Baby - Dol - First Birthday

Kale's First Birthday | by Sally Shin

By: Sally Shin of Harvest Event and Design Coordination

I wanted Kale's Dohl to stay close to his Korean heritage so there was no question that we were going to offer a Korean inspired menu. The challenging part of this was that the venue we chose did not have a Korean menu of any sort. Therefore I improvised and gave the chef family recipes to prepare for this special occasion.


I wanted whimsical, unexpected and handmade touches throughout the event details. I thought making these personalized birthday hats served a dual purpose as place cards for arriving guests and party hats to wear for the party. It ended up being a fun idea for guests of every age!


I couldn't find the perfect blocks to spell out Kale's name on his cake so I made them myself.


An Ann Wood bird adorned the top of the cake. Her birds are SO popular that it was nearly impossible to snag. I managed to find this little birdie on eBay and he had the honor of gracing Kale's first birthday cake : )



Baby bling, enough said.


Tolijabee is a traditional Korean ritual where objects are placed on a table and the child’s future is predicted according to what he grabs. Some objects include:

• Thread = long life
• Book, Pencil, Notebook  = Successful Scholar
• 100 Dollar Bill = Wealth
• Computer Mouse = The next Steve Jobs
• Microphone = Singer
• Golf Ball = The next Tiger Woods

I knew my little singer was going to grab the mic. He loves music! We're hoping for the next Harry Connick Jr.....no pressure Kale.


His very first birthday wish.


Guests took home boxes of cookies which were the treat of choice because it was Kale's favorite snack at the time. Since then he's moved onto ice cream, lollipops and cupcakes...oh boy!

Thanks to Sally Shin of Harvest Event and Design Coordination - Event Planning for sharing her son Kale's First Birthday party with us. Visit Sally's website and blog here.

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Katelyn's 1st Birthday | Dae Dong Manor, NY

By: Cakes By Christine NY

I was asked to make a 1st Birthday Cake for a friend's daughter. Theme being "cupcakes."  I was emailed these pictures and asked to make a cake with the same colors, etc.

So this is the front..

And this is the back...

 I love pastel colors. Another happy customer ^_^

Visit www.CakesByChristineNY.com
 

A Modern Safari Birthday

By: Petite Productions  |  www.petiteproduction.com

Initially inspired by a very simple Martha Stewart elephant punch-out, born was a contemporary and tasteful safari birthday. The event was a testament to personalization and detail as Evan's mom oversaw the crafting of all the special embellishments... from the party hats to the hand-made favor bags... I almost feel compelled to list her as a vendor for her own party!


Event location was a photography studio that accounted for some great natural lighting... Hand-made floor cushions for a guest "seating" area...



The ever so popular station of sweets... actually needed to assign someone to guard until ready for service!


All the personal elephant accents, courtesy of mom. We had some celebrities in attendance! The Kogi Truck and Fry Girl both made appearances to appease their hungry fans!


(Photos Courtesy of Youkeun Oh Photography)

**VENDORS**
Even Planners: Petite Productions
web: www.petiteproduction.com | email: [email protected] | Tel: 949.378.9378
Photos: Youkeun Oh Photography | Decor: Fusion Linens
Balloons: Kiki Event | Rentals: Classic Party Rentals
Catering: Kogi BBQ and Fry Girl Inc. | Venue: Warner Studios

Hailey’s 1st Birthday | Costa Mesa, CA

KOKOliving.com wants to share what interests the Korean American Community. So I'm glad to say, that though we are Americanized - some even born on American soil, we choose to hold on to the traditions of our ancestors from Korea. Soon, Korea will have a new location (if not already) on American soil. If not a physical soil, a definite place in our hearts and our children's hearts. Lets continue to pass down the Korean traditions of the first birthday party "Dol".

Here, Hailey's mother along with Connie M Chung Photography would like to share Hailey's Korean first birthday photos (Dol/Dohl) with you.

Photo of the birthday girl Hailey held by her mother Jennifer.

Hailey's mom Jennifer says, "We actually live up north and since Hailey’s grandparents live in Orange County, we decided to have the dohl at Maggiano’s in Costa Mesa. It was a very intimate gathering of our closest friends and family on May 23, 200." These pictures speak a birthday story in itself. Enjoy!

mom: Jennifer | dad: Tony | birthday girl: Hailey | Hailey’s older sister: Sydney

:: Credits ::

Photography: connie M chung |  www.connieMchung.com
Venue:  Maggiano's at South Coast Plaza |  www.maggianos.com
Cupcakes: www.frenchsbakery.com
Balloons: classicpartyrentals.com
Flowers:  Arranged by mom (Jennifer)| Bought them from Costco
Vases:  Jennifer bought them from Michael's  www.michaels.com
Doljabi Board:  Handmade by Jennifer (Hailey's mom).
Dduk & Dduk Decorations:  Home Sick Bakery | Garden Grove 9108 Garden Grove Blvd.
Fruit Decorations:  Cut by Jennifer | bought from Costco

If you want to share your childs birthday or first birthday celebrations with us,
Please write to [email protected].

Ascher's 1st Birthday "Dol" | Los Angeles, CA

Written by: Asher's Mommy


We ran through over 20 theme ideas (even sketching several of them out) before settling on the idea of hot air balloons.  This party meant a lot to us.  We just wanted everything to be perfect...




Just to give a little background, Ascher arrived 3.5 weeks before he was due - just at the cusp of him getting classified as a preemie (which meant having to get admitted into the NICU).  Thank GOD.  He was tiny - 6 lbs 1 oz, and 19 inches long.  But he was "perfect" as declared by the pediatrician after the various newborn examinations.  I am NOT an emotional person but both Seung Yun and I were completely & totally overwhelmed by emotion and tear at the first glimpse of him.

Nonetheless, the first months were tough.  It's hard enough trying to adjust to the new baby, and to feed & change him round the clock (hard to believe/explain that feeding, changing, putting to sleep a baby every 2-4 hour cycle literally takes up all of your time)...  But on the 5th day, the lactation consultant at the hospital told us to go over to the pediatrics department as he looked yellow and she suspected jaundice.  This was the beginning of a very arduous few weeks. 




By the following Tuesday (about 1/2 week later), we would have made a trip to the pediatrics department FIVE times.  And on that Tuesday, the doctor decided to get Ascher admitted to the PICU (Pediatric Intensive Care Unit) for phototherapy not because his bilirubin level was super high but because he wasn't getting better fast enough (mind you, I had inquired about phototherapy a few days before because I thought it'd be nice to just nip the jaundice in the bud, and at the time, the doc didn't think it was necessary, again, because his bili level wasn't high enough).  We barely got any shut-eye while at the hospital (maybe 2-3 hrs during the 2 days that we were there) because Ascher's eye-protector head wrap thing kept slipping off (talk about poor design & terrible fit!) and the last thing we wanted was to ruin his retina on top of everything. 




Fortunately, we got discharged on Xmas Eve, and didn't have to actually spend Xmas at the hospital.  From there, I stopped counting but there were a few more follow-up visits for jaundice and also for his weight gain (not only did Ascher have jaundice, but he wasn't quite gaining weight fast enough in the earlier weeks).  But I'm happy to report, that, by his 1-month check-up, he had started to gain weight very well and the doctor declared that there be no more need for jaundice check-ups (*whew!*).

Ascher has been an absolute treasure, a complete blessing, and pure joy to have in our lives.  As much as the first days, weeks, months overflowed with anxiety & worry, Ascher has continued to grow & develop so well & wonderfully.  He accorded us so much worry & scare with the jaundice hospitalization but he's been a such a good son ("hyo ja") and hasn't been sick since (not even a little cold)!

The 1st birthday is a big deal as it is in Korean tradition, but we especially wanted to take the opportunity to commemorate the incredible journey.  Party needed to be perfect - it was such a momentous occasion afterall - but without breaking the bank.  We wanted our guests to come and celebrate Ascher with us, and enjoy themselves all the while partaking in a bit of Korean tradition.

Every aspect of the party has been thought through.  Since it's a Korean birthday celebration and we had quite a few non-Korean guests, we wanted to have Korean food served to our guests.  Seung Yun and I are a bit of foodies so we didn't want to settle for mediocre Korean food, and Yong Su San is known for their good food.  This was the same reasoning behind choosing the dduk jip that we did - San Soo Dang probably has the best dduk in Los Angeles - and the birthday cake. :)  I really wrestled with the idea of doing my own decorations & table set-ups, but working full-time didn't allow me much time once I was home without sacrificing time spent with my son.  So after having interviewed several balloon vendors, we went with the one who provided the best quote but also the one who understood my vision for the party the most. 




We designed and produced all of our stationaries ourselves - the invitation, guest notecards, and the thank you card.  The color palette was inspired by what was available at Paper Source. ;)  Ascher being a boy, I definitely wanted it to be obvious that the party was that of a boy.  So blue.  I picked different hues of blue to communicate a certain lightness (it was a kid's party after all) that wasn't too childish and also a level of elegance & sophistication.  Then I chose a orangish-red ("papaya") as an accent color.  Our balloon decorator took my invitation and based the design (almost exactly) and colors for the background banner to hang behind the main dol table.



When we chose hot air balloons as our party theme, what we envisioned is that the table centerpieces show at different heights to simulate a group of hot air balloons rising into the air.  Hot air balloons rising up as our hopes and aspirations for Ascher. :)  Just as he fought off and rose above his illness in the early days (I realize that jaundice is common amongst the Asian babies, but the incidence had us really freaked out).



We wanted our guests to have fun and actually understand what was going on - so I designed a flyer to leave at each table explaining the traditional celebration and what various aspects and items meant.  I decorated the flyer with the same hot air balloon images as the guest note cards.  I (with help from my best friend Grace!) also painstakingly made close to 100 mini paper-flowers that we tied around each cloth napkin as napkin holders.  I slipped in the day's menu on top of each napkin just below the flower.  I picked out a representative picture from each month of Ascher's life to use as the table # sign (i.e. 1st month as table #1, etc).  For our little guests, I put together a personalized goodie bag of coloring booklet, crayons, stickers, and age-approriate snacks & book.  I printed out the same hot air balloon images in various colors & design to use as name tags to tie to the goodie bags.




One of the highlight of the day was the slideshow put together by Seung Yun.  It was less than 10 minutes, but it was such a fabulous way to showcase more pictures from his 1st year (other than the ones that were already peppered throughout the room), and that of our family.  It was touching even for us to watch it but for our guests as well.  Seung Yun put in many late nights working on this movie to bring together his vision and to tell a story, and even mixed in a few of the countless short video clips that we have of our little boy just perfectly along with the various songs that we carefully hand-picked.  He had really put his personal touch on it and with his sense of humor that shone through the slideshow, it made our guests (and us!) laugh and cry.



It rained on the day-of and many things did not go as planned.  Despite it all (and my being very harried in the beginning), the party was a hit and our guests repeatedly told me how great everything was for a few weeks afterwards.  Yay! And that's how we closed the chapter on the 1st year of Ascher's life.  It really went by in a flash, but so much has happened in that time nonetheless.  Ascher's every single little moments will always be treasured.

:: Credits ::

- Photography: connie M chung Photography (ever so wonderful & talented!) www.connieMchung.com
- Event by Ascher's Mom Production
- Invitation & guest cards designed & printed by Ascher's Mom
- Slideshow: Ascher's Dad
- Venue: Yong Su San 950 S. Vermont Ave., LA 90006 (213)388-3042
- Decorations & balloons: Ruru Party - [email protected]
- Dduk: San Soo Dang 761 S. Vermont Ave., LA 90005 (213)487-1717
- Cake: Triple Berry Shortcake from Sweet Lady Jane Bakery www.sweetladyjane.com
- Hair/makeup: Etude Lounge www.elbeauty.com

Desmond's Korean First Birthday | "Dol Janchi"

My friend Lisa did a great job creating a great carnival atmosphere for her son's first birthday celebration. With tons of sweets & snacks, games, and balloons, all the kid guests were having the time of their lives ... and parents were thrilled to be able to just sit back, watch and enjoy!


Lisa made the name signage using pieces of crayon ~ very clever! The dol go im towers were also personally made by a friend of hers using jelly bellies... too bad they were all glued on!


One thing I recommend to clients having an event with babies in attendance is to be sure the venue can accommodate stroller traffic... there is nothing more annoying for a parent trying to navigate your stroller through tight spaces. So I was thrilled to see Lisa's venue was large and spacious and we had no problem maneuvering our double stroller in the midst of 100+ guests. The most random things will keep your guests happy! Desmond, eemoh wishes you a happy first birthday!

:: Credits :: 
Photos courtesy of Nick Yutaka Photography
Post by: www.petiteproduction.com  |  [email protected] | tel: 949.378.9378

Double Fun | Twin's Korean 1st Birthday Party

The Chen Twins celebrated birthday number one via mom's Korean roots. Having a boy and girl, gender neutral tones of greens and yellows were the colors of choice. Mom selected a farm theme for the balloon centerpieces, also reflected in the doljabi raffle board ~ cups for the raffle tickets were white picket fence containers sitting on a bed of grass. A twist on tradition, the dol go-ims (typically mini towers of candy and rice cakes used for decor) were built using button mums by Mille Fiori and we had a whimsical tiered cake by Sweet Gems. Happy Birthday Tristan & Kirsten!

Event by Petite Productions | Pictures courtesy of Mom & Baby Studios
Florals: Mille Fiori  |  Cake: Sweet Gems
www.petiteproduction.com  |  [email protected] | tel: 949.378.9378

Butterfly Kisses for Sydnie

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  What started off as an unusually warm February week in Irvine, California was interrupted by an 80% chance of rain for the day of Sydnie’s butterfly themed first birthday party.  The heavens must have wanted to participate in the celebration though as they smiled on Sydnie’s event with gorgeous blue skies just as the first guests arrived, continuing right up until the last guest departed!
  
  Inspired by a color palette of lime green, lipstick pink, and butter yellow, the decor production was organized by White Lilac, Inc.  While the morning weather prevented the construction of our original “maypole of butterflies” concept, a simplified version was created in the courtyard lawn.  Inside the club, cheerful arrangements of pink hydrangeas, green cymbidum orchids, raspberries on the vine, hot pink versilia, yellow skyline and green jade roses, accented with butterfly pieces vividly decorated the room.  Perfectly complementing the theme were custom linens provided by Wildflower Linens.  A head table for family pictures was arranged with a backdrop of butterflies and a large rhinestone “S” along with apothecary jars filled with green, yellow, pink jelly bellies for additional color. 
  
  
  
  Guests were welcomed by the delightful smell of fresh handmade tortillas and tacos made to order being prepared by food vendor, Tacos Estilo Michoacan..  Homemade salsas, rice, beans, and condiments complemented the variety of meats being griddled and also served tacos al pastor style (shaved off a vertical rotisserie).
  
  A display of miniature desserts were arranged by The Dotted Apron, featuring miniature red velvet and carrot cake cupcakes, rice krispy bon bons, petite key lime pies and toasted coconut cream pies.  Each was uniquely enhanced with a butterfly accent.  The St. Regis Resort pastry team provided specialty French macaroons in event colors and also created the tiered birthday cake of lemon poppy cake, white chocolate mousse and lemon creme filling, and fresh strawberries, with an embellishment of pastillage butterflies.
  
  The food areas also showcased a unique ice display created by Carving Ice to serve the assortment of fresh berries.  Also available were Korean rice cakes, traditionally served at first birthday celebrations. The final climax to the sugar madness, tray passed miniature ice cream cones of mint chocolate, raspberry sorbet, and vanilla bean!  A cupcake building station was also available exclusively for the VIP kid guests!
  
  
  
  To commence the birthday activities, children were invited to the courtyard and each given a box containing an anxious butterfly.  After being read a poem, kids were instructed to release their butterflies on the count of three!  While it seemed some moms were a little more intimidated by our winged friends, children were excited to see their butterfly successfully fly off to find a new home.
  
  
  
  Back inside and comfortably situated on petal floor cushions, kids were entertained by a professional Bubbleologist from Bubble Mania & Company.  Performing all kinds of bubble magic, She created everything from rainbow bubbles, square bubbles, and best of all a chance for each child to be in their very own Giant Bubble!  Afterwards, children had an opportunity to spend the hour using their giant bubble wands to experiment with bubble making techniques.
  
  To keep the party memories unending, Sydnie’s friends were sent home with their own personal butterfly wings (for the ladies) and insect gliders and stickers (for the boys).
  
  
  
  Event by Petite Productions | Pictures courtesy of MNM Photography
  www.petiteproduction.com  |  [email protected] | tel: 949.378.9378
  

Peek A "Pooh"!

The guest of honor for our Winnie the Pooh inspired baby shower is a Pooh Bear fanatic. Honoring mom's Malaysian roots along with her love for the honey crazy bear, we took Pooh on a cultural journey, leaving "Hundred Acre Woods" for "Hundred Acre Tropics"! From a honey pot cake sitting on a bed of tropical flowers, to monsteria leaf place mats, and the perfect tea house to bring all the shower elements together, we had a great time celebrating baby Cayleigh!

A Tropical Diaper Cake and Tigger in attendance to mark the "year of the tiger".

Tropical-inspired tablescape by Enchanted Florist.

Elegant teas and edibles presented by Tranquil Tea Lounge. They have a wonderful sparkling white tea perfect to toast the expecting mom!

Pooh's honey pot, only filled with chocolate cake instead of honey - by Filigree Cakes.

(Photos courtesy of Nick Yutaka Photography.)

PETITE PRODUCTIONS

We are an event planning company producing children specific events, including baby showers, birthdays and celebrations, and children's charity, community, and corporate functions.

www.petiteproduction.com  |  [email protected] | tel: 949.378.9378

** VENDORS **
Decor: Enchanted Florist | Cake: Filigree Cakes | Venue / Catering: Tranquil Tea Lounge

"Curious Grant"

Curious George-inspired birthday party – comes from the talented Esther of My Bride Story.

There are so many things I LOVE about this party, but here are a few stand-outs:

1. From the “milk shooters” topped with chocolate chip cookies to the colorful & contemporary DIY felt garlands, this party is filled with wonderfully creative ideas that are both stylish & budget-friendly!

2. In lieu of regular birthday presents, all gifts were given directly to charity.

3. The concept behind the party is very inspiring…and is even reflected in the chosen venue. More details on this below, but here’s one of my favorite comments from Esther: “It has been an incredible journey for our family this year, and we wanted to use this occasion to honor those who have supported us and Grant with their gracious support and wisdom.”

Read on for LOTS more pics and all the party details, as told by Esther…

*****

“One of the first things you may notice about our son, Grant are his “monkey ears”.  They stick up a bit and it always reminded us of the book, “Curious George“, so this was the perfect theme to go with for his first birthday party!

The main concept behind the party was to provide a fun and casual atmosphere at a photo studio where the kids and parents could have opportunities to take their own fun family pictures while helping us celebrate Grant’s first year of life.

Since all gifts/proceeds were going directly to support the foundation, “Giving Children Hope” (due to the recent events in Haiti), I wanted to keep things in line and make the party simple and budget friendly. We raised a total of $900 for the foundation and sent the check right after the party!

*****

OUTDOOR DECORATIONS:
The blue lanterns that hung from the tree were borrowed from my sister. We placed a red wagon, (which was borrowed from Kristine of The Final Touch), in front of the couches and stored ice-cold drinks in it.

The wheat grass boxes and the floral arrangements were donated by Jina from T.H.E. Flower, and I made paper pinwheels to line the the walkway in the grass that welcomed the guests.

*****

INDOOR DECORATIONS:
The dessert table rang with the colors red, yellow and blue, and (along with the help of one of my assistants – Angela) I made some garlands featuring these colors out of felt and yarn.

These garlands are actually hanging next to Grant’s crib as we speak, because I didn’t want to throw them away after the party!

Kayla of Kayla’s Kakes kindly provided the cookie lollipops with mini cupcakes, and the monkey logo was made by Heather of Chickabug.

The jelly beans, lemon drops and twizzlers were purchased from Sweet Factory and Smart&Final, and the blue runner and 6-ft tables were rented from KiKi Events.

On the other side of the dessert bar were rows of milk shooters with chocolate cookies on top, popcorn chips, and bottles of fruit juice from Cost Plus World Market (I LOVE THIS STORE!).

I made the birthday hats out of decorative paper, attached some pompoms on top, made a small hole and tied the elastic bands together and secured them with staples.

The main course was tacos provided by Aldofo’s Mexican Food catering truck and we also served some Costco pizza for the inner-child in all us grownups.  For those opting for a healthier meal, we offered fruit skewers and triangle-cut sandwiches.

Don & David Photography contacted us a few weeks before the party and generously offered to take pictures and also all our friends’ baby and family pictures!  Thank you!

It has been an incredible journey for our family this year, and we wanted to use this occasion to honor those who have supported us and Grant with their gracious support and wisdom.

The goal was to make this event meaningful and memorable, hoping that this will lay the foundation to teaching and educating our son to care for others when he gets older.

At times, we can whine and complain about what we don’t have, but as we took a step back to analyze this past year with Grant, we realized how lucky we are to have our basic needs met and loved ones around us.”

*****

A big thanks to Esther for all the wonderful inspiration – in regards to both the party details and life in general!