It's My Birthday

Or, it WAS my birthday, yesterday.  Septemeber 26, 2014 marked my 34th year of life upon this earth and as birthdays go, for me, it was just another (ordinary) day.  As the saying goes, one year older, one year.. wiser?  Yeah, I feel wiser alright.

Despite the fact that, yes, it was my birthday, nothing earth shattering occured.  Nothing special took place... oh, wait, let me take that back.  See, for MY birthdays, I really don't do much in the way of celebrations (I leave that for my kids' birthdays, obviously).  But I do think it is a special day and like to spend it with the special people in my lives, namely my kids and my hubby. 

I was able to spend the day with the kiddos and true to form, my amazing Princess would not let the day go by without marking the occasion with homemade gifts and a special celebration only her precious little mind could concieve up.  She not only made my day, she made my etire birthday extra special.  She spent the better part of the day making me presents and then nearing the end of the night, she made me a special treat that only a kid could really think up: a piece of cheese topped with jelly beans on a plate.  She even went next door to get her grandma so they could all sing me happy birthday.  It brought me close to tears: how much time and effort my little girl put into making my birthday a wondrous event and all because I told her earlier in the day that I didn't get birthday parties anymore.  She is truly amazing.

We, meaning my princess and JC, gorged just a little bit on jelly beans and gumballs and then it was time for bed.  Oh and a few friends and family members called and texted to wish me a happy birthhay, which was sweet.  It really turned out to be a wonderful birthday afterall.... until hubby got home... but that is another blog post for another time (why rain on this birthday blog parade).

So I am one year older, another year wiser it seems and super happy to be alive living a dream.  Today I will use my birthday money (a gift from mother in law) to do some well needed shopping.

Baby Akeem's Circus Theme First Birthday Party

On Saturday, August 30, 2014, we had a birthday party in honor of our little munchkin turning 1 year old.  It was a circus/carnival themed party and boy did I have a ton of fun planning it.  It was all in the details and I loved how everything turned out: from the decor, to the food, to the "extras".  Also, gotta love that it was on budget.  Without further adieu, from start to finish, here are pics of the (very special) day.

The party was held at a local community hall inside a park

The decorations

mock photo booth and props

The games: knock down the pins, ring toss, pin the nose on the clown:  kids had a blast with these games

Centerpieces: fun carnival theme (plastic popcorn containers with circus foam cutouts, pipe cleaners, tissue paper, a balloon, and photos of the birthday boy.)  I used floral foam to hanker it all with bamboo skewers and some candy inside to give weight to the containers.  Then as added decor, a few animal toys, clown hats and peanuts to play on the circus theme.

Banner I made

more centerpieces

The sweet treats table: banner I made (happy birthday personalized banner with construction paper and free circus printout letters off the internet)

The cake (amazing... purchased at Pricemart for a mere $12).  Mini personalized cake topper banner I made.

Cupcakes (48 made the night before), with photo cupcake toppers I made.  And a book about the circus

Gifts and goody bags plus banners I made

another centerpiece

Pinata.. bought at a party store but personalized by me

The moonbounce/bouncy house... can't have a circus party without one.  It was a big hit with the kids.

Setting up the food.  Corn dogs, nachos (and cheese) and popcorn (the bags were decorated by me)

The sweets and treats all set up: cupcakes, cake, candy (jelly beans, gum drops, gummy bears, lolipops) and chocolate covered cookies, cookie pops, cookie truffle balls, pretzels and marshmallows (the ones not covered with chocolate were thank you favors for the adults).

The decor over the food table  The carnival signs for games, food and fun.  The streamers and the banner.  Plus the fruit platter.

My Baby Is One Year Old

We celebrated baby A's first birthday on Friday, August 29, 2014 with a few gifts, ice cream and semi home-made pizza.  We kept the celebration for his birthday pretty intimate and really simple with just our little family, his two cousins and his aunt.  The next day, we had a party for him to celebrate his first year of life on Saturday the 30th.  Here are the pictures from his actual birthday celebration when he turned 12 months old.

My big boy now

Birthday celebration time

yum...

yum...

yummy!

presents time

ice cream and pizza time