Just Me: Cake

Usually for my kids' birthdays I make a cake in a 9x13 pan. I may or may not put some frosting on it. Poke in some candles and I am done. I used to attempt fancy cakes in different shapes, but I haven't done it in a long time. Now I remember why.

For some reason, probably having to do with loss of brain cells from so many pregnancies, I decided to get a little fancy this time. "How about a round 2 layer cake?" I thought. Huh? I never make those.

You should have seen it before the frosting.

First of all, I made the cake from scratch. I don't know if that is why it didn't want to come out of the round pans or if I just didn't grease the pans well enough. The entire bottom of one round stayed in the pan and the other one got all chewed up from the spatula. It was pretty sad looking. But I persevered and spread the middle frosting and put the top layer on. Crooked. Taller on one side than on the other. With really awful looking sides.

Oh well, we must push on. Too late to turn back now. I spread the lemon frosting on the whole cake, getting surprisingly fewer crumbs in the frosting than I thought I would, given the state of the sides of the cake.

I should have stopped while I was ahead. But no, I had to get even fancier. I decided to decorate it with some red icing as well.

Great, now it looks like a drum.

Now the good part. The ego boosting part. The part where my children PRAISE the cake as if it is the most beautiful thing they have ever seen. The part where Good Mom Cristy has to beat back Sarcastic Cristy to keep her from blurting out "Yeah, you guys wouldn't know a good looking cake if it bit you in the hiney. You just want to EAT it!"

11 year old daughter: "Mom that is a very arTEEsta...arTIStical...uh...

Me: Artistic?

Her: YEAH...artistic looking cake!

13 year old: Where do people learn to decorate cakes like that?

Me: Oh, they can take a cake decorating class, or read a book...or some people are just born with the talent, like me.

Her: I want a cake like that for my birthday. But I want to decorate it myself.

Hey, am I detecting a little somethi...no, she is just in awe of my talent and wants to emulate me.

10 year old (whispering to his brother when I am not in the kitchen): Look at that cake. Doesn't that look so neat?

Heh.