D is for dinosaur-themed party

So my little dinosaur-obsessed dinosaur turned 6 last month. And obviously, I didn't pause even for a moment to think about what her birthday party theme should be. I'd already done the thinking almost a year ago, when I'd sneakily planted the idea of dinosaurs in her head.

You see, I have my own 'syllabus' for her in mind when it comes to the things I want her to learn about. Because of my work, I'm really familiar with the primary school science syllabus so I come up with topics that are not in the syllabus (just so things don't get repetitive and boring when she starts science at school) and plant the ideas in her head. Inception. Muahahaha. It starts off by sparking a conversation about the most fascinating aspect of the topic ("Imagine an animal roaming around on Earth, which was as big as three school buses..."). Then all I need to do is pick up some relevant books from the library and the rest of the stuff happens on its own.

When the dino boom happened, not only did her knowledge and reading skills improve tremendously, it had some nice side effects for me too. I'd leave her in a room with 10 or 12 dinosaur books and she'd be all set for an hour or so, while I furiously did my chores or had a teleconference or whatever it was I needed to do without any disruption. Then I'd come back and she's enlighten me with all sorts of fun facts about dinosaurs.

There were some other cool perks too. When the dino-obsession started, she started asking for dinosaur pizza and dinosaur dosa and dinosaur paratha and what not. So here was my chance to sneak in more vegetables. Imagine a pink (grated beetroot mixed in batter) dinosaur dosa or a green (atta made with spinach puree instead of water) dinosaur paratha. The dinosaur shapes somehow made food more interesting and palatable to her. Ek teer hazaar nishaane. 

She's a real authority on dinosaurs now. She knows dinosaurs I didn't even know existed. And she says their long and complicated names so casually, it's hilarious. "Mama, look! This baby pachycephalosaurus is so cute!") Yesterday, she and her friend were running around, roaring, and I asked them what they were supposed to be. "Mama, we are gallimimuses." I swear I had to google to find out what the animal (and the spelling) was.

So, for her 6th birthday party (it was a modest one, with just us, in-laws and some close family friends), we went full dinosaur. Prepare to be bombarded with dinosaur-related stuff. You've been warned.

The decor was very basic, but I'd ordered this giant dinosaur balloon online as the 'centrepiece'. It arrived literally days before her birthday! Phew!

Of course, she had a dinosaur T-shirt on...

...and a dinosaur tattoo to complete the outfit. 

Mom-in-law and I made mini-idlis and decorated them with these dinosaur toppers I'd ordered online. (Oh online shopping, what would I do without you?!) In case you're curious, the orange idlis were made with batter dyed with beetroot juice. 

I made these dinosaur crackers using dinosaur cookie cutters (that I'd ordered... where else...). 

They went really well with a dip I'd made using Greek yoghurt and chopped jalapenos. The crackers disappeared in no time. No one spared them, kids and adults alike. 

And of course, there was the cake. I made the dinosaurs with marshmallow fondant and used dinosaur moulds to shape them. 

And the inside had a colourful checkered pattern to match the dinosaurs on top. (These days, I'm so obsessed with 'surprise inside' cakes that I'm starting to find 'regular' cakes a bit boring. It's a little scary, to be honest.) 

This is how a slice looks. Now tell me you want to eat a regular cake slice which has the same colour throughout??!! Hehehe!

I'd melted some semi-sweet chocolate chips and chilled them in dinosaur moulds. Voila! Cute chocolate dinosaurs, which served as the perfect topping for dessert -- homemade brownies and ice-cream. 

And finally, the party favours -- dinosaur toys for the kids to assemble!

I think it's safe to say that the 'home term' on 'dinosaurs' has pretty much come to an end, with this party being the crescendo. The next term's topic I've incepted in her head is 'space'. (The solar system used to be a part of the primary science syllabus until some years ago when it was ruthlessly plucked out. No one knows why. I reckon someone high up at the Ministry of Education was really really fond of Pluto, and just couldn't take the news.)