Sunshine Party

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy, when skies are gray,
You'll never know dear how much I love you,
Please don't take my sunshine away.

This song is so close to my heart. Every time I used to make Anvesha sleep, I used to sing this song to her. We call it the Mamma- Aanu song. So I had to continue this tradition with Anvika. I love singing this song and it plays continuously on Pandora. So while thinking of the theme for Anvika's first birthday, this was the first thing that came into my mind. When I started searching for ideas, I didn't realise how far I would come considering that first birthdays are meant to be remembered only on the hindsight. But, since the song is so dear to me, that was enough encouragement I needed to get the wheels spinning.

We made best use of the weather by hosting the party outside in the park. The weather was so nice and it was a perfect day for hosting an outdoor party. The color scheme was essentially yellow and pink. Anvika wore a yellow tutu dress that I had my eyes on long back when I was thinking on the theme.What is the best part of planning in advance is that you don't rush into any thing and the party planning goes on smoothly.

Here is the birthday girl. Photo credits: Kumar. Thank you for catching the moments of the party so well :)

Anvika looked more like a jelly fish here :)

The birthday cake had to be on the lines of the sunshine theme

There were many DIYs for this birthday. The main one being this photo booth. I give my self a pat on my back for getting this done :)

The family pic... We had to literally catch Anvesha to get a pic with us since she was so busy playing around.

Finally the cake cutting.....

Anvika was lucky to have her grandparents and both Buaji's on her first birthday. Rare moments when the entire family gets together.

To end the show we had a sunshine pinata. It was such a hit with the kids. All kids got  a chance to hit the pinata and were more than thrilled when the candies came pouring in.

I am so glad the birthday party turned out the way I imagined it to be. I love planning and organizing kids' birthdays. It was  so much fun putting it all together. A big thank you to all who made this happen.

Once again.... Happy First Birthday to our Little Miss Sunshine- Anvika!!!

Happy Birthday Sunshine

Little Miss Sunshine- Anvika is one!! One whole year of getting to know each other, of loving her, of being blessed with daughter as sweet as her for the second time. I never really believed that I could love any other child as much as I love Anvesha. But I was wrong- having a daughter is the most wonderful feeling in the whole world and  I am lucky to have two :)

At times the last one year felt like the longest journey. But really it went by in the blink of an eye. seeing the changes in her in the last 12 months and thinking how she will grow in the next 12 months, blows my mind. Getting to the end of the first year was more like, "We made it!" feel to it. I was exhausted, anxious and juggling between Anvesha's school, after school activities and taking care of a baby. It broke my heart every time I had to wake up Anvika from her sleep to tag her along with Anvesha for her ballet, art class or even for that matter picking her up from school :( Anvika was almost 3 months when my parents left for India and thats when I had a reality check. Life was tough at that time, but as they say, "when the going gets tough, tough gets going". I somehow figured it out and got used to it. Want to thank each and every person who helped me in my first year's journey with 2 kids, the first being my parents- my mom- my guiding light, Satya, Dwiti who helped me in their own special way.

Reflecting on the past one year- how many milestones we hit like the first time she smiled, first time she sat unassisted, first time she tasted anything apart from breast milk, first haircut ( mundan ),first time she crawled, I could go on and on.... I never thought I could change in so many ways. Never experienced so many emotions all at one time- the happiness, anxiety, joy, worry, guilt. I am also reflecting on the ways I have changed as a mom again- the ways I am a different mom than I thought I'd be, and how I am a better mom than I thought I'd be. Thank you Anvika and thank you Anvesha for making me a better mom now :)


Here's a sweet note for Anvika on her birthday. Hope that years from now, she would want to read the birthday messages from me :)

"My dear Anvika, on your first birthday,

One year ago, at 1:07 AM, I heard your sweet cry for the first time. Right there, life changed, for all of us, including your big sister, Anvesha. One year ago, I spent the night staring at your precious face. One year ago, we became a family of 4. Anvika means completeness- and very rightly so. Thank you for making our family complete. 
You're such a joy to be with. With your sweet and mischievous smile, you lighten up our hearts. You love attention and once you have it, you know how to keep it. 
So, on you birthday, we all want you to know that you are loved- so so so so so much!!

Happy first birthday Sunshine!!!! Keep smiling to spread the joy.

Love you to the moon and back !!!
Hugs, Mamma"