When my son was about to turn three, I could see that he was really making the transition from toddlerhood to a preschool age child. He had more of a sense of self in the world, was fixated on imaginary things and interested in playing make-believe. He was into monsters, unicorns, gnomes, talking animals, cartoon characters, and especially dinosaurs. He was very captivated by dinosaurs. Playing with them brought him so much joy and excitement.
Although dinosaurs roamed the earth millions of years ago, they still fall into the make-believe category since they are extinct, and we can no longer see them. It is fun to imagine them and how they looked. It made sense why he was really loved dinosaurs. His favorite color was also green, so the idea to throw him a dinosaur themed party was a given. Three-Rex to be exact!
If you are looking into hosting a dinosaur or Three-Rex themed party below are some ideas to assist:
*Color Scheme: Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years, so we really do not know what color they actually were. Some scientists believe that dinosaurs were more dull in color like elephants, crocodiles and rhinoceroses, whereas other scientists believe dinosaurs were more vibrant in color. In movies, TV and books we typically see dinosaurs shown in grays, browns and greens. Sometimes we see them featured in bright colors such as purples, yellows, pinks, blues, etc. We will never know what they truly looked like, so with this type of theme you be the color expert! Have fun with it!
For my son’s Three-Rex party, I used green as the main color in my palette since that is his favorite. I added pops of orange, yellow and gold for a fun boyish look. The sky is the limit here, there is so much you can do with this!
*Cake and Cake Table: The cake is considered the focal point of a birthday party! Everyone wants to see and eat the cake. The birthday cake tradition tracks back to ancient times when they were used as offerings to gods. Today they represent joy and good fortune. Blowing out the candles is ritual which transitions a person from one age to the next. With all this being said, make the cake the center of attention. You can do this by featuring an awesome dinosaur cake and decking out the cake table!
For my son’s Three-Rex party we had a green T-Rex cake made by a local bakery. It was simple but made quite the impact. There are numerous possibilities here for the cake. You could have a dinosaur shaped cake, use a dinosaur cake topper, place dinosaur figures on the cake, have the cake decorated with edible dino decals, etc. There are endless possibilities here.
To capitalize on the T-Rex cake and the overall dinosaur theme, I dressed up my foyer buffet/cake table to create a prehistoric scene. The fierce little dinosaurs were all taken from my son’s toy box! The toys cost me nothing and made such a big statement. Everyone loved the dinosaurs roaming around the cake exhibit. I always recommend using items you already have in your home to save money. Toys are great items to use as props.
Use Toys to Decorate With!
To complete the look, I added a large inflatable T-Rex charging into the scene, a banner and balloons. The whole thing appeared to be taken out of the Jurassic era. Guests were amazed at what they saw, but most importantly, the birthday boy loved it.
Below are some links to items I used:
- Banner – https://amzn.to/3J8lDKx
- T Rex Inflatable – https://amzn.to/43KWvTD
- 16″ Number Three Balloon – https://amzn.to/43KWGON
*Dino Inspired Hot Cocoa Bar: Because my son’s birthday is in January when it is cold outside, we’ve made it an annual tradition to have a hot cocoa bar at all his parties. It is a perfect addition to keep your guests warm and cozy on a cold winter’s day. Check out my other posts to see all the different variations: How to Create an Epic Hot Cocoa Bar, Ideas for the Best Winter ONEderland Party and Ideas for the Best Two-The-Moon Birthday Party.
For the Three-Rex party, the hot cocoa bar was dino inspired! We served the standard hot cocoa with marshmallows but added some prehistoric flair to it! I raided my son’s toybox for the toy dinosaurs and little palm trees. They looked so cute among the hot cocoa fixings. I recommend using existing items in your home or kids toys to decorate with as a way to minimize costs. In my posts Ideas for the Best Winter ONEderland Party and How to Plan the Best Yu-Gi-Oh Birthday Party you’ll see some other examples of how I used items from my home and toys to decorate with. A little can go a long way and kids love seeing their toys displayed!
The dino inspired hot cocoa bar featured cocoa mix, dehydrated marshmallows, dinosaur sprinkles, white chocolate chips, chocolate spoons, Trix Trax cereal and rainbow marshmallows with the pink ones removed. To keep the hot cocoa bar marshmallows looking boyish with greens, oranges, and yellows, I removed the pink marshmallows one by one. The pink marshmallows were put aside for Valentine’s Day, which was around the corner.
Below is a list of items I used for the hot cocoa bar:
- Melamine Country French Tray – https://amzn.to/3U4q67m
- Trix Trax – https://amzn.to/4aKy9LW
- Dehydrated Marshmallows – https://amzn.to/3VJ2Mxd
- Chocolate Spoons – https://amzn.to/4ao45pO
- Green Coffee Cups – https://amzn.to/3vxAeMx
- Dinosaur Cocktail Pics – https://amzn.to/3vyGGTw
- Dinosaur Sprinkles – https://amzn.to/4anVp2K
- Jet Puffed Fruit Marshmallows – https://amzn.to/3PNTbBm
To complement this Triassic hot cocoa bar were the incredibly cute dinosaur shaped cookies. It made for a fun and sweet experience for guests.
*Tablescape: For this prehistoric shindig, I decided to keep things simple with regard to the tablescape. For a primitive look, I merely placed a large stegosaurus in the middle of the table and added some balloons to keep things looking fun. The dining utensils were located on our basement bar for the taking. The bar area was decked out with an awesome Three-Rex balloon banner.
- Stegosaurus Inflatable – https://amzn.to/3xkEb7A
- Three Rex Balloon Banner – https://amzn.to/3U6YU7R
Guests really enjoyed sitting next to this fella as they dined, especially since he is a harmless plant eating dinosaur! A T-Rex may not have had the same effect. Ha ha.
Inflatables are awesome decorations to use for children’s parties. This is because you can get a fairly large inflatable at a low cost, they are not breakable, work great as props, and fun to play with after the party. They can also be easily deflated and stored for pool use in the summer! It’s a win win! Check out my post, Ideas for the Best Two-The-Moon Birthday Party, to see other inflatables I used to decorate with!
There you have it, some dino-riffic ideas for a dinosaur inspired or Three-Rex birthday party. Planning a birthday party is a great opportunity for you to showcase your creativity. Have fun planning, but don’t forget to savor ever moment during the big day. Birthdays for little ones are so special. These celebrations remind them that they are loved, cherished and valued. Take a lot of pictures, eat a lot of cake and make memories.
Enjoy!
