Holy guacamole, guys. How is my last baby already ONE?! What a year it has been for our family. Many ups and downs but one thing is for sure, we have so much to celebrate and what better excuse than our little girl turning one?

I know she’ll never remember this over-the-top party but party planning is quite therapeutic and I love bringing our loved ones together for a good time so, if you’re looking for the inside scoop on my latest project, look no further!

Lu’s Winter {ONE}derland Birthday Party!

I made gorgeous free digital invites using canva, my mum dug out a bunch of fabric and Christmas decor that she’s thrifted over the years and anything I purchased myself was on sale right after Christmas other than a few food items.Our intention was to spend most of the day outdoors, sledding on our little hill in our back yard, playing in the snow and warming up by the bonfire… but as the day drew closer, lots of snow melted and the temps were quite low so, we made the best of it and realized the kids didn’t need much guidance to have fun!We kept the food pretty simple since we knew the kids would only stop playing lot enough for a snack (cause snacks are life when you’re a kid) and because it was budget friendly to do it this way. we enjoy having some of our favorites at a party like:

• PB&J (shaped like mittens)
• Snowy Popcorn
• Fruit
• Chips, Salsa & Guacamole
• Crockpot Chili (sprinkled with chocolate!)
• Green Pepper Trees
• Blueberry, Banana Cake with Whipped Cream Frosting

My mum and I used lights, fabric and 3D paper snowflakes to make a magical snow castle in the basement for the kids. ✨❄️

At the drink bar, we had cold and hot water dispensers, perfect for tea and hot cocoa with all the fixings! I didn’t want to spend money on insulated paper cups and refuse to buy styrofoam so we used our snack-sized mason jars for the kids and used name tags to keep track of which mug belonged to who. ☕️

My mum picked up these large styrofoam snowflake ornaments and we used them as stencils to paint in the snow using dollar store spray bottles and water mixed with food coloring! 🎨 ❄️

Even though we lost a lot of snow right before party day, we still got in some sliding on our little hill in the backyard {hint: spray the bottom of your sleds with cooking spray – thanks Nanny!} 🛷

After playing in the snow and huddling around the bonfire, we came inside to warm up with some cocoa, watch Lu dive into her first cake and play “pin the nose on Frosty” ⛄️

Throwing a gorgeous party on a tight budget is always a fun challenge for me. It’s a great project to pour my creative energy into and life hasn’t exactly been a “walk in the park” lately so it was also incredibly uplifting and overall, such a wonderful time for everyone. Plus, our house is never more clean than when we host a party so, maybe we’ll start finding other reasons to celebrate, too! 🤣👌🏼

Happy Birthday my little Lu, there is no one like you little lady. ❤️

Xoxo,

Mum

Pssst! Got questions? Want to pick my brain about DIY crafts, what NOT to spend money on or anything else? Drop us a commentbelow!