When Faye turned one month, we had a small family party for her. There we made a black-and-white name garland for our baby as her first month birthday present. All of us participated, including her two-year-old cousin, and since then it has been pleasant to look at it and think about each of the loving family members!
When our son turned one month, we celebrated it with a little cake and a family photo. Later, that family photo made it in his first year book and has became one of his favourite pictures to look at. “Who is this cake for?” “Why is there a candle?” “Did I eat any?” He asks these and other questions. So when our daughter was born, I knew that the first-month birthday cake was important and couldn’t rob her of an opportunity to have one, even if it wasn’t for her to eat.
Truth to tell, it was just a quiet family dinner. But I did make a cake, and at the last moment threw together a craft that we could all make as a present for Faye. Babies focus best on high-contrast black-and-white images, and Faye had already shown interest in such patterns. So I thought that we could all work on a black-and-white garland for her nursery room. Each family member would decorate one pennant, then I would connect them together, and it’d be done!
If you want to do it too, for a baby’s first month birthday or for a baby shower, you’ll need:
- black and white cardstock paper
- black markers and pens and white markers, pens and pencils
- string
Cut pennants using this template, then print the letters of the baby’s name on regular paper. Transfer the letters to the pennants using carbon paper, then cut them out with a craft knife. Faye is a fairly short name, so I added a couple of blank pennants at both ends.
When our guests arrived, I asked each of them to decorate a pennant. Polka dots and stripes would be completely acceptable, so no one needed to have special artistic skills. Anselm drew a rocket on his black pennant, and his eight-year-old cousin decorated hers with stars and hearts. Jeffrey made a fleur-de-lis, and I drew a few butterflies. Everyone signed their names on the back. As a continuation of this idea, you can ask the guests to write some wishes for the baby there as well.
Afterwards, I punched holes through the corners of the pennants and threaded a black-and-white thread through them. Ta-da! The name garland is ready. I think that it looks good, and it is special because we remember a person behind every picture. When Faye gets older, I can tell her the story of each drawing.
Anselm wants to make more drawings for Faye, so maybe for her one year birthday, he’ll draw the whole garland by himself.
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