Happy 5th and 4th Birthday Justin & Hayley!

Happy 5th and 4th Birthday Justin & Hayley!!  I had the honor in making strawberry cake pops with fresh strawberry puree inside for two cuties!  The theme is Ariel from the Little Mermaid by Disney.  I used cardstock to print the image of Ariel on them, and then made the fins out of fondant and lightly painted some pink luster pearl dust on the fins the give it that mermaid shine.  I sprinkled some seashell theme sprinkles on the cake pop and decorated the trays with crushed graham crackers to look like the ocean floor and added some fondant sea shells as well to complete the look.  I had some leftover cake batter and so I made some cupcakes!  These two had a drive by birthday celebration and even though our visit to celebrate with the birthday stars were short, we were still able to the joy on their faces and got the opportunity to wish them a happy birthday from a socially safe distance!  I wish you two the best and happiest of birthdays so far, and it's such a joy to see you grow up and see your personalities develop!  Happy Birthday Justin and Hayley, hope you guys had a splashing good time!

Happy 1st Birthday Benji!

 

Happy 1st Birthday Benji!  I made a French Vanilla naked cake with vanilla frosting with fresh strawberries and blueberries in the filling. I decorated the cakes with paper circus theme top hat and cut circus baby elephant for a Greatest Showman inspired cake!  Benji you are so loved and I hope you have a special wonderful first birthday.  Your sister and parents are so happy to have you complete their family, and we all love watching you grow up to be such a cute and brilliant little boy!  Happy special 1st birthday Benji!!!

Happy Golden 8th Birthday Lily & 5th Leo!

Happy golden 8th birthday to Lily and happy milestone 5th birthday to Leo!! With everything going on in the world right now, I had to make sure I made extra special cakes for these two extra special kiddies!!  Lily has her golden birthday this year and I made her a display cake with all her favorite things at the moment.  Her favorite color is blue, she loves Animal Crossing New Horizon on the Nintendo Switch with Lily and Bianca being her favorite characters, and the game Arms with Dr. Coyle and Lola Pop.  Her favorite movie is Sonic the Hedgehog live action and she loves Sonic and Amy and the gold rings go perfect with her golden birthday theme!  Everything is made out of paper for simplicity for such a complex theme and the Sonic and Amy characters are toys.  The blue flowers are fake flowers and the cake is Styrofoam covered in fondant.

For Leo's cake, it's his  special milestone 5th birthday!!  I made a display cake with all his current favorite things and that's Chuck E Cheese, Stacking cups, Maui from Moana, Peppa Pig and Bao from the Pixar short Bao!  I made all the decorations out of paper and used fake leaves to tie everything together and covered the cake in fondant.  I made the stacking cups with mini plastic cups and made a label and glued it onto the cups.  Right when Leo saw the cake, he immediately shouted "Chuck E Cheese!!!" and kept pointing at and yelling out everything he saw!  It made me so happy to see how excited and fixated he was with his cake!  I kept the cake out for two weeks and everyday it was the highlight of his day, just staring at the cake and pointing everything out on it! 

Happy special birthday to both Lily and Leo, my light and joy and loves of my life!!  I wish you both an amazing birthday and celebration, safe at home, and virtually with all your loved ones!!  You make me the luckiest and happiest mama ever!  I love you both so much, more than you'll ever know!!

Happy 1st Birthday Jace!

Happy 1st Birthday Jace!!!  You made a whole lap around the sun!!  I decorated a white vanilla velvet cake from Co-Op with handmade fondant jungle animals; a lion, elephant, tiger, giraffe, and an upside down monkey! I added some fake palm leaves onto the naked cake and attached a “Wild One” cake topper that I made from my cricut maker!  I originally baked a three tiered French Vanilla cake with Bavarian Cream with strawberries and blackberries for the filling with basic buttercream icing, but due to the unfamiliar elevation and humidity of Canada that I’m not use to, the cake cake out super fluffy and light, and when I added the third layer to the stack, it started to turn into the leaning tower of cake! 😭. So the last minute cake made due but I still had a chance to decorate it and we had some funny memories to remember and a great learning lesson!
Happy 1st Birthday Jace!!!  You are such a sweet happy baby and now toddler!!  You are so calm and amazing so so so so loved!  Your parents are doing such an amazing job raising such a well mannered happy spirited boy!!  I wish you many many more laps around the sun and I can’t wait to watch you grow up into an capable, strong, brilliant man!  I love you my favorite nephew Jace!!  Happy 1st birthday!!

Happy 2nd Birthday Aulani!

Happy 2nd Birthday Aulani!! Unicorn kid friendly mini cupcakes for Aulani’s 2nd birthday!! These a party rainbow vanilla mini cupcakes with basic buttercream on top. The unicorn horns are made of prez sticks painted gold and the ears are apple crisps painted purple! I wanted to use pretzels and the apple crisps to make it more kid friendly and healthier than fondant.  The only thing is when the apple crisps got painted purple, it lost its crispness.  So in the future I’ll explore something different.  These cuties are topped with rainbow sprinkles!! Happy birthday sweet Aulani!!! I wish you many many more wonderful years of happiness and celebrations!!  You are so loved and amazing and we are all of lucky to have you in our life!! 🥳🦄🍰🌈

Happy Birthday Haley & Justin!

Happy birthday Haley and Justin!! I had the pleasure of making Haley (turned 3) and Justin’s (turned 4) cute Peppa Pig theme birthday cake!  Haley loves Peppa Pig and Justin loves train and so I combined their interests into this cute Peppa Pig theme cake!  This 10 inch round cake is a French Vanilla cake with fresh Strawberries and Bavarian cream filling.  The decorations are made of fondant and the string for the balloons are floral wires!  Thank you Susan and Ryan for letting me be a part of your cute little kids’ birthday celebration.  I wish you Haley and Justin many many more fun and special birthdays, can’t wait to see what amazing things you guys do in the future!  I hope you had a fun and loved filled birthday, happy birthday Haley and Justin!!!

Happy Birthday Aulani!

Happy 1st Birthday sweet little Aulani (sorry for the late post, she turned 1 back in Nov!! =P)!  I had the pleasure and honor of making Aulani's 1st birthday cake.  She had a French Vanilla cake with Swiss Meringue frosting.  She had a Hawaiian theme party so I made a blue gradient cake with white chocolate seashells and white carnation flowers to adorn the naked cake!  Her awesome momma provided the golden "one" for the cake topper to finish the look of the cake!  I wish you the best and happiest of days little Aulani!  You are so loved and your brilliant smile and spirit brightens all our lives!!  Here's to many many more birthday celebrations, happy birthday Aulani!

Happy 40th Birthday Mieng!

Happy 40th Birthday Mieng! I made a concrete textured chocolate cake with fresh strawberry filling frosted with Swiss Meringue frosting. I accented it with some edible gold leaf for some touch of elegance! I then make some chocolate mini poop cupcakes with chocolate whipped cream frosting and candy eyes. The roll of toilet paper is also chocolate cake with chocolate whipped cream cheese frosting wrapped in fondant! The design of those cupcakes aren't my original idea (hooray for pinterest) but I'm glad I stumbled upon them because they are really cute and fun (not to mention simple) to make!! I hope you had a wonderful milestone birthday celebration Mieng and that the next 40+ years will continue to be better and better!! You deserve all the happiness love and wonderful things in life, you bless us all with your funny personality and sweet heart! I hope all your birthday wishes come true!! Happy 40th birthday Mieng!!

Happy 5th Birthday Lily!

Back in June my sweet amazing Lily pad turned 5 years old!!  Happy 5th Birthday to my princess Lily, Happy 2nd birthday to my sweet amazing Leo too!!!  I threw her (and Leo) a birthday party at home and made it a unicorn theme since she loves unicorns and rainbows right now. I went all out for her milestone celebration and got a bounce house, balloon twister/face painter, and a photobooth! She had such a blast and gave all the guests a big hug when they showed up and a big hug good bye! She saw me working on the cake for a few days, and she was so excited and really wanted to eat it! She was majorly bummed when I told her she couldn’t and that it’s not real…She didn’t quite understand but she eventually got over it haha.  I also made chocolate cupcakes and fruity pebble macarons in the shape of unicorns!  I’m so grateful and humbled by the person she’s becoming and my heart is overflowed with love for her. She is very generous, thoughtful, silly, funny, and oh so happy! She is also very clumsy and tends to fall and hurt herself (and others by accident) a lot, but I’m afraid that’s my quality that got passed down to her…haha. She’s just so excited about everything that she can’t contain it in her tiny little body haha. I’m so happy to have such a beautiful little girl both inside and out as my daughter. I love you so much my Lily pad, happy 5th birthday!!! Can’t wait for more adventures and memories to come! (PS: Thanks Phong for some of these dessert photos!)

Happy 1st Birthday Henry!

Happy 1st Birthday Henry!  I had the honor and privilege of making Henry's 1st birthday cake!  It's a vanilla cake with blackberry and blueberries filling covered with buttercream from Givral!  I made all the decorations from the hungry hungry caterpillar to the sun and food items out of fondant.  Lily was my sweet little helper too in placing the little colorful circles around the base of the cakes.  This is one of Lily's favorite books still, and so it was very fun to make!  Happy 1st birthday cutie little Henry!  You are so loved by so many people, here's to many many many more birthdays to come!

Happy 1st Birthday Chloe!

Happy 1st Birthday Chloe!  I had the honor and privilege of making Chloe's 1st birthday cake for display! It's a topsy turvy cake that is winter theme with snow, snowballs, snowflakes, and a cute little penguin on top.  All the decorations are made of fondant and accented with silver dust for some extra wintery magic!  Chloe is so cute and adorable and so calm too.  Her party was very cutely decorated and her mommy did such a great job with all the decorations and making the festivities fun and happy for the birthday girl!  I can't wait to see you grow up into an amazing little lady, happy happy 1st birthday sweet little Chloe!!  We all love you so much!!

Happy 1st Birthday Prince Leo!

Happy 1st Birthday to my dearest le petit Leo!  I baked vanilla, pistachio, chocolate, and orange blossom macarons, bavarian cream fruit custard, and Haupia cupcakes with a coconut filling.  I also made a nice big 3 tier display cake in the theme of the book Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.  I hired a very talented balloon artist and face painter, and Khoa’s coworker, Vinh, generously set up a photobooth for us as well.  I got catering from Newport Rib Company and had a lot of yummy BBQ as well.  It was a very fun party and this 1st birthday means so much to me.

Happy 1st Birthday my dearest prince Leo.  You are such an amazing little inspiration.  There was a time when I thought I wouldn’t even be able to hold him in my arms, to see his beautiful smile, or hear his sweet laugh. Yet here we are, it’s been a crazy long journey, from the moment you existed, and now, we celebrate you. My little prince Leo, you are such an amazing little fighter, inspiration, and miracle.  I look at your sweet face, your cute sweet smile, and your innocent pure eyes, and I just can’t help get emotional and overwhelmed with feelings of love and gratitude.  I love how I can just hold your hand, with your tiny fingers wrapped around mine, and you just feel safe and at ease with me.  You feel like home and the ultimate sensation of comfort when you are in my arms, and I never want to let you go (except maybe when I have to pee…).  I can stare at you  explore this world of all it’s wonders, and listen to your sweet little voice all day!  You are truly the definition of hope.  You are beating all the odds, and I can’t wait to see what adventures we will continue to go on together. Keep shining bright, keep fighting, keep being my ray of hope. I love you to pieces Leo!

Happy 1st Birthday Ryan!

Happy 1st Birthday Ryan!  I had the wonderful privilege of making Ryan's 1st birthday cake display along with some sweet treats for his big celebration this past weekend!  I made some vanilla cupcakes and chocolate cupcakes with swiss meringue frosting, along with some vanilla and matcha green tea macarons, and some white chocolate dipped rice krispies treats, all with the help of my friend Sarah, who also happens to be the birthday boy's mommy! It was a very fun birthday celebration and I'm so glad I got to be a part of Ryan's special day.  He's such a little cutie and loves to eat and has a super cute big sister, Charlotte, too! =)  You are so loved Ryan, your parents threw you such a perfect intimate party. I can't wait to watch you grow up into an amazing little man, happy 1st birthday Ryan, I wish you many many more celebrations to come!!

Happy 1st Birthday Cameron!

Happy 1st Birthday cute little Cameron!!  I got the privilege of making the smash cake for Cameron's 1st birthday photoshoot shot by the amazingly talented Mieng!  I made a giant cupcake French Vanilla cake with a swiss meringue filling and basic buttercream on the outside.  Cameron is such a sweetheart and so happy and cute!!  I feel very special and honored to have been able to make this special cake for him, even though he didn't want to get dirty and smash the cake haha.  Cameron is such a cute, sweet and happy little boy!  He has the greatest parents and best big brother and sister ever!  Happy first birthday Cameron, here's to many many more fun memories and wonderful milestones!  

Happy 2nd Birthday Lily!

Happy 2nd birthday to my sweet baby girl Lily (back on June 8th, sorry Lily for the late post)!  Since her birthday is in the summer and we were having her celebration outdoors, I didn't want to have a cake that would be sitting out for a couple hours and possibly melting.  So I made her another display cake for her dessert table!  Her birthday theme is an enchanted fairy garden theme and so I wanted to make a charming, simple yet elegant cake.  All the decorations are made of fondant and I used some gold pearls for accents.  This is also the first time I made a nice big peony flower, and I'm very excited with how it came out!  It's the fullest flower I've made so far and it excites me more to expand my knowledge and skills in cake decorating!  I'll also be entering this cake to the OC fair for the formal fondant decorated cake category, so wish me luck everyone!

***UPDATE:***  Lily's cake won 3rd place at the OC Fair!!  Woohoo!!

Don't be afraid to try new things and leave your comfort zone when trying to develop your craft, that's what this cake adventure is all about for me!  Without that extra push to learn, you will never improve and grow.  It's only been 2 years of being a mom to my sweet Lily pad, but I've learned that each new day as a parent is a new adventure, and you're constantly learning, growing and adapting to life.  I've watched my Lily pad grow so much in the past 2 years and she's growing into such a beautiful being, I just love her so much, she is my everything.  She inspires me everyday she is my world.  Happy 2nd birthday my precious Lily!!  Here's to many many more birthdays to come!  Also, special thanks to my friend Mieng for capturing the beautiful photos of her below! =)

Happy Birthday Westley & Aria!

Happy 1st Birthday Westley and Aria!  I got the honor and pleasure of making the cutest little twins Westley and Aria's 1st birthday cake for their very first birthday party yesterday!  One of their favorite shows is a British cartoon Peppa Pig and so that was the theme for their party!  Due to lack of time and energy, I ordered a mixed berry cake from our favorite bakery Givral, and then decorated it with fondant.  All the decorations are fondant minus the banner.  I designed the simple banner and printed it out on cardstock, then string the pennants together with a needle and thread!  I tied them to skewers and voila, a cute bunt banner for a cute cake!  The very first birthday is always the most special and important, so I feel super honored and happy that I got to be a part of that.  I wish sweet Westley and Aria a wonderful birthday and here's to many many more to come!  Happy birthday Westley and Aria!!