Maxen’s Day 

September is just about to end…. I can’t believe it myself, and little Maxen is almost 4 months!!! Whaaaat?! Tell me, where did time go?! I distinctly remember only planning Maxen’s dedication.. And now, here I am reminiscing.

As a Christian family, we believe that while he is too young to understand & accept Jesus Christ as his Lord & Saviour- we, as parents should dedicate him, until he can make his own decision and be baptized.

So here, I want to share bits and pieces of that very special day… #MaxensDay September 4th 2016.

 I am obsessed with tropical prints, thus the chosen theme. That simple. Haha! Luckily my cousin, Maxine of @maxdesignconcepts is a freelance graphic designer and she worked on the invitation overnight, which also eventually became the print of the souvenirs!

I didn’t want them to go to waste- so the personalized magnets and bag tags from @clayclayee were carefully designed so that our guests could really use them and not just end up being tossed in the trash.

Before everything else, of course I had to think of our outfits first! ..Who else but Rajo Laurel! I have always loved his work- classic, clean, yet eye-catching. He also happens to be a very good friend and Maxen’s ninong~ so this was all extra special.

Here’s a photo of his sketch…

 And how it came to life…

Thank you Ninong Rajo!

This outfit is everything! I can’t get over how cute he is in it! Soft, crumple-free linen.. none of the usual itchy things!

And the hat! It was the perfect touch to complete his safari inspired look. Cutie pie!!!

Here he was with the first ninong & ninang to arrive..Tim & Bubbles! He was definitely entertained!

Well, that is until Ninong Tim stole his hat! Hahaha

I love how the room was totally instagram-able! (You know how it is nowadays! Heehee) And I have Portia of @gpthestoryteller to thank YET again!

From the welcome sign..

To the center stage..

To the candy buffet

And the center pieces..

Every little detail was covered.

Even the perfect family backdrop!

I was impressed the third time around as Portia & her team styled my baby shower, Tyler’s birthday (see previous post) and now, this!

So while I’m at it, I might as well share her presentation to us, because if you’re planning a birthday party or even a baptism- you might just pick up a few ideas from here.

As soon as I told her my theme, these were a few of the pages I received in the mail.

Can you imagine my excitement when I actually saw everything come to life?! She really made it happen- beyond all my expectations! So, thank you Portia. You and your team are amazing! I’d recommend you over and over.

Oh yes!! How can I forget? While I knew the adults would get busy mingling, I didn’t want to worry about the little ones getting bored. So I suggested we setup a kiddie area for them..and I’m so glad we did, it was a TOTAL hit!

From Chelsea..

To Sebi

Olivia..

And Dani!

We also had teepee’s for the older kids to hang out in..It was the perfect spot for my niece, Pilar & Tyler! Super cute right?

Okay let’s not call them kids…’Cause they’re just growing up too fast! Tweens!!!

 

Here’s Lorin, Noelle & Venice…looking like little ladies!

And since we were surrounded by family and our closest friends, we wanted to do something a little different.. And that was to honor each Ninong & Ninang by sharing a few stories about them, and letting each one know just how much they meant to us.

 

 They are so dear to us..practically family!

 After which, my husband Chucho released a Father’s blessing..

 Then I gave a Mother’s blessing..

And my Tito Josef, our officiating Pastor spoke a blessing over all of us and ended the ceremony. It was really special.

By this time though Maxen was a bit restless. Whoops! Hehe

  Don’t worry Ninang Ruffa, it wasn’t you! Hahaha

He just needed his favorite position and a hand to shove into his mouth!

 Then he started to feel comfortable again in his Ninang Bubbs arms! Heehee

 While Baby O ended up getting cozy with Noelle too!

… Everything about this day was just perfect.

Eventhough Maxen will most likely have no memory of what went on – he’ll have these awesome photos to look back to.

 His daddy. His brother. His sister.

 And Mommy of course…

..Will always, always love him!!!

We just can’t wait to see all the amazing things that God has in store for him.

Thank you for sharing and celebrating this moment with us!

xxMikaela

——————————————-

    Photography: Zeus & team @lifebyohana