Emme's first birthday

If I don't do this now, she'll be 16....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(yep, loved her hat just as much as she loves bows on her head...not)

 

All the photos were taken by my fabulously talented friend, Liz of Elizabeth Lee Millen Images. If you are local, check her out! I said it before, and I'll say it again...hands down best money I spent that day. This is just a fraction of the pictures she took too. I was completely overwhelmed & in awe of what she captured that day. 

 

A good friend's mom made the cake & cookies...again, worth the money. There will be plenty of years for me to make a good old-fashioned cake myself, but the big ONE called for the pros to take care of business. We were *this close* to having the food catered too (hello, effortless party!), but if you know the husband, well....yeah, that didn't happen. Sorry to our party guests who I promised Fat Bob's (I tried, guys. I tried).

 

The rest of the party elements were DIY. I made the burlap banner. There was obviously an easier way of doing it, but I chose the hard and long way. That thing took for-ever to finish. I'm lucky I finished before her 5th birthday. The good news is that I can use it for future birthdays, as well as interchanging names. Winning. The "Emme at One" sign is from Lacey Fields purchased through Etsy. The bonus was that she printed and shipped it to me. Because ain't nobody got time for printing things (especially when I have a banner to make)!

 

I picked up the flowers & baby's breath from Wegmans & the mason jars were ones we had laying around the house. I just added a little burlap & lace. And voila!

 

And the important thing is that I survived the first year. I don't think people give moms very much credit for all the work they do, but now that I am one, well...I get it. I think this party was just as much a parental survival celebration as it was a birthday party for Emme.

 

So there you have it! Emme's first birthday party (in a nutshell).

 

Girlfriend is getting cake & ice cream with mom & dad next year...