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Last weekend we had Noah’s birthday party at the McMinnville Aquatic Center. Naturally, since we were playing in the water – and it’s our school’s mascot – we added a little pirate theme to the party and made it extra fun with TWIX® Bites.

It’s always slightly more challenging hosting a birthday party at a venue – set up time is really nonexistent, and while the kids are playing you find yourself rushing to clean everything back up. There are a few upsides though – it is short and sweet, meaning you don’t have to entertain people for a long period of time at your house, plus you don’t have to clean your entire house either. 😉

Like I mentioned, in addition to a pirate theme, had a chocolate-loving theme – with TWIX® Bites, and we went all out! The cake, cookies, ice cream, even goody bags were filled with the TWIX® Bites for everyone to feast on! I think I pretty much bought the whole supply of them off of Walmart’s shelf last week! They are found right in the candy aisle, plus there is also a coupon on Social Twist for a $1.00 off two 2.83 oz or larger bags or $3.00 off of two 6 oz or larger bags.

Cookies are always a favorite treat with the kids (and adults!). In fact, I kept the snacks really simple this time since the party time was 2-4 pm and the kids were swimming for an hour of that time. We had mini peanut butter and jam sandwiches, potato chips, apples with caramel dip, squeezable yogurts, and veggies with ranch. Everything was kid-friendly!

The cookies were super delicious, very easy to make, and just one more way to #EatMoreBites.

Ingredients:

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup softened butter

1 egg

1 tablespoon vanilla

2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups chopped TWIX® Bites

In a large bowl mix sugar and cream until blended. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Mix in the flour and baking soda, then add chopped TWIX®. Roll the dough and wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate until firm – about an hour. Slice the cookies approx. 1/4″ thick and place on a cookie sheet. Bake the cookies at 375 degrees for approximately 12 minutes or until golden brown. Let the cookies cool for 1 minute on the sheet and then transfer to a wire rack.

I’ve also begun pre-scooping ice cream prior to when the party starts. It saves time and you can jazz it up a bit with other treats like the TWIX Bites I used. I chopped them up and mixed them in two scoops of old fashioned vanilla ice cream for our guests.

The biggest feat which I (attempted to) accomplish was one of a kind cake for Noah. It’s kind of turned into a challenge for me every birthday now. I used to just purchase a cake because it freed up a lot of time, but since when we have a party outside of our house I enjoy the challenge of creating something for the kids, like Anika’s flower cupcakes or Emma’s princess cake. No, they don’t look as good, but it’s homemade cake and created with love by my two unprofessional hands, plus, I’ve learned as long as there are lots of goodies on it (like TWIX® Bites!) the kids don’t care how it looks!

So I attempted to make a pirate ship. It’s not perfect – I got frustrated, but it kind of resembles a pirate…something. I think by the look in this boy’s face it proves it’s worth the effort.

All in all, we had a fun little party that Noah won’t be forgetting about anytime soon. After our feast on treats, he opened his presents while his friends patiently waited and then they were all off to swim for an hour! We had our party on a Sunday, and the Aquatic center is normally closed with the exception of party rentals, so we had both pools to ourselves – the kids loved it!

Thanks #CollectiveBias for helping make this pirate party even more memorable!

~Melissa