1st Birthday

Your baby’s birthday can be an amazing and fun event, celebrating your bub’s first 12 months with you. Remember that your baby doesn’t really have any expectations whatsoever. This party is for you and your family and friends who are coming to “ooh” and “aah” over your wonderful one-year-old!

Plan a fairly short party (about an hour will do), and its best to organise it after your baby’s naptime so that they will be rested and in a good mood for the special day. You don’t need to worry too much about entertaining the adults, just make sure they have all been introduced to one another and they will chat and mix on their own. If possible, it’s recommended to hold 1st birthday parties at your own home (or in an environment your baby is comfortable and familiar with).

1st Birthday helpful Hints

• For the babies, choose safe, soft play areas with doonas on the ground, toys, and plenty of room to crawl around. Place chairs around the blankets for the parents so they can watch their kids
• Younger children usually enjoy drawing or crafts, so a table with paper and crayons is best. Place this table a nice distance away from the baby area to keep their space free from small items that may fall on the ground and that your bub might accidently play with
• Older kids typically like a game of backyard cricket or TV games, which you can set up in a room near the main party space so parents can easily check in on their kids
• Along with the baby food and munchies for the kids, serve some grown-up fare like dips and pita chips and a platter with cheese and crackers
• Have some photos from your bub’s first year so your friends and family can see how much he/she has grown in the past year
• If your tot’s grandparents are attending the party, make them feel special by involving them in the planning of the party. They can probably help out more than you realise with their vast experience of baby’s 1st birthday parties
• One of the easiest ways to choose a cake for your baby’s first birthday is to go with the #1 theme. You can buy a #1-shaped cake baking tray and make your own or ask a bakery to make the cake and then theme the cake to your party
• If your cake decorations include small candles, icing that is tough to eat or chokable items, always remove them before serving your baby or young children their cake

1st Birthday Ideas

One of the best ways you can organise a great 1st birthday party is to plan it around a theme or idea. The theme you choose will largely depend on if your little one is a boy or a girl. If you have a little boy then sports themes are always great, with all the little boys being dressed in their (or in more likelihood their fathers) favourite sporting team regalia. Superhero themes can also be a lot of fun, imagine a room full of supermen and batmen.

Girls 1st birthday party on the other hand should be themed around the old adage i.e. ‘sugar and spice and all things nice’. Princess, Fairy and Barbie themed partied for girls are all old favourites.

In terms of personalising the 1st birthday party invitations you can do a few easy things to make the invitation special and memorable. But that doesn’t mean you need to spend loads of money and time personalising your invitation, you could simply cut a large number 1 from bright coloured paper. Write your child’s name on the front of the number and the party details (time, location, etc.) on the back of the number.

Just remember to try relax and enjoy yourself at the party, it might be for your little one turning 1 but it’s also for you for helping your tot reach this great milestone.