Pink Polka Dot Balloon Pom Birthday At the Park With Cake and Banner

We have approximately seven more weeks until Beatrice turns one. That means my baby will be a big girl. It also means, I've got a party to plan. She was born on Halloween but since we don't celebrate or want a black and orange themed party, I have to come up with some other theme worthy of our little girl's big day. It is no small feat planning a child's first party. 

When I was a kid, a typical birthday consisted of three-legged races, homemade cakes from your mom and goody bags filled with dollar store treats. The really good parties had a pinata and a slip-n-slide. These days, you're not in the game if you don't have a perfectly planned theme party complete with designer cake, decor and favors for your guests. I want to be in the game. 

JD and I have thrown out some ideas for her party. Here are just a few:

Oktoberfest

Complete with lederhosen, beer steins and schnitzel, this theme would fit in perfectly with the adults. Not so much with the kids. But how cute would Beatrice be in little lederhosen?! Much like JD here. Ricola!

 

Turkeys

Hunting season will be in full force at the end of October so we could all dress as land fowl and have a mock hunt. And JD has a mean turkey call that he's been working on. That man can gobble like a pro.

Tea Party

This is actually a great idea but it's too much for me. If we did it, I'd want to go all out a la Alice in Wonderland style and that would be too much to take on. Plus it would be really expensive because I would want real china and chandeliers and flamingos. You know, for the croquet.

The sad part is, those are really our ideas. We just don't know what to do. I have no problem with having an old fashioned birthday party with family and friends over for a homemade cake but we don't have enough room at our place to host the event. So we are having it at the park. And the pavilion needs a little something to pretty it up. It's basically wood planks and picnic tables. Our theme could be Birthday At the Park, complete with wooden planked pavilions and picnic tables. 

I have some inspiration. We shall have poms:

We shall have a birthday banner:

We shall have cake:

We shall have balloons:

And I plan to make most of it. Except for the balloons. Pretty sure that's impossible. My supplies are bought, ideas are fresh and I'm just about ready to begin preparation for my girl's Pink Polka Dot Balloon Pom Birthday At the Park With Cake and Banner. How's that for a theme?

Photo by photographer extraordinaire Sara Rose.