I think one of the hardest things a mom has to do is watch her babies grow up! When they are small you can still snuggle and cuddle with them as they tell you they love you forever, dress them up, play tea party, and hold their little hands when you go out with them
Then they turn into teenagers.
Tea parties became make-up parties, they don’t want your opinion in dressing up, and the only hand they want to hold is the boy in school who seems to have her heart as well.
So when one of those babies asks for us to celebrate her 14th birthday at Chuck E Cheese pizzeria, I’m going to do it no matter how much I despise that place!
And, of course we had a wonderful time!It was capped off by my parents who drove five hours (one way) just for this little party, knowing that they had to return home the same day so my daddy could preach on Sunday morning!
Not only did we play at Chuck E. Cheese for two hours we also went bowling, making this birthday celebration an all day affair!
 |
| The girls brought the boyfriends….. thankfully my son isn’t into girls yet; at least the ones his age (college girls on the beach are an entirely different story!) ! |
With six strikes I had a great night bowling!!
 |
| MINE! |
But in the midst of all the birthday fun and laughs was was a cake.
Madeline asked for a green cake.
Only my child.
We looked at several pictures on Pinterest for inspiration before she decided on one that combined two decorating elements: rosette swirls and ruffles.
 |
| via Pinterest |
 |
| via Pinterest |
Now I had done swirls before, but ruffles was a whole new game for me.
I have a long way to go.
But I tried to give her what she wanted.
First I baked the cake using my favorite white velvet cake recipe.
Each of the four layers was a different shade of green; the popular ombre style.
I only used two recipes of the white velvet cake …. each 8-in cake pan held 2 cups of cake batter that I had tinted green in separated bowls.
I used Wilton paste in Leaf Green for the color, adjusting the amount and even adding a bit of white to achieve the colors I wanted.
After baking the layers and letting them cool, I leveled, stacked with basic buttercream icing between each layer, and then lightly (or dirty) iced the cake to keep my crumbs contained and give myself a base to work with.
And then I started playing with the icing. I used the same Wilton Leaf Green paste for tinting my buttercream. I made three recipes of the icing to make sure that I had enough.
I did the ruffles first and discovered that my icing was not stiff enough to stand, so they don’t look very good.
That means practice because I am a perfectionist and won’t be happy until I can do this technique correctly.
The rosette swirls made the top of the cake.
The main thing was that Madeline loved her cake and it was green!
 |
| I used taller candles to add a little elegance to the cake. |
OMBRE!
I forgot a decent knife to cut the cake with, so we had to settle for a plastic one at Chuck E. Cheese.
Madeline’s birthday was a truly special day …..
It was a day for counting our blessings for sure: you just can’t be anymore blessed than having a happy, heathy family who truly enjoys being together and grandparents who go out of their way to make sure they are a part of it all.
God has been so good to us!
It’s birthday season for our family, so now to plan Bradley’s 13th celebration for March!
Lot’s of fun!
Fiddle Dee Dee by Jennifer Jones 
Wow – your cake is so pretty. I wish I had the patience for that – I bet your daughter loved it 🙂
LikeLike
That turned out great. I'm putting you in charge for a St. Patsy's Day dessert. What a special day and to have grandparents who love you THAT much! Wow. Cute boyfriends, too.
LikeLike
Your cake is beautiful! I think the ruffles looks awesome and the rose swirled top makes the cake! I have to check out your white velvet cake recipe. How special are your parents to drive almost half an entire day just to be there! Wow. xo
LikeLike
I don't know what is more gorgeous……your daughter or that cake. You have some very special parents Jen.
LikeLike
I understand how bittersweet it is to see our kiddos grow up. Every time that my I love on my grands, I know that it won't be that much longer til they'll start pulling away. 😦 Your daughter is lovely and you did a great job on the cake! Love the ombre effect.
LikeLike
Wow stunning cake and stunning daughter!
LikeLike
Jen, how lucky your daughter is to have you as her Mom! What an awesome cake! Looked perfect to me!
Your daughter is so beautiful, and how wonderful for your parents to make that long drive! I'm glad it was a great day!
LikeLike