Ashrie’s Second Birthday Bash

It was raining heavily for the past few days or even weeks, especially in late afternoons, and even on the morning of Ashrie’s second birthday celebration. But thank God, after noon, the dark clouds cleared away and the sun shone brightly as if heralding: This is the day to celebrate! And celebrate we did.

Early morning, we cordoned off the shelter by encircling the area by a string and “RESERVED” banners. (This is to officially announce that we have reserved the place.) My approval letter from the authorities was also affixed. We also cleared and cleaned the area with the help of the park cleaner.

Since it was an outdoor event, my brother and I had to transport all the things needed for the party except the food which was catered. This includes 24 flower pom-poms, 8 unassembled paper lanterns and other decorations, fresh flower arrangements, a customized pink and green butterfly cake, beautifully –wrapped presents, inflated balloons on sticks, party favors, a big glass bowl of green apples, and all the necessary gadgets to install them. All in the cheery combination of pink and green hues. We have carried along with it a month of party planning, and more than a week of nightly cutting, pasting, and painting, so to speak.

Working as fast as we could, we had managed to finish everything before our first batch of guests arrived. It was an afternoon of fun. Our guests arrived at different times so we had the time to chat with all of them. The night came and more friends came in. And more friends mean more laughter and merriment along the way.

Following is a photo summary of what happened captioned with "do’s in organizing a party."

Do make reservations in advance to secure a place.

Prepare all the necessary decorations to be installed in the venue weeks before.

Here, we hanged paper lanterns and flower pom-poms on the shelter's wooden beams

and pegged pink and green balloons on the lawn;

a little something to see up there, down below and roundabout.



Do get inspirations from nature.

Balloons on the ground looked like fruits which have fallen from the tree.

Another example of taking cues from nature.

Flower lanterns hanging from the roof eaves and pom-poms which look more like

giant pollen grains to me blends well with the existing breathtaking panorama.

Do mix fantasy and reality.
We have huge flowers made of paper and fresh ones on the table.
The green apples provide a refreshing feel,
but a bold splash of color against the hot pink tablecloth.

Do choose appropriate party favors.

We have green towels and pink bubble bottles

since it is a (pink and green) water play party for kids.

Do choose comfy but trendy footwear.

Ashrie's Baby GAP sandals matched with Mom's flats of "almost" the same design.

Ashrie, the Birthday Girl!

MyGirls, Ashrie and Jane

Daddy and Daughter

Me&MyGirls

Enjoying her party!

The Event Photographer: AR, Ashrie's uncle

Do bring the indoors out. We placed a hot pink tablecloth and turned
the park’s cold, hard, built-in stone table into a “sweets table” thus creating a cozy patio-like atmosphere.

Me&MyGirls with the Santos Family

From left: Grace, Al, Jo, Me&MyGirls, Diane and Carlo

Me&MyGirls with the Amores-Avilas

Do have fireworks!
Or in Singapore's case which has strict regulations, sparklers!

When it was time to go home, some friends help us to “restore the park area to its original state” and bring everything and more (Ashrie’s gifts) back to our place. We live just across the road so it’s just a short stroll away. At home after our friends left, we still have to make a final photoshoot with Ashrie and her presents. And here they are:

Ashrie's with her "still-wrapped" gifts

Hey, it's Minnie!

Opening one of her presents and liking it

Her presents revealed!

Long after that, we cleared the house of every mess, and retired for the night. A sweet night’s sleep for all of us, full of memories of the day and the event that was.

By the way, we were so thrilled that our guests from the church have requested to have the paper decorations after our event. They will use it for the Filipino Fellowship celebration for Mothers’ Day the week after. The event has a floral theme so they thought it would be perfect. What a noble way to dispose it! Recycling would give them a new lease on life and added worth for our efforts. And it’s a green act! It would also save them a lot of time planning and making decorations. We agreed right away, and have it delivered to the church’s doorsteps the next day.

With this, we would like to extend our sincerest thanks to all our friends who graced the event. Blessings to you! And most of all, Thank God for our dearest blessing, Ashrie who is now 2 years old and the fine weather He provided that day.

Ashrie’s Second Birthday Bash is history. Next event: AR’s 25th Birthday and Mother’s Day Celebration this coming Sunday. I’ll keep you posted. :-)