The First Year Flew By - The Cake

The main event had finally arrived. It was time for the smash cake! I've been wondering for months what Austin would do when his very first birthday cake was put in front of him. Would he pick at it or dig right in? He ended up digging in but was fairly neat about it at the same time! I guess he's perfect mixture of Mom (chocoholic!) and Dad (neat freak!)!

Let's do this!
How do I get into this thing??
A little help from Mom and Dad...Trying to be neat...
Getting a little messy...Don't worry, people! I've got this now!This is delicious!
What? There's something on my face?
Waving to his guests...Who wants to hold me??

Happy Birthday Austin! from Chrystal Kiefer on Vimeo.

Time for clean up!
The aftermath...

One Happy Little Birthday Boy!
Thank you for sharing Austin's birthday with us. I enjoyed showing off the details, the party, and now the cake smash! I know the pictures were a little late, but did you know that a TODDLER can keep you pretty busy? We had a wonderful time planning and celebrating Austin's 1st birthday with our family and friends. We wish our little boy many many more happy birthdays!

The First Year Flew By - The Party

I still can't believe that Austin's 1st birthday party has come and gone. A friend and I were talking about how fast life goes. One day you're running around at your own birthday party and the next day you're scooping ice cream at your child's first birthday party! What a wild ride life is!
The party started at 4:00 and dinner was served at 6:00. I was worried about how we'd get dinner, cake, and gifts in before bedtime, so we decided that Austin would open his gifts as his guest arrived. This way he could thank everyone right away and everyone had a front seat to their own gift opening. It seemed to work really well!

Austin and Grandma wheeling around before the party while Dad and Grandpa smoked the meat.
New wheels from Mr. and Mrs. Godfather...
It took him a few rounds to really understand gift opening, but nothing wrapped in paper was safe once he got a hang of it!
Ka, can you believe this is all for me? I'm such a lucky boy!
This is just what I WANTED!
This is so much fun!
Stop the gifts! Who is this cute girl at my party?
Looking at his special book from G'Aunt Lori and G'Uncle John...
His fort, from Grandma and Grandpa Kiefer, was a hit with all his friends!
Taking a break before dinner...
Time to eat!
More birthday fun...
Taking a spin in his trike from Nana and Pa...Time for cake and ice cream!
Austin friends, the future pilots...
A fun time was had by all! We can't wait until next year!

(A special thanks to Aunt B., G'Aunt Lori and Isabella's Mommy for sharing their great pictures!)

The First Year Flew By - The Details

Austin's first birthday theme was "The First Year Flew By!" The party planning all started when I found the cutest invitations on Etsy. I knew I could find just what I was looking for on that site, but I was still super exited when I found the perfect design from Nounces.
Jennifer, designer/owner of Nounces, helped us set the perfect mood for Austin's party. She designed the invitations, address labels, thank-you stickers, and treat bag passports. More about a few of those things later...

The color scheme for the party was green, blue and white. What party isn't complete without tons and tons of balloons.
Austin would like to thank Aunt B., Ka and Ky for their help with the balloons. He really appreciates everyone almost passing out while blowing them up!

Next to Etsy, the Circut was the next biggest help for party decorations. I don't even want to think about how many planes we cut out. They were just too perfect!
These planes became the center of the table centerpieces. We used Austin's old puff containers as the base...
Another fun area was the Baggage Claim...
This sign hung over the treat bags and Austin's gifts.
Airplane and banner, over the cake and snack table, wishing Austin a happy 1st birthday...
The cake! So yummy! Beside the cake, the table included Austin's 1st birthday book. I have plans to buy a book based on his theme for everyone to sign each year. I think it's a cute, easy keepsake for him.
His smash cake!
More fun decorations sitting around...
The Birthday Boy's throne...
I had so much fun putting the treat bags together. They included an airplane sucker, aviator glasses, a passport coloring book, airplane colors, an airplane party blower (??) thing, and kiddie wings!
One thing I didn't get a picture of was all the delicious food we had...

Smoked pork
Baked Beans
Broccoli and Rice Casserole
Pasta Salad
Potato Casserole
Corn

Veggies and Dip
Pretzel Dip
G'ma Jane's Snack Mix

And, of course, cake and ice cream!

We can't thank Nana enough for all her help with the food! I think everyone agreed it was delicious!

That pretty much sums up the details of Austin's 1st birthday party. I had so much fun planning, I almost feel lost now that it's over! Party and cake pictures to follow...