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  1. #1
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    Default 1st birthday suggestions

    Hi, my DD will be 1 in the month and I wanted to see if anyone had any fun first birthday party (and gift) suggestions. I have just started looking in the stores and so far, nothing is jumping out at me. I tried searching on this topic and I get a script error so I apologize if this was a recent topic!

    Thanks in advance for your help!
    Mary

  2. #2
    egoldber's Avatar
    egoldber is offline Black Diamond level (25,000+ posts)
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    Default RE: 1st birthday suggestions

    Since Sarah just turned one and all the kids in my mommy group are all turning one at the same time, I have been to a number of first birthday parties recently. :)

    I would say to keep the number of children at the party to a minimum. More than a few kids at the party means a lot of chaos. Try to plan the party time for a time that not in the middle of naptime. 11:30 am or 12 seems to work for a lot of people.

    My playgroup (which has a LOT of people in it) had a joint first birthday party for all the kids in the playgroup at a local Gymboree. It was fun, but a little overwhelming with all the babies and all the mommies and all the daddies. (All running around with cameras or videocameras or both.)

    I saw a really neat gift at a party yesterday. Someone took the party invitation, painted a pitcure frame the same color as the invitation and framed the invitation as a keepsake. It was adorable and very unique.

    Sarah's favorite toy from her birthday is the Fisher Price Barn. She loves all the little animals (carries them with her everywhere) and also loves to open and close the barn door that goes "Moo!" :)

    HTH,
    Beth, mom to older DD (8/01) and younger DD (10/06) and always missing Leah (4/22 - 5/1/05)

  3. #3
    brubeck Guest

    Default RE: 1st birthday suggestions

    I actually left a pretty detailed message about first birthday gifts on the Toddler board if you want to look that up.

    As for party ideas, you have to decide if you want a party for the baby or a party for you. I went to two first birthday parties that were for the ADULTS. Food laid out, babies in a play area and adults socializing, lots of non-parents in attendance.

    I did the opposite and threw a party for the babies. I invited 4 other babies (ages 9 - 13 months) and their parents. I made baby-friendly lunch food (mac & cheese, soft pasta with tomato sauce, soft veggie bits) and offered hors d'oevures trays of Wagon Wheels, Biter Biscuits, Cheerios, Goldfish and saltines. For the adults I included a make your own sandwich bar (low maintenance, even my husband could take care of this).

    Babies arrived at 1pm and we fed them immediately. Generally Moms and Dads took turns feeding kids and fixing themselves some lunch. We all socialized as adults while we did this and let the kids eat whatever they wanted and have fun. As party favors I had a plastic bowl, a bib, a spoon and a sippy cup for each child. I had purchased all this at the most recent TRU baby sale so it was all actually pretty cheap.

    After eating we let the kids play for a bit (the birthday girl was actually napping in her high chair) and then we played a game. It was a game I created called 'Grab That Prize'. I laid out a bunch of prizes on the carpet and one by one let each child go to the pile and pick whatever prize appealed to them. The item they picked up first was their prize. Every turn I replaced the chosen prize with a fresh one so all babies had 5 prizes to choose from.
    Some of the prizes were very nice (a sweater, Playtex Sippy Cups, onesies, socks) and some were more mainstream (can of Wagon Wheels, pack of spoons, pack of washcloths). The parents were allowed to watch but not touch, so the adults had as much fun as the kids cheering them on. I remember one Mom shouting to her son, 'Get the socks! Get the socks!' knowing he would pick up the sippy cups because he was obsessed with sippy cups. Guess what he picked?

    Afterwards I took the 5 remaining prizes and let all the babies grab one at once. This was a little more confusing, but still fun.

    Afetr the game, I brought out the cake and we helped the birthday girl blow out the candles. We cut the cake and everyone fed small pieces to their babies (no chocolate). After opening the presents, the party was over.

    2 hours (1 to 3 pm) and everyone had fun. I still think it was a great party and I'm not sure how I'm going to top it for number 2!


  4. #4
    twins r fun Guest

    Default RE: 1st birthday suggestions

    I think this is a great idea and am really considering something like this. I love your game! One question-do you have family in the area and if so did you end up throwing a separate family party? I'm picturing unhappy grandmas and aunts if they don't get to come to the 1st birthday party!

    Nicole

  5. #5
    brubeck Guest

    Default RE: 1st birthday suggestions

    I have no family in the area. So I had no obligation to invite any relatives.

    I guess it depends how many family members you have and if they have kids or not. If there are cousins who are 6-24 months they might love to be invited with their parents. If it's just one grandma and grandpa, they could be easily included (maybe help you host while you are feeding the birthday child). If we're talking more than 3 non-parents though, maybe you could have two parties. One for the child, and one of the 'adult' receptions where everyone passes the baby around and coos at how big it is getting. Sure you'd have to have 2 cakes, but that isn't a problem in my book. :-) Have one party on the actual birthday, and one on the weekend after the birthday. A few days apart doesn't hurt.

    We have a number of friends who have no children (we are the first in our social set to have kids) and when they asked if we were having a birthday party for my daughter (they all dote on her) I explained that it was a party for babies and no one was offended. FYI I did do video and took photos for the out of town relatives.

    I was so excited for my daughter's first birthday I was planning months in advance. I hit the Fall Baby sales and when I found fabulous deals on items I picked them up for the Grab Game. The TRU sale was about 2 months before and I got a lot of stuff from there too. Heck I even sent out cheesy invitations addressed to the other babies. But no clown. Maybe I'll do that this year. :-)


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