My cousin Rich and his wife Alice asked me to photograph their daughter’s 1st birthday celebration in September. A baby’s first birthday luau is a big deal in Hawaiian culture. It goes back to the day when many babies didn’t live to see their first birthday, so the ones that did had very large celebrations. In Hawaii, it’s not unusual for a baby luau to rival a wedding in terms of scale and decorations.
While N’s luau was not in Hawaii and not as large as a wedding, it certainly had all the elements of a luau with some extra culture added in. N’s luau had an imu (in-ground oven) to roast a pig, a bouncy house, a balloon man, and also a Korean 1st birthday ceremony. The weather could not have been more perfect for an outdoor celebration, and the festivities were at my other cousin’s house in Orting. Rainier in the background made for a gorgeous backdrop for N’s ceremony where she chose from a number of items that were set in front of her. They were supposed to symbolize what field she will be in when she grows up. N chose a rattle, which represented music.
The day was full of food, family, friends and love. It could not have been a more perfect 1st birthday luau.
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