Chase is Two!

My son turns two years old today! Over the two years I savored each day, each milestone, every giggle and every precious memory whole heartedly. I hate having to put into words how the experience has been because a few words won't do. I love (is there a stronger word?) - I LOVE watching him grow and develop into his own person, SO full of personality and expressions. It's insanely fun to interact with him on new levels versus simply taking care of him. Now that he is two - he is more self aware, opinionated, independent, and hilarious! It is definitely worth celebrating!

In Korean culture it's tradition to throw a huge celebration for a child's first birthday. (Chase is half Korean - I am). So this year, I was so ready to have a intimate party with just my husband and I's immediate families! Here's how we planned our party for 11 adults and 3 children. 

Macarons and Cake: Macaron Parlour

I just discovered them a couple weeks ago! (I can't believe there was a character macaron shop in NYC under my radar~) It was only a week before his party that I realized it would make the perfect cake! Not only were they kind enough to make a custom one for Chase, but everyone fainted at how delicious the luscious chocolate cake and buttery salted caramel icing tasted! 

There is a second flower cake pictured - it was also my sister-in-law's birthday a few days ago! I bought a simple vanilla cake and topped it with fresh tulips! (Tip: Take the macaron apart and stick the front half on the cake using the filling as the glue.)

Decorations: Oh Shiny Paper Co

They did such a fantastic job last year I had to go back for their tassels and balloons! They walked me through the DIY photo confetti process. I printed 1" circles of Chase's face, cut them out and rolled them into the clear balloons. I did the same with tissue paper to make the confetti. For the tassels- you can get creative with how to place them according to your space!

Food:

I was surfing google images and landed on Honestly Yum's blog post about her ricotta crostini recipes. I'm normally intimidated by so much variation, but once I took a closer look it was more simple than it appeared (especially with my husband as my sous chef). I scrapped the initial plan of "chips and guac" appetizer and replaced it with this beautiful finger snack. It's really delicious so plan to make more than anticipated! We had to make more during the party until we ran out of all our spare crostinis. Now that I've tried it I'll be making it on a regular basis for sure (even just for myself). My personal favorite is the lemon zest, olive oil, and sea salt topping. 

For the main, we cooked and ordered Italian - meatballs, pastas, salad, vegetables - family style!

You can usually count on a guest to bring dessert, and sure enough my sister brought some scrumptious pastries. Chase's care taker, Isabel, is Brazilian and made him a batch of the most delicious homemade caramel treats! Chase is so lucky to be surrounded by the sweetest people!

Gifts:

As he turns Two, Chase is really soaking in everything. So we asked our families for educational gifts and Chase (& Hank & I) LOVE the presents! He received a bit of everything he loves - trains, trucks, buses, animals and even the ABCs. The play-doh is great for his creativity and learning colors. (Tips: for messier projects, create a "one at a time" rule. We have a large roll of paper we use to cover our table for art time.)

Let me know your party tips so I can take notes for next year! :)