Levi's first birthday party

We celebrated Levi's first birthday with our family and friends on Saturday. I didn't quite plan as much for this party as I like to, but I was ok with that. I focused on a few things and let the rest go.

This wreath was where a lot of my efforts were placed. I love the way it turned out.

Of course I compiled all of Levi's monthly pictures so we could all see the progression.

The cake came from Walmart (another downgrade for me, we have used the same "cake lady" for every cake since our wedding cake), but it was good and inexpensive, and Walmart gives you a free smash cake for a first birthday. The details of that were not discussed and I convinced myself it would be a plain cake, so I was very pleasantly surprised when it was also decorated in the baseball theme.

I didn't get as many detail pics as I wanted, but in keeping with the baseball theme we served hot dogs, peanuts, and cracker jacks, along with macaroni salad that Rodney's mom volunteered to make last minute (sure, why not?), and watermelon.

When it came time for the smash cake, I had no clue what Levi was going to do. I told people I wouldn't be surprised whichever way it went, smash right into it or cry and not touch it. It turns out he was somewhere in the middle.

We didn't get a good picture of the four of us because Levi was already touching the cake and getting everyone to look at the camera at the same time never quite works out. I kind of hate that we set this up in front of the tv and we have the reflection of lots of people behind us. On the other hand, I love it because it shows that we have lots of friends and family that love us and showed up to support us.

Overall, I didn't go all out as much as I usually do, but this party was really about Levi, not me. About Levi's first year and celebrating him. I opened all of the presents but he enjoyed seeing what each of them was and smiled at them all, showing interest in playing with some. 

We were all exhausted by the end of the day and I vowed to never have another birthday party in my home. We'll see how that turns out in three months ;)