Your baby’s first birthday party is not only a celebration of their first year, but a celebration of your first year as a mum or dad to your child too.
It’s a time to recall milestones and make memories. Your little one won’t quite understand what all the fuss is about but the day will be lovely to look back on in years to come – especially at the baby clothes! When your baby’s grown up, you’ll be able to sit with them and trace back to the day when their birthday traditions began.
Celebrating the end of your child’s first year of life can be as simple, or as complicated as you want. You might be after an intimate gathering with just close family and friends and a few cupcakes for afternoon tea, or you might decide it’s a fabulous excuse to have a bunch of friends and their children over for a full fledged celebration. A first birthday introduces your child to the world famous birthday song and the concept of opening pressies – a skill they’ll master quickly as the years pass by.
For a playful day, look for sweet little onesies or t-shirt baby clothes, these will allow your birthday baby to move freely and be comfortable in what they’re used to. Pair with comfortable and practical bottoms, shorts, long pants, jeans or tights. If your baby is crawling, you need to be mindful of the surface they’ll be crawling on, you don’t want them ending up with grazed knees on their birthday. If they’ve just started walking, ensure that they’re in something they won’t trip up on and something that makes those first steps easy.
If you’re hoping for more of a sophisticated day, look for special occasion baby clothes such as frilled dresses or smart little suits paired with dress shirts. The finishing touch for an outfit like this is the perfect pair of dress shoes. These need to fit your baby well or they won’t have a bar of them! A happy baby on their birthday is super important.
Make sure you make the day as easy for yourself as possible, you don’t want to spend all day whipping up delicate party treats. Pre-prepare party food and plan a menu with enough sustenance for adults but something that the little ones can manage too. Small and bite sized finger food is a great idea as long as they are choke-free baby-friendly options. Remember that after your little one’s eaten, they will quite likely need another change of clothes. They haven’t quite mastered the art of tidy eating yet, so another outfit up your sleeve is always a good idea.
The time of the day and time of the year can also determine what your little one wears to their party, if it’s hot and summery, then obviously cardigans and jumpers aren’t going to be necessary, but you also want to ensure that if you’re out in the sun, your little one has a cover up to protect their precious skin.
Think about your baby clothes carefully and enjoy shopping for such a fabulous occasion, these will be photos that last for years to come!
