Judechella - Jude's First Birthday Party

You’re only one once, right?! I love a good theme and party planning is my life when I’m not mommin’, so bring on Kidchella!

I had this idea for his first birthday before he was even born and with a name like Jude, it most definitely had to be music themed. I can do a lot, but having 2 kids, running a business, extracurricular activities and the other day to day nuances I knew I need to hire someone to assist. Enter Lia Pickering who owns I Do Details. Her specialty is planning beautiful weddings, but she is a kick-ass planner and I knew I hired the right chick. Plus we grew up in the same small town and have so many mutual friends that hiring her was a given!

Where to start…First I had to determine how many people I would invite and mathematically determine that approximately 40% of your invites confirm yes. So with those stats, I was looking at approximately 80 people including kids (boy was a wrong, but I’ll get to that).

E-vites are the norm, but I wanted to get the excitement started from the invitations. I found Simone on Etsy. She had a template package that I purchased, and it included “VIP Ticket” invitations, wristbands, signs, and so much more! Everything came editable, so I was able to personalize everything. Once everything was done I had it all printed locally and personally mailed out over 100 invitations, each with 2 #JudesKidchella wristbands.

I took my kids to Lowes and bought 2x4’s to have these sign stands made by my handyman.

photo by Courtney Pecorino

When Lia and I first met, I mentioned that I had hired the cutest 7 year old DJ – DJ Sadako! She spins real 80’s Vinyl’s. She was one of the major hits of the party. I mean, how do you go wrong with a 7 year old DJ for Kidchella?!

Other than DJ Sadako, I didn’t have much else planned. This is where Lia and I had a great time coming up with fun activities for both kids and parents. Knowing that this party would be primarily filled with our adult friends, I knew that having genuine Coachella offerings with a kid spin was the way to go. I didn’t want the traditional balloon animal artist, magician, etc., but something unique to the theme. Lia suggested a cartoonist, and let me tell you, he was such a hit! We extended him from 2 hours to 4 hours!

The braid bar is also a big hit at Coachella and my bestie Jessica referred 2 of her Coachella braiders for the party. I think the kids really loved it!

When Lia showed me The Candid Ham’s Instagram, I instantly knew I needed this photobooth. But the way my house is set up you can’t get the trailer in the backyard and I was so disappointed. Thank goodness Lia has done this a few times because she recommended that we have it when people arrive, it would be the first thing they do before going up the stairs and into the house. It was great and one of my favorite additions to the party!

Upon entering the house, everyone was greeted by twirl cotton candy and their adorable vintage cart! Our guests were able to choose between Mango (the hands down winner) or bubble gum cotton candy.

Once I realized my mathematical assumption on RSVP’s was way off (turns out everyone wanted to be at this party! Lol) at nearly 150 RSVP’s I decided to hire a airbrush artist to give the kids fake tattoos and face painting!

Bring on the Cake and Balloons!

Showboy Bake Shop, can literally do no wrong! They are my go to and never disappoint!

I got the adorable cupcake Ferris wheel holder on Amazon

I thought he would freak when everyone was signing Happy Birthday, but I think he might have liked the attention! I made my daughter Sloan’s first birthday cake, so I did the same for him. Definitely not as pretty as Showboy’s but it tasted good!

I’ve always wanted really cool balloon art, but it’s always sooooooo expensive. Luckily Lia found Post Worthy Events and it just so happens that I’ve known her for over 10 years. She recently started this business and she’s beyond talented and within in reasonable price points!

As the party came to a end, I knew that I didn’t want to do the regular “thanks for coming” goody bags, so we hired Street Freeze Ice Cream truck. They have all the old school ice creams that we all remember as kids!