Paper Airplane Birthday Party

My sweet baby 

{I mean, BIG boy}

turned 4 over the weekend!

And, boy did we celebrate!

Friends, family...and a yummy cake -

it just doesn't get much better than that! :)

My son has a thing for 

Paper Airplanes!

He loves them...

and every Sunday,

before church service,

my husband has to make him one!

So, I couldn't think

of a more fitting

big boy birthday theme!

It honestly doesn't get 

more budget friendly than

paper plane decor, either:

The Wreath

{painted initial with hot glued paper plane}

Happy Birthday Banner

{hand drawn letters and "zipping" planes on card stock}

Paper Airplane Banner

{hanging off the favor table, simply taped paper planes to twine - also had them hanging on the mantel and several other spots throughout the house}

Craft Table

{Paper plane centerpieces made with floral wire, a few cans, styrofoam and some fabric. I balled up coffee filters to cover foam - thought it looked like clouds. I also had a paper "table cloth" where I drew "zipping" planes and scattered mini paper planes like confetti.}

4 Year Photos + Mini Zipping Plane=

Cute Decor, for sure!

Add in some coordinating 

streamers and balloons...

and we were set!

Then there was the

FOOD:

Our "In-Flight" Dinner

{Included Baked Potato Soup, Cauliflower Clouds & Broccoli Tree Tops, Mile High Sammies, Mixed Nuts and a Pretzel Control Tower}

Dessert, of course!

{Cloud 9 Parfaits, Oreo Pops, Fruit Skewers and Marshmallow Treat Wings}

And, The Cake!

{Lemon Confetti Cake filled with Fresh Blueberry Preserves and topped with Marshmallow Buttercream. I finished it off with Buttercream "Zippy's," White Paper Planes and Lime Ribbon.}

Craft Time:

{making and decorating paper planes}

Then, each kiddo got to "Test Fly"

their plane through the hula hoop!

So.Much.Fun.

Baggage Claim Favor Table

{Included "candy clouds" - white cotton candy, paper plane making tools, stickers and aviator sunglasses. I put them in a simple white paper bag and drew the "zipping" plane on with a sharpie.}

The only thing I forgot to photograph were the invitations, but I simply printed the wording on the back of colorful scrapbook paper and folded it into a plane before placing in the envelope! Turned out adorable!

My sweet baby Mason James had an absolute ball!

And, that just makes my heart smile!

A perfect day it was, indeed!

Pirate Birthday Cupcake Tower

The cutest lil' matey on the 

beach turned 5 yesterday, and 

I was invited to be apart of the celebrations!

Arrrgh!!

This is a Chocolate Fudge Cake and Vanilla Buttercream Frosting with Marshmallow Fondant details. And, yes ... that is a sword through the cake!

The 4 flavors chosen for Cade's cupcakes were Plain Jane, Cookies and Cream, Unbirthday Cake and Double Chocolate. Each cupcake was sitting in a handmade Cupcake Wrapper with matching Ship's Sail Pick.

The birthday boy was as

cute as a button ...

and so was his Pirate themed party!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CADE!

Thank you for letting me be apart of your happy day!

Chugga-Chugga Choo-Choo

All Aboard!

Will's 3rd Birthday

is leaving the station!

At the end of May

a wonderful friend of mine

threw her sweet baby boy

the most terrific train themed birthday party!

And, I was invited in

to create the sweets:

This was a Fresh Banana Cake filled and covered in my Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting. Train decorations were cut from my homemade Marshmallow Fondant.

These mini cupcakes were a mixture of my Fresh Strawberry Cake and Banana Cake both topped with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting and nonpareils. The cupcake wrappers and decorative picks were also handmade just for the event.

I wish you could see the entire set up! The party took place in the old Train Depot downtown and the birthday boy's momma really went all out - everything was perfect and the kiddos all had a blast!

A big THANK YOU to the family for letting me join in on all the Choo-Choo fun!

ROAAAARIN' Birthday Party

We're going back

Waaaayyy back....

to the time of

Dinosaurs!

Last weekend, I was a part of a

ROAAAARRRIN'

Birthday Party,

completed by a prehistoric cake!

This was my Vanilla Bean Confetti Cake topped with Vanilla Buttercream. I did an "airbrushed"/textured design on the outside to create a natural setting for the bold dinos. The top layer was shaved down to mimic an erupting volcano.

The palm trees were edible, made from Chocolate Wafer Sticks and a little green Marshmallow Fondant. The dinos were molded out of White Chocolate and hand painted to match the party's color scheme. See that dirt? Yep, that was edible as well! I mixed crushed Chocolate Teddy Grahams along with some brown sugar to create oh-so-yummy earth.

I also made some Rice Krispy Treat favors, cut from a dino cookie cutter and topped with bright orange, blue and red tinted White Chocolate.

This cake ended up being one of the more fun ones I've done in a long time. And, I learned a few new techniques to boot! That's the best thing about my profession - it's always evolving and there's always something new to learn!

Thanks to the sweet family that invited me in on such a fun day! I truly enjoyed every moment of creating this cake!

Happy Birthday, Miller!

I hope you had a roaaaarrrin' good time!

Birthday Cake Batter Rice Crispy Treats

It's almost Monday!

And, man!

Did my family have a fabulous weekend!

Date Night

Park

Feather Extensions

Quick Thunderstorm 

{that was SO needed}

Church

Family Dinners

And, yes dessert!

As I browsed bloggy parties last week, I stumbled upon A Well-Seasoned Life. 

{FYI- fantastic blog with awesome recipes!! If you haven't visited her blog yet, go check it out!}

She prepared Cake Batter Rice Crispy Treats for the 4th and I haven't been able to stop thinking about them ...

So, off to the store I went, looking for the ingredients:

Please excuse my need to play with Picnik! ;)

1 bag Marshmallows
4 tbsp. Unsalted Butter
1/2 cup Cake Mix
Splash of Creme Bouquet Flavoring
6 cups Rice Crispy Cereal
Good handful Sprinkles

Method:
In a large saute pan, melt marshmallows and butter on medium heat until smooth.

Add cake mix {I used the French Vanilla flavor, but White or Yellow will work just as well} and creme bouquet {this flavoring can be found in any cake decorating store - it's used by many bakeries to flavor white cakes. If you don't want to make the special purchase just for this recipe, simply omit it or substitute vanilla extract} and combine. Pour in cereal and sprinkles {I would use jimmies or sanding sugar - the coating on nonpareils tends to run} and stir until all cereal is coated in the marshmallow mixture.

Pour rice crispy's into a greased pan to set.

Tada!

This recipe is a great alternative to the regular ol' treats and would make perfect Rice Crispy Cupcakes for birthday parties! Just roll them into a ball {your hands will need to be greased}, place them in a cupcake liner and either frost with icing or drizzle with chocolate. The kids will LOVE 'em!

These little bites of happiness can cure any case of
The Monday Blues, for sure!

Enjoy!

Parties I Linked To:
Masterpiece Monday - Boogieboard Cottage
Amaze Me Monday - Dittle Dattle
Craft-O-Maniac Mondays
Mingle Monday - Add A Pinch
Savory Sunday - The Sweet Details
Topsy Turvy Tuesdays
Show Me What Ya Got - Not Just A Housewife
What I Whipped Up - Sugar and Dots
Cast Party Wednesday - Lady Behind The Curtain
Woot Woot Wednesdays - The Tootsie Wootsie
Show Off Your Stuff Party - Fireflies and Jellybeans
 

Best EVER German Chocolate Cake

HAPPY

FATHER'S

DAY!!

Is there any dessert out there that better represents all the men in our lives than German Chocolate? I don't know what it is, but my dad and my father-in-law both put this cake in their Top 3!

So, I dusted off an old recipe today ... and remembered just why they love it so much!!

The

Pecan-Coconut Frosting,

of course!

There are some recipes that call for evaporated milk ... some sweetened condensed ...some just straight up tell you to buy it canned. {gag!} It can be a little confusing.

Well, I've got some tips to make the best EVER 

German Chocolate Cake!

Cake:

1 cup butter, unsalted

8 oz. German Chocolate, melted

1 1/2 cups white sugar

4 eggs

1 cup sour cream {or buttermilk}

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. instant coffee or espresso

1 tsp. good vanilla extract

8 oz. German Chocolate, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Measure out flour and place in a bowl. Add baking soda and salt and sift - set aside. In another bowl, cream butter, melted chocolate and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, until combined. Add in sour cream and flour mixture, alternating between each, until all of both is used. Lastly, add coffee, vanilla and chopped chocolate. Beat until everything is combined.
Pour into two 9inch pans and bake in the middle of the oven for 16-18 minutes, or until a tooth pick comes out clean. Let cool.

Frosting:

1 14oz. can of evaporated milk
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter, room temp
1 vanilla bean, split down the center (or 2 tsp. good vanilla extract)
4 egg yolks
1 1/2 cups toasted coconut
1 cup toasted pecans

{You MUST do this 1st step - completely takes this frosting to it's highest potential!!} Place coconut and pecans on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees until both are golden brown. Set aside to cool. In a saucepan, combine milk, sugar, vanilla bean and butter. Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally. In a bowl, lightly beat egg yolks. When butter has melted, slowly pour beaten yolks into the milk mixture, whisking continuously. Still whisking, let the frosting cook until thickened, about 8-10 minutes. Remove the vanilla bean and stir in coconut and pecans. Set aside and let cool completely.

Assemble:

When cake and frosting has totally cooled, spread half the frosting on the inside of one layer. Place the next layer on top and lightly press into frosting. Spread the other half of frosting to the edges. I like to leave the edges bare - I think it gives a rustic, homemade feel to the cake. However, if you prefer frosting the sides, you will need to double this recipe.

The best part of this cake {other than the frosting!!} is the little chunks of chocolate throughout the cake! It's a nice contrast to the soft layers! And, there aren't even words to express the fabulous-ness of the frosting! It's gooey, toasty and sweet with such a nice vanilla background. {I love seeing little specks of vanilla!!} This really is the ultimate German Chocolate Cake!

I hope all your dad's and hubby's had a wonderful Father's Day! I know we highly enjoyed the day here in SC! :) Have a happy week!

Parties I Linked To:
Sweet Tooth Fridays - Ali N Son
Sweet As Sugar Cookies

Tractor Themed Birthday Party

On March 3rd

my handsome lil' guy

and all of his friends

celebrated his 2nd birthday!

I set up a fun, tractor inspired dessert table

on the grounds of a local farm ...

and I just have to share!

The Birthday Boy's Cake

Confetti Cupcake Jars

Kettle Corn and Cow Patties

Butterscotch Haystacks and Candy

S'mores Rice Crispy Pops and White Chocolate Pretzels

Tractor Wheels 

Our Drink Cooler 

Present Area 

{Custom Wreath and Framed Pictures by Fender Photography on top of wooden palettes.}

Favors

{Included Farm Animal Book, Mini Strawberry Plant in Flower Pot, Animal Crackers, Tractor themed Gummy Snacks and a Tractor Shaped Sucker all in a felt Barn}

And, finally, 

The Invitation

My son had a blast with his friends! Thank you Thompson Farms for making his birthday awesome! And, a big thanks to Fender Photography for capturing it all!