McClain's One Year Monster Bash!

You guys. I am still thinking about all the fun we had last weekend, and currently sitting in a still rearranged dining room trying to think of excuses to keep it this way for the rest of the fall at least (or maybe the rest of my life).

An overcast day didn't stop us from celebrating our awesome tiny dude turning one last Saturday! We had a make your own monster hat station, and it was fun seeing the different wacky monsters kids--and adults! came up with. We also played pumpkin tic-tac-toe and pin the glasses on the mummy.

My mom busted out her amazing party chef skills and helped me with monster cookies complete with gummy eyes, monster brain jello salad, as well as some more adult offerings like a brussels sprout and candied pecan salad, and a sun-dried tomato and cheese dip with pumpkin crackers that was TO DIE.

                 

Napkins by For Your Party

Invites by Frills Paper + Goods

                         

We did a banana cake with cream cheese icing, since McClain is such a fan of bananas, and it got rave reviews (I do not consider myself a baker at all but adding sour cream to the cake recipe, plus sticking the cake in the freezer right after taking it out of the oven made for a birthday cake I was actually happy with.)

I was super touched by all who came, including and especially my mom from Texas, dad & bro from Memphis, and friends-since-high-school-and-now-basically-sisters, Mary and Cindi, who drove a total of six hours just to come to the party, then got right back in their car as soon as the party was over. Seriously, how did I get so lucky?!

7 Year Itch

Feeling nostalgic passing the seven years married mark this week. In some ways it feels like just yesterday we were out dancing to Otis Redding's "These Arms of Mine" with all our favorite people, in other ways that day seems like a million years ago! We've moved to New York City and back, survived two apartments and a house, acquired two rescue dogs, started a business together, and made it through the first year of parenthood. I've gotten a number of producer credits under my belt on questionable reality shows, and many more babies have been born to all our friends. These two whippersnappers have no idea what they're in for!

McClain is 5 months (6 months ago...) and 10 months.

I'm horribly behind on organizing all of M's month by month photos. I was pintersnazzing earlier this week, deciding if and how I would display all these photos from the last year for his birthday, when I came to the horrible realization that I don't know where some of the months are currently located--or even if they still exist. I had a pang of guilt that I am not a good mom because I have failed at the baby month by month photos project--an important test for new moms the world over (ok maybe just in America).  I know that this is kind of irrational and not an actual problem, so I am just repeating that to myself as many times as possible. This is really kind of a great metaphor for parenthood though. As a recovering type A personality, I need frequent reminders that as much as I want to plan and have things go a certain way, I am really not in control.

Silver lining: I can really see M's personality shining through at five and ten months--seeing the pictures of him now when he was smaller and thinking "he still makes that face!" makes me feel a little less sad about all the growing he's doing...

I have had to get creative with some of the poses because he won't sit still anymore! I only got a few snaps of him on his back, and the rest of the time he was wiggling and climbing on everything. I got some cool shots out of desperation, which is another great reminder (which I need tattooed on my forehead apparently): stop being so rigid, Lindsey.

1st Birthday Preview

Kids, I'm crawling out of my skin with excitement as I put monster birthday party plans together to celebrate McClain turning one in a couple of weeks! The invitations from Frills Paper arrived this morning and I've been like a little christmas elf all afternoon, stamping and addressing away. I keep thinking about how he wasn't even IN THE WORLD this time last year, and now here he is, jabbering away and toddling around the house. It's one thing that's surprised me about being a parent: that bittersweet feeling that you don't get to hold on to any age for very long before they're growing into someone else.