First Birthday Party

Some people around here (think a certain three year old) could barely contain their excitement for the party.  It may have had something to do with the promise of cupcakes.  Yes, folks, it's with great sadness that I must reveal that I've discovered I will never be a famous cake baker.  My cakes tend to have a bit of a lean to them.  Well, that and a giant fault line running down the middle...  Coupled with the fact that I don't have the patience for doing fancy stuff with the icing... So cupcakes it will be.  But, I digress...

Cora was the mastermind behind the flavor combination.  She told me she was certain Carys would want strawberry cupcakes with white frosting.  Or maybe she just picked the pink cake.  Either way, strawberry it was!

Carys didn't really dive into her cake as we were hoping.  In fact, Yiayia had to force Carys' hand into her mouth so she would even take a taste.  Even after that, she wasn't as enthusiastic as you would expect.  Carys had a bit of an air of boredom and indignation at the sticky fingers.  (Truly, I don't know where these kids came from...one doesn't like ice cream and the other doesn't like cake...I didn't even know that was possible!)

Cora, on the other hand, knew exactly what to do with the cupcake!

We opened presents next.  On a whim, I decided to let Cora pick out a present for Sissy.  We found this neat little ball with a monkey that rolls around and makes funny noises.  It was a bit of a mistake for me to let Cora pick it out in early December.  I spent the rest of the month fielding the question, "When does Carysita get to play with her monkey ball?!"  Apparently, Cora has great taste in baby toys, though, because the ball was a big hit.

Yiayia and Dado came up to celebrate with us.  And, they bought Carys her very own cell phone.  (If only this phone would make her lose interest in my phone!)  She also got some cute outfits and shoes.

She got a few other presents of course: a camera, a plastic hammer (she has an affinity for banging and beating things), a little piano, and a stuffed elephant.  All in all, it was a great celebration with our family.  We are so very thankful for Carys.  She is my favorite Christmas gift!

As a little sidenote:  I am curious to know your thoughts about Christmas birthdays.  I definitely enjoyed this celebration.  The first year is a momentous year.  But, I am toying with the idea of celebrating her on her half-birthday.  It was difficult for me to shop for her and to also give relatives ideas for both birthday and Christmas gifts.  I feel like she ends up getting short-changed (by me).  But, I also don't want to take away any of the special-ness (is that a word?!) of her actual birthday. Any Christmas time babies out there care to share thoughts?