Alder's Lumberjack First Birthday

When I was trying to think of a party theme for Alder's first birthday, I wanted it to be something appropriate for the weather (COLD), something that made me think of him (he is strong and tough) and something that I wouldn't break the bank on. I have a lot of woodsy items and I love buffalo check, so the lumberjack theme was an easy choice. I also knew we could wear matching flannel so that was a big time plus as this Mama  L-O-V-E-S matching. So here's a look at our day...

Alder's flannel shirt is from Fayfaire

For food, I kept it simple (or as simple as you can when cooking for 30 people) and had BBQ chicken (that I pre-made and then froze), macaroni and cheese, cole slaw, chips and fruit and veggie trays. I had to play up the flannel so I made a very punny sign to put on the food table. I just couldn't help myself.

Free water bottle label printables found here

I decided to make as much of the food as possible myself (or with the help of sweet family members) so the cupcakes were homemade (recipe on the Hershey's cocoa box) and so was the icing. We went with a marshmallow icing to make the cupcakes SMORE themed and added a piece of chocolate and a piece of Graham cracker so that people could use their graham cracker to scoop some of the extra icing up. And my husband did the torching job on the icing to make them look like toasted marshmallows. I love how they turned out and they tasted delicious too. I made Alder's smash cake myself using the same Healthy Smash cake recipe I used for Aiden. 

I didn't go crazy with decorations and tried to spend as little as possible, but still incorporate some fun elements. I bought a paper pack from Hobby Lobby of all flannel papers and used the paper to make Alder's monthly banner. I also added some of the flannel paper to the top of a few mason jars that I filled with rounds of wood and then I used a paper punch to punch out circles for another banner, which I used on the tables. Add a few tree stumps, pictures and pinecones and that about did it. I'll link a few of the other buffalo check items at the bottom if you are interested.

It was a busy day, filled with lots of loading and unloading the car, but seeing so many people who love us and love this boy and who have been a huge support during his first year of life made it all worth it.

It was a very sweet day, but to be honest I am looking forward to not planning another kid's birthday party any time soon. Haha. Are you a big party planner or would you rather save the money and just do something simple?