Happy “Green” Birthday Party for my Happy Green Baby

My baby is one!  It is hard to believe an entire year has passed.  This past Sunday we had a big birthday bash for Connor at my dad’s house.  He sure does have a big fan base   We probably had 60 people there, including kids and babies.  And boy, there were lots of babies!  I didn’t know I had so much family/friends with new babies until I saw them all in one room together.  I think everyone enjoyed themselves,  as it was a pretty low key party, other than the large crowd.  I served lunch to everyone and cake of course.  Luckily I had some family bring some h’orderves and sides, so we had plenty to eat.  I went with a vegetarian menu, mainly to lessen the expense.  Since I only eat meat from a local farm, it can get pricey to buy for a big party.

The menu was:
2 butternut squah lasagnas
1 macaroni and cheese
1 big carrot cake
1 Connor carrot cake with no sugar added

People brought:
Salads
Quiche
Spanikopia
Lentil and hummus dip
Cheese and cracker plate
Fruit salad

Connor fell asleep mid party, people were getting ready to leave and I decided that we’d sing and do cake before people left.  All of the sudden, as my brother-in-law was holding him in his arms, his eyes closed and he was passed out.  The little guy had been going non-stop all morning and needed a break.  Someone put him down on a blanket on the floor and he slept while the party went on.  We had to postpone the cake and singing Happy Birthday until after his nap.  Some people left, but it was okay, Connor needed his rest.  When family and friends were done grazing on the food we had out, I decided it was time to take out the cake.  I made a delicious carrot cake (recipe from epicurious.com, but I added raisins), and it was a big hit!  The cake was a double layer sheet cake (12×9) and was gone in no time.  Just after cake was served Connor decided to wake up.  As soon as he got up I put him in his highchair and we all sang “Happy Birthday” to him.  I’m sure he had to no idea what was going on and was still half asleep, but it was still fun for everyone to watch.  I cut him a big piece of his cake and he picked at it a little, with hardly any interest.

Connor’s sugar-free Carrot Birthday Cake (from www.wholsomebabyfood.com):

Cake (modified to my liking):
2 1/2 cups thinly sliced carrots
2 1/2 cups apple sauce and water mixture (1/2 and 1/2)
1 1/2 cups raisins
2 cups whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 whole eggs
4 egg whites
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup wheat germ
2 Tbsp low sodium baking powder
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon

1 (8 ounce) package cream
cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 banana
1/8 cup (or less) of pure maple syrup

Once the guests began to leave the few stragglers wanted Connor to open his gifts.  He didn’t have many gifts, I asked for no gifts on the invitation.  I really don’t believe that Connor needs any more than what we already have for him at home and I didn’t want people to give him a ton of plastic toys.  A few family members asked if they could donate to a charity in Connor’s name or contribute to his college fund.  So, it worked out nicely, he got a few outfits, a few toys and a few gave money to his college fund.  Overall the party was a success.  Everyone told me that they really enjoyed themselves.  The party was also successfully as “green” as I could make it.  I sent the invitation by e-mail, served all organic food, make everything from scratch, all food was vegetarian, we had no disposable dishware and very few gifts.

A bonus is having the cake I made for Connor left over, even though it wasn’t a big hit on the day of his party, he has been loving it as a leftover (I’ve even been enjoying it!).  It is also guilt-free, meaning since there is no sugar I don’t feel like a bad mom for giving it to him for breakfast or even dinner!

I think for his second birthday we’ll have to do a kid only birthday party.  We have such big families and it is so hard to fit everyone.  Would you believe we even had about 20 or so people that couldn’t make it?

Tagged as: 1st birthday cake, carrot cake, no gifts, no plastic toys, no toys, organic menu, sugar free birthday cake, vegetarian, wholesomebabyfood

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