Danika's Cinderella Cake

In our family the birthday cake is huge in making memories. It all started with grandma Lues. Grandma Lues used to bake the most incredible wedding cakes. When CJ, the first grandchild, turned two years old, she offered to bake his birthday cake. It was a beautiful Mickey Mouse cake.

With CJ's 3rd birthday he ordered an airport cake. Grandma and grandpa totally overdid it...! They built the aeroplane and helicopter out of Swiss rolls; they also made the terminal building and even the boom, with small cars and a garden. That was it! Grandma was back in the cake business, this time in her grandchildren's birthday cakes.

It became tradition that the children would 'order' their birthday cake months before the birthday. Grandpa would plan the construction of the cake and grandma would decorate. The night before the birthday party they would bring the cake to the great excitement of the children. The children needed to hide, then the cake would be brought in and then we would lead the children, birthday boy or -girl in front, blindfolded to the cake. With cameras ready we would open their eyes... And bang!

After everyone’s ooooohs and aahhhs, grandma would sit with the grandchildren on her lap and start telling the story around the cake

Over the years there were the 3 little pigs, little red riding hood, humpty dumpty, a train and many more.

After Josua's 1st birthday and now 4 grandchildren along the line waiting for their special birthday cake, grandma resigned. But Christo and I had watched closely over the years and decided the tradition will be carried forth.

The past few years the older children become involved too and helped in planning the different cakes. The excitement mounts the week before the birthday party, when we started buying all the sweets, very specifically chosen for each cake. The Thursday before the party on Saturday, we would bake the different layers of cake. By Friday afternoon, we started decorating. Sometimes dad and I would decorate into the early morning hours, before we are satisfied. And then early Saturday morning the birthday child would wake up and hasten to see the finished cake. For hours they would just look and pointed out this or that.

This year was no exception. Danika had already ordered her Cinderella cake months ago. It must at least have the pumpkin carriage and little Cinderella. Christo and I went to the shops on Wednesday for the final purchases and decided to do the Cinderella castle, since we could buy a Cinderella carriage and Cinderella at Toys-R-Us. CJ was responsible for the construction of the steps leading up to the castle, on which Cinderella lost her glass shoe.

This is how the cake developed over Friday:

The starting point:

Making and decorating the towers:

One of the towers is going to fall!

Daddy strengthening the construction of the towers

Look at the faces!

Now for the finishing touches:

And by 22h45 we have the final product! We are exhausted but it so rewarding!