Photography By: Khrysten Dyane Photography

Celebrating a first birthday is a big milestone for a lot of families, but in the midst of the pandemic this year, throwing a birthday party in the traditional way hasn’t been as doable. That doesn’t mean we can’t still celebrate, however, I have loved helping clients implement creative first birthday ideas that keep everyone safe.

One great way to do this is to pick a fun first birthday theme - in this case the client chose “One Party Animal” - and set up an eye-catching display for a drive-by car parade. Read on to see how we set up all of the car parade decorations and favors, and to see the other creative ways this family made the most of a challenging situation and still celebrated their baby boy’s first birthday with friends and family this year. 

And don’t forget to grab the FREE first birthday banner printable at the end of this post!

First Birthday Car Parade Set-Up

Because most of the guests will be celebrating from the safety of the street outdoors, we wanted to make sure that they couldn’t miss the party! We set up a giant bright white backdrop in the front yard that said “Lucas is One Party Animal” in black writing for contrast. This was surrounded by a gorgeous jungle-themed balloon garland in teals and greens with pops of orange and pale yellow. Monstera leaves were scattered throughout the balloons for more of the jungle feel. 

Then, on the ground in front of the backdrop on either side, we set up some cute inflatable jungle animals (wearing party hats, of course!) and a giant colorful “1” balloon mosaic prop.

We also set up a few stands, surrounded by monstera leaves and chic white painted pineapples, that matched the backdrop style - white with black geometric patterns, which was a client favorite I tried to incorporate as much as I could throughout. On these, we placed favor caddies for easy access for the family when the parade started. These included bottles of Topo Chico (very popular here in Austin, Texas!), a wrapped animal cookie from Westlake Bakes, and a goodie bag for children. We also designed cute little “thank you” labels for the favor caddies.

This whole setup also provided an amazing photo backdrop for the birthday boy, so that the memories of this celebration would last forever!

Car Parade Time

Then, the car parade started, and it was a joy to watch. Friends and family drove by with birthday decorations, offering well wishes and gifts.

Some who lived close-by chose to walk - but the smallest members of their families brought their own vehicles. How cute is that?!

You could tell the birthday boy and his parents were having a blast seeing all of the friendly faces, and giving each of them a favor caddy in return. Adults made sure to mask up while they were chatting, to further keep everyone safe.

Cake Smash

After the parade part of the party was over, the immediate family of the birthday boy moved inside for some cake and further celebrating with friends and family who were too far to participate in the parade. We set up a high chair with a cute “one” garland around it in front of a camera, and had everyone join in to watch the guest of honor enjoy his very own first birthday smash cake, via Zoom. The rest of the in-person family chatted with the Zoom guests while indulging in a piece of a larger party animal themed cake - another beauty from Glace Cakes.

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In the end - it was a really special celebration for a really special kid, and my team and I were so happy to be a part of it!

Have you and your family found creative ways to celebrate this year? I’d love to hear your ideas and thoughts in the comments below! And if you’re in the Austin area and need some help planning the (safe!) party of your dreams, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us!

Vendor List:

Styling: Mint Event Design

Photography: Khrysten Dyane Photography

Cakes: Glace Cakes

Cookies: Westlake Bakes

For more birthday party inspiration, check out some of my other parties!

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