Everly's First Birthday (Dohl Party) + Tips

Hi everyone!

At the end of March, we celebrated Everly's first dohl aka first birthday party with our family and friends. As most of you mamas know, it can be VERY stressful leading up to this day! For those of you who aren't familiar with what a "dohl" is; it's basically a Korean tradition that celebrates the first birthday of a baby. This celebration blesses the child with a prosperous future and has taken on a great significance in Korea. Traditionally, babies wear the traditional Korean garment called the "Han Bok". Nowadays, babies have multiple outfit changes throughout the party.

You can basically think of this party as a second wedding (hehe)! The reason why the first birthday is so precious and widely celebrated is because back in the day, the mortality rate was so high that it would be a huge milestone for a baby to reach his/her first birthday. We had our party at Kelsey's Irish Restaurant & Banquet Hall, which turned out so great! We were all very impressed with the space and the delicious food!!

Whew! Now that we have that out of the way, I'd like to share some tips that I learned from our baby girl's birthday party. I hope it helps some of you that are currently planning a dohl/first birthday.

1) DO NOT PROCRASTINATE! I started looking for venues over 6 months before her actual party. Venue hunting can be very stressful especially since there aren't too many options where I live. Since my party wasn't too big (about 50~people), I was able to reserve a space at Kelsey's. They were able to accommodate up to 80 people in their banquet room.

2) STAY ORGANIZED! I'd highly suggest making a list of all the things you need to check off before the big day. I made sure to secure my photographer, food menu, table backdrop, props, and other table decor that I'd need for her party. I also sketched out the table set up that I had envisioned before purchasing anything. Definitely recommend Pinterest for inspiration!

3) GIVE YOURSELF ENOUGH TIME! On the day of your party, I'd suggest getting to the venue AT LEAST 2 hours in advance so you can set everything up the way you want to. I only gave myself a little over an hour , which was definitely NOT enough time for me. It can get a little hectic especially if you have family staying with you from out of town. Make sure you nail down all the logistics before heading out. And take all the help you can get!

4) DON'T STRESS & JUST LET GO! Look, mama, by the time the party starts, there's not much you can really do at that point. It's important to just let go and enjoy the moment. You won't ever have another FIRST birthday with your baby after all. The more you stress and micromanage, the more everything will fall apart. You cannot control whether your baby will behave/ throw a tantrum. Just go with the flow!

I hope these tips helped a little!

Now, for the massive haul of pictures...hehe! 

Thank you to our amazing photographer, Stephanie Chung, for capturing our girl's special day.

Hot Air Balloon Themed Party!

Everly being silly at her party :)

Mesmerized by the balloons!

Red Velvet Cupcakes made by ME!

Vanilla Smash Cake made by ME!

Look at that spread! YUM!

This was the board explaining the 'Doljabi'. 

I love this shot of Everly and her daddy, James!

Changing into her traditional Han Bok!

Being silly again...hehe

Hubby was asking everyone to not overreact or be too loud when she chooses her item. 

Everly was SO ready! She did so well throughout the whole process!

aaaaand she's on the move!

She picked the ROBOT!!! She's going to be an engineer just like her daddy!

Cheering on our best girl :)

She also picked the stethoscope and the $100 bill!! Look at her flaunting that $$

Guys, these next few pictures are hilarious. It really shows her personality and how lovable she is!

I mean, how CUTE was that??? Everyone had a good laugh when she did that :)

Cake Smash Time!! She wasn't as aggressive as when we did her cake smash session but she still ate it.

Wrapping up the party outside with a family picture! <3

Handmade Dohl Towers made by my husband and I! Everly is the Year of the Dog!

Rice Cake Party Favors! We also had other sweets for the kiddos to enjoy!

Overall, the dohl party was a HUGE success. James and I couldn't be prouder of Everly for how well she did. Not even a single tear throughout the 3+ hour event!!! We are so grateful to our friends and family that were able to come out and celebrate with us. 

I hope you enjoyed my tips and pictures from our girl's dohl!

Love,

Liz♥