doing it at home. We vowed that we would always have the parties at our house from then on!
So, random, I was driving down Franklin St on the day of the race, early, looking for a parking spot on the other side of Belvedere and I totally saw John walking down the street towards Monroe Park. If there wasn’t traffic I would have totally been a crazy blog-stalker and rolled down the window to say, “Hey!” but there was traffic! Kind of cool, felt like catching a glimpse of someone famous. =) I mean I read about y’all almost everyday and don’t actually know you!
That’s so funny Emily! I would have love to say hi. Maybe we’ll bump into you again soon!
-John
Blurger? Bahahaha. :)
We also opted to have our daughter’s 1 year birthday party at home and somehow managed to fit almost 30 adults and 10 kids. Still scratching my head on how it all worked out, but it was the best decision that we made. It allowed us to be flexible with timing (in case her nap ran a little over, we didn’t have to stress about “being” somewhere) and to actually enjoy hanging out with friends and their kids. You will NOT regret it. We’re actually thinking of having all of her birthday parties at home ;0 Enjoy and happy planning!