Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Grace's First Birthday Party

Last Saturday, we celebrated Grace's first birthday! 

 I had a hard time coming up with a theme for her party because I wanted to do something that would be both adult and kid friendly. I decided to make her party "pie themed" (which fit perfectly with thanksgiving being around the corner.)

The invitation said, "Our little cute pie Grace is turning one..."


Once I had decided on the pie theme, I did some searching online and found this adorable party. She had some really great ideas (many of which I stole) for a pie-themed menu. In the end, I was really happy with how everything turned out! 

 Our menu:
Frito Pie
PB&J "Pies" (uncrustables)
Veggie platter
Fruit salad
Rasberry Lemonade
Apple Pie
S'mores pie
Banana Cream Pie Cupcakes
Nutella Pie Pops
Smash Cake


I had these great ambitions of making my own homemade pb&j "pies" for the kids, but let's get real, I had way too much do already. So I decided not to kill myself and went with the store bought Uncrustables. They looked a little trashy but were a huge hit with the kids!


The desserts!



I have wanted to buy frosting decorating tips for a long time and finally got some a few weeks ago. I'm sort of obsessed with them now, so I ended up going a little crazy with Grace's smash cake. 


Now let me introduce you to my new best friend, S'mores pie. 
(Kasey, I haven't decided if I love or hate you for sending me this recipe.)



These banana cream pie cupcakes were really just regular vanilla cupcakes with bananas on top...but I decided to still call them "banana cream pie" for the sake of the pie theme. A girl can only do so much.



Okay, how cute are these Nutella pie pops?! (Another stolen recipe) These might be my favorite thing I made for the party! I gave them out to the guests as party favors.

And now...some pics of the party!

The birthday girl.


She did not hesitate AT ALL with her smash cake. She dug right in!





She honestly would have eaten the entire smash cake, if I would have let her. I decided to cut her off about half way through so she wouldn't get sick!


All the kids pitched in and helped Grace open her presents!




This Minnie Mouse car from Grandma and Grandpa Jensen was a big hit. All of the kids were swarming around it waiting for a turn!


Grace LOVES pushing around her new baby stroller from Grandma Carter!


My mom, my sister Lindsay, and her daughter Paige, all flew in for the weekend. (They were a HUGE help getting everything ready for the party!) We also invited my in-laws and some friends from church. Thanks to everyone who came! It was a such a fun party! 




Happy Birthday Grace!

Happy Birthday to the cutest little ONE year old!



One year has gone by so fast but at the same time, it seems like forever ago that she was this tiny little baby!


We did a big birthday party for her on Saturday, so today we kept it simple and took her to Chick-Fil-A for dinner and got her an ice cream cone (which she loved). I also had to work today, so Grandma Jensen and Grace came and met me for lunch. Grandma even brought a birthday cupcake for Grace to eat at the restaurant! Isn't she the best?

Grace is such a sweet girl and I've loved watching her develop her funny little personality. I can't believe how much she has grown and changed in just one year. She has been such a blessing to our family and I feel so lucky to be her Mom. 

Happy Birthday Gracie! We love you!