The Civic Holiday long weekend was warm, sunny, and perfect for Little Oats’ first birthday party! I chose cupcakes for the theme…mostly because I love cupcakes and there were way too many cute theme ideas to pass up. When she’s older, she can have a say in her parties. For now, I choose!


Since the party was in the afternoon, I knew I could get away with just serving snack-y foods. Cue cupcakes (in mocha, Snickerdoodle, strawberry lemon and Oreo), caramel apple dip, confetti sugar cookies, veggies (to pretend we’re healthy), and two big vats of iced coffee and pink lemonade. A party in the Oatmeal house really is all about the food.

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I had made a few posters and decorations to place around the backyard, and all of the other items (paper plates, ribbon, tablecloth) were from the dollar store. My collection of mason jars came in handy to go along with the striped straws I ordered…is there anything cuter than a paper straw in a mason jar on a hot day?

We didn’t plan any activities; the party was in our backyard, so the kids could swim. We had about 20 people stop in, and it was great for some of them to meet Little Oats for the first time. Though we requested no gifts, everyone brought something…and Little Oats was thrilled to be the centre of attention.

All in all, it was a fantastic day. My almost-one-year-old ate too much sugar, was spoiled rotten, and had an absolute blast. We had about 2 dozen cupcakes left over, but I managed to find them a good home with some partygoers. I’m sure in the years to come, birthday parties will be more about the activities and friends from school…but for now, I’m thrilled that we could celebrate with family, close friends, and a ton of food.