The First Birthday "party"

Air quotes on party because yes, it wasn’t a real party. It was a fabulous Italian feast with all the people Capri knows and loves, aka family and very close friends. I was back and forth on the whole thing pretty much since before she was even born because believe it or not, everyone and their mama (including mine) wanted to know what my plan was for her first birthday. I mean, I can’t make this shit up – people literally want to know! I entertained the thought of a party for about 1 hour before realizing that if I opened it up to that, then I would be hosting / entertaining 75-ish people and that is certainly NOT how I wanted to spend Capri’s first birthday. It’s a day about her, not others, not me, not my abilities to throw an extravaganza (because lbh, we all know I am fully capable of that). Capri turning one was a big deal so it deserved to be celebrated, but I knew the way to do it so SHE was happy.

I’m pretty proud of my plan – 2:00PM Italian lunch at our house. Simple, delicious, chill. I wanted her to wake up from her good nap and people already be here so I’m not running around with my head cut off trying to greet everyone while also juggling a baby. And that’s exactly how it went – she woke up close to 3:00PM and people were already settled in, eating, drinking, chatting and then Lil Limoncello made her grand entrance.

She was happy the entire day. I literally could not have asked for a better mood out of a baby on her first birthday. Do I dare say she may have even known it was her birthday??? Yeah, no lol. But she did love the attention.

Okay, so the details. Honestly, hosting 20 people for lunch was so much more manageable and doable that I’m not sure why I don’t do this more often. I got to do all the cute things I would have done for a larger party but on a smaller scale. I can’t even lie though, my days of crafting and DIY everything are long gone. I no longer have the patience or time and to be perfectly honest, I’ve accepted the fact that other people just do it better. I now have a rolodex of people I love and trust for certain party elements and so of course I enlisted the help of some professionals to bring my vision to life.

The vibe was a summer afternoon in Capri – delicious homemade Italian food, sprîtz, limoncello, lots of lemons, yummy desserts, and good times. I made sure there was enough space for everyone to sit and enjoy their meal because at this age there is nothing worse than standing and eating at a party, am I right?! Since it was an intimate group of people everyone was well-acquainted, which makes my life as the hostess much easier. No small talk necessary, you know?

Here are images of all the beautiful details. Below I’ve listed out all the vendors I used to make this party happen. I’ve worked with most of them on multiple events and each one is extremely talented and lovely to work with.

Special thank you to the following vendors for making this party so special and beautiful!

+ Chef Greg & The Goods – Homemade Italian feast, custom menu, and top notch service.

+ Party Shop Avenue – the mastermind behind the balloon arches I’ve done at my parties

+ Golden Green Studio – beautiful florals for every single occasion.

+ Bacio di Latte – authentic Italian gelato.

+ Bella Bakes – personalized macarons that are just as yummy as they are pretty.

+ Cookies by Heather – custom perfection in form of a cookie.

+ Sweet E’s Bakeshop – the yummiest cake pops I’ve ever had!

+ Gypset Jessie – for the homemade smash cake

+ Annie Vardi – for my beautiful “adult cake.”

+ Ofer Vardi – made the dessert cart, which has come in super handy for multiple events.

+ Felicia Lasala – gorgeous photography.