It wouldn’t be a first birthday party without a “cake smash,” right? Wrong! One set of Texas parents decided to, instead, let their one-year-old daughter enjoy a rack of ribs for her birthday photoshoot, and we can’t get over the pictures.
Paul Morales and his wife Denise are the ones behind these adorable pictures. Besides unique, it also fits in with the family, since Morales is not only a barbecue pitmaster but also the owner of Made in Texas BBQ in San Antonio, Texas.
The proud father posted the pictures to Facebook and Instagram with the caption, “A pitmaster’s daughter does not simply do a cake smash for her first birthday. Ladies and gentlemen I give you the ‘Rib Smash’ Happy birthday to my princess Calista!”
Given that it was Calista’s first birthday, if they were going to do something similar to a “cake smash,” they figured they’d make it more on-brand for them.
As Morales said to Fox News about their family mantra, “Keep everything as Texas as possible.”
So, when his wife asked him to make two racks of ribs for the birthday, Morales knew exactly what he wanted to do for Calista’s pictures.
In the photos, little Calista is sporting a white onesie plus a little number one crown. She is seated on a red and white checked blanket, surrounded by bales of hay, a “BBQ” light-up sign, a tin saying, “The butcher. The baker. The BBQ maker,” plus a couple of bottles of her dad’s specialty barbecue seasoning rubs – can’t get better marketing than that.
And right in front of her is the large platter of ribs in all their goodness. They are smothered in barbecue sauce and ready for her to enjoy. And enjoy she did. In the series of photos that followed, Calista definitely proved she’s her father’s daughter.