I was worried for weeks that we’d get a huge snow storm on the day of Harry’s party, and it would be me, Aaron, my dad and stepmom, and a few dozen cupcakes to celebrate Harry’s birthday. But as November went on and there was no snow, I began to relax.
Well. We had snow. Some places in The Cities got close to a foot, but we probably only had 2 inches. And almost everyone braved the slick roads and snowflake skies anyway.
I’m so glad they did. It was such a wonderful day!
Harry took a great morning nap, and then went down a little before 1 pm for his afternoon nap. I’d made the start time at 2 pm knowing that even if I had to wake him up, it would be late enough that he’d have gotten a decent nap. Worked like a charm.
Our first guests arrived right on time, and almost on cue, the boy started stirring.
He had a blast! All these people he loves in once place? Bliss!
Harry played in the middle of the party the entire time, and was held by just about everyone, and did so great.
I’d been collecting ideas on Pinterest (follow my boards at johannaprice) for a few months, and I’m happy that most of my ideas came to fruition. I’m not a huge DIY-er, so I bought what I could, made what was doable for me, and forgot the rest.
Bless my sweet husband who was on board and a huge help. He planned the entire menu, and with my stepmom’s help, cooked and prepped all the food. They did a great job, because we had no leftovers. None!
Without further ado, the photographic proof of a wonderful day. (Warning: lots of pictures.)
About an 1/8th of the way into this streamer display I thought, “I’ve made a huge mistake.” But I powered through, and I love the way it turned out!
Oh, the smash cake. If you follow me on Twitter you know that I briefly entertained the idea of getting a fondant smash cake from a chichi bakery in downtown Minneapolis. But I quickly came to my senses, and decided he could just have a cupcake. But then Aaron went to Byerly’s, a local upscale grocery store where we never shopped, and learned that for just $10 we could get a basic, small cake designed to my specifications. (Which were pretty general: primary colors and polka dots.) I was very happy with it.
(There were 498 M&Ms in there. Aaron’s uncle, a retired engineer, got the closest at 500.)
I didn’t get a chance to take a picture of the food table, which bums me out, because it looked so good! But this was our menu, plus a fruit bowl and a veggie tray.
I also put the plastic cutlery in mason jars. (But of course, didn’t take a picture.)
And then it was time for cake!
He was a little timid at first, but that didnt’ last long:
We had to lose the hat pretty quickly:
It was an amazing day. Thank you to everyone who came!
Sources:
Invitation — designed by me with inspiration from a sample I saw on Pinterest
Birthday Crown — The Munchkin & Me
Burlap Banner — Company B
Hat, Bib & Shirt — Dainty Couture
Cupcake Flags — My Creative Side
{Today I am thankful for …}
21. This boy. Oh this boy!
perfection!
It’s so fun to read about all of Harry’s firsts, knowing that in 2010, you and Aaron came over for dinner right around Jackson’s first birthday. Who knew that in just a few months, you’d have your sweet boy in your arms!? God is so faithful. And beautiful job, Mama! His birthday party looks so fun.