My 1st Real Decorated Cake

Every year I make my kids' birthday cakes. Partially because I enjoy it, and partially because I'm too cheap to spend the $$ on the store ones when I can make it for a fraction of the cost.

I've talked for several years about wanting to do a cake decorating class but never have. Well my friend Brittni and Nicole decorate cakes and I've seen several of theirs lately and it's brought my interest back to surface again. So Brittni was so kind and let me borrow this shooting star pan that she has.

Hollie's birthday was Tuesday and at about 8:30 pm Monday night I finally get settled down to make my pasta salad, sloppy joes, cake and cupcakes for the next day. Thankfully my dear sister volunteered her services. (She might say I begged.)

So I got the cupcakes mixed up, have hamburger browning on the stove for sloppy joes, cupcakes in the oven, frosting that I've started trying to make that isn't working right and in the middle of my pasta salad. (Really I was trying to multi-task in the beginning but I don't think having my hand (literally) in all these different things was accomplishing ANYTHING!)
In the midst of all the craziness Kambri is hysterical in her bed and wanting out. I'm normally terrible and give her about 10 minutes or so and I go in her room. Well Linz tells me to wait it out and so I try this for what seemed like FOREVER and finally send Shaun in to check on her. Well she had gotten so upset that she ended up throwing up. Thank Heavens for my hubby who took care of the mess and Linz who bathed her...all the while I'm still trying to keep my 15 projects in the kitchen rolling.

Exhibit A: Frosting and pasta salad, Hollie in the background wanting to help decorate the microphone cupcakes unattended.

Exhibit B: The cake just out of the oven (toothpick tested about 10 times, I promise), hamburger browning and to the left are the remnants of Shaun's dinner.

Exhibit C: The 2 girls are in bed, Linz is frosting microphones while I'm finishing the other 14 projects.

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So by the time we got started with making the frosting for the cake it was late, like 11:30 late. And then wouldn't you know it? It's not turning out right. It's buttery and just isn't how it should be. But we have no idea how to fix it at this point. So we start trying to make do and start attempting to frost this baby, but its still just not working out right. At this point in the game it's a little before 1 am. Lindsay and I both still need to shower. Well, she remembers that she has some frosting in a can at home and decides to go get it and we both hurry and get showers over with. Then we mix the canned frosting with our frosting and decide it will do the job. So off we go to decorate.

And we are looking SOOO beautiful at this point.
And after many hours of frustrations...at 2:30 am....
TADA! Our first cake! It was most definitely not flawless, but we were very proud of ourselves and Hollie was thrilled when she woke up and saw it all done! She saw it before I could show it to her and she ran right up to me and gave me a huge hug. It was worth the heartache!! :)

I really struggled with wanting to cut into this cake though. We joked that maybe we should just freeze it and pull it out for each birthday and light candles in it. Haha!

And guess what I found when I started eating my piece? It wasn't cooked all the way through. (Remember from above that I toothpick tested it about 10 times?!) Still tasted great though. It really was a delicious cake and Linz and I were so proud!

Next time I make one I will only have that project that I'm working on, rather than a million others at the same time. :)