Ben's 6th birthday party- Mad Scientist

For Ben's 6th birthday he requested a "potion" party at our home with a few friends. He doesn't like big crowds and doesn't do well in places with lots of stimulation. He's nervous like me!

We had 10 of our little friends and a few siblings tag along. Danny and I felt bad not inviting everyone we know, that's usually how we roll (the more the merrier), but I really wanted to listen to Ben and keep his needs in mind. 

I sent Sarah over at City Bakery a few picture ideas and had a friend write Ben and his age in scientific form along with Be N in elements for the cake. I just love how it came out and it was super yummy to boot! 

HE loved it and the the dry ice we dropped in the beakers before the guests arrived. 

We set up experiment stations under a tent in the driveway. There were three stations that the kids rotated through in small groups. I had a few parents who helped man the stations and the other parents helped with their children and where needed. It went so smoothly! Messy, but smoothly!

I had saved these glass bottles from drinks we got at Earthfare. They had been in my cabinet for months ; I'm so glad I was able to reuse them for the

 FOAMING VOLCANO EXPERIMENT 

I pre-measured out the baking soda and cornstarch for the experiments to help things go a little smoother. These are condiment containers. I found them at Target. 

We also had an OOBLECK station. 

I used To Go containers by Glad that I picked up at Target and free printable labels (link below)

The last station was the LAVA LAMP station. 

I started to panic when the tracking info for the test tubes said they still were not at our post office the morning of the party. I decided to empty water bottles to 1/4 full and went and bought more oil (since the water bottles were bigger than the test tubes.) I was ecstatic when the postman delivered the package before starting his route, getting them to me just in time to set out for the party.

We had a table with homemade trash bag lab coats that my amazing husband cut and drew, safety goggles, gloves and biohazard bags to store their experiments. We had sharpies at the stations for them to write their names on the containers. It's a good idea to do this before getting their hands wet and oily. 

Ben was so excited when he saw everything set up and ready to go! 

We also had a few group experiments. The mentos and soda is always a hit and we did the CO2 ballon or Balloon Magic as it's often referred as. 

While we were waiting for everyone to arrive, the kids played in the basement and on the trampoline. 

Once everyone arrived, it was "Potion Time."

I just love the looks on all the kids faces! Pure joy and made all the hard work and prep time well worth it! 

Don't you love these favor bags?! This was the first time I was really glad Amazon suggested I buy something, ha! 

When the kids finished the three experiments, they cleaned up and went to play while the parents all helped clean up the area and get ready for cake. 

we had some issues with the wind and the candles did not want to stay lit. 

He didn't care. 

after cake, the kids gathered for a few dry ice experiments. They (and Danny) really enjoyed playing around with a dry ice and water and dish soap. It's important to not touch the dry ice with your hands. Use tongs and wear gloves! The kids used forks to pop the bubbles, but didn't have direst contact with the dry ice itself. 

well except for here. oops. Who was watching these kids? :/

ok, there are the forks, whew! 

The MAGIC BALLOON

LOVE it! 

(I used an image from the web to make labels for the empty water bottles.)

We have 2 mentos dispensers for this experiment, but for the life of me I couldn't find them, so I had to run out to OP Taylor's to buy another one. This one only shoots up 12 feet where our other 2 do 20ft. It didn't really matter. It was pretty hilarious and the kids got a kick out of it. Especially when the bottle fell over and scared (or maybe sprayed)  Danny, ha! 

The party was a huge success and and went so well with the help of our friends and their super well behaved children. 

I overheard a kid in the kitchen say it was "the best party ever!" 

After we cleaned up and everyone went home, our family and my sister-in-law and her family went out to Papa's and Beer for Mexican and good ole "Happy Birthday to You, cha cha cha!" 

Cake from the amazing bakers at City Bakery 
Free Printables from this awesome mom who shared ones she created HERE
Goggles were from Amazon and I picked up a few of the Build and Grow ones from Lowes.
Test Tubes were from Home Science Tools and took every bit of the window to deliver. They arrived mins before the party started.
I ordered the biohazard bags, biohazard tape, petri dishes and beakers from  Amazon
Dry Ice can be purchased at your grocery store. It is in a cooler next to the ice coolers. DO NOT PUT DRY ICE IN YOUR FREEZER!