I Would Like to Introduce........

my first ever guest blogger; Jenn from Blonde Ambition!!! I was so honored when she accepted my invite to be a guest blogger; not only do I think she is beautiful & amazing but her twin boys are the cutest ever. So with out further a due.....here she is!!

I am honored to be guest-blogging for my friend, Mitzi!

Sweet Mitzi left the topic up to me which was pretty cool, but then I began to think about what I wanted to share. I decided to blog about something that has been on my mind a LOT lately...

It's rapidly approaching. It has been the reason for my many hours of internet-browsing. It's the source of cupcake-baking trial and errors and careful menu planning. What am I talking about? My boys' first birthday party (in JUNE!). Apparently, I am more neurotic than I ever thought possible to be planning their party so far in advance.

I never thought I would make such a big deal over invitations and hunting for party favors suitable for one-year-olds. What has parenthood driven me to?! I have to admit: before I had my boys, I swore up and down that I'd never make a big deal over their first birthday, simply because they won't remember it. But, as time went on, I quickly realized that I would miss having a big celebration. The boys deserve it and, if I’m being completely honest, so do we! After all, it's the parents who have spent the past year doing middle-of-the-night feedings, countless diaper changes and more laundry than I could have ever imagined (seriously, it's insane).

First up was picking a theme. People automatically think of the twin 'pea in a pod' theme, so naturally, I wanted to avoid that like the plague. I wanted the boys to have something a little different, so we are with Ocean ONEderland. Clever, no? This is about when my lack of control started spiraling out of control, much to my husband's dismay. Do you have any idea how many adorable fish-themed party stuff is out there? After buying $85 worth of party favors, I decided that I need to calm down a bit. This was literally just for some party favors for our little guests. That's a bit crazy!

Invitations were next and thankfully, there are loads of Etsy sellers who are far more crafty than I at designing an invitation. It's just one less thing that I need to worry about. Speaking of invitations, I haven't mentioned the guest list. Just counting immediate family & close friends, there's 60 people. I live in a row home in Philadelphia -- it isn't like I live on a huge estate with acres of land suitable for party tents & ample space for the children to run free. Space is tight in the city!

Honestly, I could go on and on about this. I don't know when I turned into this wannabe party-planner on speed, but I'm in full swing, ladies & gentlemen. I know that I’m not the only one out there in blog-land who has gone to great lengths to make their child's first birthday celebration one to remember (for you, obviously!), so I'd love to hear what you did to make it special for your little one(s). If you kept it low-key, I would love to hear about that too!