Bouncy 1st Birthday Party Ideas for Baby

Party Theme for a First Birthday

Your baby's first birthday is approaching. We all get only one first birthday, so we want to make the occasion special and memorable.

By the time baby's grown up and thinking of starting his own family, it's nice to have a permanent family record of this one and singular event. Here are some tips on 1st birthday party ideas that make the most of your future cherished memories.

Location for the Party

Think about where you'd like to have this birthday party. If the weather is nice, an outdoor location, in your backyard or at the park, gives you so many photo opportunities with nature as the backdrop. A visit to a farm animal zoo also provides lots of cute picture possibilities for that important 1st birthday party.

Ideas for great locations are, of course dependent on your locale, but it's certain there are tons of great places you can hold this glorious celebration. In inclement weather, it's just as fine to hold an indoor party. Your imaginative decorations can make terrific backdrops just as well.

Where to Get Supplies

In either case, you'll want to visit a party supply store. These stores have every imaginable theme and accessory you'll need to inspire colorful and creative 1st birthday party ideas. Store clerks can also point out some of the most fabulous items you might overlook, so ask for advice.

Look online as well. If you're short on time, as any mother of a 1 year old is, online shopping saves time and money, as well as sparking your imagination for those really good 1st birthday party ideas. If you find a great decoration that's a bit outside of your budget, consider making something similar at home. Visit craft sites for more inspiration.

Gift Ideas for a First Birthday

As for gifts, try to include a few keepsake items that last, virtually, forever. Gifts such as a silver spoon, an engraved picture frame, little treasure box or the famous bronzed shoes can be handed down when baby's grown with a family of her own. Of course, there will be toys too, but keepsake gifts become more treasured as the years pass.

Don't Forget the Baby Pictures

Another great commemorative 1st birthday party idea is the photo mini-album. Parents are known to take plenty of pictures! When you've developed all of the pictures of this joyful party, choose the five – or ten – cutest pictures.

Get a mini photo album for every family member and friend in attendance and make sure everyone gets a copy. Alternatively, you can also burn your photos on to a CD, which is a good idea anyway, as a backup. This way, you can quickly and easily share the occasion with relatives and friends across the country.

Also be sure that one copy of your mini photo album and a CD is preserved for baby in later years. Just squirrel it away for now. Your baby's future wife or husband, as well as your grandchildren, will be thrilled to have this ultimate keepsake.

First Birthday Cake

Now for the birthday cake. A cake topped with whipping cream and filled with ice cream provides some of the cutest 1st birthday party photos you'll ever find. A one year old with such an inviting 'meal' right in front of them, isn't going to be looking for a fork.

It's going to be finger food. We had such a cake for our daughter's first birthday and she was so enthralled, she decided to plunge her face onto the cake for a close up and personal look! We captured that moment with a camcorder. It's priceless.

She first looked over this amazing meal, looked up and smiled and then tried to kiss the cake! When her face encountered whipped cream and a bit of chocolate, she looked up in utter surprise. However, she recovered quickly and used her fingers to clean her face in a taste-as-you-go operation. Cute, cute, cute!

First Birthday Party Themes

A theme that more fully expresses the meaning of this 1st birthday can make the occasion more meaningful to your child as he or she grows up. Let's take a look at some examples to illustrate.

Many babies have favorite objects in the nursery, such as a big, soft turtle toy. Perhaps it's the color or texture, but for whatever reason, baby loves that big sot guy. Such favorites may be loved and dragged around for years.

In any case, your child will have happy memories associated with that toy, even into the teenage years. Here, maybe a theme of turtles would be the way to go for your 1st birthday party theme. A turtle shaped cake, in the colors of the real guy, won't be forgotten. Visit a party supply store for turtle theme decorations

See What Baby Likes - Then Decide Your Theme

Here's another example. You've decorated the ceiling of baby's room with those stickers of stars and planets that glow in the dark. If baby giggles, smiles expressing delight when the lights go out, you've got another terrific 1st birthday party theme idea.

Make your streamers out of strings of gold stars. Stick some of the glow in the dark stars on the tablecloth. So, the idea is just to think along the lines of creating some good memories.

While baby is not going to understand the significance of gifts, you still want to have some fun stuff to play with, in addition to some meaningful mementos, marking the birth year of your sweet little one.

Remember, It's a 1st Birthday Party

Another idea is to choose gifts that are age appropriate that baby will get a kick out of, such as mobiles, fuzzy cuddly stuffed animals, and talking ones. Go crazy with streamers, festive and abundant decorations and a large cake. These elements of the party make for great photos. Your child will later appreciate knowing how much she's meant to you for all these years.

Along with fun-today toys, this momentous occasion deserves a few memento style gifts. Many parents want to memorialize this 1st birthday mainly in photos, but there's no reason to confine yourself here.

Just as sweet 16 birthday parties often include coming of age gifts such as sweet 16 pendant or charm bracelet, your 'custom' 1st birthday party theme creates loving memories. Your baby will certainly enjoy these mementos as he or she gets older.

The Religious Theme

Ideas for mementos might include a personal copy of your family religious texts, with places in which to write in dates of events of religious significance, such as confirmation, a bar mitzvah or baptism. Christmas ornaments of baby's birth year can become a family tradition.

You can have ornaments inscribed with your baby's name as well. Music boxes and snow globes usually remain treasured items right into adulthood.

You Know Your Baby - Make His or Her First Birthday Special

You've spent so many hours, holding, cuddling and kissing that baby, no one knows your child's delights better than you. Create a 1st birthday party theme suited just to your unique little bundle of joy. Both parents and child will have richer memories as a result!

Remember, the best 1st birthday party ideas come from you! Photographic evidence is the key to those treasured memories! Now, get out the cake and camera.