Fun and Healthy Baby Led Weaning Ideas for a 1st Birthday Party

Quick and simple food ideas for your birthday baby

When I first started to think about baby T turning one year old, I told myself we’d do something super low-key, no fuss, just cake… it’s not like she’ll remember it anyway!

However, one thing led to another over a cup of tea and all of a sudden a few Sassy Mama friends and I were planning a joint Teddy Bears’ First Birthday Picnic like no one had ever seen before… oops! Baby T might not remember it, but we’ll have the memories (and the pictures) to hold on to.

No detail was spared, from the teddy bear goodie bags, teddy face masks and even bear ears, we decided to go all in – even Goldilocks would have been impressed! A trip to Dragonmart and a shopping list on Amazon saved us from spending a small fortune. We actually made the bear-face goodie bags in the photos with a stick of glue, a black marker and some white paper. Yes, Sassy Mamas are totally crafty mamas (…once a year!)

Of course, yours truly was put in charge of the healthy kids food for the picnic and below I share some of my ideas for a healthy spread for baby’s first birthday, the baby-led-weaning way.

I decided to do the traditional first birthday “smash” cake photo shoot before the party just in case the cake toppings didn’t survive the travel and heat in Dubai. Check out my healthy smash cake recipe and photo shoot top tips here

1. FRUIT STICKS – A simple and yet effective idea, who doesn’t love fresh fruit! All you need is a few cookie cutters for the star shapes on top of each stick and the rest is as easy as piercing the fruits onto the sticks. I blunted the end of the kebab sticks so they weren’t too sharp for the little ones. A bit of adult supervision is needed with the sticks, however, the kids loved helping to pick off their little fruit pieces. Simply cut up a large watermelon into slices and then cubes, and then use fresh berries and pineapple for the rest of the fruit on the stick. One by one slide the fruits onto the kebab sticks. Pineapple works well as the fruit you use to cut into a shape, as it tends to be pretty firm and won’t fall into pieces when you cut it into a star shape. I used half a hollow watermelon to stick the fruit sticks into so that we had a fun and easily transportable finished piece.

2. THEMED SANDWICHES – Our party was bear themed, however, you can buy cookie cutters in pretty much any shape and size – even Spinneys usually has a vast array of shapes from hearts to stars. Sandwiches are the perfect baby-led-weaning food as baby can hold the sandwich easily in their hands. I was sure to make various choices from dairy-free to meat-free for all dietary needs of the babies at the party.

3. POPCORN – Organic (non-GMO) air popped popcorn is a simple, nutritious and yummy party food. Sugar-free, high in fibre and easy to make – what’s not to love! My little girl is fine to pick up a piece of popped popcorn and nibble away, however, if you have younger bubs at the party, you may want to keep them out of little hands reach and let the parents supervise. However, most 1 year olds can handle popcorn fairly easily. P.S teddy bears love popcorn!

I also added some simple finger shaped crudites into little cup cake cups for an extra easy snack food. Cucumbers are perfect as they won’t go “floppy” easily once they’re on the buffet.

What a year it has been becoming baby T’s sassy mama – she is the light in my life and I’m truly honoured she chose me to be her “mmmam” (as she calls me). Happy birthday, my darling Thalia Lily (aka baby T).

ENJOY!

NB: Please note, this article is not intended to provide medical advice and you should always consult your medical practitioner before drastically changing your diet, especially during and after pregnancy, and /or the diet of your child.