I’m beginning to realize why the youngest child gets treated differently. In many ways that child is the parents’ last link to the world of the young married couple As that child grows older we become more aware of our own age, and how quickly time inexorably flows forward. I sat down with Davin a few weeks ago to help him pick out the gifts he wanted for his 11th birthday. Two things struck me about that experience. First, he is obsessed with Minecraft. It seemed like every gift he chose was related to Minecraft in some way. Second, he is still a kid. He picked out toys. They were the types of things that I knew he would delight in when opened, but then forget about a month later. I nostalgically recalled the joy of giving those types of presents to the kids at Christmas and birthdays, and I realized that we didn’t have many opportunities like this left. Our kids are growing up, and toys will soon be replaced by gift cards. Then and there I decided to make Davin’s 11th birthday a special one. Thus, the Minecraft Birthday was born.
My first task was to convince Lianne. We don’t usually do themed birthdays, but after her mom agreed to help out, we were all in. My second task was to join Pinterest. 🙂 Armed with a wealth of ideas, we got to work. I printed out labels from printabelle, and we got other ideas from various blogs and sites around the internet. I spent about $30 on supplies, and Lianne spent a bit more on food and cooking supplies. Here’s how it ended up looking.
Davin made a pig out of a cardboard box and some construction paper. The pig was just for decoration, but he also made the ghast pinanta, with help from Lianne. The pinanta turned out to be a big “hit.”
We also had plenty of Minecraft themed food. Strawberries turned into Redstone. Kiwi berries were Slime balls. Pretzels with red colored chocolate tips were torches. Rice krispie treats were dirt cubes. Water bottles were Potions of Healing. Twizzlers were TNT. And right out of the game, the Minecraft (fondant coated) cake.
Special thanks to Grandma and Papa for hosting and helping out. Later that night Davin declared it “The best birthday ever!” Mission accomplished!
