Quino Turned Uno!

Two weeks had passed since my little boy turned 1. I badly want to create a blog entry but since Quino has learned to walk, but looking after him now takes a lot of my time. Add to that, I've been busy with my spanish class so the only thing I can put aside is my blog. Anyway, I'm back and I want to share my baby's first birthday.

June 17 was the day Quino turned one! Time flies os fast!I was looking forward to this day since like every mom, I want to celebrate every milestone in my son's life. We had a race car party at Max Restaurant for 60 people (plus less than 20 kids). This is just what we wanted - simple and intimate.

As usual, while planning this party, I had a lot of those "I want" moments. (Un)fortunately for me, my husband kept me grounded and would frequently point out what he feels like the essentials. So what's a mommy to do? Oh yes! DIY!! It started on our wedding and from then, I enjoyed planning and doing a few Do It Yourself projects. I regard myself now as a crafty momma. The picture below shows the box and tag I made. The scanned invitation, on the other hand, was our idea but the final output was enhanced by the layout artist who printed it for us. I wanted to do a lot of DIY decors that I painstakingly searched online but the husband insists on a budget for P35,000-P40,000 only. Oh well, simplicity is beauty anyway.

When the big day came, we went to the church and ask the priest to bless my baby boy on his birthday. The priest was so fond of Quino since he was smiling a lot and showed his tricks (beautiful eyes, pa-cute, bad small, flying kiss, etc.) I was also relaxed the whole time but still worried that no one will celebrate with us. Afterall, it was also Father's Day so I know the invited kids will celebrate it with their family. Good thing we are blessed with loving friends so the majority of the guests actually came but a couple of invited kids weren't able to join. Anyway, it was fun and surprisingly well organized. The host (provided by Max) seemed experienced enough and obviously handled a lot of parties already. I was also expecting to see the typical loot bags on a paper or plastic bag, but I was surprised again as the bag and the "loots" it selves don't look cheap. Not to mention, their party hats made of rubber material looked cute on kids. Having my son's first birthday here, turned out to be a great decision. I will definitely get them again for future kid's party.

Here's the breakdown our our expenses:

Max Restaurant (60 adults and 20 kids): Php30,000 (round off)

Quino's Attire: Racecar suit (Php1300) and Ferrari Poloshirt (Php250): Php1450

Invitation 25 pieces: Php650

Standee (gift from an officemate) : Php0.00

Giveaways: Ferrari Keychain (Php1400 at 40 pcs) and Foldable Fan (Php210 at 30 pcs): P1610

Box materials: Php345

Lootbags: Sweets and Notepads: Php525

Cake by Sid's Party Favor: Php2600 ===========================================================

TOTAL........... P37,180

So you see, I did stayed within our budget. It was actually less! I don't have anything bad to say about Max Restaurant except that the party started 30 minutes late, other than it is okay. My only regret as usual is my lack of preparation and convincing powers to hubby. I should have insisted on getting a photographer. I had a few names in mind already. My husband is into Photography, but I forbid him to be our official photographer. He said he asked his brother instead to be our photographer. I agreed because he's also into Photography too. The only problem was, he was late. Perhaps he forgot about his role or possibly my husband did not clarify it to him. Nevertheless, I am sure glad DSLR and handy digicams were all over the place. I get to grab pictures in FB from friends. As for the decorations, it was simple but I really want to have an elaborate setup. My son enjoyed the balloons hanging over the place as well as the lights, so it was okay, I guess that will count for something.

Hmm... next time. I'll make sure that my son's next birthday party (planning one his 3rd birthday) will be grand. After all, he'll be able to remember it.