Name: Rex (1)
Location: Chicago, IL
Rex's first birthday fell on a Friday and we decided to take that day off work and spend the day with him. Instead of a big birthday bash, we hosted an intimate cake smashing ceremony over lunch with whoever was able to join us on a weekday.
I didn't pick a specific theme but decorated with blue and green stripes and sewn together paper strips to create paper mobiles with a monthly photo attached to each of them to hang from the ceiling. After the party was over, we moved the mobiles to his nursery and he enjoyed pointing at them from his crib.
The sweets were homemade and color coordinated with the decorations. I made two little ombre smash cakes; the square one was a healthy banana cake sprinkled with his favorite puffs and blueberries and the round one was a "real cake" with light whipped cream frosting in case Rex didn't like the healthy cake. It turns out that he didn't want to eat either one of them but had fun with the smashing part. Cupcakes were dyed to match the rest of the party and accented with homemade fondant chips.
The food was mainly store bought since most of my energy went into baking and cake decorating. BBQ pull chicken sliders, tabbouleh salad, cole slaw, veggies with dip and mango lemonade were served.
It was an enjoyable low-key party that we got to spend with Rex and he was still able to make his nap that day!
Thanks Grace! Readers, find Grace at ZN Creative Arts.
(Images: Grace Wang-Bishop)
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I think this is a great idea! Not everyone has to throw the elaborate over the top 1st birthday. This sounds SO much more enjoyable. Plus, the best part of a first birthday is the smash cake, so you just skipped to the fun part :)
The food all looks and sounds wonderful! I agree that simple birthdays in this day and age and incredibly appealing! Great job!
Adorable and so personal!
I'd be upset if I were super close to the family, personally, but if that didn't apply to your situation or if this were a saturday this would be the perfect party in my eyes. People go bananas over first birthdays, this is so tasteful and sweet.