Double Dino Party

"We are the dinosaurs, marching, marching, we are the dinosaurs what do ya think of that?" These are the words heard on repeat over the past few weeks from little voices. I've been taking the girls to Movers and Makers at the library on Fridays and they always end the program by singing the dinosaur song. That being said, it was an easy theme to work into the birthday celebrations this month. My three-going-on-four year old was beside herself with joy when she heard I was planning a DOUBLE DINO party for her and her little brother. 

The three layered DINO cake was covered in milk chocolate frosting, drizzled with chocolate ganache and topped with crushed cookies. Picked up the big plastic dinos from Family Dollar and the mismatched smaller ones were found at garage sales this summer. 

Decorations were put up a few days before the party (and they are still up! Kids are lovin' it.) I cut out construction paper for the dinosaurs shapes and used matching balloons. My favorite was the stegosaurus, but Miss A. was quite fond of "Sarah" the orange triceratops. After coloring the sheets of dinos, we cut them out and taped them around the room. 

While the kiddos were napping, I baked cookies. The dough needed to hold the shape of the footprint through the bake. I tried picking a recipe close to a shortbread. My cookies ended up tasting more like snickerdoodles. Buttery and delicious! I sprinkled cinnamon sugar into the tracks as they cooled on the counter.

Next was the cupcakes and the DINO CAKE!! I've never done a layered cake before, but I figured since I have a season or two of British Baking Show under my belt, I'd be able to handle it. The plan was to make two layers: chocolate and vanilla. My vanilla layer left the oven looking quite sad... and flat. I whipped up a second chocolate layer and sandwiched the vanilla in the middle. The final cake was just a couple inches shy of fitting under my cake cover. 

When Miss A. woke from her nap her eyes widened and she asked me, "Mama, is that a burger?" 

Had to freeze half the batch of cupcakes. There were SO many. Tops of cupcakes were dusted with "dino dirt" (crushed cookies) and topped with a mini dino toy.

Our birthday guests followed the dinosaur tracks up the driveway to the front door. There were more tracks in the backyard leading to a nest of dinosaur eggs!

The girls helped with the making of the dinosaur eggs. We mixed baking soda and water with a few drops of green food coloring together. There were some extra mini dino toppers leftover from the cupcakes. We covered the mini dinos in the wet mixture shaping it into an egg shape. Then rolled the wet eggs in dirt to give them a speckled texture. They dried overnight and were ready to be "hatched" the next morning.

Squirt bottles were filled with a solution of water and vinegar. The girls giggled as the eggs sizzled and bubbled to reveal the hidden baby dinosaurs.

Birthday boy and his celebratory bowl of oatmeal for breakfast

For lunch, the hubby made the most flavorful and tender shredded barbacoa beef (a step above Chipotle's Barbacoa, in my opinion). We served corn and flour tortillas with toppings of cheese, sour cream, cilantro, limes, and salsa. It was a meal to put down in the books!

Speaking of books...the kids received these entertaining stories. The first book, Life on Earth: Dinosaurs has tons of lift the flaps with facts about dinosaurs. The second is a story based on the beloved song, "We are the Dinosaurs".

Check out these other themed birthday parties from years past:

• If You Give a Moose a Muffin (2017)
• The Hungry Caterpillar (2016)