Escape Room Birthday Party

Can they save the Guinea Pig from the Dinosaur?

Thus far, we only give the kids a birthday party on their 1st, 5th, and 10th birthdays.  We came upon another 10th birthday, and this birthday girl has been party planning for about 4 years :)  However, after doing an escape room last year on vacation, all of her plans changed.  So, Nicole and I went to work scheming and planning, and I think it all turned out pretty well.

First, I read a lot of website and blogs about "how to" plan an escape room.  Some were helpful and some were note.  Blending ideas from websites, our own Escape Room experiences and my knowledge of the children invited, we set out to work.

This is how we designed and executed an "Escape Room" Birthday Party.

1.  I had a dedicated notebook for ideas, sketches, lock codes, etc.
2.  We had four "rooms" that the kids moved through.  I decided what the main goal of each room would be.  In other words, what needs to be figured out in order to move on to the next area.
3.  We gathered locks, lock boxes, used door knobs, etc.
4.  We had a "story", which really just gave us a reason to do it.  The kids were trying to "save the guinea pig"
5.  Keep it small. Most escape rooms are for 4-6 people.  I limited the guest list to 8 people, which gave us 10 total with the birthday girl and her brother (big sister was my helper).  This was actually too many.  Hannah even said that after the fact.  She said it was "overwhelming" and wished there were a few less people.  This makes it hard for a birthday party because you are so limited in your guest list.

So...Here was our Escape Room.

Phase 1:
After lunch (we all think better with a fully tummy), we took the kids out on the front porch and locked them out of the house.  Their goal was the find the house key so they could unlock the front door and get into the house.  The key was attached to a key ring with about 20 other keys in it.  However, that key ring was locked in a zipper pencil pouch.  It was locked with a typical 3 number code lock.  So, the first task was the figure out that code!!!  How would they do that?  There were three clues available.  We had three boxes on the front porch.  Each box had a triangle in it with an X at 2 of the points of the triangle.  The third point had a number.  Each point represented a number in the lock code.  So, the kids had the three number, but they needed to figure out the order.

Each kid had their own little notebook for taking notes.

We made it "easy" on them by putting the numbers in order on the triangles....but they still struggled a bit.  They were also thrown off because a few of the boxes had puzzle pieces with numbers on the back.  These puzzle pieces had to do with something inside, but they kept trying to make those numbers as part of the code.  Finally though, one young man put it all together and figured it out.  The other problem is that the kids didn't know how to use the locks.  We let them try until they asked for help, and then one of us helped them ;)  Anyway, they deciphered the code, which allowed them to open the zipper, get to the keys, and eventually find their way into the house.

Phase 2:
The kids had the living room and dining room to work in, the goal was to break through the "locked" caution tape and get into the school room.  I told them that if something had a lock on it, they needed to figure out the code or find the key...even if they could see what was inside.  (Blanket Basket).  There were puzzle pieces around the room, inside of jars, etc.  I had four random puzzle pieces on the dining room table, so that the kids would know that they need to put it together there.  I numbered the back of the pieces, because I wanted them to use the back and not the front of the puzzle. I also thought it would help them put it together easier :)  We used a locked blanket baked, "hidden books", a blacked out mason jar, a puzzle box,  and two locking gun cases (no gun inside, of course ; ). Once everything was opened, the kids had a completed puzzle and a black light in their hands. 

It was fun watching them try to get into this secret box

They eventually shined the black light on the puzzle and the invisible message said, "In order to get to the end, you must go back to the beginning".   That was the clue to figure out the code for the lock keeping them from the caution tape.  The code to the lock was the same three number combo they used on the front porch :).  After a few moment, one young man figured it out!  We unlocked the lock, and the kids broke through the caution tape.

Phase 3:
Now the kids were in the school room with the main goal to get out onto the back porch.  To do this, they must find the key to unlock the back door.  This section had an old brief case, with a three digit code, another zipper bag, full of magnetic letters, and a 2-phase cipher.

The briefcase's code was also in black light, however the ink didn't work for some reason, so ended up just giving the kids the clue.  So, they were able to break into the briefcase where they found a page protector with some random lines on it and another laminated letter.  I loved this part, because they also found the random lines written on our window.  They had the good idea to put the laminated sheet up against the window.  It wasn't making the right shape/letter/number....but they were trying SO hard to get something out of it ;)  Eventually, they thought to shift the page projector a bit, and found the digits 0407.  This was the four digit code needed to open the lock on the zipper bag.  Inside of this bag was a bunch of magnetic letters.  At first they tried making words from these letters, however eventually, they decided to put them in ABC order.  They quickly discovered that three letters were missing. (Well, they got to M and W mixed up, but I fixed it for them ;)

These three letters were the code to the door lock, holding the key.  They were quickly able to open the lock and reveal the key that would unlock the back door  to get to the back patio.

Phase 4:
Once on the back patio, the kids were almost done.  They were met with a roaring dinosaur, standing in front of the Guinea Pig cage :)  The students had to find a way to kill (disable) the dinosaur.  They found a locked toolbox.  Before they could open the tool box, they had to find the key to the lock!!!  Since I knew they would be getting tired, I hid the key in a fairly obvious place for the kids, so they quickly found it ;)

Once unlocking the toolbox, they found a screw driver.  Because they are smart kids ;)  They knew that the screwdriver was the take the battery panel off of the dino.  However, they were surprised to find one more laminated letter in the battery holder.  Now the students had four laminated letters:  A, Y, R, M.

After a moment, Hannah finally put it together that the code for the 4 letter lock was "MARY"....the name of the guinea pig.  Finally....she was FREE!!!

YAY!!!  The kids did such a great job!  I think that they really had fun.  One participant even came to me and said, "Usually I have to fake smile at birthday parties, you know....so I won't be rude, even if I'm not having fun.  But today...this is a REAL smile!" haha.  That may have been the best compliment ;)

Guliana & Nicolas

Kristina & Vanessa

Harper & Saylor

Jordan

James

Nicole bought a special "Big Sis" and "Little Sis" matching pendants

This was part of the party favor.  A coded message that Nicole came up with.

I believe my sweet birthday girl had a super fun 10th Birthday!

We went to a minor league baseball game that night together as a family, along with our friend Jessica & Adam. 

I love that Hannah wore her "Birthday girl" sash on her actual birthday :)

She and I also had a special couple of hours together at the water park on her actual birthday.  Good times :)

Collier County Fair

We stepped WAAAAAYYY outside of our (my!) comfort zones this year and allowed the girls to enter their Guinea Pigs (Cavy) into the fair.  I wasn't sure that I would like driving to the fair grounds every day to clean out the cages and feed the animals.  However, it turned out to be a really wonderful experience.

We met new friends.  Learned to work in new ways.  And had full access to the fair whenever we wanted!  It was actually a lot of fun!

We had to go to mandatory "Barn Day", where we helped to set up the cages for the livestock.  We met the sweetest young men who were so patient and kind with the kids, allowing them to use the power tools, even if they were messing things up ;)

The cavies were at their new home for about one week.

Mary is all situated, but she's a fair veteran

We weren't sure how Twincky would react to the fiar, but he did alright.

The 4H clubs invited a large group of homeschool students out to the barn one afternoon.  Each 4H student who had animals in the fair were stationed by their animal and gave short presentations to groups of students.  It was good practice for Showmanship judging that night.

I think this was one of Nathan's first times holding the guinea pig.  Hannah is such a sweet and supportive sister.

Nicole, my girl with a plan, did a fabulous job of talking about how to care for a cavey in front of the homeschool crowd

Tuesday night was the Cavy "Showmanship" competition.  The cavies were judged first on their overall appearance.  We call it the "beauty contest".  There isn't much you can do for this part except have a clean cavy :)  It's all about how well they are built.  I don't have pictures of this portion, but I do have adorable photos of my girls in their showmanship uniform.  Aren't they a pair of cuties!

During showmanship, the girls were judged upon their knowledge of Cavies and how to check them out for any issues.  Since this was their first time, we weren't really sure what to expect.  However, the girls did a great job.

They both earned second place for Showmanship, which was wonderful!

We also had to attend "Barn Clean up" day

Nathan should receive a "Best Brother" Award.  This is boy has been SO supportive of his sisters.  He worked and cleaned, just like they did...and there was nothing in it for him. Zero. Nada. Nil. Nothing.  He is acting like a turkey in this photo ;)

A few of our friends got hurt during barn clean up.  Everyone stopped, gathered in the center and prayed for them.  How cool is that?!?

Finally, about a month after the fair closed, they had an awards ceremony.  It was really fun to see our friends again, and let the kids receive their awards.

Both girls earned the "Golden Shovel", which to me was the best award.  They received it because they worked hard to make sure that not just their area was clean, but the rest of the barn too.  They both were given a $50 Amazon Gift card.

The girls, working to keep their barn clean

We also had a lot of fun nights just hanging out at the fair.  The motorcross show was super cool to watch, the rides were fun to ride, and the funnel cakes are always good to eat. 

We spent one evening having a BLAST with our friends and their sweet children.  Emma Grace, Eli, Owen, Nathan, Hannah, and Nicole

Owen and Nathan were ride buddies

Nathan was FINALLY big enough to drive the bumper cars...all.by.himself.

 We participated in a cheesy magic show.

Hannah was a pretty funny and engaging volunteer

Nathan liked the magician's bird

Nate and I had some sweet times together hanging out while the girls worked. 

 Because we are such a fun family, hahaha.

 This is our buddy, Luke, and pig, "Pam", the big fat ham :) We had fun watching Luke and cheering him along.

 Nathan had a special affection for these turkeys

This is the sweetest photo of Hannah with her Papa.

 Oh yeah...Nathan and I participated in the fair too.  We both submitted artwork for the family living tent.  I won $75, and he won $10. 

 Nathan made a really cool mixed media scene out of perler beads, paper, and sticks/twigs.  He even won a ribbon.  Best of all, our friends Adam & Jessica bought his picture from him to put up in their nursery one day.

The fair was SO much fun!  We can't wait for next year.