It started with a simple invitation printed on recycled kraft paper embellished with a lace doily & mixed style lettering.
Her birthday fell on a Saturday & so naturally we had her party on her actual birthday. It was held in our backyard, mid morning, under a 20x20 tent. In true North Carolina weather fashion it flipped from 80 degrees & breezy to 90+ degrees, extreme humidity & no breeze. I guess that's the price you pay for a summer baby.
We didn't have a theme but kept the decor simple, girly & shabby chic. Vintage fabric banners, burlap, soft pinks & ivories, doilies, chalkboard signs, lace & mossy wreaths.
The mail box was adorned with a few soft pink & ivory balloons. There was a chalkboard sign directing guests to the backyard. Each area was designated with chalkboard signs (games, food, etc).
The tent had tables for eating & an area set up especially for Addison. Underneath a burlap "Happy Birthday Banner" that I made was a vintage wooden highchair that Philip painted a soft bubble gum pink. The high chair was dressed with a banner I made with vintage sheets & fabrics. In the same area was an old trunk from our garage filled with gifts for Addison. I decorated it simply with paper mache letters, spelling ONE, that I modpodged scrap fabric & lace to. Addison received a floral slip covered arm chair from Pottery Barn from my mother in law which was perfectly in place for her to open presents.
The food & beverage tables were dressed with lacy tablecloths from my grandmother & the food table was adorned with another scrap fabric banner I made. For adult beverages we had raspberry & lime infused water & pineapple & lemon infused water. It was sipped on from grey & pink paper straws that accompanied burlap wrapped mason jars. For the kiddos we had organic milk boxes & organic apple juice boxes.
We served hamburger sliders, scallop & heart shaped PB & J, mini grilled cheese sandwiches, hummus with vegetables, tortilla chips & fruit. Sweets included frosted sugar cookies, animal crackers (frosted, chocolate & plain), carrot cake & vanilla cupcakes & bread pudding (made especially per my Grandfather's request). For the little kids there was no sugar added applesauce & mandarin oranges.
There were about 16 kiddos (ranging from 7 weeks to 13 years old) & about 20 adults in attendance. Several of those that RSVP'd didn't show up. Each child was given a gift bag with bubbles, sidewalk chalk, finger nail polish (girls), football (boys), play dough & a few chatskie items. The bags were made by yours truly thanks to a little Pinterest inspiration. They were brown paper bags embellished with doilies & tagged with scalloped kraft paper & a worn chevron pattern with each child's name on them.
Addison wore the sweetest aproned dress from Janie & Jack with a matching headband (I am still kicking myself that I didn't get any pictures of her in it). For cake she wore an ivory ruffled diaper cover with matching bib with lace & embroidered cake on the front.
In true Addison fashion she gobbled up the frosting & couldn't get it in her mouth fast enough. She was happy as could be opening presents, much more attentive than I had thought. She received lots of music related gifts (baby grand piano, drums, xylophone), a few stuffed animals, some adorable outfits, wooden puzzles & various age appropriate toys.
Although the weather wasn't ideal for an outdoor party I am so pleased with how everything turned out. She was a happy camper the entire time & I'd like to think that someday she will smile to know that we threw her a special first birthday. She is our special girl & deserves nothing less.
You did get at least 1 pic in the cute dress with the head band - it was in your "this week" post. It was such a cute dress!
ReplyDelete