Dinos and Donuts 2nd Birthday Party for Baby J

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My little girl recently turned two and we threw her a Dinosaurs and Donuts party!  She absolutely loves dinosaurs, and I absolutely love doughnuts, so it was a perfect combination. And it wasn’t even that hard to throw a dinosaur party with a feminine vibe.

Baby J has been obsessed with dinosaurs ever since we took her into the Dinosaur museum when we did my maternity photos in the Badlands last year (click here to see them!). So I had to find a way to give her a girly dinosaur party, complete with her own special girly dinosaur dress–which she hasn’t stopped wearing, btw!

We kept the food and decor really simple since at two years old she doesn’t have the most exotic taste and I am was a busy Mom of two under two. I baked gingerbread cookies and gave them dinosaur footprints (I blogged the recipe here). I also made peanut butter cheerio eggs (following this recipe) which my Hubby and I agreed actually tasted better the next day.

The best part was the Giant Donut Cake. I used this Classic Vanilla Birthday Cake recipe by Anna Olson, this Basic Vanilla Buttercream recipe from Martha Stewart and this Easy Homemade Marshmallow Fondant recipe–my first time ever doing fondant!  I followed these instructions by the Cake Girls for decorating except I hollowed only the bottom half of the cake and filled it with strawberry jam rather than icing. That actually didn’t work so well because it left a hole once the jam soaked into the cake, and the filling to cake ratio was too small. So, I tried making this again a week later and did the bottom half with jam and also the top half with chocolate icing and it was perfect.

The decorations were super simple. Pink, white and turquoise streamers were the backdrop along with balloons blown by my unwaveringly cooperative husband.  He also assembled and hung the pom poms, getting completely covered with glitter, while I lovingly barked directions from the couch whilst nursing Baby K.  The table cloth was fabulously tropical and we gave the little dinosaur toys tutus.

Of course Baby J got lots of amazing gifts, but this one in particular is extra special because it’s turquoise!  It’s custom made by The Quirky Monkey and it’s absolutely darling. The shop specializes in custom embroidery, so you can get a whole outfit to match your teddy bear and have it personalized with your child’s name or anything you want, even something for your bigger kids or yourself to match! The quality is excellent and it’s the perfect size to fit inside little toddler hugs.

Check out their Etsy shop, and if you find something you love, the Quirky Monkey is giving my readers 10% off with the coupon code TURQUOISE until February 1, 2018! They make all kinds of different things, like baby, teen and adult clothing, cloth banners, baby gifts, and teddy bears. Maybe you will find the perfect Valentine’s Day present!  Visit their shop here, and check out a pic of sweet Baby K wearing an awesome personalized onesie here.

This was a fun and simple 2nd birthday party, quite different from last year’s Great Gatsby Themed 1st birthday for Baby J!  And for those of you wondering…yes her birthday party was in November and yes I am finally posting this now in January…2 under 2, remember?!

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Two Wild Boho Teddy Bear: The Quirky Monkey

Dinosaur Dress: Might Tots Dress Shop

Fox Run Giant Donut Cake Pan: KitchenNiche

Dinosaur Toys: Amazon

Imaginarium 6v Express Train: (this was our gift to her!) ToysRus

Camera: Olympus O-MD E-M10 Mark II with 14-42mm IIR lens