Ava's "You Are My Sunshine" 1st Birthday Party

"Keep your face always toward the sunshine and shadows will fall behind you."
(Walt Whitman)

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine.

You make me happy when skies are grey.

You'll never know, dear, how much I love you.

Please don't take my sunshine away.

Happy new year! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and holiday season. We're about a week into 2016, and just a few days ago I received the photos from Ava's dol or doljanchi (Korean 1st birthday celebration), which took place on Saturday, November 14, 2015 in Central NJ. My husband and I didn't take our own pictures, partly because we were so busy, but also because we had a photographer, so right after the day came and went there truly wasn't much to show for it. Below, I'm finally sharing photos; I hope you like them! There were many cute shots of kids playing at the party too, which I will probably post more of on my personal Facebook.

I chose a "You Are My Sunshine" theme for Ava's 1st birthday party, because we've always sang that song to her before her naps and bedtime, and I wanted it to have a child-like tone, with a cute and cheerful look and feel. Also, since it was a DIY event that I planned and executed, I didn't want to attempt anything too fancy or lady-like. The colors were pink and yellow, with some white and pink ombré details, and minor touches of grey. Ava wore a Marmellata Classics pale yellow lace dress with yellow rosette detail, and a pink and yellow floral crown headband I made, for the first half of the party; and a pink and light yellow hanbok (traditional Korean dress, with matching headpiece), with multicolored striped sleeves and butterfly appliqués for the traditional aspects of the dol. I wore a berry-hued Catherine Malandrino dress with shoulder cut-out and twist drape detail, and Sam wore a light grey suit, blue and white striped shirt, and pink patterned tie.

We held the party at Pierre's of South Brunswick, an event venue and catering hall near our current home. It took place in the early afternoon, so we served lunch -- rigatoni vodka, farfalle with chicken alfredo, eggplant parmesan, and chicken marsala, with salad and rolls -- as well as beverages, including wine and beer, and of course birthday cake. We also had dduk (Korean rice cakes), and I made Fruity Pebbles treats and Golden Oreo pops with birthday cake filling.

Aside from the guest tables and food and drink tables, we had 4 additional table set-ups: 1) the welcome table, 2) the dolsang (traditional birthday table), 3) the doljabi table (doljabi is a fun custom where the baby is presented with various objects, and whichever one is chosen symbolically represent his or her future), and 4) the sweets table. More details on all of this below.

All images by Mark Chaird of Chaird|Photo, except for the invitation by AbbyReeseDesign.

Some highlights, including the "Soak Up Our Sunshine * Ava is One"-labeled white sunglasses

Us with my parents, sister, nephew, and niece

Ava's so sunshine-y, we need to wear shades!

Dolsang (Traditional Birthday Table)

The main table for Ava's dol consisted of a long table, with a small table placed in front of it for additional surface area. I used a backdrop stand to hang sheer yellow, white, and pink panels (the pink was ruffled), and hung a "happy birthday" banner -- with a photo of Ava wearing the outfit that her cousin Ellie wore over 2 years ago at her 1st birthday party -- across the panels, and Ava's hanbok on the side. I kept the larger table simple, with the tiered pink ombré and yellow flowers cake elevated in the center, and flanked by a painted wooden name sign I made; framed "You are my sunshine" and "You make me happy when skies are grey" prints; tiered servers holding dduk and Fruity Pebbles treats; and shorter then taller flower arrangements I made with faux flowers and fruits in clear glass hurricane vases. The smaller table displayed the doljabi items -- bow and arrow, thread, medallion, pouch, brush, and scrolls -- dduk cake, and dol goim (pillars or towers) -- with chuk dol (happy 1st birthday), a baby horse to symbolize Ava being born in the year of the horse, and Yejin, her Korean name -- which I also made. It was important to me to include traditional Korean elements -- such as the rice cakes, fruit, doljabi items, dol towers, and hanbok -- not only in the party overall, but also in the main table.

Dolsang with lots of yellow, pink ombré, white, and traditional Korean elements

Rice cakes and Fruity Pebbles treats (because there wasn't enough dduk to fill the servers)

Yellow and pink ombré painted wooden sign with white flowers

Little guests checking out the dolsang

Doljabi items and dduk cake

Dol towers, handmade with black and white beans, yellow and pink felt, and bright pink flowers

Ava's lovely little hanbok

Centerpieces

Thank goodness for my MIL, who helped me put together the guest table centerpieces on the night, as well as immediately, before the party. I used white hydrangea, yellow poms, light pink spray roses, and pink alstroemeria, and arranged them in pint-sized mason jars fitted with flower frog lids. I used pink ombré paper lanterns to hold the arrangements, and hidden inside were wooden chopsticks which kept the paper lanterns from falling down. Unfortunately, I forgot to split the stems of the hydrangea, so they were already wilting during the party. I also didn't have enough flowers to make full arrangements, so each centerpiece definitely had a front and a back. But for a last minute, money-saving DIY project, I was happy with how the centerpieces turned out.

Yellow, pink, and white flowers in pink ombré paper lanterns

Welcome Table

The welcome table was decorated with a pale pink paper parasol, various light pink, bright pink, and yellow chevron paper lanterns, a yellow pom pom garland, and a silver "welcome" banner. The right side of the table was closest to the entrance of the room, so the first thing that guests saw was the basket of white sunglasses, and the sign that stated, "Please take a pair of sunglasses and get ready to soak up our sunshine!" Next to that was a chalkboard-style poster with highlights of Ava's 1st year, a collage of monthly photos, and a collage of "the many faces of Ava," including happy, sleepy, cranky, giggly, messy, ornery, silly, surprised, and perfect.

Welcome table

Doljabi Table

The doljabi table was decorated with a pale pink parasol, various light pink, bright pink, and yellow chevron lanterns, a yellow pom pom garland, and a silver "doljabi" banner. It held 7 mason jars for each doljabi item, handmade flower pens and tags, and a "little pail of sunshine" prize for the winner of the simple raffle. The pail was chock-full of cheerful yellow/lemony/sunshine-y goodies, including cookies, candy, and sprinkles. Our little buddy Noah won!

Doljabi table

Doljabi raffle instructions

Handmade flower pens and tags

Mason jars to hold tags with guesses

Doljabi Event

The doljabi, when the baby chooses an item that is said to influence his or her future, is the main event at most Korean 1st birthday parties. Suprisingly, Ava didn't aggressively reach for any of the items, which were randomly placed on the traditional floor mat; the kids surrounding us were much more excited than she was! The first thing she eventually picked up was the bow and arrow set, which symbolizes a warrior's courage and strength -- very fitting for our little Katniss Everdeen's personality. She also went for the thread and the brush, which symbolize long life and being artistic.

So hard to move in a hanbok, and the headpiece kept falling over her eyes

This was after the bow and arrow, when she went for the thread

Smiling up at Daddy

Cake Cutting

Ava's birthday cake was a 3-tiered pink ombré buttercream-frosted one, decorated with yellow icing flowers, and embellished by me with a yellow glittered "You are my sunshine" pick, yellow "1" candle, and handpainted wooden peg doll of Ava in her hanbok (to add to the bride and groom cake toppers I made for our wedding, which I used here to cover up a frosting-stained spot on the white tablecloth). The cake flavor was half-vanilla/half-chocolate, with a strawberry cream filling. Pierre's bakery did a great job.

Family photo

Ava did well with the photography, or maybe our photographer was just able to share good shots!

A taste of frosting

Cake toppers

Full cake with our wedding toppers to the side

We're just warming up this spot on the table (actually, covering up a pink frosting stain!)

More Adorableness

Ava's cousins Christina, Ellie, Peter, Isaiah, and Micah had their own mini photo shoot using their white sunglasses as props, and I love how the shots turned out! (We tried including Ava but she just sat there wailing.) Also, my friend Brian kindly offered up his balloon-making services, which of course the kids loved.

Peace!

How cute is little Micah on the right?

Mesmerized by Brian's balloon skills

Sweets Table

The sweets table was decorated with a pale pink parasol, various light pink, bright pink, and yellow chevron lanterns, a yellow pom pom garland, and a silver "sweets" banner. As I mentioned above, I made Fruity Pebbles treats, which I dipped in melted yellow and pink candy, and I also made Oreo pops using Golden Oreos with birthday cake filling, which I dipped in melted white candy and drizzled with yellow and pink icing. Finally, I wrapped large Hershey chocolate bars with paper that coordinated with Ava's invitation, birthday banner, and favor tags.

Sweets table

Golden Oreo pops

Thank you sign

Thanks to all for sharing in Ava's 1st birthday, whether in person or by catching up on the blog! If I can get around to it, I may do a more detailed post on the items I made, as I've already received requests for instructions. There are so many Ava updates I had thought I would be posting over the last year, but it has been beyond challenging to keep up ever since Ava actually came to town -- I don't know what I was thinking, or how other people do it -- and even this update has been difficult to finish! Ava is already almost 14 months old, and her baby days are starting to be behind her. Yesterday, I was doing some organizing around the house, and I decided that I was officially done pumping. Even though I rarely pump, and am still nursing, it felt nice to put those pump parts away!

I don't usually make new year's resolutions, but one of my existing and long-term goals continues to be to take time to, in the words of Becky Higgins, cultivate a good life and record it. Besides serving as a much-welcome creative outlet for me, I want to document our life for posterity. 

Finally, here are some fun facts having to do with Ava's birthday, November 12, 2014, according to 1happybirthday.com:

• She was born on a Wednesday.
• She is a Scorpio, and Asian year of the horse.
• Her birth flower is the chrysanthemum, which symbolizes cheerfulness, friendship, and abundance. Hello, sunshine!
• Her birthstone is citrine (or topaz). Also sunny!
• The estimated population growth in the world during her lifetime is 146,351,959 people.
• The Billboard top songs at the beginning of her birth year were "Dark Horse" by Katy Perry (pop), "Happy" by Pharrell Williams (hip hop/blues), and "Stay" by Florida Georgia Line (country).
• The Billboard top songs at the end of the year she was born were "All of Me" by John Legend (pop), "Happy" by Pharrell Williams (hip hop/blues), and "This is How We Roll" by Florida Georgia Line (country). 
• The winners of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 were Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi. Malala Yousafzai also had the best selling nonfiction book in the US, I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban. 

Please feel free to comment below or let me know if there is anything specific you would like more information on, and best wishes for the new year!

{Ava's party dress: Marmellata Classics / Ava's floral crown headband: Handmade with supplies from PrettyInPinkSupply via Etsy / Ava's hanbok: Gift from Korea / Invitation, sunshine printables & chalkboard poster: AbbyReeseDesign via Etsy / Personalized sunglasses: Beau-coup / Pink baskets: Michaels / Small stand frames: Michaels / Parasols, paper lanterns & pom pom garlands: Beau-coup / Backdrop stand: Fancier Studio / Sheer panels: Amazon /  Faux flowers: Michaels / Faux fruit: Amazon / Glass hurricane vases: Libbey / Tiered servers: Crate & Barrel / Dduk: Yedang / Wooden name sign: Handpainted and assembled with supplies from Michaels / Wooden peg doll: Handpainted with supplies from GooseGreaseUndone via Etsy / "You Are My Sunshine" cake topper: ConfettiCrownDesign via Etsy / "1" candle: Target / Doljabi items: Rented from EventAccessoriesByMJ via Etsy/ Paper tags: Amazon / Flower & ribbon embellishments: Michaels / Flowers for centerpieces: ShopRite of North Brunswick / Mason jars & flower frog lid inserts: Ball Canning / Photography: Chaird|Photo / Venue, cake & catering: Pierre's of South Brunswick}