SingaporeMotherhood | Baby & Toddler
January 2017
Eden’s Garden of Eden Themed 1st Birthday Party at Food For Thought @National Museum
Love a simple, fuss-free and affordable birthday party that doesn’t compromise on fun? You will want to borrow some ideas from little Eden’s Garden of Eden themed first birthday bash that was entirely planned by her mother and held at Food For Thought’s National Museum branch.
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Director of The Thought Collective and Nominated Member of Parliament, Kuik Shiao-Yin, 38, and Director of Myles & More, Brandon Krause, 39, describe their one-year-old daughter, Eden Grace Krause as an independent, quick, smart, spirited and strong tot. “She was born in the year of the Horse and is exactly that,” says Eden’s mummy, Shiao-Yin. The only child who shares her birthday with her maternal grandmother celebrated her first birthday with a party at Food For Thought at the National Museum of Singapore back in October last year.
What’s your favourite parenting moment with Eden?
Every morning when she bursts into my bedroom and every night when she comes running out from her play area to greet me when I get home from work. Eden runs up with a big smile and all she wants is just a cuddle. It reminds me that the most important thing I need to give her is simply the feeling of being loved.
What was the theme for this party?
The Garden of Eden. The theme behind our wedding was about returning to the Garden of Eden, a place of peace, beauty and wholeness. That was also why we chose to name our daughter Eden.
Why did you choose Food For Thought as the party venue?
Food for Thought is one of the brands under The Thought Collective. It’s got a great buffet menu and they also make a great alternative to expensive children’s birthday cakes: the stacked pancake birthday cake!
What was the set-up?
The set-up was put together with very simple ideas I got off Pinterest which could be bought or crafted with materials from Daiso. I wanted Eden’s birthday party to be simple and inexpensive without compromising on fun. A huge heart made out of Post-Its was affixed on the wall to serve as a simple backdrop for photo-taking. Home-made cake toppers were created using artificial flowers and leaves, paper straws and fancy paper cut-outs.
A side-table was filled with animal masks made from brown paper bags and coloured papers for the children and adults to play with. These were later kept for Eden to play with at home after the party. It took me just about an hour to complete the whole set-up.
What kinds of games and activities did the children take part in?
I had not planned for any games or activities because we wanted a very chill tea time at the party without any hindrances. The children just goofed around naturally – they were left to just be kids, and they had fun! The adults were mostly busy with eating and socialising but they occasionally played with the paper masks with their children as well.
Tell us about the cake.
Eden’s cake was specially made by Food For Thought. They custom-make them for celebrations taking place at the restaurant. The cake was a stack of their famous pancakes, layered and topped with fresh cream and mixed berries, topped off with gula melaka syrup and rainbow sprinkles. It’s a great option if you don’t want an overload of cake leftovers especially after a heavy buffet meal and prefer something small, light, simple and yet pretty enough for people to taste or take pictures of! I made my own cake topper but Food For Thought can also make you cake toppers on request.
There was another birthday cake bought from Chalk Farm for my mother who shares her birthday with Eden.
What made this party memorable?
The fact that it was Eden’s first! I love that it was a relaxed and low-stress party! It was also fun preparing for it; I made the masks and cake toppers on weeknights after work while watching television.
What was the most fun thing at this party?
Just watching the kids and adults wearing the paper bag animal masks and goofing around was fun in itself!
What inspired you to create paper bag animal masks for this party?
I wanted something fun for parents to use to play with their kids. I also wanted it to be something affordable and easy for me to make after work. Paper bag animals are really easy (even for a working mother) to create and the process of making them turned out to be more fun than I had expected!
Your top birthday party planning tip for other parents?
Keep the party simple, low-stress, and low-budget as possible unless there is a big reason to spend. Don’t plan birthdays to impress or outdo other children’s birthday parties. All kids want is to feel loved and to be able to play freely, and all adults want is to feel loved, relax and to tuck into hearty food.
Party details:
Venue, food and cake: Food For Thought @National Museum of Singapore
Decor and planning: Eden’s mummy, Shiao-Yin
Photography: Derrick Choo (Perfect Light Photography)
Birthday girl’s outfit: Cotton On Kids
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