My little baby is one… I can’t believe how fast this year has flown by. I was looking at pictures from when he was born, and reflecting back on exactly what I was doing at this time last year (well, yesterday I was reflecting. Right now I’m sneaking in a quick cup of coffee and squeezing out every little last bit of silence I can while Brayden is still napping), and it is just amazing how big both my boys are getting. Even Zackery looks all grown up – he will be four in September.
We had a birthday party for Brayden on Sunday. It was great. Not too many people, not too few – everyone had a good time. Kids of all ages, happy adults, yummy food and great weather. I couldn’t have asked for a better celebration. I even got to enjoy a glass of wine and indulge in a piece of homemade carrot cake (that is a whole other post on another day… altitude + new recipe = baking disaster).
As the responsible Mother I try to be, I decided to make Brayden his own eggless, sugarless cake. I did the same sort of thing when Zackery turned one, so I figured it was only fair, and I wanted to make sure Brayden wasn’t going to have an allergic reaction to something he had never eaten before. I found a great (easy) recipe for applesauce banana cake. Aside from the long bake time, this cake was a cinch to make and came out perfect (again, nothing like the carrot cake fiasco…). I made a cream cheese, maple syrup icing to go on top – YUM!
When it was time to celebrate the guest of honor, Brayden was lifted up into his decorated high chair, strapped in and secured with the click of his nice clean tray. The elegant plastic birthday bib was tied around his chubby little neck, a custom paper birthday hat placed on his head, and the quickest photo session ever before everything was ripped off in frustration. I lit the candle on his little mini personal cake, we sang “happy birthday” (much to his delight), I helped him blow out the candle, and then we waited. He had a happy face, but just didn’t know what to make of this white, square tower in front of him. With a little coaxing he found his fingers smushing into the icing, and grabbing the whole top layer of the cake, which gracefully landed in a splat on the floor (thank goodness for the plastic floor mat included in the “high chair decorating kit”). Both hands now sliming their way through his hair and over his face, not one single bit ever going into his mouth for a taste… oh well, maybe next year. 🙂
Brayden had a great time opening his presents – all the while fending off the mob of hungry helpers who were impatiently waiting for him to rip off the wrapping paper. Trucks and toy phones, clothes and a new ball… what more does a one-year-old little boy need?
Most of the cleanup was done before bath and bedtime, although there are still clean platters waiting to go back to their home inside the awkward cabinet in the corner of our kitchen island, but for the most part, the house is all put back together. It was a wonderful day, and I still can’t believe it has come and gone. We are blessed to have such precious little boys in our house, and as much as sometimes I miss those first days when I held his tiny little body in my arms all day, I am imagining all the joyous memories we have still yet to create.