{let me eat cake}

One year old seems like ancient history now -- the frantic machining of Ruffle Fest 2011, the last minute erecting of The World's Simplest DIY Photobooth, and the whirlwind of a Cheese themed party. Really, it was only three months ago. Long enough, though, that I swooned with nostalgia when I saw Little Starling's first birthday photo shoot, using a strand of Red Red bunting (from my shop).

What a perfect little red chair! Our good old IKEA high chair is shaking its plastic tray in envy. And, for even more good ideas for birthday photography, you can see more photos from her shoot, including chubby little baby legs covered in cake, here. 

{hello world, it's me, tilly}

Tilly's gone global. Find her sharing tips and tricks from her "Say Cheese" birthday party today over at the brilliant Ohdeedoh (the children's section of Apartment Therapy).

Or, if you've had enough cheddar, cameras and birthday party pics to last you a lifetime, why not check out these other inspired ideas:

• London-in-a-bag wooden block set
• The best apps for traveling with kids (please, remind me of this in a month, as we fly across the world with a wriggly jiggly fourteen-month-old)
• Cloudy day blackout shades
• Build your own bicycle sidecar (with two seats -- one for Tilly, one for Bella!)

{the signature tablecloth: year one}

You saw Tilly's birthday tablecloth when it was just a bit of fabric. Then you saw it getting drawn on with black Sharpie by our friends and family at Tilly's first birthday party. Now, here it is, fully decked out in many many stands of white embroidery thread. 

As I said, the idea is get everyone who celebrates Tilly's birthday with us to sign the cloth. And each year, I will embroider over the names in a different colour, creating a record of all our lovely guests for Tilly to look back on.

Yes, ALL the guests... Bella was included, even though she spent the entire party in our bedroom feeling sorry for herself. (Don't be sad for her -- she got to have Tilly's uneaten Cream Bomb cake!)



As a last touch, I drew around Tilly's hand, and added her age to the centre of it. I'm sure she'll enjoy signing in her own way in the future (I know I loved to practice my signature when I was little -- so much so that I still use the same juvenile star shape now. Yes, I've had cashiers laugh at me. No, I'm not changing it).

And, of course, her friends will start signing by themselves, too. We're not going anywhere anytime soon, so I'm hopeful that we'll see many of the same names next year, too.

I'll admit, some of our guests put my sewing skills to the test. I just hope I did their artwork justice!

Recently, someone asked me if I'm already planning next year's party, to which I replied that, no, unfortunately, every year will most probably be downhill from here. But, as I think about it, much of the work this year is going to be reused every year. Tilly's birthday crown will be worn again next year (and hopefully won't be falling down over her eyes), as will her felt envelope, and the growth chart. As for the birthday badge and party dress -- they're for the next little Slagle!

And, I think that officially marks the end of all things birthday. Hurray! (Although we seem to have bought the world's longest lasting balloons -- two weeks later, our living room is still full of them. I can't bear to pop them... perhaps there'll be here to reuse next year, too!)

{say cheese: a first birthday party}

Yesterday, we celebrated Tilly's first year with a little party. Our "Say Cheese!" theme let us indulge in Tilly's love of cheddar and our love of cameras... what a fun combination it turned out to be! We had a house full of amazing friends and family, a kitchen full of dairy, and a back garden full of smiles and grins and fake mustaches. 

Guests loaded up plates with all things cheesy (mac and cheese with chicken, spicy sausage queso and chips, brie and crackers, as well as a few fruits and veggies) and signed Tilly's birthday table runner, which was laid out on the dining table.

The signature runner turned out even better than I'd hoped! People signed in all sorts of ways -- with birthday messages, with names grouped together as families, in flowing script and in block capitals, with drawings of flowers and with stick-figure self-portraits. What a lovely way to remember all the people who joined us this year -- how funny it will be to see names reappear next year, and new names be added. I'm looking forward to embroidering over it all in the next few weeks.

Out in the garden, we had tables set up, too, covered with the easiest tablecloths in the world. (Three yards of fabric ripped in half! I'm hoping they'll turn into a dress for Tilly after I wash the cake off...) We had bubbles on one table, and the blank photo props and a pack of crayons on the other table, to entertain the bigger kids. 

The colour-your-own-props worked out really well, and the children came up with some amazing designs, which they then proudly modeled in the photo booth.

The photo booth was so much fun, and we ended up with over 400 photos to pick from! (I'm just sorry I can't show you more of them!) The little ones got the most creative, and were so sweet with each other, lining up and taking turns, and letting each other use the bows they'd decorated. There were plenty of props to go around, and they stood up surprisingly well to baby hands (yes, and mouths -- hold a mustache near a baby, and they want to taste it!)



We had cowboys and wolves, circus ringmasters and cats. There were sweet family shots, hilarious poses, and some very funny photos of little ones who didn't quite understand the messages they were holding (i.e. one shot of a little friend with a giant scowl, holding the word "Cheese!" makes us laugh until we cry every time!)

The paddling pool was nice for the little ones to cool off in. Tilly fancied her own private pool, though, and got comfy in a big red bucket.

She had the time of her life, stealing people's cups of lemonade, watching her older friends blowing bubbles for her, and running off with the photo props! Say "Cheese!" Tilly.



When it came time for cake, she loved the candle (which remained at a safe distance until I blew it out... all she wanted to do was touch the flame!) on the little smash cake I'd made her, a.k.a. The Cream Bomb -- sponge cake with a hollow centre, filled with cream and strawberries, coated with cream and strawberries. Served up on a piggy plate. My dream cake.



It turns out, Tilly just wanted the strawberries, and once they were picked off, she wasn't all that interested in it anymore. She'd been really keen on the broccoli earlier on, and had filled up on that, I think.

I think I might be the first mother ever to say "my child ate so much broccoli that she didn't want any cake!"



Tilly got her arms in the cake, though, and had a little cream beard, so we were quite happy that she was messy enough, and had a little dunk in the paddling pool to clean off.

I made her a little banner the night before, to add a little touch of fancy to a basic IKEA high-chair. A little ironic, it turns out, as I was trying to MAKE her eat cake. Tilly loved the pompoms -- I think it's safe to say she would have eaten one of them if I'd let her.

Tilly opened her presents outside, with the help of some very eager friends. A new talking teapot and talking purse seem destined to become favourites, and Tilly got some lovely dresses and her own apron and rolling pin! 

As a little party favour, we gave out miniature paper Polaroid cameras, (which you might remember me mentioning here). Justin's parents kindly dug up their beautiful old Polaroid and brought it along for me to play with decoration, so it was nice to see the little paper ones next to the real thing.

I made tiny little Polaroid photos to come out of the slots, and Tilly wrote a little message for each of our guests, thanking them for coming.

A simply amazing day, with so many wonderful people to help us celebrate, and a lively little Tilly who couldn't have been happier. Thanks for all your love! 

{zhua zhou: a new take on a Chinese tradition}

You might remember me mentioning this a while ago -- the zhua zhou tray, an old Chinese tradition of placing significant objects in front of a baby on the first birthday. Whichever object the baby picks in supposed to predict future interests, a career, or personality traits. You can read a little more about the history of the actual zhua zhou tradition here. I discovered it via Giverslog's tray on Pinterest.

We interpreted it slightly differently -- rather than simply have objects represent careers, we picked things that symbolised certain family members that Tilly might take after. But I loved the idea of collecting it all in an old Pepsi crate, and luckily I scored one from a Navasota junk antique shop a few months back for $3! (I'm aware that some people might think $3 is too much for something slightly rotten and rusty, but it's my weird idea of treasure!)

We had a little rummage around the house on Tilly's Birthday Eve, and came up with this motley collection of thingies and whatsits. Here's what they symbolise:

• Safety glasses: an engineer, like Daddy
• Pen: a writer, like Mummy
• Orange IKEA moose: a Swedish furniture aficionado, like Baba *
• Wooden spool: a world-class sewer and quilter, like Mormor *

• Red high-heeled shoe: a fashion icon like Auntie Alice
• USB charger: an Apple genius like Uncle Jesper
• Cupcake wrapper: a talented baker like Auntie Gemma
• Paper daisy: a gardener like Great Auntie Jenni
• Paint brush: a watercolour artist like Mossa *
• Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle book: a teacher like Mormormor *

• 1776 book: a history enthusiast like Grandpa
• Ball: a P.E. teacher like Grandma
• Grizzly bear: an outdoor explorer like Uncle Travis and Auntie Yvette
• Lotion: an Arbonne advocate like Great Aunt Sandy
• Golf ball: a golf enthusiast like the Mitchells and Jepsons
• Wool: a knitter like Great Grandma Thies and Nana

We placed the crate in front of Tilly and let her have at it. She grabbed the wool first, but quickly dropped it, and picked up the pen. (Yay!)

We gave her a few seconds to make sure she was happy with her choice, and then called it: future writer! To make me even happier, she got hold of the wooden spool with her free hand. A passion for sewing? Double yay!

Once the formal business of career prediction was over, we let her play with the rest of the stuff. IKEA moose got a good bit of attention (maybe she can be a part-time meatball server?)...

...and Tilly was determined to get a hole in one (with the hole being her mouth).



The safety glasses didn't quite 'fit', to Justin's dismay.



The daisy was quickly thrown aside, as were the cupcake wrapper and USB cable, and a quick flip through the history book revealed nothing of interest (i.e. no pictures of dogs). Many of the other items were tested for chewability, but found lacking.



Alas, no attention whatsoever for the ball and shoe. Auntie Alice, we're trusting that you'll be around to guide Tilly through the world of style in the next few years.

Bella even got in on the fun, and after a good sniff of everything on offer, decided that the grizzly bear was for her. We'll be enrolling her in Mountain Rescue Dog classes shortly.

(* Note: Perhaps you're wondering about our slightly off-the-wall names for grandparents and great-grandparents on my side of the family. They're not really so weird -- "Mormor" and "Morfar" are Danish for Grandma and Grandpa. When I was little, I couldn't say the letter 'f', so "Morfar" became "Mossa". As my grandma is now a great grandma, we added an extra "mor" for her -- Mormormor, i.e. mother's mother's mother, and my Mum became Mormor with just two "mor"s. Confused yet? There's more. Instead of making my Dad the new Morfar, we went with the Chinese for "father", which is "baba". This is more to do with him having had a mop of curly hair for much of my childhood than anything else, i.e. Baba Black Sheep. The Chinese just fitted well, as they were on year eight in Beijing at that time. So there it is. Danish-Chinese names for our English family. What can I say, we're a regular melting pot of culture)

{happy birthday, tilly}

What a day! Tilly woke up as a one-year-old, and we tried to give her the best day yet, with candles...

...cheesy bagels and bubbles for breakfast...

...presents in the morning before Daddy went to work...

...including a fabulous wooden Noah's ark, a beautiful hat, dress and shirt, finger puppets, a book about Owl Babies, a little Danish rabbit...

... a felt book from Mummy...

...the most amazing card from Daddy (Tilly's head on a dog's body -- she loves it!), plus a brilliant video of her first year...

...plenty of wrapping paper to chew on, and furry friends to share the fun with...

...play time with her friends in the morning, and an afternoon of cooling off in her paddling pool...



...relaxing in the back garden (more on that interesting tray of goodies tomorrow!)...

...raspberry jelly for birthday dessert...

...and a little photo shoot with the big red clock at 7:23pm, to mark exactly a year since she arrived...

...stories, a cuddle, and off to bed as a one-year-old.

An amazing day with an amazing little person. Thanks for all the lovely birthday wishes, and for all your love over the past year! Here's to another that's just as full...

{the first year, remembered}

This time, a year ago, Justin and I were pacing around the mall. Not looking for anything, just walking, walking, walking. Five days overdue and scared to show up at the doctor's office again to make difficult choices. We had a strawberry-banana fruit smoothie and pizza. We had no idea what was coming.

Today is the last day of the first year, and so we sit looking back. I can never seem to get over the fact that Matilda, this little tiny person, has favourites. She likes cups with straws more than cups with spouts. She likes chicken more than beef. She likes reading about Hairy Maclary chasing cats more than Hairy Maclary visiting the vet. Oh yes, and she likes dogs more than anything. She can say 'doggie' but not 'mama'. I'm not joking.

We made a little photobook to collect our favourite images of the year, and love it so much. Shutterfly has really outdone itself with the new levels of customisation. I'm all about getting the most amount of big photos onto a page, and really enjoyed the challenge of laying it all out!

364 days of obsessively taking photos, and I really do feel like it's paid off to see them collected like this. Very satisfying.

Below is my favourite page -- memories from nine to twelve months. There are definitely days where I feel we don't do enough, but then I realise that just in these two pages, we've got photos from Houston, San Antonio and Oklahoma.

Phew. Just taking a baby around the top floor of IKEA is enough activity for three months.

And really, we just can't believe that this birthday is already here. We just keep flipping through the months, to check they really happened. Are you sure we didn't dream it? I'm not going to wake up in a second and be back in a dark nursery, Fisher Price ocean noises playing, and find that Tilly is still two weeks old, sleeping (or not sleeping, more likely) on my shoulder in the rocking chair?

No, it seems like we're really here, a year later, faced with a whole series of different joys and challenges. And ready for another year!