UPDATE March 2021: Affiliate Links added at end of post.
I kept it together on my son’s first birthday, but on the day of his party, I got a Facebook memory notification (dang you Facebook and your nostalgia) and I became an emotional wreck. Seeing the picture was a reminder of our long 2-year journey. This journey included an ectopic pregnancy/miscarriage, loss of a Fallopian tube, 4 rounds of failed IUI fertility treatments, and this miracle baby that God gave us naturally when we least expected it. Awesome reminder that His timing is perfect. Patrick “Pax” Stout Parker was born on January 19, 2017. “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31-1
We are so excited to celebrate our gift from God, and wanted to make his first birthday special. We were introduced to Little Baby Bum by my sister-in-law, and Pax has been obsessed with this show ever since. It started out as a YouTube channel that originated in the United Kingdom, and specializes in 3D animation of both traditional nursery rhymes and their own original songs. It is now available on Netflix and we watch it on the daily (no worries…we limit screen time, for you judgers). I only thought Little Baby Bum (LBB) appropriate for Pax’s first birthday theme. Big Mistake! No one has heard of this epic show, and there are VERY limited party supplies/decor online. Which means this momma had to DIY errrrthing. During the whole planning process, I kept repeating “I should have gone with dinosaurs.” But in the end, it all worked out! The theme was fun, and Pax seemed to really enjoy his party with family and close friends that we refer to as our “Kentucky Family.” Hope you enjoy the photos and short party prep VIDEO!
For party decor, I did two main backdrops. One for over the fireplace, and one behind the food table. The fireplace backdrop included a rainbow streamer wall, topped with balloons that matched the streamer colors, then I added a homemade HBD banner over top. The streamer wall definitely took the longest to set up. I found the letter stickers for the banners at Hobby Lobby (on sale, woot woot) and placed them on white card stock circles. I purchased PNG images off Etsy of the different characters from the show, printed them out on white card stock, cut them out, and attached them to the ends of the banners. Pax’s highchair went in front of the streamer backdrop for the cake smash session and my bestie made his flag banner for the high chair tray.
The food table backdrop was super easy. It was made of 6 plastic table cloths in the rainbow colors, that I strung on thick string, and hung with tacks. You could hear us quoting “ROYGBIV” this whole decorating process. I paired the table cloth backdrop with a giant mylar “1” balloon and 2 star balloons.
I did a nursery rhyme themed menu and each food and drink item corresponded to a different song on the show.
Theme cookies are a habit I just can’t quit. I was referred to a cookie maker in my town who does fabulous work. She was confused about the theme “Little Baby Bum,” and in her email response she said “baby bum, as in butts??” I was slightly terrified I would end up with butt shaped cookies, but she obviously did her research and the cookies were on point! We all had a good laugh about my once again difficult choice of theme. These goodies were made by Cookies By Charity.
There is a song on the show “It’s Your Birthday” and it features an animated 3 tier cake. I wanted his smash cake to match the top tier of the LBB cake. I found a cake lady last minute and she nailed it! Cake made by Leanne’s Cake Creations.
Pax seemed very confused at first by the round mass of sugar in front of him. He poked it with his pointer finger and after some encouragement, he took a few bites. One bite was too big and ole paranoid mom had to do the finger swipe, which caused some tears. Big sister was by his side cheering him on the whole time.
We had 2 shirts made for his party. One shirt for party festivities and one shirt for the cake smash. Both corresponded to theme. Shirts made by Cathy’s Creations, and Tennessee Peach Embroidery.
The party favors were soft mittens (pink for girls, and black for boys) since its winter time. The favors coincide with the LBB nursery rhyme “Three Little Kittens.”
A few regrets from the party…first I meant to have the show playing in the background on Netflix, but completely forgot in the midst of hosting. Another regret, is I do not have a single picture of me and my son! Unfortunately, my photographer cancelled the day before the party because 2 of her 3 kids were diagnosed with the flu (totally understandable), so I was the one behind the camera. I tell you this so you make sure not to make the same mistake! Next time, I will make sure to get some family photos with myself included!
Overall I think the party was a success and most importantly, keeping a baby alive and well for a whole year was a TOTAL parenting win and worth celebrating!! What was your child’s first birthday party theme?
UPDATE 2021:
Since throwing my son’s LBB party a few years ago, this blog post has gotten a lot of traffic. I have people email me often, requesting links to my Little Baby Bum Birthday décor. I did most of the decor myself, but I am linking many similar items to what I used, or that I wish would have been available to me when I was planning! Happy Party planning, friends!! Please email me with any questions.
(This post is not sponsored, but does contain affiliate links.)
Toys/Gift Ideas:
Little Baby Bum Twinkle’s Musical Walker by Little Tikes
Little Baby Bum Old McDonald’s Memory Game
Little Baby Bum Nursery Rhyme Singing Soft Storybook
Little Baby Bum Sing-Along Piano
Party Décor:
Custom Made Twinkle Little Star Pinata
Little baby bum high chair banner
34″ Foil Gold 1 Number Balloon
Assorted Bright Colored Rectangle Tablecloths
Assorted Latex Rainbow Balloons
Party Food Accessories:
Ribbon Ceramic Decorative Plate
Acrylic 3-Tier Square Stacked Party Cake Stand
Glass Beverage Dispenser with Spigot
Birthday Attire:
Little baby bum birthday shirt
Little Baby Bum Birthday Boy & Family Members Custom Shirts
Sammy’s theme was airplanes ✈️ . I’m not familiar with little baby bum but will have to check it out with Sammy.
That’s a good one!! We love airplanes too. I remember seeing precious pictures from Sammy’s party. ☺️ Let me know if he likes little baby bum!