Logan's First Birthday

Our not-so-little Logan turned one on March 3, 2017 to the amazement of each of our friends and family. In fact, the theme of his party should've been "has it been a year already?" because that was the first thing out of nearly everyone's mouth. It is entirely true that time goes by faster with your second child. I'm not sure if it's because you already know what to expect or because you don't stop moving long enough to realize what's actually going on around you, but either way this was definitely the fastest 12 months of my life.

I wanted the theme to be something that encompassed Logan's personality, and "wild thing" immediately came to mind. He is loud, destructive, and makes it known when he enters a room. He does what he wants when he wants and is happiest when making a mess. He can pull everything out of the bathroom cabinet in less than a minute and loves to unroll the toilet paper (and sample a sheet or two during the process). He has a slight obsession with blankets and is happiest when he has one draped over the top of his head. He can eat an entire banana in five bites and will devour three adult-sized pancakes in one sitting. He always wants to be outside and is happiest just sitting in the grass picking weeds. He knows no fear and thinks he is capable of doing everything big sister does. He is rambuncious and energetic. He is w i l d.

We decided to have his party at home, just as we did with Taylor's first birthday. We invited family and close friends and planned on an indoor party since the weather is completely unpredictable in Missouri in March (and really, any time of year). I tasked my mom with making this AMAZING cake: 4 layers of chocolate cake with caramel filling covered in chocolate icing and chocolate bark pieces. It was decadent (to say the least), but she absolutely knocked it out of the park on both looks and taste. Looking back, I'm sad that I didn't get a close-up of it, because it truly was a labor of love and oh so delicious! To compliment the cake, we served a slew of other sweets: fruit (Logan's favorite), cupcakes, and smores pops (marshmallows dipped in chocolate and rolled in graham cracker crumbs).

We kept the decor simple by making jungle vines out of brown packing paper and attaching leaves cut out of construction paper. We printed off scenes from the book along with some of my favorite Instagram photos of Logan throughout his first year of life. My brother-in-law cut a few wood slices that we used as serving trays, and a grass skirt gave the food table a little added flair. I made simple banners for the window and Logan's highchair out of scrapbook paper, stickers, and twine and, of course, lots of balloons!

The poor birthday boy was under the weather with a cold and, to make matters worse, was also going through a pretty intense round of teething. The last thing he wanted to do was open presents or entertain people, but he definitely pepped up when it came to the cake. Just like his sister, he dove right in and ate nearly the entire thing! He was such a mess after that he went straight to the tub for a bath before opening his presents. We bought him a Radio Flyer tricycle which he instantly loved and insisted on being pushed around in for the remainder of the afternoon.

Logan, you are one of a kind and the perfect piece to our puzzle. I don't know how we ever lived without your loud squeals, toothy grins, and the most kissable cheeks I've ever seen.

I'll eat you up, sweet boy, I love you so!