Thrifting a Third Birthday

I cannot believe Joel is almost three. Wow, how time flies. He has turned into this little person with his own wants and likes and dislikes! One of the things he really likes is construction equipment. (I have an old thrifted "Bob the Builder" VHS tape that he loves to watch for hours on end on occasion because of course we don't let him watch that much tv. Oh okay, you got me).

I was actually going to go with a John Deere party because that's his other love, but I hit the thrifting jackpot with construction party stuff, so construction it is. I found 50c construction cups, bulldozer thank you notes, and 90c Bob the Builder favor bags all still new in the package... I already had yellow streamers and napkins leftover from last year's Curious George party... coupled with some awesome cakes I saw on pinterest, I can do this!

I'm trying to decide what to do as favors. I like the idea of yellow/black M&M cookie mixes in a mason jar, but black M&Ms are super expensive since they're not one of the normal colors. Can you think of anything to substitue that would be black, or do you think the brown ones would be okay to use? I also like the idea of these little frames, painted yellow and black:

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