Monday, June 20, 2011

Z-Monkey's Birthday Cake

Yep, don't say you weren't warned. Little Z is seven! I'm not going to go all cliche on you guys and say how I can't believe its been seven years since my little baby boy started charming the world. Nope, even though its true. You guys all know it anyways. Z Monkey is my right-hand man, my cutey, my Little Man, my Perfect Oldest, and an all around tough skinned, soft hearted, Mama's Boy. 
And I love him.
 But you guys knew that already. I bet you are just waiting around to see what the cake looks like. But you are just going to have to suffer through my proclamation of love to my Boy who Loves to Please. My Boy who....
Oh dear, I am getting lost in cliches here... 
 So for this year's cake, I asked Z-Monkey what type of cake he wants, as I do every year. And to this he answered:
 "I want a surprise." 
Hmmmm....adds an aura of mystery to the Journey of Finding the Perfect Cake. So I tried thinking of all the "things" he's into right now. 

The first things that came to my mind were:
 A. Playmobil. ( Not a chance. Lego is as far as I will go.) 
B. Perplexus ( This came to my mind for a second. Actually a split second. The thought rested in my mind for a half a second, until my Common Sense said NO WAY and kicked it out.)
C. The Magic Treehouse Books. (Hmmmm, this might work.)

Now, for anyone who is not familiar with The Magic Treehouse Books, you probably do not have kids in grades 1-3. These books are written by Mary Pope Osborne, and they have my kids spellbound. Anyone who can have 2 monkeys sitting for 2 hours straight, listening to books on CD gets an award. Mary Pope Osborne packs all sorts of random useful information into her books, while the kids don't even realize that they are actually learning! D-Monkey knows who Leonardo Da Vinci is, where he lived, and what paintings he painted. Z-Monkey can tell you where Thomas Alva Edison lived (Menlo Park, NJ) and what he is famous for. (Bet you didn't even know his middle name!) But besides for that, the books are always on the edge exciting, with original story lines. Really, truly amazing books. And another thing I love about her books are the adorable main characters- Jack and Annie. It is so unusual to find books or tapes nowadays (yes, I know I sound old school. And I'm not even thirty yet!) that mimic good manners but Jack and Annie are so cute, and polite to each other, I can't help but smile. 
So back to the cake- 
I was really excited to do a cake on the theme of  The Magic Treehouse. I was not disappointed. I think as my kids get older, and the themes of their cakes get more mature, the cakes get more fun to make. I know I say this with every cake, but this cake was really fun to make! And of course Z-Monkey loved it. 

Now let's let the pictures do the talking:

See Jack and Annie peeking out?
The rope ladder rungs are fondant, threaded through twine.
I think I fell in love with my leaf cutter about 20 times while making the cake. Don't tell Big D.

Actually Big D. Don't worry. 
I said I was going to dedicate part of this post to you. 
So here it goes:
Big D, in my mind, this is you:


My Knight in Shining Armor who arrives on his White Horse 
to save his Damsel In Distress (that's me) from drowning in dishes.
And for that I am truly thankful and forever indebted. 
Amen.

And bringing this back around full circle. Happy Birthday Z-Monkey. We love you!



18 comments:

  1. VERY IMPRESSIVE. theriouthly cool. and AWWWWWWW. so cute! hahaha

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  2. I'm teary eyed!!
    For real!
    I don't know which I like better, your writing, photographs, or the gorgeous cakes.

    And I'm not prejudice!!
    Where did those genes come from????

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  3. It is gorgeous! Sister in law, you have outdone yourself! And BRAVO big brother for learning from Abba :)

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  4. ooohhlaaalaa! wish I had such cakes for my b-day......tell Liitle Z that he is the luckiest monkey in the world, and got the coolest Mom! (and happy b-day)!

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  5. You are incredible! What an amazing cake!!

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  6. this is incredible. I am closing my computer NOW before my kids see this and decide they want a different Mommy.

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  7. coolio!! you are really amazing

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  8. Fabulous cake! I can't wait for the next birthday. It seems like Jack and Annie are old friends that my kids just can't stop talking about. I can't wait to take a look around your site=)

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  9. gorgeous! does the magic treehouse also come in books?

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  10. Do you eat these type of cakes-or you just save them till Peasach? You probably don't even put some sort of cake inthe middle cuz no one cutting it anyways!!

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  11. Proud Tante: Sure, the series are books. We just get the books on CD because the kids love to llisten to them.
    Anonymous: Thank you! I actually make sure the cakes taste BETTER than they look- I am a huge cake/frosting fan, and in my humble opinion, there is no point in working 6 hours on a cake if it doesnt taste wicked good. In other words, the cakes in our house get cut! :)

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  12. WOW. Amazing cake. How long did it take you?

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  13. I usually underestimate how long a cake will take and end up going till 2am. B''h this was about 5 hours from start to finish ( including clean up!)

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  14. Wow . . . how did you do this?? Is the tree trunk fondant around a dowel glued to the base? I don't understand how it doesn't topple over. Very nice design and execution.

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  15. Thanks Laura- its actually a vase covered in fondant- the shape was great for stability.

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  16. Thanks for the explanation. Oh, so you used a vase . . . Now I am even more impressed. That is just BRILLIANT! I have to remember that.

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