Oh you have a pinata

There is no bigger milestone than a 1st birthday. 

All of the late nights, teething, poop, pee, throwup and crying (by child and parent alike) are wrapped up in a little bow on a pretty present just for junior. 

Here is why we aren't falling for it. 

Deep down there is no reason to celebrate a birthday your child will not remember except for guests to pat you on the back for keeping junior alive for an entire year. This can be especially true if you are a first time parent. 

Don't get me wrong, I mean no offense to mommies who went all out for their little one and wanted to throw the big shebang. More power to you mommas. At the end of a year, all a mom (like me) should really do is shove a cupcake in the tots face and grab a glass of wine. A year ago you were wishing for the glass of wine through endless hours of labor. Let's face it, this first birthday isn't about tina or timmy, it's about momma and daddy keeping baby alive and happy. 

Crowds make babies anxious. There is nothing less appealing than showing up at a childs first birthday to find out that the kid is sleep deprived and hyped up on sugar crying her eyes out in the corner. Maybe it didn't happen at your kids party, but it definitly won't happen at ours either. 

I love a good kids party, please don't take this the wrong way. Any party where I don't have to shell out money is a great party. I will gladly show up for free food and a rousing game of pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey. Oh you have a pinata? Move over kid, let me take a whack at that! 

However, any party where I am shelling out money just so my child can see pictures when she is older just doesnt seem like a good one to me. She isn't going to remember anything about being one. Hell, she wont even remember pooping her pants three days from now. Let me just take my money and invest it and the next four birthdays in to her college fund which will actually help her later in life. 

Our Lily is growing fast. She ate a chicken nugget the other day and nearly died of excitement while mom cried softly to herself. Her being able to stand makes us more nervous than a teenage boy asking a girl to a dance.  All we really want to do is cry since she is growing so fast. 

Sorry if this comes as a shock but please don't be disappointed when we don't invite you to our princess' first birthday dinner. A dinner where we will strip her to her cloth diaper and let her hand feed herself green beans and some type of soft meat she can chew. A dinner where we will shove a cupcake in her face and tickle her tummy. A dinner where we will sit with her on the floor afterwards and crawl around pretending to be a cat. We will take pictures and post for all to see but just a dinner is what her first birthday will be. (I intentionally rhymed that)

Besides that, Christmas is 22 days later. The kid will lose her mind with all of the toys and goodies she is going to get! 

Thanks for understanding and being awesome.

-Nystroms and Nugget