Monday, December 28, 2015

Alden Turns ONE!


 Well, My baby boy is ONE! He is officially a toddler now and I cannot believe how fast it flew by.

This post is going to be a recap of his birthday party, which was on December 12, before his actual birthday. It will also be sort of a recap of his birthday.

THE BIRTHDAY PARTY:
OK y'all, I'm going to be really honest here and admit that I was in WAY over my head. I had said from the get go that the first birthday party wasn't going to be this gigantic celebration because although it's great for photo ops and memories for the parents, almost every 1st birthday party I have attended, big or small, has resulted in a total melt down of the child, which I just did not want to put Alden through.

Then of course I started putting together my guest list and before I knew it, there were SO many people to invite. We had always planned on having the party at our house, which isn't the biggest place, but also not the smallest. I kept telling myself that I was going to buy stuff little by little months in advance so that come party time, there were only things like food and last minute stuff that needed to be purchased. But life happened, and money was tight and there I sat a week before the party with nothing but ideas.

We knew my mom was going to make the cupcakes and we knew my in-laws were going to make a giant delicious pot of beans which is PERFECT for a cold day (even though it ended up being in the 70's). I knew my theme, I knew the menu but how do you go about purchasing all sorts of decorations when you don't have the extra money to spare? That's when my BFF stepped up the plate. Her and her fiance offered to help us in anyway we needed, weather it be financially or physically and that meant SO much. I am forever grateful that they were there and helped us give Alden the best party we could. Jackie and I were able to go out and by more than enough stuff to decorate with and use.

The plan was for my mom to make Alden a cute little smash cake, but the day before the party my father-in-law said he wanted to help us pay for the cake. So I went out on a mission to find Alden a super cute smash cake. Trying to find a cake that matched what you have come up with in your mind with only 1 day notice is super hard by the way. I do NOT recommend it.I looked at 1 place the night before and 2 places the day of. I ended up having to settle on a cake that I was not happy with at all. I was honestly embarrassed but I had to move on to other things.

I tried really hard all morning to get Alden to take a nap and he would not! There was too much going on and he wanted to be a part of it. What ended up happening is that in the middle of the party he decided he was done and so while everyone else was sitting around, he was in his room sleeping. We made the horrible mistake of waking him up after about 45 minutes to do cake and gifts and he had a complete meltdown. I'm talking screaming bloody murder melt down.

Thankfully everyone started clearing out shortly after the meltdown, which seemed to help him feel a little less overwhelmed. I decided to bring his cake back out and see how he did with less people around. The second go around was much better! He dove into his cake and smushed it and got icing all over the place. it was FANTASTIC! I know a lot of kids want nothing to do with the cake unless it is fed to them and so I was pleased with his reaction.

Overall, I'd say it turned out great. Although it was a bit of a mad house with so many people, we somehow managed to have enough food and drinks for everyone. The weather was actually decent so the kids were able to run around and burn off their energy outside. I will say this, never again will I host a party of that size in my house, and never again will I wait until the end to get everything purchased and ready.

Now, Before I move on to Alden's birthday recap... Let me share some party photos.

 Mickey Mouse Cupcakes
 Mickey Mouse Custom Labels
 My makeshift gift table

 Posing with aunt Rexie in front of the Mickey wall.

Alden going to town on his cake.

ALDEN'S BIRTHDAY:
I decided to take the day off so I could spend it with my booger man. We did have to go to his one year check-up which he was not happy about, but it was OK because after we went to target and shopped for birthday toys.

After that we came home and hung out and played with his toys and ate snacks and watched cartoons. He took his afternoon nap and then aunt Rexie came over with a cupcake. He showed off his new found walking skills and had us laughing the whole time.

After Chris got home, we headed out to get some Mexican food. Alden had his fill of beans, rice and barbacoa! After that we headed home and snuggled and played until bed time.

It was a pretty low-key day, but I am so glad I was able to spend it with him. :)

I am looking forward to many more birthdays to come. This past year has been the toughest, most stressful, yet amazing and best of my life! I wouldn't give up Alden for anything in this world and he is the BEST son a mama could ever ask for! :) 

To end this post, I'm going to add all of his month by month pictures. 


  Thank you guys so much for sticking with me from the beginning when this was just a place for me to vent about my pregnancy woes. I am not totally sure how often I will be blogging in 2016, but I am looking into vlogging, so that may be the next step. Either way I am grateful for those who come back each month and laugh along with me and I hope that you guys continue on with me and my little family in the new year!

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