Melissa Beck Photography » Premier Wedding Photographer for New England and Colorado

Can you believe it… We made it. One full year and we survived!

We celebrated Lila’s 1st birthday this past weekend! It was such a blessing to be able to share such a mile stone in our lives with those we love. We had an awesome BBQ, complete with pink and turquoise decorations. (People have joked that those colors are ‘Lila’s brand’, since her room is decorated with those colors, her toys and a majority of her clothing as well!)

Speaking of decorations, have you ever tried to buy classy, non princess, understated 1st birthday decorations? I am convinced that they do not exists… Being the paper obsessed and craft nerd I am, I decided to make everything. A Happy 1st Birthday banner, her high chair banner,  thank you bags, and all the cupcake flags.

Yes, I am a craft paper nerd however I do not have any of those cool gadgets that cut things out for you or pre-punch your shapes after printing… So yes, I sat there and cut out like two million circles. Just me, and a trusty pair of scissors. For the cupcake flags, armed with colored toothpicks (sorted to use only the pink and turquoise ones) a hot glue gun, 50 flags, and a willing to glue husband we put those all together. Both banners were the circles, just hole punched and strung with ribbon. Pretty easy and looked great! Another fun thing I did, was to print out one of her pictures from each month that I took over the last year. I strung out some more ribbon and attached them to it with mini cloths pins. Simple and a fun way for everyone to see how much she has grown and changed in the last year.

Now for the dessert table! I think I have a huge obsession with dessert. OK. No. I know I have a huge obsession with dessert tables! We had brownies, chocolate chip cookies, candy coated chex mix, scotch-a-roos, rice crispy treats, and of course a ton of mini cupcakes. Everything was home made with love. Especially the mini cupcakes… all 72 of them. However we only had about 10 left over so they were a hit! It was a lot of fun spending the day baking with the girls and I love how it all turned out.

All and all I was pretty pleased with how everything turned out! I know I enjoyed it and I hope Lila will look back on her birthday pictures when she is older and know how very loved and blessed she is.

Thank you so much to all of you who came out to help us celebrate. We love you all.

It amazes me every single day how fast life is passing by in this season of life. How quickly the sweet snuggles turn into independence. How the all night feedings and special midnight loving is no longer… The ‘remember when she was this tiny’, or ‘remember when she used to do this’ sayings… It is such a bittersweet time of life. So excited for the growth and the new adventures that turn up each and every day, yet longing for the simple holding of your thumb, or the hour and hours of snuggling… It has been such a joy to see the world through the eyes of such a beautiful little girl, one  I am beyond lucky to call ours. Where everything is new and pure. Such a sweet heart and sensitive soul she is, my Miss Lila Mae. A pure joy in my life, who has every inch of my heart wrapped around her little finger… Lila Mae, you and the beauty of your heart amazes me. I cannot wait to see the person you are turning into. Happy 1st Birthday my sweet girl.