It might be hard to admit, but holding a first birthday party for your little one is more of a parental indulgence than it is an event for the kiddywink. And why shouldn't you indulge yourself? By the time your child has reached one they'll have already passed several major milestones in their life and that in itself is something worth celebrating.

As logic dictates, a first birthday only happens once so it's understandable you want to make the most of it and create as many lasting memories as you can. Making your child's first birthday special will give you something to look back on when they're going through those terrible twos or even their troublesome teenage years.

When you're planning a baby's first birthday party it's a good idea to keep a few things in mind. When they're this small they might not fully understand the party theme unless it's something they're very familiar with like a TV or picture book character, but what they do get and love, is lots of colour. With that in mind, Fly by Fun has put together some of the best party theme ideas for a child's first birthday that we know will have them squealing with delight.

Best 1st Birthday Party Ideas

Sesame Street

One of the brightest and boldest themes you can pick for a kid's first birthday party is Sesame Street. It's a real eye-catcher where colours are concerned and is suitable for both boys and girls no matter what character you choose as the main one for the party.

You can keep costs down by making big letter-shaped wall decorations in a variety of colours or keep them all in one tone to match the colour of the character you've chosen. Elmo, the Cookie Monster and Big Bird are by far the most easily recognised by smaller children. In all honesty, our favourite is the Cookie Monster as you can get some mega cute Cookie Monster onesies for little ones that are just too adorable to be true. 

Don't get too carried away with preparing mountains of food for the kids as at this age they're not going to eat a great deal. Unless you're happy to spend two days cleaning after the party, forget giving food like alphabet spaghetti to the guests. Milk and cookies or character themed cupcakes are more than enough.

Peppa Pig

Peppa Pig is another very popular first birthday party theme that works well for boys or girls as you can theme a girl's party on Pepa and a boy's on George.

One of the difficulties with hosting a birthday party for very young guests is keeping tabs on them all of the time even if their parents are there to help. Some of the youngsters you've invited may not have started walking yet or be able to sit in a small chair unaided.

Whether you're holding the party indoors or out, consider fencing off a suitably sized area with some stable fencing. Decorate the impromptu piggy playpen with lots of balloons at each corner. You can also cover two or three sides with coloured paper to make it look like Pepa's house. Just keep one side uncovered so you can see what the kids are up to at all times. The babies will have a safe place to crawl around and interact with each other plus all the parents get a break from baby minding for a short while.

You can even make the party food into a piggy playpen picnic served on Peppa Pig or George paper plates. Muddy milkshakes are best served under adult supervision though or they'll leave your lawn or living room floor looking like a proper pig pen.

Zoo Party

Wild animals like lions, tigers, zebra, elephants, monkeys and giraffes are quite often the first animals that little ones learn to recognise. If your baby has a favourite wild animal then use that for the party theme. If not you can use as many different ones as you like and create a jungle-like look with inflatable palm trees and various shades of green balloons.

It's easy enough to get hold of blow-up animals and you'll be able to choose whether to stick to authentic looking ones or go for adapted cartoon-style ones. Don't worry, we're not going to suggest setting out cages for the guests. That would be taking the theme just a little bit too far. What you can do though is ask the guest's parents to dress them up in a suitable costume or onesie for the occasion.

Pet Party

Having a pet party is one of the sweetest first birthday party themes there is and is certainly trending in 2022. No, you don't need to give your baby a cat or dog, well, not a real one anyway.

To create a super pet party you'll need small cat or dog, or both, cuddly toys, a box to put them in and a sign announcing adopt me. Decorate an area the host and guests will be occupying with streamers and cartoon-style pictures of your chosen pet or go for well-known animated characters like Scooby Doo or Bluey. Let the little ones loose to adopt their pet and leave them to play until it's time for food.

Fairy Party

Make your little girl's first birthday party theme a fairy one and you'll be oohing and aahing over the photos for years to come.

While you might not want to deck out an entire room as a woodland dell, you can work wonders with a few artificial flowers and create a mini bower where the little ones can sit for those special snaps. Dress them up with a tutu, a pair of wings and a flower crown and the party will be ready to take off.

You can easily adapt this theme to suit a boy by turning it into a pixie or elf party only use more greenery rather than flowers.

Princess Party

You don't need to go down the Disney princess route when your little one is going to celebrate their first birthday unless you yourself have a particular fondness for one of currently trending characters. That said though, it's almost impossible to resist some of the wonderful mini-sized princess costumes like Jasmine, Ariel or Snow White that are available on the internet.

Whatever type of princess you decide your little girl should be, you can make her a throne by covering a suitable chair with some shiny satin-like fabric. Colour coordinating all the other decorations like streamers and balloons to match makes for a very regal setting. Pink and gold work well together for this theme as does pink and white or white and gold. Don't forget the most important thing of all – a sparkly tiara. Goblets of gold plastic are great for the drinks, but wait until you have all the photos you want or the party princess will either get drenched in drink or end up throwing her goblet on the floor.

There's absolutely no reason why a little boy can't be a prince for his first birthday. In fact, it's probably about the only time you'll be able to get away with it before they put their foot down and demand to be an Avenger. Replace the tiara with a gleaming golden crown and use blue instead of pink and you'll be royally pleased with the overall effect.

Rainbow Party

If you don't feel your little girl is quite ready for a princess party, why not have a rainbow party instead. You can set the scene easily enough for a rainbow themed birthday party by hanging swathes of fine fabric or netting in multiple colours. It's simple, effective and will generate plenty of happy gurgles if you add piles of multi-coloured balloons too.

This theme also works well as the base for a unicorn party although rather than using primary colours, you might want to use pastel shades instead.

Circus Party

You can pull out all the stops with a circus themed first birthday party if you go to town on the red, white and blue. Hang long multi-coloured streamers from the centre of the ceiling to create a big top effect, let some helium balloons loose so they rest under the canopy and place some inflatable animals such as elephants and lions on the floor.

A word of caution if you're considering going the whole hog and getting dressed up as a clown. Clowns can be pretty scary when you're tiny and haven't seen one before so go easy on the fancy dress so your little one will still recognise you. There'll be plenty of opportunities for a full Steven King-style horror party when they're older

Bananas In Pyjamas Party

Without a doubt two of the most colourful characters on children's TV are B1 and B2 of Bananas in Pyjamas fame. They make for a super themed first birthday party too.

Everything you need to create the perfect Bananas in Pyjamas party is readily available on the internet from party invitations to paper cups and plates. You don't need to splash out if you don't want to as you can recreate the same effect by decorating with blue and white stripes, blue and white balloons and using yellow paper cups, plates and napkins as a contrast.

Playing Bananas in Pyjamas music or DVD will liven the party up, but if you want to make it a truly memorable occasion, think about hiring our Bananas in Pyjamas entertainers. They're a massive hit with the little ones wherever they go.

Dinosaur Party

If you frowned when you read dinosaur party that's quite understandable. Dinosaurs don't seem very appropriate for a first birthday party do they? But that said, there's one dinosaur that's big, cuddly, colourful, and ideal as a first birthday party theme and that's the totally loveable Barney.

There's no dithering about the colour scheme in a Barney party as nothing other than green and purple will do. One of the most popular ways of holding a Barney party is to turn it into a beach party, but that's not so great for tiny ones. What you can do is make a beach-style scene with blow-up palm trees and have a ball pit full of purple balls for the kids to play in. Yes, you may find yourself chasing purple balls all around the room, but that's all part of the fun of a first birthday party. A super present for the birthday child that compliments this theme is a stuffed Barney toy that talks. 

Cars

While there's no particular reason that a Cars themed party should be specifically for boys, it usually is, especially when dads have anything to do with the party planning.

Black and white chequered flags and a balloon arch made of black, white and red balloons around a poster of Lightning McQueen or Mack the truck will catch the eye of even the youngest guest. If dad insists on Cars for a girl's first birthday, go for Sally Carrera and a softer blue and white colour scheme instead.

Boy or girl, you're never too young to get your first electric car racing set. Even the smallest will be clapping their hands as the cars whiz around the track. They might be too young to operate it for themselves, but the dads will be queueing up to show them how.

There really is nothing more special than your child's first birthday. A first birthday is something that has to be celebrated no matter what. Whether you choose a princess party, a Peppa Pig party or go wild with a zoo themed party, it'll be an occasion you'll remember forever. But make sure that's for all the right reasons.

For the time being, until your little one gets older at least, skip a Lego-themed party. Lego is not a good idea at this age as kids are more likely to eat the bricks than build something with them. Party fun shouldn't involve ending up in the emergency department of the nearest hospital. If you have any questions or doubts about holding your child's first birthday, Fly by Fun is here for you. Get in touch and we'll answer any query you have. We're not Australia's top children's party experts for nothing.