Happy Birthday, Doug!

I think it's funny how our perception of birthdays evolve over the years.  We make such a big deal about them when our kids are babies, of course, they are big deals.   Before you know it, we tell people our age in relation to the big day.  "I'm 4 1/2, I'm 10 and 3/4, I'm almost 13."  The milestones are years to look forward to with excitement because you're becoming an adult and gaining your independence;  at 16 you can drive, at 18 you can vote, at 21 you can drink.  At what age do we stop bragging about our age?  When you reach your 30's?  40's?  I don't remember the last time I walked up to a stranger and said, "Hi, I'm Kendra and I'm 36 and 1/2."  I will admit,  I think I went most of last year thinking I was 35.  Really, I'm 36?  Mommy brain, but I digress.  This entry is about Doug.  I feel like birthdays have changed for us since having kids.  We used to celebrate kind of quietly, no big "pomp and circumstance."  However, Mary is all about birthdays now and loves them.  What kid doesn't?  She keeps asking me how old Daddy is.  You can only get away with saying, "He's really, really old" for so long.  So now, I just tell her, "He's so old, his cake is in jeopardy of burning down from all the candles."  Happy birthday, Doug!  You are a wonderful husband, friend and father and we are so blessed to have you in our lives.  Now, where's that fire extinguisher?

My version of a "Flame" cake.

For those of you who know me, you know I'm not a baker.  For some reason, I decided to make Doug a special cake.  Maybe it was the relative success with Mary's butterfly cake that got me thinking.  Maybe it was the thought that even though we're moving in a few days, Doug should have something memorable.  I decided to make a cake that looked like it was on fire.  I've never used Fondant before, but they now carry it at the exchange, so I thought that would make good flames.  First, we made the cake.  Chocolate, of course...actually, triple chocolate.   Mary's a great little helper.

Next, we had to lick the beaters.  

Yes, there was a little "double dipping" action taking place.  Man, that kid's fast.

I didn't take any photos of coloring the fondant, or rolling it out, or even cutting it into flame shapes.  I do have a pic of the finished product

I was quite pleased with the result.  Unfortunately, since I'm not a baker, I once again had a cake mishap.  I finished this last night and by the morning, some of the flames had fallen over and there was a big sunken in area on top.  Hmm.  I'm doing something wrong, but don't know what.  Oh well, the cake held up for the most part.  I put Doug's numbers on top and added a few more flames to help mask the fallen areas.  It wasn't quite as pretty, but it was seriously yummy...and fun.  And that's all that really matters.