First Birthday Party Ideas

Coming up with first birthday party ideas can seem a bit overwhelming. If you're like me, planning something as special as a first birthday means I want it to be as perfect as possible. In fact, when it comes to planning something, the idea in my head is usually much more elaborate and perfect than the real thing. That probably goes for most things we we really care about.

So being the smart lady that I am, I set out to find some basic planning tips from those who've been around the first birthday party block a few times. Thankfully, I came across Amazingmoms.com.

One of the key things I learned was that keeping the party short, like 1 to 1 1/2 hours, is very important. Your baby's patience (and yours) can probably only handle so much. It also would be smart to schedule around nap times (unless watching your little one use the cake as a pillow is a planned activity). Here's a snippet from the article:

"Most first birthday parties are for the adults in your child's life (family and friends). Invite the most special friends and relatives. If you intend to invite other babies or toddlers 1- 3 guests is ideal with a maximum of 5."

The temptation to overdo the party is understandable. But the truth is, your baby won't remember a thing. Even though there are lots of first birthday party ideas out there, a small party done right can increase you and your baby's enjoyment while decreasing your stress. Now that sounds like a sweet party!

Here's a link to the whole article.

One of the neatest first birthday party ideas I've come across in a while are diaper invitations. Frankly, my imagination on the "invitation" front never made it much past the plain ole invite card.

But when I read about diaper invitations, I admit I went, "wow." (Don't tell my buddies, ok?)

Anyway, so I was looking around a very cool website called Coolest-Kid-Birthday-Parties.com and read about making your invitations look like diapers. Basically you take a square piece of paper, fold it like a triangle, then fold the corners till it looks like a diaper. Then you "seal" it with a safety pin. It's a neat idea. But what made me go "wow," was their idea for what to put in it. Here's their idea:

______ Just
Turned One!!" You can also print on them a little story, for example:
"One year ago, on (date of birth) a little angel blessed our lives. We
named her (baby's name). In the past year she has learned so much, how
to drink from a cup, feed herself, crawl, almost walk, talk, laugh, and
love. Now she is calling on all her favorite friends and family to help
celebrate a wonderful past year and a big kick off for the next. Your
presence is requested at the very first birthday party for (baby's name).

Cool, huh? Well, like I said, this is one of those first birthday party ideas that I felt was special enough to pass on. Hope you liked it.

Here's a link to the rest of the article a lot of other great ideas.

If you're looking for original first birthday party ideas, here's a simple one you can try. Ask any parent (at least any mom) what their baby weighed and how long they were when they were born and they'll spout out the numbers faster than their social security number. It's one of those things that just sticks with you, I guess.

And the neat thing about first birthday parties is you can have a lot of fun reflecting on how much your baby has changed over the past 12 months.

Well, here's a great cake idea I got from the folks over at Coolest-Kid-Birthday-Parties.com:

Another
cake idea for first birthday parties is to make a birth certificate
cake: Just bake a rectangular cake according to the recipe directions
and let cool. After
the cake has cooled, cover the whole cake with white frosting. Then use
frosting tubes to write basic vital statistics, such as your baby's
name, parents' names, date and place of birth, and so on.

This is one of those first birthday party ideas that really showcases where your child has grown from over the last year. You can even combine this with invitations highlighting some of your baby's milestones such as when they first laughed, or crawled, or whacked dad on the head (I have vivid memories of that).

Anyway, I hope you liked this idea. Here's a link to their website with more great tips and ideas.

Let me know what you think.

Alyse