Dinosaur Birthday Party
Well this has been a weird year, amiright? Back in April when this craziness started I remember thinking, oh we'll for sure be able to have a "normal party" for Landon in July, then slowly but surely we came to the realization that wasn't going to happen. Once we stopped the waiting game of hoping we'd be able to have all our tribe to celebrate and just decided we were going to have a mini-party with family it made it easier to start planning. I was kinda' excited to host an intimate party which I have *never* done before because it allowed me to make fun things since there were only 6 kids to plan for, but spoiler alert: turns out, throwing a party for 6 kids is just as much work as 16 and while we made the best of the celebration during unprecedented times, we sure missed our whole crew to party with us! But we did our best, and the birthday boy felt loved, and for 2020, we're calling that a win.
I searched high and low to find dino birthday decor I loved. Everything was either too kiddie, or too realistic, and when I finally found these adorable ROAR napkins I used them as the starting point for everything I was able to design the invites, paper goods and banner for this dino party. I changed my mind on the vision for this party no less than 1 million times, but in the end I love how it all came together!
Setting the Table
Since we only had 6 kiddos, this was the first time I've ever done a seated table for the kids and it turned out so cute! Full disclosure, it ended up being purely for photos as the wind picked up and we had spurts of rain. Oh well, the kids and I enjoyed staging it and Landon felt special, so we're still calling it a win.
The balloon garland from my favorite balloon gal Lauren at Oh How Charming was the perfect decoration to tie everything together, and I loved adding the small palm fonds to dress it up! It also survived the wind and rain that day so 5 stars!!
We found the cute dinosaur plates at the party store, and the napkins were from Ginger Ray. We cricuted and hot glued the dino hats ourselves and called it a homeschool project, art class is in session!
Snackasauruses Gather Here
If you've followed me the past few years, you know grazing boards are my absolute favorite and there is no better excuse to splurge on every yummy snack and cheese from Costco than a birthday party. I didn't care if the guest list was my brother and best friend and their families, there will always be enough food and drinks to serve 30 if I have anything to do with it. I also love charcuterie boards because it is one prepared snack that can serve both kids and adults alike. Nothing brings people together like good food!
I love tying the charcuterie board in with the party theme with a simple sign or themed prop, adding tractors to the spread like I did for Landon's 3rd birthday, or turning it into a "grazing pasture" for Reese's Cowgirl birthday party.
My second favorite thing in life is a play on words or corny pun. Sign me up for this paleontologist punch!
I loved these signs to much, I want to gift them to you too! You can download them below by filling out the form and they'll be emailed to you right away 👇
Stomp, Chomp and Roar for Dessert Time!
The kids and I were going a little stir crazy during quarantine by mid-July and our family was still in the stage of trying to limit stores so we decided to make all the desserts ourselves for the party. After doing this for the kids joint 2nd & 5th birthday party, I remembered I said I wouldn't do it again because it was crazy, so of course, I did it again.
It's not going to be featured on food network anytime soon, but it was so delicious and HUGE so I got to eat left over freezer cake for a month! Yum! Anyone else love cake straight from the freezer? Try it, you'll thank me later.
This party will always be one I remember and look back on with both fondness and sadness. Creating the details of this party with my kids, Landon having so many ideas and 4 year old opinions that we were able to bring to life, and another year of blowing out candles, but such sadness that this celebration was so different. I will look back and remember the important thing is that I am thankful for our health, family and blessed by this dinosaur loving little boy.
