Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Little Man Moustache Party



Last Saturday was Jaguar’s first birthday party. I’d been planning this party for a long time; it gave me something fun to put my mind to while going through the difficult months of clearing out and getting rid of everything in my house. I decided to throw a ‘Little Man’ party for him. I had all kinds of cute ideas, from blogs and Pinterest, but in the end, it was just a little ‘moustache’ party.

I was a feeling a bit sad about his party. Since we just moved here, Jaguar didn’t have any children to invite except for his two cousins and two sisters. In Scotland, I’d have invited his little friends like Tamzin, Eilidh, Logan, Adam, Rosie, Aria, Bethany and others. It was a bit sad for me thinking of all the children he would’ve grown up with, but there you go. As people kept reminding me, his second birthday will likely be full of new friends.

Because I don’t have a house yet, I didn’t have a readily available place for a party. I looked into some local play places, but they were extortionate. The idea of the local park, which is really clean and well-maintained kept coming back to me, but we’re talking mid-July... hot!! Yet as no other places presented themselves as suitable for a small birthday party, we decided on the park in the end. The park only allows birthday parties at certain times, morning or lunch time. Lunch would’ve been too hot, so morning it was. Mom suggested we turn the party into a breakfast, and there came the idea full circle: a Little Man Brunch.



I made up little invitations that read “Jaguar ‘moustache’ you to attend his birthday brunch at Kohen’s Park.” I made up little party favours which consisted of a little metal bucket with a moustache bottlecap attached (and dry erase names) filled with moustache goodies: a moustache straw, a stick-on moustache, a moustache chocolate lollipop, and a bib or a little handbag (depending on age) with a moustache appliqué. And a bottle of bubbles for good measure. I made an enormous chocolate moustache cake. I stuck moustache stickers on helium balloons. The park has a rule of no decorations so as not to mess up the park area, so I was kind of let off the hook in that department. We brought coffee in carafes and orange juice, and ordered donuts and breakfast sandwiches from Shipley’s Donuts. And that was all the preparations needed!




I invited Jaguar’s cousins Ava (almost 2) and PaisLee (2 ½), as well as my step-dad David’s nieces and nephews. Only Ava and one niece attended (as well as Fifi and Lolly of course), but most of the grown-ups in my family were there: my brother Dan and his girlfriend Christy, my brother and sis-in-law Matt and Charity, my aunt Phyllis, my dad and Denise, my mom and David, David’s sister Doris, and me and Scott. Though there weren’t many children, it was actually a great party. Definitely the most relaxed birthday party Scott and I have ever thrown (or attended!)



The weather was most accommodating that day too, only 80 degrees (which for Scotland would’ve been unbearable but after weeks of 98-100 degrees, felt positively cool). The older kids had fun playing on the playground, Jaguar and Ava played at the Pavilion with the toys we’d brought, the men played Frisbee, the women sat around chatting in the shade. It was perfect.


It’s not what it would have been if we’d stayed in Scotland, but that’s not to say it was worse or better. It was new, it was wonderful. I missed my friends, and I missed my Scottish family even more; I’d have given anything to have Granny and Grampa and Adam, Katie and Faisal there. But I had family members there who’d never been to a single one of our children’s birthday parties before, and that made this one very, very special. It was a great first birthday, one I won’t forget.


Happy birthday, little man. You have a lot of love surrounding you, from all over the world.


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1 comment:

  1. Your baby looks so cute with his moustache on his 1st birthday. I like how you organised everything; from the giveaways, wholesale greeting cards and cake. Definitely, not a usual celebration for a baby of his age but then it’s totally awesome.

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