BABY LEE PARTY

I am writing this 6 weeks post-baby party. which is also 6 weeks since the government of Canada put the whole country on lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It's so crazy to think that 6 Saturdays ago, we were surrounded by some of our favourite people, celebrating our baby boy over a massive Filipino feast and lots of dancing and chanting and laughter. And now I sit in our living room, typing this out, reliving the last time I hugged our family and friends because 6 weeks without it is 6 weeks too long. It's even crazier to think that 4 weeks prior to our baby party, Mitchell and I were actually closer to the epicentre of the virus during our babymoon in Tokyo than we are now, yet the effects of the pandemic is hitting us more this time than it was when we were in Tokyo.

Anyways, the point of this blog post was to remember the last party we threw. I'll save the pity party for another blog post lol.

LEE-TLE DETAILS

We picked March 14th as our baby party date because 1) Pi Day, and 2) we figured throwing a baby party sooner than later in my pregnancy would be more beneficial for me since I'd still have the energy to walk (in heels) without feeling like a whale. And in hindsight, I'm really glad we decided to throw the party at 30 weeks. We rented the Hearth Room at Hillhurst Sunnyside Community Association and my sisters and my mom did an AMAZING job with helping me plan and pick the decor for the party! They honestly made my baby shower dream come true!

​The main focal point was the balloon arch that framed the faux greenery with a wicker love seat that we borrowed from Rebekah Bronte of Brontë Bride. (PS, this part of the post is about to feel like an Amazon ad but it ain't. Amazon was just real clutch with having all the things we needed for the party so we basically bought everything from there. Plus, prime membership is the answered prayer to my impatient side!)

Photo by: Parcero Photography

Photo by: Parcero Photography

Photo by: Parcero Photography

Photo by: Parcero Photography

I also made a linen banner with Scripture that Mitchell and I have been speaking over our baby since we found out we were expecting! This banner served as a backdrop for our Books and Gifts table as we opted for Books for Baby Lee in lieu of cards. We figured this was a good way to start baby's library, and of course we kicked it off with books that Mitchell and I picked that rep us individuals and as parents-to-be: T is for Turbo (because Baby Lee wouldn't be Mitchell's baby if he didn't know car parts), My First Book of Tagalog Words (because I want him to embrace and carry on his Filipino heritage), and God Gave Us You (because he literally is the greatest blessing we've received). The letter board was from Euris Co. and the baby onesie is from TLC Decor.

BANNER BY YOURS TRULY

Onesie by: TLC Decor and More | Wooden Letterboard by: Euris Company

BABY LEE'S FIRST BOOKS

FEAST FOR DAYS

And of course I can't forget about the food. It's just the most essential part of every Filipino get-together. Mitchell and I requested a feast with some of our favourite Filipino and Chinese dishes to honour Baby Lee's heritage. We had a whole Lechon - the biggest one my parents could order (as per Mitchell's request) and we had homemade Pansit Palabok and Lumpia. And we had our favourite House Special Fried Rice and Chicken Wings from our favourite Chinese restaurant by my parents' house. (This fried rice + chicken wing combo is something Mitchell and I have been ordering from this Chinese restaurant since we were in University, so it's more of a sentimental menu item than it is an authentic Chinese item). One thing I forgot to mention is that the day before our baby party, the Government of Alberta was already putting protocols in place prohibiting gatherings of more than 50 people. This affected the number of people that were able to make it to our party, for health and personal reasons, which was totally understandable. But man, my parents stepped their game up to a whole new level to ensure that cleanliness and sanitation was the top priority food-wise. Not only did they buy food warmers just for the party, they also bought Lysol and individual wet wipes for our guests to use and they handled all the food with specific measures to make sure that cleanliness was top notch. MY PARENTS ARE SERIOUSLY THE BEST.

​And what would a feast be without desserts? Mitchell's siblings and their SO's all teamed up to get us the best dessert spread from local bakeries in Calgary and it was so bomb! We had donut holes, cake pops, and egg tarts from Glamorgan Bakery and macarons from Ollia which were gone in a heartbeat!

Lastly, what would desserts be without coffee? My sister and brother-in-love graciously provided coffee for our guests, which helped warm us all up since ​it was snowing that day! Honestly, we had the best team that pulled together to make our feast request a reality! One thing I didn't have a photo of was the massive BABY LEE balloons that hung over our dessert and coffee table, which I plan to use for all the other Baby Lees I plan to make in the future lol!

OTHER EXTRAS BECAUSE WE'RE EXTRA

We had originally made arrangements with a photographer for the baby party, but because of the government protocol that was announced the day before our party, we decided to cancel the photographer. It was a tough decision for us to make since we wanted this day documented and we didn't want any of our photogra-friends to be working that day. But thank God for, and thanks to, my brother-in-love for stepping in and volunteering to take family photos (hence the photos I have here) AND take video footage of the party for us to remember this day by. It was one of the most beautiful gifts we received that day, especially now looking in hindsight.

And to top everything off... what would a Graza (my maiden name) party be without someone (or specifically some Graza Girls) busting out into a song? My sisters who are beyond talented and beyond extra wrote a med-lee for Baby Lee. I don't have it on video because I was too busy enjoying their gift and marvelling at their love for Mitchell and I and our growing baby. You can see a snippet of them singing in the video below. Who knows, I might be able to convince them to redo their medley and record it so I can share it on here!

And that's that for our Baby Party! Post-party blues got me wanting to hug every single person that celebrated with us, but I unfortunately will have to wait until this whole lockdown gets lifted. Maybe then we'll plan another party?