Eli's Birthday Party!

We celebrated Eli's 1st birthday a week early since it is so close to Christmas and we wanted our families to be able to come. He did great even without an afternoon nap, ate up his yummy cake and entertained everyone.

This is the super soft teddy bear from Justin's grandmother Nannie. Eli loves it, hugs it close and lays his head on it like a pillow. So sweet.

Eli found his deflated balloons the next morning and was tangled in them before we could even get to him- he had a ball before we cut him loose!

The fabulous monkey cakes that our Nabbey made for Eli. The little one was all his, as you'll see below. What a very special gift Abbey- thank you for helping us make this special day even more so. And they tasted great! The monkey heads were chocolate and the party hats were white- crowd pleasers!

A couple of minutes into the festivities, Eli realized that he wasn't going to get Mama's 'look' and the mid-meal clean up that usually follows when he makes a mess.

And a few minutes later...

It really was a great party to celebrate a great year. We love you precious Eli and pray that each year brings more joy and love to you and that you know how very special you are. Happy birthday little monkey!