So, Dino Boy turned four yesterday, and we HAD to celebrate. For a few weeks, he toyed with the ideas of other birthday party themes, but true to form, he finally said, “I just want another dinosaur birthday party!” Last year, we had a dinosaur egg hunt, which was easy because his birthday was pretty close to Easter and eggs were in easy supply. We decided to do things a little differently this year and have a dinosaur dig birthday party!
How to Plan a Dinosaur Dig Birthday Party
To start with, we needed dinosaur bones to dig, and after spending entirely too much time on Pinterest, I found a fairly easy dinosaur DIY. We found this Dinosaur Bones Sand Mold Set, and using plaster of Paris we created these:
The process is fairly simple. Just mix the plaster of Paris according to the package’s instructions then fill the molds. I would strongly suggest generously spraying the molds with cooking spray first. It helps! The only pieces that I really struggled with were the arms so spray them really well! We made three sets then filled a plastic swimming pool with a bit of sand, added the bones and covered them up. The boys dove (and dug!) right in!
Rain was in the forecast so we had to think of indoor activities so I ordered these Dinosaur Rubbing Plates
How to Make an Easy Dinosaur Dig Birthday Party Cake
For the cake, we kept it simple. No fondant, no fuss…just buttercream icing, brown sugar and these Assorted Dinosaur Fossil Skeleton Figures. I did make the cake gluten-free and egg-free for my niece and nephews with food allergies. If you need a good egg-free recipe, I use this one. This time, I just substituted a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend that contained xantham gum, and it turned out really well. My sister said it was better than the gluten-free cupcakes she had gotten recently at GiGi’s in Flowood because it was more moist. Next time, I will probably use a little less flour and see if the cake can be made a little less dense, but it tasted great and was moist so we really were excited to have a great-tasting cake that everyone could eat!
To assemble the cake, I just frosted the sides and top with butter cream frosting then placed the figures and surround them with “sand.” Brown sugar is what we used, but you could also use crushed graham crackers. The boys were certain I was feeding them real sand…it was hysterical! I added the darker green with a grass tip for a little color…easy!
Easy Dinosaur Dig Birthday Party Snack Ideas
For snacks, we had food for herbivores and carnivores:
For dinosaur teeth, we served Bugles. The kids also put them on their fingers and had dinosaur claws.
Dinosaur bones, anyone? These sweet treats were a hit, and they’re pretty easy to make. You just put mini marshmallows on the ends of pretzel sticks and cover them in white chocolate.
We had food for carnivores:
You could serve hot dogs, sloppy joes, BBQ sandwiches, BBQ little smokies…whatever your kids like best!
And food for herbivores:
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There are many things you could serve as “Dinosaur Eggs,” but we went with grapes because we wanted to have some fruit for the kids.
This Jurassic Juice was simply a green Kool-Aid.
When serving food for herbivores, you can’t go wrong with some fresh veggies and ranch dip.
Sorry about the photos. My sister pointed out that I put everything right in front of the window so photos were nearly impossible. Oh well.
For favors, I found these:
The boys loved the gliders, and my son was thrilled to have some temporary tattoos that weren’t princess. (He’s outnumbered by girls around here!) The Dinosaur Gliders
The party was fun, and Dino Boy loved it! And, one of the best things about it is that the dinosaur bones and rubbing plates will provide fun for our kids for a while. He’s already asked to go outside and dig this morning. Unfortunately for him, Mississippi weather has again gone from 80 to 40. Oh well!
[…] loves dinosaurs. His room is decorated in dinos. Every other birthday party has been a dino dig. The focus has changed through the years. He’s loved Dinosaur Train, been interested in […]