Unril you have kids...

...You will not put as much effort as any other party before in your life. Ever.
Sure, you might think you had party planning skills, back before life was full of friends who juggle work and a family just like you. It was super easy to throw a quick get-together together because everyone wanted to do something with you on a Friday night!
Now, everyone still wants to get together but it takes a whole lot more planning, and then, once you have a reason for getting together (M's first birthday!! Already?!), party planning commences.
I remember having really simple birthday parties when I was a kid—smores and running around playing tag, going to a movie with a friend, eating cake with a couple of friends. My mom was never into big to-do's about anything (still isn't!) but the thrill of M turning one, plus Pinterest and my own excitement for themes is running away with me.
At first I had slimmed the possible theme to The Little Mermaid or My Little Pony. Either worked—it was M's love of water and my own love of horses vying it out. I posted it on Facebook and MLP won the popular opinion, so that was my working theme.
Then, I started thinking about cake. Sure, I could order one and pay a lot for it. But since I'm working off a budget, I wanted to do it myself. I found a few examples of horse cakes, but the more I considered, the more I realized I'm too OCD to try a horse (if it doesn't look like a horse, I won't be happy). So the next best option? Making a sheet cake, icing it and putting horses on it.
Thus, I've devolved into a cowgirl/horse theme, a more generic and possibly more unique twist on what should be a really special day for me (because I doubt M will remember it!)
I did a test run of the small cake that M will get to destroy (is there a name for them?) this past week and it turned out okay, I learned to really layer my pan with a lot of Crisco so that all of it comes out, including the sides. I learned that I can make the majority of the frosting and buy the stuff to use for decorating because it's firmer, and finally, I learned you have to use a lot of dye to get the color you want in frosting!
That's a lot of work for a party my kid won't remember! But it's worth it. She always is.