My Little Man turns 1

Mr 1's big day finally arrived...and it was pouring!

Nevertheless, the party continued as planned. The perfect, outdoor location sheltered us from the peltering rain which turned into a sprinkling shower and eventually ceased, fifteen minutes before the party began.

We had lots of hungry mouths to feed. Noodle boxes were just the right size, plus a touch of argyle created the perfect finishing touch! Personalised wooden cutlery was another detail that wowed the guests.

Our jelly cups turned into jelly shots because of the warm weather, but this did not stop anyone! Packaged cupcakes are not only a great take home party favour for your guests, but they look oh so gorgeous. It also meant that we didn't have to worry about cutting up and serving cake so it's great for picnic parties.

The lolly buffet was a hit with all the little (and big) kids!

A simple yet effective alternative to balloons - flags!

We hope you enjoyed the pics as much as we enjoyed putting the whole party together!

A huge thank you to Ron from Beautiful West Photography who did an amazing job.

The Great Cake Hunt!

Several weeks coming into a party, panic mode always sets in - usually while I'm tossing and turning in the middle of the night.

"I can't believe I only have a few weeks left to get everything organised! Where did all the time go? How am I going to get everything done?" My DH just shakes his head at me every time and offers his advice of "Don't worry about it! Let's just have a sausage sizzle and keep it simple." Now don't get me wrong - simple is great!

But simple is just not me (my DH was warned before we got married)!

For the first few parties, I made an effort to make the birthday cake. Here are a few piccies of my creations!

They might have looked ok, but I must admit that they didn't necessarily taste the best all the time. Thank goodness icing has many similar properties to glue!

After several parties where I would spend an entire day (and the early hours of the morning) solely concentrating on the birthday cake - it dawned on me that there are so many talented and creative people out there who could do it faster and better! (More about these people in a later blog.)

I've been lucky to have some of these experts design some of their creations for my little girls. Did I feel like a bad mum??...Nah! Just a smarter one.

Having said all that, I must confess that this year (or should I say, in a few weeks time), I've decided to tackle the task of making the cake once again. I've just signed up to a cupcake decorating course with The Cupcake Fairy (aka Dee). Dee has assured me that all will be ok! Let's hope I can have a good night's sleep tonight.