For my son's first birthday we decided to do a "party animal" theme. It was 100% because I wanted to make those animals with tiny party hats and balloons, and I think they turned out adorable!

First birthday party cake "party animal" themed. Animal figurines with hats and balloons, carnival themed, colorful

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One of my favorite parts of party planning is picking a theme that represents something my kids love. As a mom, I cherish looking back at the pictures and reminiscing about the things that made my little ones smile at each stage.

But planning a party for a one-year-old can be a bit tricky. At that age, they aren’t really interested in anything for long enough to call it a “favorite.” It’s hard to choose a theme when their interests aren’t yet fully developed—especially if they can’t really tell you what they want. That’s why I went with a Party Animal theme for my son’s first birthday.

Food table for party animal themed birthday. Carnival, very colorful. A cupcake ferris wheel stand

At the time, I was noticing that he loved playing with a ball. He loved rolling them around and playing in his ball pit, so I thought—why not make that part of his party? The colors of the ball pit were already vibrant and playful, and I figured it would tie together perfectly with a "party animal" theme.

When it came to decorations, I didn’t stick to just one store or kit, I pulled together pieces from a bunch of places to match the theme.

One of the standout features was this adorable cupcake ferris wheel, which held cupcakes topped with frosted animal cookies. I also added animal figurines wearing little party hats and holding balloons, plus sprinkled in some tickets, themed straws, banners, and of course, classic animal crackers as table snacks.

Cupcake ferris wheel. rainbow cupcake liners, white frosting, and animal cookie cupcake toppers

I DIYed the banner and tiny hats myself. Even though I pulled items from different places, it all came together in a way that felt cohesive and fun. I’ll link everything I can below, along with notes on what we actually used.

What I actually bought off Amazon:

Things similar to what I bought in stores: