DIY Monkey Themed First Birthday

My oldest son is about to finish Grade Primary, and today I was thinking about his first birthday {which I loved!}.  I hosted the party before I had the blog, so today, I am sharing the fun elements of his {simple} Monkey themed first birthday party.

The color scheme was yellow... and we decorated with things that were "Monkey" related.

I made monkey bibs for the guests, and the snacks were "baby-friendly" (bananas, Cheerios, and Mum Mum crackers).

I made a simple monkey cake... a round cake and two cupcake ears.  No special cake decorating skills required, and the guest of honor loved it!

Cute, eh???

Here are 5 easy party planning tips that will help you plan a successful DIY birthday party:

1) Pick a theme. Decorations can revolve around a character, an activity or a color. Just make sure there is something to bring everything together.  (For the monkey party, the focus was "monkeys" and the color yellow.)

2) Make every guest feel part of the celebration. One way to do this is to give everyone a loot bag or small gift.  (We gave out stuffed monkeys at this party, but here are some other unique loot bag ideas.)

3) Add a personal touch. Bake a special cake, craft your own decorations, or cook your signature dish to serve to your guests.  (The handmade monkey bibs and adorable monkey cake were big hits with our baby guests and their parents.)

4) Plan activities that everyone can participate in. Rent a karaoke machine, play board games, decorate cupcakes, or do a craft. Do something that keeps your guests entertained and together in one room. (Helium balloons and snacks seem to keep our one year old guest entertained... such an easy-to-please audience.  :-)

5) Make your event memorable. Take lots of pictures, and send copies to everyone that attended. Your loved ones and guests will appreciate the opportunity to re-live the memories.

♥

Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

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