Category Archives: birthday

Party On{Dinosaur Birthday Party}

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I can’t believe I haven’t shared one of my favorite parties of all time.

David is like every other five-year-old boy I’ve ever met! He loves dinosaurs!! He knows most of their names, and whether they were carnivores or herbivores. He knows about how they fought. He surprises me regularly with his dinosaur knowledge. So there was no question that we would have a dinosaur birthday party for his fifth birthday.

506ee3d8-eb70-45d7-84ec-147eab2f378fce259b24-29af-4190-9877-a635bdca3bf905b7496c-0df5-4671-ad96-f61558567846537b0079-a038-4cb1-bc3c-b07f9b5fd4a8We served “dinosaur” eggs. I made these deviled eggs by cracking the shells and placing them in water with food coloring for awhile. I also bought some silicone dinosaur molds for small chocolates. I made fossil cookies out of sugar cookies and when they were just about done, I pressed a small dinosaur toy into the cookies. My daughter made a volcano cake out of Rice Krispies and a real cake. We put a cup in the middle and put dry ice in so it would look like it was erupting.

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We also made dinosaur bath bombs. Bath bombs are all the rage, so this was a fun activity.

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We did our trivia game as usual. We also did a photo scavenger hunt. I find this is one of the only ways I can get lots of pictures of the party-goers. We did the unwrapping game as always. We also did Dino egg pong (just like beer pong without the beer). I also bought wooden 3-d dinosaur puzzles. They were so hard, only the adults could do them, and even then, most gave up.

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It was a very busy, but fun party!

Five Daughters Bakery {Nashville}

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Recently, we had a Nashville-themed birthday party for my eldest, and since she’s not much of a cake fan, we always look for a different dessert for her birthday. Five Daughter’s Bakery is in Nashville (and a couple of other locations as well) and has rave reviews. I asked people if it was really worth the hype and the price (at around $4.50 a doughnut). EVERY PERSON I asked said it was totally worth both! My sister is one of the most generous and helpful people who you could ever meet. She lives in Nashville and was so sweet to offer to run all over God’s creation collecting things we needed for this party. She went on Saturday morning before the party and got three dozen doughnuts. We got a variety. Since they are huge, we split most into three and everyone got to have a sampling of Five Daughters.  My favorite was the simple cinnamon sugar doughnut. I also really like the vanilla filled doughnut. Now, I can confidently say that they are indeed worth the hype and the price. If you’re ever in Nashville, stop by Five Daughters Bakery and get a doughnut or two. You’ll thank me later!

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Pirate Party and a recipe

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Since we always have so many games and trivia during our parties, we always have a prize box of some sort. This time I got a styrofoam cooler for about $2.50 at Target. We spray painted it black and it served as the cutest treasure chest!

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I used pineapples to decorate around the house as well. Most of the decorations were from Target and Oriental Trading.

We played a throw a ring around the hook. It was a fun little game, but I actually think the adults enjoyed it more. We bought the hooks from Oriental Trading and hot glued them on to a piece of cardboard box. The rings were glow necklaces from Dollar Tree.

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As our guests arrived, they were asked to get a pirate name. I had two cups with silly names. One cup was the first name and the second was the last. They then had to wear a name tag with their pirate names on it.  It was fun to see the funny  combinations.

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We played a cannonball game that was the hit of the party. I had my parents bring all their newspapers that they’d normally recycle. The teams were to make balls out of it and throw them to the other side. After 5 minutes we counted who had the most and that team won. Both teams cheated by not making them into balls but it was so fun no one really got too upset about it.

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I made a new dish for the vegetarians. It was a black-eyed pea dip. I made it very spicy, but it was so delicious!

Black-eyed Pea Dip:

one can drained black-eyed peas

1 small can diced jalapeños

1/2 cup salsa

1/4 cup sour cream

2 Tbl. Hot sauce

1 cup hot pepper cheese

1 to 2 cups cheddar cheese (for topping)

Put ingredients in a blender and blend until just incorporated. You don’t want it too smooth. Pour into a greased baking dish. Put reserved cheese on top. Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly.  I served it with chips, but ate it plain. It was very spicy but so good! We named it Blackbeard’s dip for the party.

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Overall, this was one fun party!

Pirate Party

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We had so much fun at our little guy’s birthday party.

IMG_0724One of the games had four teams with two buckets and sponges. The bucket at the top was full of water and the goal was to fill the bucket at the bottom with water first using only a sponge.

IMG_0513IMG_0519IMG_0706The photo booth was a fun way to capture the people at our party. I got the whole set from Oriental Trading.

IMG_0585IMG_0586The party was divided into two teams. They each had to design and create a team flag using Sharpies, pillowcases, and their imaginations.

I loved being able to bring out my Halloween stuff to use as decorations!!

The menu was:

fish and chips : Goldfish crackers and chips

Blackbeard’s bean dip : Spicy black-eyed pea dip

Don’t whistle–hummus : hummus

Boats : hot dogs

Peg legs : pretzel rods

Gold bars : cheese cubes

Fresh Catch : tuna salad

Polly’s crackers : crackers

Tastes like chicken : chicken salad

Gemstones : strawberries, blueberries, and grapes

Devil’s Caviar: spicy deviled eggs

Treasure Map: pizza

Crocodile punch : pineapple-lime punch

I hope to share more about our pirate party soon.

Pirate Party Treasure Hunt Selfie Style

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Now that nearly everyone I know from the ages of 10 and up has a smartphone, the treasure hunt at our last party was a selfie variety. There were ten things that people needed to find and take their selfies with. My parents are the only people I know who still have flip phones. My dad partnered with my mother-in-law. Their pictures are my favorite because my dad doesn’t really know about selfies. It was such a fun little game and everyone really enjoyed the hunt. The first three teams that finished received a treat out of the treasure box.

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Pirate Party Goody Bags

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My little boy loves everything that involves pirates, dragons, and sharks. We incorporated his love for these things into his fourth birthday party.

I try to make the goody bags go along seamlessly with the theme. One of my rules is that the goodies be ones that are fun and enjoyable. No one likes getting a goody bag filled with things that are useless and will go directly into the trash can.

IMG_0470.JPGIn this goody bag I tried to put only things that went with a pirate and water theme. I put pirate sword bubbles ( Oriental Trading), Lifesavers candies, Hershey’s Treasures, Swedish Fish, Ring Pops, Goldfish crackers, Pirate’s Booty popcorn, pirate pencils, and pirate beach balls (Oriental Trading). We had regular lunch bags that I let the birthday boy and one of his sisters decorate with stickers from Dollar Tree.

Goody bags are a way to extend the fun to each child’s home after the party is over.

1920s Murder Mystery Birthday Party

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My daughter wanted a 1920s themed murder mystery party. She’s been pinning things for about a year. The biggest concerns were the story line and people being willing to really get into character. I decided to purchase a kit.  I got ours from mymysteryparty.com. It comes with everything you need to pull off this murder mystery. If you buy the DIY version, you should buy it a couple of weeks in advance so you can get everything cut out and sent out to your participants. They offer a full service option, but I thought it was a little pricey.

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I got a backdrop from Oriental Trading. I got lucky to get it on major sale. It is normally $39 but I got it for $10. I went to Dollar Tree the morning of the party and bought gold, silver, and black balloons. I also got fresh flowers for all the tables and bathroom. There were gold fans sold at Target that we hung in the party room and kitchen. I got bloody cut outs from Amazon to put throughout the house. We used gold fringe from Amazon to put in the doorways. In the foyer, my husband made a police lineup and the birthday girl used the Cricut and our laminating machine to create photo booth props.

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Because it was a speakeasy mobster theme, we planned an Italian dinner party. We served olives, peppers and onions with sausage, various meats and cheeses, caprese salad, shrimp with cocktail sauce, grapes, and salad.  We served lasagnas with Italian bread for dinner. For dessert we offered ice cream with various toppings which was a big dessert in the 1920s. I made a tiramisu. The birthday cake was a lemon cake with raspberry filling so it would look bloody when it was cut. We had a table for drinks. We had three mocktail recipes printed out for people to make their own fun drinks.

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Everyone was asked whether they were willing to participate or not. Those who were willing were assigned a character which was sent to them. Once the party started, each person received a clue for each portion of the dinner party. We had things we were supposed to say to each other and conceal from one another as well.  Everyone really got into character. It was hilarious! I purposely did not read the clues so I would be able to play along. I accidentally saw who was the victim, but did not know who the murderer was until everyone else.

There was a fact game that was required in the game. I also made a trivia game.

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In the kitchen, we had poker and roulette set up for those who wanted to play.

For the goody bags, I included candies that were around in the 1920s. Some of them were Reese’s peanut butter cups, Kit Kat candy bars, Dubble Bubble bubble gum, and Dum Dums. I also included a deck of cards, a gold pencil, handcuffs, a tuxedo box of Hershey kisses, Rice Krispie treats, and Pop Rocks (because everyone loves them).

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It was a GREAT party and we had a wonderful time.

Science Party Fun {Continued}

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We did a couple of other experiments. We did the dancing gummy worms experiment. It was kind of a dud. We also did the Mentos and Diet Coke geyser. That was lots of fun!! Most of the adults had never seen it before, so it was really a treat for them. They also did the turn an egg shell into mercury glass. It was really tough and took forever to do. The ones that had the patience, did get to see how cool it turned out in the end. I also had prepared slides for them to look at under the microscope.

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We played trivia of course. I had educational posters up all over the house. They were cute decorations, and now make their home in the school room. Back to trivia, most of the answers could be found on the posters.

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We also made cells from cookies and candies. A few of them turned out really good!

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I made chocolate lab rats, fossil cookies, petri dish jello, strawberries, pineapple, and grapes made up the fruit tray. We had a cheese tray. We had chips and guacamole and potato chips. We had tuna and chicken salad as well. I made educational signs for the foods and hung them by them.

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I made a cake with sprinkles and a jello petri dish.

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The invitation was from Etsy shop ohbejoyfulshop. IMG_8612.JPG

It was such a fun party!

More Science Party Fun {Experiment}

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One of the other experiments we did during the party was Exploding Elephant Toothpaste. It is a very easy experiment; but it does require some ingredients that you may not have on hand.

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You need:

plastic bottles

gloves

safety glasses

yeast

12% hydrogen peroxide (I got mine from Sally’s Beauty Supply)

funnel

dish soap

food coloring

We did this experiment outside. Each child was given safety glasses and gloves to wear.  I gave each child their own bottle. I had them choose a color to add to their bottle. Using the funnel, they then added 4 oz. of hydrogen peroxide. After adding a drop of dish soap, they gently swirled the bottle to mix the ingredients. In a small cup, they then added a packet of yeast and warm water. Then the fun was really about to begin…

They added the yeast mixture into their bottles and voila…Exploding Elephant Toothpaste.

I had the bottles in a deep disposable metal pan. The children could feel the heat from the exothermic reaction that had been created.

Steve Spangler explains the science behind it. “The yeast works as a catalyst to release the oxygen molecules from the hydrogen peroxide solution. The oxygen-filled bubbles, which make up the foam, are actually the remainder of what happens when the hydrogen peroxide breaks down into water (H2O) and oxygen (O2). The bottle will feel warm to the touch because this is an exothermic reaction in which energy, in the form of heat, is given off.”

 

Science experiment {Science Party}

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We had a Science Lab birthday party a few weeks ago. There is so much to share that I thought that I would just do a few things at a time.

We did several experiments. This one is one that both of my older daughters have won ribbons for in science fairs.

Yeast Loves Sugar:

Each child took a water bottle and put one teaspoon of yeast inside. They then put in 1/4 cup of warm water. They then had to decide on something else to add. I gave them the information that yeast is a fungus and that it loves sugar. They ran all over the house finding things to add to their yeasty bottle.  They had to add 1 tablespoon of whatever they chose. We then swirled the bottles around and placed balloons over the mouths of the bottles. I had the children write down which one they thought would blow the balloons up the most. We watched over the next few minutes and hours as the balloons inflated with the byproducts of fermentation. It is one of my favorite experiments because they really get to see the effects and they also learn that some of the things that they thought were full of sugar really were not and vice versa.

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The sugar bottle ended up the largest in the end. I saw it wasn’t as big as it should have been and realized that the child forgot to add the water. Once I added the water, it quickly surpassed all the others.

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