Birthday boy traditions

Yesterday was Max's first birthday. My husband had a day off work so our little family was able to be together to celebrate. Since his birthday party was last weekend we decided to have a low-key day at home. The weather was bitter cold which was very fitting, considering Max was born in last year's polar vortex; one of the coldest day of the year. It was my hope that we would break out his new red sled he was given from his grandparents for Christmas, but it was way too cold to take him out. I still wanted to do something fun that I knew he would enjoy, so we took him swimming instead :)

 We started his birthday festivities after his morning nap. We look red and blue balloons, to match his birthday party decor of course ;) and filled his crib with them. I didn't know what his reaction would be, I thought he might be a little intimidated and just sit there, but boy did he surprise me. He was hitting those balloons all over the place. They were flying up in the air and flowing over the rails of his crib. I'm happy I got it on video to be able to relive that adorable moment for years to come.

I then made Pillsberry crescent rolls with chocolate chips inside. 

http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2014/08/28/20-minute-chocolate-croissants/

Max really hasn't had chocolate before, but there's no rules on your birthday ;) He loved it, and kept coming back for more bites. I made my husband and I hot chocolate with marshmallows; a favorite of mine. I decided that I will make this a tradition every year for Max since he is a winter baby. This year it was just my husband and I drinking hot chocolate but next year Max will be able to join us in the fun. 

After we had our midmorning treat Max opened his presents. Wow, this little boy is very loved and a little spoiled so say the least.  He has many new toys and books that he will have fun discovering over the next year. 

In the afternoon we went swimming at a nearby community center. The pool was warm and there were only a few other people there, who Max of course waved at. We had so much fun. There were lots of laughs and smiles shared as we played with balls, he went down the kiddie slide and he floated on a flutter board. I thought he would sleep on the way home for his afternoon nap, but no luck. He was still ready to party. Our final birthday celebration was after dinner. We lit a candle and gave Max one of the cupcakes from his birthday party. He then opened our gift which was a set of Melissa and Doug cardboard blocks. 

The wrap job on the gift was looking pretty horrendous by the end. He had been walking by the present and tearing pieces of the paper off for the last couple days and I had to keep re-taping it back together. We both wrote special birthday messages to Max in his card. I wrote mine after I put him to bed the night before his birthday, so you can imagine it's pretty sappy and filled with emotion. But that's okay because I want him to know when he is older how I was feeling in my life at that moment.

And so begins our two new birthday traditions with Max. Filling his bedroom with balloons and having a special hot chocolate drink. There are so many fabulous and fun ideas out there nowadays, it is so simple to add a couple of little unique moments that will make your child feel special on their birthday.

With Max's birthday being over, I now move on to my next event. I am scheming up a poker night for my husband's 30th birthday. Of course it won't be as Pinterest inspired as Max's birthday party, since the party will consist of men only, but I'll manage to find a few ways to make it look man-approved fabulous ;) 

A post about Max's birthday party will be posted in the next few days. I hope everyone is having a good week, and for my fellow Ontarians, stay warm!!! Brrr!

~ K