Where did my infant go?

Cake

I am a girl who loves cake.  In fact, a friend and I have given the feeling you get after eating too much cake an official name.  It's called "Cake Belly."  Sure it doesn't sound scientific, but all we have to do is tell the other we have "cake belly" and there is an immediate understanding of the symptoms.  Other foods can mimic "cake belly" so it is a term that can have a variety of uses... but I digress.

I developed an interest in cake decorating many years ago, but never felt like I had an artistic talent.  I can barely draw a stick figure.  But something about the medium of cake brings out my inner DiVinci, and icing and fondant literally transform my abilities into something magical.  Once I became pregnant I knew I was going to be the mom that made all the special birthday cakes for my little girl.  And I have indeed reached that goal over these last three years.

The fun thing about birthday cakes at my house is we always have two of them on our daughter's birthday.  One cake for the Kentucky family, and one cake for the Missouri family.  On her first birthday I made the exact same Panda Cake for both locations.  Her second birthday was a Superman cake for Kentucky and Blue's Clues (with Superman accents) for Missouri.  Her third birthday saw some changes, with a Wallace and Gromit cake for Kentucky, and her Missouri grandmother buying her Dora cupcakes.

Being able to do her cakes does have a very special meaning for me and I hope she will keep the memories of these efforts and maybe one day do the same for her daughter.  I do, however, harbor ill feelings toward the Superman cake since he took several hours to complete, and I'm talking hours of mixing food coloring and white frosting to get the perfect colors.  Hours of hand piping every detail.  Hours of a toddler interrupting you wanting to touch it or "help" every 10 minutes.  And after all that work it was eaten within 20 minutes of the candles being blown out.    It was gut wrenching to see him being hacked away, and I wanted to scream out "No, don't!  Lets take some time to admire the artistry!"  But that seemed like it would be a real party downer, especially for a 2-year-old.  She still asks for a Superman cake from time to time, and the Wilton pan sits atop our refrigerator patiently waiting to be used again.  But it will be some time before I can forget the horror of his preparation and demise, so I always answer her with a cold "Not today, baby.  Not today."  She is quite in love with Superman and we often drive over to see his statue in nearby Metropolis, Il.  He too reminds me of the cake "incident" so I try not to look at him for too long.

So, for your viewing pleasure (and my ego boost)  I proudly present Birthday Cake, The Early Years:

I've also just played around with cakes and here are a few done just for fun:

My husband will celebrate a birthday in May and I plan to do a cake for him this year.  I'm planning something awesome like a guitar, a record, or something else that he loves.  I love doing them and would attempt whatever he wanted.  Unless of course he asked for Superman.