Tweet

First Birthday Party Decor & Planning

Party planning! Wow what a daunting task!

There are some things I can do with ease… Give me photography, video editing, anything computer related, programming, languages, reading, memorizing, researching, filling out- I won’t blink an eye at the challenge. But anything to do with decor, style and crafting – it just eludes me.

So as a disclaimer, nothing here was handmade by me. The most I did that would be considered crafty is buy parts and assemble them based on the vision in my head.

This was  also the first time in my life that I wanted it to be perfect, to work out well. I am usually a “prepare like crazy but go with the flow” kind of girl. But Alexis’ first birthday carried a special significance to me. It signified her transformation from a baby into a toddler and my transformation from Elena to Elena who is Lexi’s mom. It was the time to celebrate her babyhood (while cheerfully waving goodbye to it, because we like being a toddler oh so much more) and it was my first chance to celebrate her birth ( since I didn’t get to do the baby party like I wanted to when Alexis was a few months old).

After we decided that yes, we do in fact want a birthday party, I tackled the overwhelming task of figuring out the theme that wouldn’t be too much work, but was also unique enough that just going to Party City wouldn’t do it.

Quickly I came upon a few ideas that seemed easy enough that such a novice like me would be able to achieve and yet unique and classy.

Since I was infatuated with the French language and France for a few years before Lexi was born, I went with “Tea Party in France” theme. It fit the bill perfectly- classy, simple, easy to execute and non-specific.

Tweet

I wanted to quickly tell you about this great contest we have going over at Daily Mom.

It’s called Mom and Baby Style and all you have to do is post a photo of your and your baby’s outfits on Daily Mom’s Facebook page.

The winner gets a $50 gift card to Nosilla Organics

Go enter!

Tweet

I’ve been emailed and asked about what we cook for Alexis in terms of BLW and how our whole feeding process goes. So here is the breakdown.

First thing you have to remember is that we don’t really eat like a typical American family.  You almost never see green beans on our table, or green peas, or corn. No mashed potatoes (no reason for that, we just never get around to making them), no meats, no dairy. What you will see is mostly other types of vegetables, fruits, grains and fish. My husband was vegan for a couple of years, but I think we’re slowly starting to permanently introduce fish. I would always eat certain fish, because of its benefit when pregnant and now, but my husband used to stay away from ANY animal products (except for trace amounts in baked goods on occasion). But I think we have decided that the benefit outweighs the disadvantages. I do eat eggs once a month or so now, my husband doesn’t. We’ll occasionally “cheat” if we have to or want to. So at this point our family is a bit of a smorgasborg of vegan/pescetarians/vegetarians/whatever. However, our eating habits are constantly changing and I am not exactly sure which direction we are going with them.

Our goal is (and of course that doesn’t always pan out) to make sure that Alexis has a protein source at almost every meal (beans, fish), a few vegetable servings every time, whole grains (which can also be considered high in protein if you stick with quinoa) and fruit/berries for breakfast.

Tweet

I am starting a series of posts about Alexis’ First Birthday celebration.

I was going back and forth between doing a party and celebrating small with just family and then finally things started falling in place for a party, so I decided to go for it.
We both felt like the first year needs to be celebrated. It was a trying and a joyful year for us an one of the most important years for Alexis and that needed to be acknowledged.

Slowly I came up with a theme I wanted to have: French. I didn’t have a clear idea on whether it was going to be Paris or Poodle (ok, definitely not poodle) or countryside or shabby chic. It was kind of a mix of everything…but that’s for a later post.

The morning of January 31st, we woke up bright and early with Alexis while it was still sort of dark. Her grandma USA was visiting and my mom is staying with us, so they promptly came out to congratulate their adorable granddaughter and watch her open presents. For the gift opening, she wore her new dress, a birthday gift from Nosilla Organics and a matching diaper ( so cool that we had a teal BG to go with it)

Tweet

is photography. Photographing my little girl.

I don’t think I am great at it. I am average. But it gives me so much happiness taking photos and then sifting through them, organizing them , processing them. It’s a shame I can’t to on a vacation and organize my photos all day long for 2 weeks …

So while I was gone from here , from life, without having my laptop and my precious photos, and while working on launching Daily Mom, there have been many photos taken a filed away.

Here’s a small part of what I have shot. In just 2 months (has it really been two months) Alexis has changed greatly. I have a lot to catch up on – I know… But I am loving having this blog, and managing Daily Mom and being a SAHM/WAHM to the most adorable toddler in the world and a wife to the most hardworking loving man in the world. I never thought my life would take this kind of track. That I would be a full on MOM. A mom with hobbies and interests and work, but still a MOM, one completely dedicated to her daughter. Yet I am and I am going to embrace it.

11 Months old

Tweet

We’ve all been there.

Daydreaming about what life with a baby would be like, without truly knowing what to expect. Thinking we “know” how things will turn out, but in the back of our minds knowing that it will be different. Now that Lexi is 1 YEAR OLD, i can look back at the year of babyhood and see things for what they were.

I don’t think Andrew and I were off base when imagining what life with a baby would be like. I think it’s that we couldn’t FEEL that difference until said baby came along.

All the negative “just you waits” from bitter moms were met with an eye roll. All the good-hearted ones were a drop in a bucket of the attempt to imagine our life with the baby.

I don’t think you can know what it is going to be like. No matter how hard you try. I think you can picture it, but you cannot FEEL it. So here’s what WE thought life with a baby would be like. And here is how we were wrong (or right).

Keep in mind that our experience will most likely NOT be yours. Your baby might sleep 16 hours a day and be the newborn you read in all the books about, nurse like a champ from day 1, fall asleep in your sling or contently stare at the mobile while you go around your business. That was not our experience. Nor was it the experience of millions of other parents. Because every baby is UNIQUE!

LABOR & BIRTH

Expectations:

I had hoped that Hypnobabies would help me get through labor but I was prepared for it to go whatever way it would, since I had read/heard how unpredictable it is.

Reality:

Tweet

Are you dying to see what Lexi’s birthday party looked like? How adorable she was? And how her first taste of sugar via smash cake was?  I am absolutely dying to share, so it’s killing me not being able to. Fingers crossed my laptop should be back Wednesday/Thursday and I can post by the end of the week.

In the meantime…

A few days ago I got a newsletter in my inbox about a new product that I thought I’d share with you since I can’t write about much else at the moment while I wait on my laptop.

Tweet

We had beautiful plans for Valentine’s Day/Our Anniversary. Picture a dreamy picnic on the beach, wearing all white with red 5 inch heels, wind blowing, sun warming up the sand, Lexi running around with her white dress, red bow and red shoes, trying to run into water and squealing from delight…

Tweet

I feel like I need to update you guys on what’s going on and why I am sort of MIA.

Alexis’ first birthday was an awesome celebration and I cannot wait to post gazillion pictures of it.

Tweet

Sweetheart,

you cannot imagine how much my heart swells when I type these words. And at the same time I get this sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Too fast.