Baby's first birthday is a BIG deal — and that means you'll want to snap plenty of photos to commemorate the occasion! Taking pictures will allow you to capture the precious memories forever. Only amid the hubbub of hosting the party, it can be easy to forget a few shots you'll regret not having down the road.
To make sure all your bases are covered, check out these 11 first birthday photos every parent should make sure to get. From that precious birthday outfit to the cake smash and beyond, these are pictures you'll be glad you took for decades to come.
The Birthday Outfit
Odds are you're dressing your 1-year-old in her finest for the party. Well, before it gets wrecked by cake, drool, and other damage that could happen any minute, make sure to snap some photos! Ideally before the guests arrive so you can really focus and get that perfect shot.
The Birthday Cake
If you slaved away on creating a beautiful birthday cake, it would be a shame to not snap a photo to revel in your masterpiece before it's cut to smithereens, right?
Baby Blowing Out the Candle
Catching the birthday kid blowing out the candle is a must take! Of course, at age 1, your little one may need some help, so it'll probably be one with you, too.
The Cake Smash
Let's be honest: The cake smash is a 1-year-old's rite of passage. Because baby never knows quite what to do with the cake, and watching all the wires connect when they have a taste for the first time is so much fun to watch. So take plenty of pics!
Baby Opening Gifts
Odds are, birthday baby is going to get tons of gifts … which is why it's fun to snap some shots of baby ripping them open and realizing some cool stuff is inside.
Baby With Heirloom Gifts
If your 1-year-old receives an heirloom gift — something meant to be passed down from generation to generation, like a silver rattle or knit blanket — make sure to snap a photo of it with your baby. That way, it can serve as a memento of receiving this memento!
Baby's Quirky Habits
Strange, but so true: Make sure to capture your 1-year-old's quirky habits — the things that are ridiculously cute (or even painful!) at the time, but will soon be a distant memory, urges photographer Tammy Schmit. "This little man was happiest when he was nursing and pinching that most painful spot on the back of mama's arm," she says. "Ouch!"
Baby With Parents
In all the hosting hubbub, it can be easy to forget to take one of the most important photos of all: birthday baby and parents. Hand your camera to a guest to do the honors!
Baby With Grandparents
If the grandparents are present, you'll want to be sure to snap a pic with them in it. Having a keepsake of them celebrating their grandchild's one-year mark is a moment that they (and you!) won't want to forget.
Baby With The Extended Family
And of course, don't forget to grab a shot of birthday baby with his entire extended family — parents, grandparents, siblings, cousins, the whole kit and caboodle. Because it isn't always easy to gather everyone together. So, when you do, better commemorate it with a shot!
Birthday Baby Passed Out
That's right — the festivities are bound to exhaust your little one. So it's just too sweet to snap a pic of your birthday kid passed out at the end. It's the perfect ending to your first birthday photo album, don't ya think?
