It's My Baby's Party and I'll Faint if I Want To

So I didn't faint at the party, but doing so several hours beforehand was enough to cast a shadow over the day. I was in the bathroom and suddenly felt extremely hot and nauseous. The next thing I knew, I was laying in my shower, battered and bloodied. Even three days later, my nose is bruised, my lip swollen and sore, my neck aching. I didn't go to urgent care on Saturday, despite a deep laceration on the inside of my lip, because I would have missed Clare's party. By Sunday, it was too late for stitches, so I am just waiting for it to (painfully) heal.  Injuries aside, I am fine. The doctor thinks my blood pressure dropped suddenly, and this is not the first time I've fainted. The result was that I was slightly out of it at Clare's party. However, Clare had a blast, and all of the friends and family that came to see her were thoroughly entertained by her antics. And that's what matters, right?

We had a cookout at my parents' house, complete with presents and cake. What more could a birthday girl ask for?

The decorations:

I made a poster with all of Clare's monthly photos from this blog.

I went for a butterfly theme. I even made party favors - clothespins with butterfly stickers, holding pictures of Clare.

The presents:

Clare got lots of great presents: toys, puzzles, books, a Big Bird doll, a family photo album complete with pictures - and this doll, knitted by my friends Christina and Amanda. Clare loved it. She is also getting an armchair with her name on it from her grandparents - it is purple with white polka dots. I can't wait to see it.

Here are her gifts from Mom and Dad. I knitted the koala. (Yes, that is supposed to be a koala bear.)

The cake:

No, I didn't make this. It was delicious, though: chocolate and vanilla with a chocolate mousse filling. Clare's "smash cake" was just vanilla.

Singing to the birthday girl. She wanted to grab the flame desperately.

What. Is. This?

Oh. It is good. Soooo goooood.

Do you want some, Mom?

Clare loved the cake. I had to take it away from her so she wouldn't eat the whole thing and get a stomachache. After cake, she spent the next several hours crawling around to each guest, shrieking with joy. At one point I came into the room, and she practically spun around in her glee at seeing me. Then she crawled towards me, shrieking. That made me feel pretty good.

I had planned to get pictures of Clare with all of her party guests, who included all four grandparents, aunts, uncles, great aunts, an honorary aunt, and some of Mommy's good friends (who live here in town), but that didn't happen. I did, however, get shots of her with two VIPs:

Great-Grandpa Bob and the birthday girl.

Clare with her namesake, Great-Grandma Clara.

I don't know why, but the first birthday just seems like such a big deal! I don't know if we'll do a big party again next year, but I am glad we did this year. It was a special day for all of us!

The after party: