Zeke's First Birthday Party

We celebrated Zeke's first birthday with friends and family at Gymboree Play & Music in Kennesaw, GA on January 22, 2011.  I decided I wanted to do a camouflage/baby woodland animals theme, to go along with Zeke's nursery (and his daddy's interests!).  The party was scheduled to begin at 4:30pm, so we had the day at home...just the three of us.  Zeke took a long nap to get ready for the afternoon of fun!

I did several things to prepare for the celebration.  I had been working on perfecting a spice cake/cupcake recipe that was gluten free and had no processed sugar.  I also found a cream cheese frosting recipe made with honey.  Teresa (Auntie Tessa) came over the Friday before the party to help me make the cupcakes and spend some time with the birthday boy.  The muffins did not turn out very pretty, but after Teresa and I both "tested" them, we decided they were yummy, so it didn't matter how they looked!



The spread (my cupcakes on the right)

My mom got Zeke a cake from Whole Foods that I had ordered in case the guests were afraid of my healthy creation!  I ordered a sign that we will use each year that says, "Happy Birthday Zeke," and has a baby deer on the front. 

Woodland cake with a baby bear in the right corner

We also had Chickadee Chickadee (one of my friend's children's clothing company) make a personalized t-shirt with a "1" on the front and "Zeke" on the back. 

I ordered Hershey bar wrappers that said "Happy First Birthday, Zeke."  Where the ingredients would typically be listed, it said, "Thank you for joining us to celebrate the sweetest addition to our family."  My mom also found camo bouncy balls, pencils, and pads of paper to put in little camo baggies as favors for the children. This may all seem a bit excessive, but your first child only turns one once, and I decided to go all out.  It's funny because before I had him, Gregg and I decided we'd do a simple first birthday.  I guess that went out the window...haha!


Favors!

The party was a lot of fun.  The teacher led the kids in activities and songs.  She was full of energy and did a fantastic job.  I certainly couldn't have done it!  Here are a few photos of the kids playing:

Granddaddy had just arrived!



My mom really helped make everything run smoothly!

After the activities, we headed to the front room for cake.  We all sang "Happy Birthday" to Zeke and he looked around confused.  I'm sure he was wondering why everyone was singing and staring at him!  Kariss helped him blow out his candle, then we gave him his cupcake.  Because we follow Dr. Denmark's eating and scheduling guidelines, Zeke still eats pureed foods (or mush as we call it).  He's not used to a lot of texture, so he didn't really know what to do with the cupcake.  He thought it was something to play with, not eat.  He ended up eating mush instead!



Kariss was a great helper!



Ahh..mush!

Overall, it was a great day of fun and celebration.  It is hard to believe that it has been a year and I know each year will continue to pass in the blink of an eye.  That is one reason I chose to write this blog.  I want to look back at these times in our life and remember the details that so easily slip away.

Happy Birthday, Zeke!!!

Thank you to all of our family and friends who have prayed for us and continue to do so.  We count you all as blessings!