It was a complete and total coincidence that the party theme Banks chose a couple months ago for his 9th birthday celebration was "gem-mining" and that his third grade year would start with a science unit on rocks and minerals. Jackpot! :)
Every Fall, we go to our sweet town's "Fall Frolic" to help kick off our autumn season - there's a pumpkin patch, games and activities for the kids, food trucks, and...gem-mining. I remember meeting "Dirt Dauber Deb" and seeing her mobile gem mine at the Frolic last year and tucking the idea away for a potential birthday theme for Banks. When he chose it from a list of 7 or 8 options, I was thrilled. This was going to be fun!
Indeed, we had a ROCKin' good time (see what I did there? Get ready for a pun overload - ha!) over the weekend with 10 of Banks' sweet friends helping him celebrate turning the big 0-9. Now, a look at Banks' Gem-Mining Birthday party, for those who are interested in that sort of thing. :)
The birthday boy. I went to etsy when purchasing Banks' "Nine Rocks" birthday shirt. For those who asked, it is from Vazzie Tees, and they were fantastic to work with! They were very responsive to questions, have tons of great feedback on their etsy shop, and the shirt they created is super soft! I very highly recommend this momma-run business, and I will definitely be ordering from them again!
The invitation. I know that evites are pretty much what everyone uses these days for invitations, but I still just love a fun paper invitation, especially when I can order them cheaply from etsy (i.e., while, again, supporting a momma-run business!) and then print them cheaply at our local Fed Ex/Kinkos. The seller I ordered these from was Opal and Mae, and they had the printable file to me within hours. I definitely recommend this etsy seller, too!
The Action. Ten 3rd-grade boys = lots.of.energy. Therefore, we kept the party moving from start to finish. "Dirt Dauber Deb" showed up before party time and was all set up and ready to rock ;) as soon as the boys arrived! We kicked off the party by having Ms. Deb teach the boys how to mine for gems. Each boy received a bucket filled with hidden gems for them to find using the panning technique she taught them. This meant each boy left the party with a baggie filled with gems they had mined themselves!
After mining, they cracked geodes from a couple of "Break Your Own Geode" kits I had purchased from amazon (this is a great Christmas gift idea, mommas!).
Then, we moved the party to our back porch, where Ms. Deb taught them how to make their own arrowhead necklaces. The boys loved this, too! I could not recommend Dirt Dauber Deb any higher, local friends. She was so kind and so good with the kids!
Finally, we headed to the garage for treats and gift opening.
The Food. Because the party was from 2:00-3:30 pm, we served cupcakes topped with chocolate rocks and some themed candy (i.e., Pop Rocks and Rock Candy) as well as "Mineral Water." ;)
The Favors. In addition to their bags of gems and their geodes, each guest was also given some Doc Momma Bakes fossil cookies I had packaged up for them. (Note: Any Lu Crew party is also super-sugar-filled. Sorry mommas!! ;) ).
And that was that! I've been told the boys had a rockin' good time, and I know my birthday boy sure did! Thanks to all who helped him celebrate! You rock!! :)
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