What a birthday looks like... with smash pictures!

I was busy pretty much the whole day, so I was able to take a few - but most of the pictures were taken by other people.  When you're the Mom of the birthday girl, you have a lot to do!

Charlotte's party was fantastic!  Dear friends of ours with more space opened their home to us and helped us celebrate her first year.  Having a birthday so close to Christmas, though, makes it look like Fisher Price/Step 2/Little Tikes threw up all over our house.  You can't take two steps without stepping on an elmo, tripping over a walker, kicking a piece of the kitchen set, or hearing a strange voice singing an irritating song.  But Charlotte LOVES it!  She's definitely in "play" mode now...  and really only comes to us when she wants to eat/sleep/be changed.  

Thank you so much to everyone that has celebrated this year with us...  not just at the party, but with prayers, hugs, well-wishes, etc.  We survived!  

Anyhow, here are a bunch of random pictures of her day.

The Invitation

Charlotte's Circle of Friends

Because we were having the party at someone else's home, we tried to keep it small.  I know that I didn't get pictures of everyone...  actually I myself got practically no pictures of anyone - but what can you do? Here is who I did get. 

Madeline, Ella & Mia

Bestie Prestley

Dreamy Pierce

Super-fly Levi

(who, we're told, specifically dressed up for Charlotte - and calls her on his cell phone)

(You can also see Aunt Crystal, and C's cousins Joshua and Samantha in the background)

Wild and crazy Dealey

Maggie and her baby brother (and her parents, too!)

Miss Tiffany (and half of Mia, in this picture)

The Outfit

Miss Nicole and Mommy worked together to make this special birthday shirt for Charlotte.  Her little chucks were the perfect accessory.

Opening gifts...

 

The Cake

I might be the meanest mom in the whole world, but up until today - Charlotte has had no dessert.  No cake, no cookies, no pies, no ice cream, nothing.  My thought being that her tiny little tummy only had so much space, and nutrition is vital for an itty bitty growing and developing so quickly, so she didn't need it.  Now that her birthday has happened, though - all bets are off.  She really wasn't terribly enthusiastic about it... but she did finish it.

The Next Day...

Christy made Charlotte a second cake, specifically for some "smash cake" shots.  Unfortunately, I didn't think ahead enough and all I had for set up was a sheet - but we made it work.  Again, she wasn't terribly enthusiastic... she was more about crawling away.  I also didn't think about a diaper cover - but hey!  She's at least wearing the real turquoise bracelet that her Auntie Mir brought her from New Mexico.  

Some of these aren't as sharp as they should be - but please keep in mind, I was getting cake all over me during this, too.  Her daddy and I had to pick her up and put her back in place every 45 seconds so that she wouldn't track orange buttercream icing throughout the house.