Amphibians and Reptiles Birthday Party

Do you have a boy in the house with a birthday coming up? Are you uncertain what to do? Just think about what boys like. . . animals, mud, gross things. If you agree, then here is a party possibility for the young man in your life.

Let me get to the point~ this was a terrific party for boys of all ages. Browse the pictures below to see activities, decorations, and food. Let me know your ideas on customizing the party.



Activities
We held our party at a local park with the help of a nature guide. But you could do some of the same things on your own in a wooded area or near a pond.

*Finding frog eggs.
*Feeding toads {live worms, yuck!}.

Have the boys dig for worms then go on a frog/toad hunt. Toads will only eat it if they see their food moving. Watch the eyes, we learned the muscles of the eyes are used to push the food into the stomach, that is why they close while the toad is eating.
*Salamander and slimy creatures hunt.
 Look under rocks, logs and wet leaves for salamanders. Always roll logs and rocks towards you so if something unpleasant is hiding underneath, it has an escape route away from you!

The boys found lots of salamanders of various colors. Because it was a bit cold still, they didn't run away as easily. Some slugs and centipedes were unearthed as well.

At the nature center, the boys were even able to hold a small cobra, feed a turtle and examine reptiles eggs.  If you don't have a nature center near you, there are companies that bring reptiles and amphibians around to parties and for classroom education. Just search if you would like to add this aspect to your son's party.

Food
I like to make food follow the theme of the parties, so I scoured the web for ideas and added some of my own creations. Each item was labeled with the name, what it actually contained, and some interesting facts related to the food and reptiles or amphibians. To drink, the children had chocolate milks, bottles of water, and fruit juice boxes. My son even said that the chocolate milk was "mud."

Frog Eggs Salad~ Frozen Peas with Buttermilk Ranch Dressing over Shredded Lettuce




Snake Eggs~ Green Grapes




Squiggly Worms~ Sliced Boiled Hot Dogs

Simply slice the hot dogs in four pieces, length-wise, and boil. I kept them warm in a crock pot. The boys gobbled them up!

Frog Tongues~ Red Fruit Tape

Another hit, some the the amphibian hunters let these hang from their mouths and pretended they were frogs. Not very appetizing, but entertaining.

Coiled Snakes in a Basket~ Bread Sticks




Frogs on a Log~ Celery with Cream Cheese and Green Olive Halves




Trail Mix~ Popcorn, Graham Bug Bites, M&M's, Craisins

This snack mix is easily taken along for the "hunt", fill a lunch bag and tie with some string.

Slippery Snake Cake~ Chocolate and Yellow Bundt Cakes with Butter Cream Frosting

A red fruit tape makes a super tongue for this slippery green snake. A few green and yellow skittles are used for some shiny scales.

I made one chocolate bundt cake and one yellow bundt cake, cut each in half and made a curved s-shaped before icing the cake with buttercream frosting tinted green. It was s-s-s-super!

Decorations
These were simple, but they brightened up the nature center {which was a bit dark and stuck in the 70's}. I stuck with green plastic table clothes {which allowed me to just gather all of the trash from the table by just wrapping it up} as well as green plates and napkins. I used blue forks and spoons mainly because they were left over from another party, but they also went along with the theme and added a bright touch.

Scattered across the table were little blue and green "gems" I picked up at Michael's. In addition were little lizards, frogs and snakes in bright colors I bought at Target. I let the boys take these and add them to their goodie bags.



The goody bags were a brown bag in which they placed their gems and amphibians and reptiles. They were also given a Smithsonian Handbooks: Reptiles and Amphibians as well as a magnifying glass for them to use in their own hunts at home.

All had a terrific time. Especially this one~

Happy Birthday!