Happy Birthday Porter!

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baby smiling under blue balloon arch

Our sweet boy turned ONE on Wednesday and while we are thrilled that he has been in our family for one whole year, we don’t quite believe that its been a year already! Today, I’m sharing all the photos from the little party we did with just our family in our new home! We don’t have any furniture and hardly and kitchen equipment, but I was able to make due! Lots of details about the sources for everything used for this cute party.

While its hard to believe Porter James is already a year old, it feels like he’s been here longer then that. He is the sweetest addition to our family and its hard to imagine what our lives were like with only three kids.

Currently, Porter has 4 teeth (three on the bottom and one on top) with two more making their way through! He can climb stairs like a champ and usually races towards them with lightening speed when no one is looking. He doesn’t like very much food, but will still take a bottle half the time. His favorites are ritz crackers, baby goldfish crackers, cheese (if he’s in the mood), spaghetti (any kind of pasta, really), mango greek yogurt, applesauce+strawberry puree, bbq chicken, chili, aidell’s chicken sausage, cheerios, grapes (sometimes) and hummus (sometimes). He occasionally will gnaw on baby carrots, celery and cucumbers, but he has to be in the right mood for them. If not, he does a great job at chewing them up and spitting them out for fun. He absolutely will spit his food in your face when he is done eating. So, you have to be on guard. Most recently, he fell in love with chocolate cake.

Porter has been crawling since he was about 10 months old, but most recently has started pulling himself up to stand and trying to cruise along furniture. When I’m cooking dinner, he will come pull himself up holding onto my legs and just stand behind me and yell, sort of like he’s stuck and doesn’t know what to do. Ha! Its cute, but certainly makes it tricky to get dinner done.

He can vocalize a lot and quite enjoys just yelling because he thinks he’s hilarious (which he is). He can say lots of sounds, though I’m not sure he’s connected that I am mama and Gordon is dada, but whatever. We’ll get there. Porter can say baba, mama, dada, nana, tata, lala and probably a few more I don’t remember. He can blow raspberries and expects wide open mouth kisses anytime someone says “kiss”.

We got him a cute little car toy that he can ride for his birthday and he has LOVED it. He loves throwing any kind of ball and chasing after it. Most importantly, he in enthralled with anything his older brothers do, especially Eddie. No one can get belly laughs out of Porter quite like Eddie. It’s really the sweetest thing ever.

It takes a lot for Porter to not be happy as he is a content little guy in any circumstance. But, if you take him 30 minutes past a nap time or bed time, he will let you know. He loves his sleep (like his mama) and for that I am grateful. He is textbook as the most predictable baby and when I was pregnant with him, that’s exactly what I hoped and prayed for.

We are still so in love with him and are thrilled to this day that I was even able to get pregnant with him. What an enormous blessing he has turned out to be. (You can read the pregnancy announcement here and see all the photos from when he was born here.) Source list with all the party info below!

chocolate cake with cupcakes and gifts

1st birthday hat

vanilla cupcakes with star decorations

close up of chocolate frosting on cake

baby smiling under blue balloon arch

baby holding birthday candle

baby eating chocolate cake

baby hand in chocolate cake

baby sitting under ballon arch with cake

baby eating chocolate cake

Source List

I ended up using a box cake mix for the chocolate and vanilla cakes since I have like zero kitchen equipment. But I did use my homemade buttercream frosting and chocolate frosting. The marble cake stand was bought at target and I think its the cutest thing everrr.

I put Porter on a picnic mat I bought when we were in NYC. It’s an all purpose leather mat and is waterproof and wipes clean really easily. I got the round midi in color pewter.

Porter’s cute #1 birthday hat was from Etsy. (Comes in lots of colors.)

All our cake decorations were from Meri Meri…the cutest party supplier! I love their website. They make me want to throw parties of all kinds year round.

The #1 candle holder lights up and is a fun little feature…found at walmart for about $3.

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17 Responses
  1. Kitty

    Oh so cutie! Thank you for all the links to those wonderful things that helped make this birthday super duper wonderful and memorable despite the pandemic! 🙂

  2. Lori

    I read your birth announcement, and I was surprised that you had genetic testing done. Would you have had an abortion if your baby had some genetic defect?

    1. Lauren

      No, absolutely not. They did it because I was old and that was the policy at the doctor we went to (and our insurance covered it).

  3. Dorothy

    Porter is so precious. Wish him a Happy Birthday. Our sons are 60 & 58 1/2. When I see him I only wish they were home with us. They grow up so fast. Enjoy every minute. Keep showing us your family pictures.

    Take care & be safe.

  4. Gina B

    Hi Lauren, Porter is so cute. Especially when he was eating his chocolate cake. Can’t believe that is 1. So happy you are enjoying your new home and surrounds. I am envious that it is so green in Oregon. But would not like so much rain. I am in So. California where we do not get enough rain. I am always loving your updates on what is happening with you and the family. Congrats on your goal weight.

    Take care and be safe.

  5. Paula Hurley

    Thanks for the pics. They are precious. Love your website and have tried lots of your recipes. They have been yummy😀 so I have to tell you..yes, you can teach a great-grandma of six new tricks and new recipes!

  6. Jane Rodrigues

    Hi Lauren – I so loved the pictures of Porter’s party…especially the ones where he is eating
    the cake with his hands…. it’s the best way to eat cake when you are 1!!!

  7. Sara Rosenbecker

    Congratulations on you beautiful family and big move!
    We so enjoyed your picture a few years back at the Sagamore in Lake George. We had been there the week before for our son’s wedding. We also moved a year ago to a smaller home in Florida.
    I am glad you chose a new chapter with your move. I so enjoy your recipes and hearing about your family.
    Stay well and happy.
    Sara Rosenbecker
    Bradenton,FL

  8. Lena Boyd

    So happy to hear from you and catching up as to Porter and your new life after the move. He is so precious as all the children are. Please write again soon, we all want to hear how you and the family are adapting in your new home.

  9. Marilyn Brennan

    So adorable! Life is just more fun when he’s around! I can’t believe he is getting that many teeth so quickly! Surely, turning one will change everything, it sounds like!

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