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Sunshine Girl

Mabel’s first birthday began as they often do, with a minor head injury. Truly, I think most of my kids have some sort of facial trauma occur right around the first birthday, one of the hazards of early walking. Larkspur was an exception to the rule because as I recall, she waited to walk until she was fifteen months old. Also in keeping with her one year old status, Mabel rejected her birthday crown. It’s okay, I expected this. She’ll love it at two, or at least by age three. I made it with wool felt that I dyed with avocado stones, and embroidered it by roughly following a pattern from this lovely book. The trim at the bottom is some I removed from a vintage collar I’ve had stashed away for years. The website with the pattern I followed is unavailable right not, but here’s a great tutorial, if you need one!

Looking through my photos from the day, there weren’t many smiles! It’s not that Mabel was unhappy (well, she was when she banged her head), she was just so focused, taking everything in. We did the usual things: ate cake with whipped cream and opened gifts. Mabel’s first gift was a simple wooden spoon, which she was quite pleased with. Jonny’s mom, “Mimi,” was visiting with a friend, so there were extra gifts (engraved ones, too!) and even pin the tail on the donkey for the other kids. I worked hard to stay in the moment and not think unhelpful thoughts such as, “She’s not a baby anymore!” (Yes, she is.) After cake, we spent some time sitting on the floor playing with wrapping tissue and gifts. At one, the packaging is always just as fun as the gifts themselves! Then we took her outside to play with her “big” gift, a wooden lawnmower toy, because it was moving way too fast for her on the hardwood floors. She’s not quite steady enough for it yet, but she gave it her best try, complete with her tongue sticking out in concentration. She’ll be ready for it soon! We all know how quickly little ones grow up.

Happy first birthday, Mabel! She really is our sweet little sunshine girl.

Mabel’s birthday dress: pattern here and fabric here

Here’s the recipe for her healthy-ish birthday cake, copied and pasted straight out of an email from my friend, Jaime.

Paleo Lazy Daisy Cake:

preheat oven to 350
prepare 9×9 pan (i greased with coconut oil.) mix 4 eggs with 1t vanilla until they thicken (not stiff). add 1C honey. mix until smooth. in another bowl, mix 1/2C coconut flour, 1t baking soda 1/4t (sea)salt. add liquid to flour and mix well. (it will seem really thin but as the coconut flour absorbs the liquid it will thicken.) in a pot heat 1C canned coconut milk; when warm enough that the cream melts, add to rest of batter. it is really important to mix it, pour it into the pan, and get it into the oven promptly. it gets its texture from the hot milk reacting with the baking soda while it’s cooking so you don’t want to leave it sitting out at all.
i baked it for 20 minutes, then covered it with foil and baked it for another 20.

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Filed Under: favorite things for children, my children · Tagged With: birthdays · 24 Comments

Ginny

I believe that when you slow down and savor the small things, you don’t have to wish for a different life; you can discover beauty in the life you already have. {Find out more here...}

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sandra Davidson says

    June 29, 2017 at 10:34 pm

    Happy Birthday Sunshine you are one sweet one year old. Blessings Sandra

    Reply
  2. Rachell says

    June 29, 2017 at 9:18 am

    So,mine name on the bowl was engraved for someone else? It confused me until I saw your comment above. Happy Birthday sweet Mabel.

    Reply
    • Rachell says

      June 29, 2017 at 9:18 am

      the*

      Reply
  3. Helena says

    June 28, 2017 at 11:15 pm

    I really like your outfit in those photos–cute and also looks really comfortable. 🙂

    Happy birthday to your sweet girl.

    Reply
  4. Alexa-asimplelife says

    June 28, 2017 at 8:52 pm

    Beautiful photos creating wonderful memories of family ties and love.
    Most lovely seeing the loving interaction between the older and younger children…I see it too when our grandchildren get together as the ages span 19 years to 3 years.

    Visiting from Sydney, Australia

    Reply
  5. karen says

    June 28, 2017 at 11:20 am

    happy birthday baby Mabel! She is perfect and such a blessing 🙂

    Reply
  6. Bley says

    June 28, 2017 at 10:32 am

    Just the very sweetest age. It is so lovely to see your family grow; the love the older ones have for the littles is priceless. Reminds you that it’s all worth it:)

    Reply
  7. Alicia P. says

    June 27, 2017 at 10:04 pm

    Aw, happy birthday darling Mabel. You are the sweetest little flower.

    Reply
  8. Norma says

    June 27, 2017 at 5:29 pm

    What a gift she is! Happy 1st Birthday Mabel! Ginny you are a very Blessed mana!

    Reply
  9. Debbie says

    June 27, 2017 at 5:23 pm

    Happy 1st Birthday Mabel!!
    She is such a beautiful little girl and she is so
    blessed to have you as parents.
    Such a beautiful dress…..just precious..

    Reply
  10. Kathie Gray says

    June 27, 2017 at 3:26 pm

    Looks like Mabel had a truly magical first birthday. Thanks for sharing the cake recipe, I might give it a go.

    Reply
  11. Jeannie Gray says

    June 27, 2017 at 1:16 pm

    Happy Birthday, Mabel! It’s hard to believe she’s already a year old.

    Reply
  12. Pom Pom says

    June 27, 2017 at 12:08 pm

    Aw! Your three girls look so much alike.
    You gave her such dear thoughtful gifts. Real gifts.

    Reply
  13. Nancy M says

    June 27, 2017 at 10:54 am

    Oh Happy Birthday Mabel! I can’t believe you are one already! What a sweet blessing and I love the gifts, her outfits and felt crown. All lovely!! 😊

    Reply
  14. clémence says

    June 27, 2017 at 10:51 am

    What a beautiful day! Mabel is looking lovely in her dress and her crown is just so lovely! I wish I could taste those cakes, I might have a go!

    Reply
  15. Kate says

    June 27, 2017 at 10:05 am

    We had a family over for Sunday dinner. They have a just turned two-year-old which my youngest (10yo) enjoyed entertaining and described as a very funny baby. So, yes, Mabel is still a baby, even though she toddles.

    Reply
  16. Heidi says

    June 27, 2017 at 9:42 am

    Hard to believe she’s already 1!! She really is just precious and anyone can see why you all just love her up so much!! Blessings for her next year! The crown, dress, shoes, toys, cake…simple and perfect.

    Reply
  17. Leanne says

    June 27, 2017 at 9:05 am

    How adorable is she?!!! Too cute. And that little tongue sticking out while she was in the grass…perfect. Happy birthday to your littlest one.

    Reply
  18. sharron says

    June 27, 2017 at 8:45 am

    Makes me wish we had a one year old in the house!! Your posts always do!

    Reply
  19. Sondra says

    June 27, 2017 at 8:15 am

    Love the shoes- Have you ever tried soft star shoes? I think you would like them. They are for tiny babies to adults, you can even design and customize them, they last forever, and they are handmade in Washington State. Also they are affordable and last through many children. Also, would you give more information about the metal engraved bowl?

    Reply
    • Ginny says

      June 27, 2017 at 8:25 am

      I’ve never had any Soft Stars, but I am sure I would like them! The engraved bowl was a gift from Mimi. She is an antiques dealer, so there’s no telling where it came from! She’s really great about getting all the kids special engraved pieces.

      Reply
  20. Tonya says

    June 27, 2017 at 8:02 am

    Happy Birthday to you both! Thank you for sharing all of your thoughtful creative work!

    Reply
  21. Bianca says

    June 27, 2017 at 7:42 am

    I’m looking forward to trying the cake recipe. Thanks. From up here in CT the birthday celebrations seem to have been a success!! Thanks for posting. 😉

    Reply
  22. Eileen says

    June 27, 2017 at 7:41 am

    Happy Birthday Mabel! You are one beautiful girl , beautiful dress too -that your Mama made for you with all her love!!!

    Reply

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Hello! My name is Ginny. I believe that when you slow down and savor the small things, you don’t have to wish for a different life; you can discover beauty in the life you already have. {Find out more here…}

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