Alhumdulillah, our baby completed her first trip around the sun last week. I can’t believe how fast the year went, but at the same time it’s hard to imagine that she didn’t exist a year ago. Parenthood has been a journey and we still have a long way to go, but there is no doubt that children are one of the greatest blessings that Allah could bestow upon a person.
As Jamila was born during a global lockdown, she didn’t get to spend as much time with her family as we would have wanted this year. Now that lockdown has lifted, we wanted to celebrate her existence with the people who love her most, so we organised a little at-home party with close family members. The theme was sunshine, of course – because she’s our Noor. 🙂
I decided to make the cake myself. The first step was to scroll through pages on Pinterest and Etsy to gain some inspiration, and I eventually decided on funfetti layers on the inside for an explosion of colour, with a little Jamila made of fondant on top. I also made a banner with her name on it, and gave the fondant baby a giant strawberry as these are her favourite fruit.
I also made the decorations. I brought a bunch of craft materials from Hobbycraft a few months ago and have been using them ever since! I really enjoyed creating these and they were surprisingly easier and less time consuming than I had imagined. I loved the idea of a balloon arch, so I brought a kit from Amazon and blew all 100 balloons myself – without a pump. Surprisingly my lungs did quite well but my fingers ached from tying all of the balloons! Not the best planning there, but it was so worth it. We have some really beautiful pictures of the family thanks to this backdrop.
I also created a photo wall with pictures of Jamila’s first year, including one of her with each of the guests. They all left messages for Jamila on the backs and I’ve saved them for her to read when she grows up, InshaAllah.
The food table was a mix of various platters – fruit, mezze, bread and meats. I made almost everything myself and although this was a lot of effort, it was something I wanted to do as I really enjoy cooking for my loved ones. I’m so glad that I went for platters, because the food looked stunning on the table and everyone could pick out what they wanted rather than having a sit-down meal or one particular type of cuisine.
Alhumdulillah, the day was perfect and I couldn’t have asked for anything better than spending it with family. Ultimately we were all there to celebrate Jamila – my little love, and her first year of life. I thank Allah for blessing me with the honour of being her mother. May Allah protect our children and make them a source of light in our lives, always. Ameen!
Montessori Muslim 