Baby's First Year Milestones: Monthly Plaques, a 100 Days Cake Topper and a 1 Cake Topper

From the tiny monthly plaque beside a sleeping newborn to the 100 days cake topper and the 1 cake topper on a smash cake, baby's first year is packed with moments you will want to photograph. If your little one is arriving this fall or winter, or just got here, this beginner's guide walks you through what to get, when to get it and how to fill in the details, so you can spend less time searching and more time snuggling.

Each piece in this guide starts as a plain sheet of wood in our Henderson, Nevada workshop and is cut and engraved only after you order it. You can see every topper in our Baby Cake Toppers collection, and the milestone plaques live in Baby & Kids Decor & Gifts.

What to Order and When: A First-Year Timeline

You do not need everything at once. Here is how the year usually unfolds.

1. Third trimester: pick a monthly milestone set. Some sets work for bump photos too, so you can start before baby arrives. It also makes an easy answer when a friend asks what to bring to the shower.
2. The first weeks home: snap your first milestone photo. Newborns sleep a lot, which makes the early shots the easiest of the year.
3. Around month two: if your family celebrates Baek-il, choose your 100 days topper and finish.
4. When the baptism date is set: order the topper as soon as you know the date and have confirmed spelling with family.
5. Months ten to eleven: plan the first birthday, talk to your baker and choose the smash cake topper.

Quick tip: winter light fades early, so plan monthly photos near a bright window around midday.

Monthly Milestone Plaques for Month-by-Month Photos

Lay baby on the same blanket each month, set the plaque beside them and watch the growth add up.

• Personalized Wooden Monthly Milestone Kit: six 4" round discs marked front and back for months 1 through 12, plus a custom name or Hello World plaque and a 1 year cake topper, all in raw 1/8" Baltic birch plywood.
• Hexagon Wooden Monthly Milestone Baby Cards: six double-sided hexagons (about 4" wide) plus a Hello World plaque made for your newborn's name, birth date, weight and length. The raw wood can be written on with pen or marker, which is handy when you are still waiting to learn baby's stats.
• Star Monthly Milestone Photo Prop Set: months 1 to 12 engraved on six 4" discs, packaged so it is ready to give or easy to store between photos.
• Cactus Plant Monthly Milestone Set: 1 to 12 months on six 4" rounds with a playful mix of cactus designs, a sweet nod to desert living. The listing notes it can be used for baby bump or baby photos.

Celebrating With a 100 Days Cake Topper

In Korean families, Baek-il marks a baby's first 100 days with a gathering, special rice cakes and plenty of photos. Our 100 days cake topper is 6" wide, cut from 1/8" Baltic plywood and comes in raw wood or one of 18 colors you pick in the Finish drop-down. Even if Baek-il is new to you, a 100 days photo is a fun checkpoint between newborn and birthday.

Baptism and Christening Toppers

• Mi bautizo cake topper: 6" wide in 1/8" Baltic plywood. The wording stays as pictured, and you simply pick Raw, White, Silver, Gold, Rose Gold or Black in the Finish drop-down.
• Personalized Name Cross Mi Bautizo Cake Topper: adds your child's name with a cross. Type the name in the notes at checkout (one name per topper). It is 6" wide at the widest points.

Choosing a 1 Cake Topper for the Smash Cake

The first birthday is the big finale. A smash cake is usually small, so size matters more than you might expect.

• 1 cake topper: 4.25" tall by 2" wide with a 3.25" spike, in 1/8" Baltic plywood. Choose a Finish, then Single Digit Age (paint covers the top only, not the spike).
• Moon First Birthday Cake Topper: a 5" crescent moon design in 18 finishes, made for celestial parties.
• 365 Days on Earth First Birthday Cake Topper: 6" wide with your child's name, in 7 finishes including raw wood and rose gold.
• Fiesta Number Cake Topper: 4.5" wide, painted in bright colors as pictured, and it can stand in for a candle on a smash cake.
• Rattan Cane Number Cake Topper: a boho faux-rattan number about 7" tall by 2.5" wide including the prong. Pick the number 1 from the drop-down.
• Hexagon Baby Name Cake Topper: a modern 6" name topper with 20 finishes, including silver and gold glitter.

Add your personalization when you order.

Before You Check Out: A Simple Checklist

• Measure the cake. Keep the topper narrower than the top tier, and if you are unsure, ask your baker how wide the cake will be.
• Pick a finish that contrasts with the frosting. Raw wood pops on white icing, and gold or white stands out on darker cakes.
• Proofread every name and date you type in the checkout notes. Read it aloud once, then have your partner read it too.
• For milestone sets, keep the discs in their packaging between photos so none go missing by month nine.
• Have a special name, a different language or a custom size in mind? Send us a message before you order.

Which One Is Right for Me? Quick Answers

• I want one gift that covers the whole year: the milestone kit with its name plaque and 1 year topper.
• I want to record baby's birth stats: the hexagon milestone set with the Hello World plaque.
• We are celebrating Baek-il: the 100 days topper in your favorite finish.
• The baptism is in Spanish: choose Mi Bautizo as shown, or the personalized name and cross version.
• I want the birthday cake to show baby's name: the 365 Days on Earth or Hexagon Baby Name topper.
• I just want a simple number: the classic 1 topper, or the rattan style for a boho party.

Whatever stage you are in, we would love to help you mark it. Browse our Baby Cake Toppers collection and Baby & Kids Decor & Gifts, and if you are dreaming up something you do not see, send us a message. Custom orders are what our little family workshop loves most.