Ellie’s First Birthday
The field of competition for ‘most adorable one-year-olds’ is fierce, and everyone has their biases, but I’ll put my vote in for Ellie. She is such a happy baby, a great sleeper, and definitely has the best head of hair. Plus, she has the best possible parents in my friends Jenny and Kevin. They are like family to me. At the end of June I drove down to Los Angeles to join in celebrating Ellie’s first birthday, and it was just so delightful. Check out some of the adorable moments below.
Jon bought Ellie a ping-pong table for her first birthday. Yes, for Ellie. Of course.
Ellie takes her new table for a spin.
Jenny made all the adorable banners; her sister Marilyn made the big floral E, Kev made some homemade juices, and Pei and I arranged some flowers the night before.
Matching blue rompers! My favorite Ellie selfie.
Hi Birthday Girl!
Ellie’s cousin Leia and Uncle Jon having way too much fun.
Sarah, wise beyond her years, teaching grandpa all about her iPad game.
Haha, love Ellie’s reaction to Kev’s scratchy beard. Love seeing these two together and getting to see Kev as a father.
Kev’s mom whipping up some quiche. Kev cooks all of Ellie’s baby food himself, so the rest of the party menu was adult versions of the food he makes Ellie, like a pork crostini with pea-ricotta puree and a mushroom-zucchini tartlet with fried green beans.
Kev made Ellie her very own birthday cake. We had a separate one for the attendees.
Ellie, meet cake.
Hmm, I’ve never tasted this before.
I guess I love it!
Adorable. And Jenny went wild with her die-cut machine, making all those decorations! So cute!
After the party, the kids go out back to play…
While the adults borrow Ellie’s new ping-pong table for a rotating game of volleys.
The whole birthday celebration crew!
Aww, party’s over. Time for a bath and it’s off to bed!
Happy Birthday Ellie! What a joy it’s been to watch you grow up and to get to see Kevin and Jenny adapt so quickly into their role as the most amazing parents. Here’s to many more birthdays and joyous celebrations to come.
Anna Wu is a wedding and portrait photographer based in San Francisco but often traveling and working around the world. She creates beautiful, soft, and timeless imagery while capturing the most fleeting of moments. View her work at annawu.com, follow her daily adventures on instagram, or contact her to book your own session today.
