Birthday Princess/ Birthday Jedi

I will interrupt the stories about our trip to Ethiopia to tell you a story about a cake...

Specifically, this Barbie Princess Birthday Cake that I made all by myself! 

Lily's birthday was the day before our 2AM wake up for our flight to Ethiopia. So, of course, it was the perfect time to throw a pizza party for our family and close friends, and bake an elaborate Barbie Princess Birthday Cake. 

I may have been a little bit crazy  busy in April.

Back to the cake:

First, following some nice lady on YouTube's instructions, I baked a simple yellow cake in a bowl. Only my cake did not so much cook in the middle as turn to mush. Mush which I scooped out once the rest of the cake was near burnt done. And I have no idea what happened to the scoop of half baked yellow cake, except that I imagine it tasted pretty good eaten out of bowl with a hot cup of coffee.  Just guessing...

I cut the round shaped bowl baked cake into a more round shape and place it on top of two more layers of cake, then started icing it.

And iced, and iced, and iced it. I think I used three batches of icing. I kind of lost track.  There may have been some sweating, stressful, why the *&$% didn't I just order from a bakery, late night moments. Maybe.

But then it (she) started coming together, and I felt hopeful. It was starting to look a little bit Pinterest-y

VIOLA!

There really are few problems that cannot be (temporarily) solved with gobs and gobs of pink icing.  

I had a moment, when this beautiful hours of work and sweat and tears cake was on the table when I thought, nope, no! We are not cutting and eating this perfect piece of art. Let's just have ice cream instead. 

But, obviously, I was brave and we ate it. And it was DELICIOUS! All 3 million calories.

In a moment of guilt over the fancy pants cake I was making for Lily, I came up with a (much, much simplier) fun idea for Daniel's birthday cupcakes.

Happy 8th Birthday, my dearest son.

Happy 4th birthday, my darling daughter. 

Next year, ice cream...