Grayson's first birthday

Grayson Robert turned 1 year old on Wednesday, March 7! We celebrated with a full day of Grayson-centric activities, which I'll tell you about in a post tomorrow.  I will spend a little more time rambling about how he's the greatest baby ever [insert mommy grin]. For now, here are the details about his epic, milestone birthday party.

PLANS, PAPERS AND PROJECTS

The BIG party was on Saturday. We chose a navy, yellow and gray color scheme. Stripes and a chevron pattern were mixed in with a mod elephant motif, as the main design elements.  I love decorating and party planning, so this was just another outlet for my creativity. Plus, I have an adorable, precious baby boy who deserved an amazing party. I spent four months planning and 10 weeks working on all the projects, which I have decided would have taken significantly less time had I invested in a Cricut. Nonetheless, they all came together nicely.

My project plan was quite extensive. We made 12 yarn balls to create a chandelier effect in the living room. That space was also decorated with two handmade banners and paper garland. Additional decorations filled three other rooms in the house and included nine hanging cutouts, more than 20 signs, two banners, handmade table cloths, cupcake toppers, food tags, water labels, milk carton covers, soda bottle stickers with straws, yard sign, high chair cover and smash cake station decorations. Each of the 32 children who came received a zig zag or stripe goody bag filled with animal crackers, a coloring page, specially-ordered navy and yellow Crayola crayons and candy. From the yarn balls and yarn letters to the banners, printables and goody bags, nearly everything was handmade. I did, however, custom-order a few things, and my vendor credits are listed at the end of this post.

I used Pinterest quite a bit, which proved incredibly handy. Two years ago, for Tyler's first birthday, I printed more than 50 inspiration photos on real paper and put them into a notebook. Why didn't I invent Pinterest then?!  Anyway, I used it this time as a great place to store my "research." You can check out my birthday board here.

My husband recently opened a photography businesses, and he graciously agreed to photograph the party decorations. However, we ran into several problems that I am still fairly devastated about, including terrible lighting from a rainy and overcast day. We also had a slight timing issue as well, and we didn't get all the shots before the party started, so some of these photos were taken the next morning. My bestfriend Rachel took photos during the party, so they are included in the album as well. Some of the highlights are at the end of this post.  


The full photo album can be viewed at photobucket.com/graysonsfirstbirthday


RSVP PANIC

My go-to graphic designer on Etsy, Kaylee Bug Designs, did Grayson's invites, and we ordered them from Miller's. They sent us about 15 extra invites, so I thought, "let's not waste them." We ended up sending out about 45, which doesn't seem like a lot until you factor in that most of our friends are a family of four. As of 48 hours before the party, we had 87 people RSVP ... yes 87! Panic doesn't really even explain my state of mind. I ordered more cake pops and food. And I reconfigured the design plan, adding more open space. Then ... minute by minute, I started getting calls, emails and text messages from friends whose children got sick. By the day of the party, we were down to 52. While normally, I would be devastated that our guest list was dwindling (and so many friends were sick), it was honestly a blessing. More details on Grayson's fear of crowds later.

THE BIG DAY

The party started at 3 p.m., and that morning was surprisingly relaxing. I had done a mock party on Monday night, and we finished installing the decorations Friday night. Tyler and Grayson took good naps and, despite the decoration-wonderland, were fairly unaware of the excitement to come. Every detail that I could control went perfectly. Every detail that I could not ... well, that's another story.

First of all, I was a little upset about Grayson's hair. (I know, I know ... but little things bother me.) The boys were napping until the first guest arrived. I didn't have a chance to fix their hair or get them dressed. I was especially upset that I didn't have the time to make sure Grayson looked perfect. Of course, he is precious regardless. My all-time favorite Etsy boutique, Initial Here Gifts, custom-made  two adorable shirts and a hat.  And he looked pretty darn cute, when he wasn't crying or hiding in his room ...

Overall, I think it was a decent party. We spent about 45 minutes mingling and eating. Then, we watched the movie that Chad made that chronicled Grayson's first year. The link is below, if you would like to watch it. After the movie, we sang the "Happy Birthday" song. Grayson tends to be fairly shy. He was doing okay with all the guests until all the attention went on him during the birthday song. It was all downhill from there. Tyler helped him blow out the candle, and he wouldn't eat his smash cake. I had to take him into his quiet, dark room to calm him. After a bit, we tried to do presents, but Grayson was not in the mood at all. We apologized to everyone, and Grayson went in his room again. My mom, Memaw, rocked him to sleep, and he napped with her for the rest of the party. I'm glad we still had lots of cupcakes left, because it diverted the attention a little.
  
The Grayson Movie can be viewed on You Tube
 

SWEETS AND EATS

Sweet Art Bakery made the smash cake, cake pops and cupcakes. They were amazing! We received compliments from nearly every person, saying they were the absolute best they had tasted. The smash cake was banana and buttercream; the cupcakes were white almond and buttercream; and the cake pops were dark chocolate with white chocolate drizzle.

We also ordered Grayson's absolute favorite food, hushpuppies from Delaney's Irish Pub. I think we might have accidentally cooked them, while keeping them warm in the oven. Oops ... but everyone still said they were wonderful.

Chad made a pecan cheese ball--a recipe from our wonderful neighbor Barbara. And I made homemade sugar cookies that were cutout in the shape of a one. I had tiny, chevron bags filled with assorted baby snacks, such as Mum Mums, yogurt melts and arrowroot cookies.  The other foods included a veggie tray, Chex party mix, white (or yellow) chocolate dipped Oreos and crackers.


Vendor credits:


Initial Here Gifts
Sweet Art Bakery
Delaney's Irish Pub
Kaylee Bug Designs 
Sweet Estelle Baking Supply 
Texas Susannie's Fabric Store
Swanky Prints
Miller's Professional Imaging
The Cookie Cutter Shop 
Bake Me a Party
Container Store
Party City
Hobby Lobby
Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Store
Crayola Store