She'll always be our baby
At her request, I made rainbow cupcakes for the occasion. If you were a reader last spring, you’ll remember that my big sister led a baking session when she, my baby sister, and our mother came to visit. We had a blast and the rainbow tie-dyed cupcakes were a hit. At that time, we used Big Sis’s scratch-made white cake recipe and the expensive Wilton food colorings. This time, I used white cake mix. Guess what? It worked! Two cake mixes made one dozen regular cupcakes and six jumbo-size cupcakes. For the mixes, I used whole eggs instead of eggs whites and dialed the amount of water back just slightly so the cupcakes would have better structure. I also added a teaspoon of almond extract, which added great flavor. With a basic set of Wilton food colors from the grocery store, I divided the batter into 6 bowls and colored each. For the regular cupcakes, I swirled the colorful batter; for the jumbo cupcakes, I layered it. Here’s how they turned out:
Unfrosted in 2 Sizes - Jumbo = 5" and Regular = 2"
A jumbo rainbow cupcake - frosted with sprinkles
Look out! She's going in for a bite!
Too tall for a normal approach, she had to turn it sideways.
She did it! And apparently, she liked it.
Happy birthday, honey. I’m so happy you loved your cupcakes, but I’m especially happy that you are our girl. Your dad and I are so very proud of you. And now that 29 is behind you, we’ve got 12 months to plan for next year – when you turn 30 and I turn 50. I’m pretty sure that requires a big blow-out of some kind, don’t you? I’m thinking Vegas (with bail money, of course).
Inside NanaBread's Head 
Happy Birthday to your Baby! I can’t think of a better way to celebrate your 29th birthday than with rainbow cupcakes. Maybe I’ll give it a shot for my 29th this year? Well, it’ll be the 11th anniversary of my 29th birthday, but still. The jumbos made my boys shriek “Mom! Those are SO cool! We have GOT to make those!”
On a more serious note…I can’t even begin to fathom the mixed emotions of having your Baby turn 29. I never fully understood the phrase “time flies” until I became a parent. The kids seem to grow up on hyperspeed. You’re doing the right thing by savoring every moment with your babes, and grandbabies. Way to go, Momma! :)
Wait until your babies are grown and start having babies. Time is flying even more quickly with the grandkids. I can’t believe Jonah is already 5 and Lilly is almost 2 1/2. I wish I could slow the clock. They seem to be aging much, much more quickly that we are. {wink}
Awww, love those cupcakes and I espeically LOVE the pictures of her eating the cupcake! If I’m not mistaken there is a picture on my blog somewhere of me enjoying a piece of cake the exact same way. ;) I definitely think Vegas should be on your agenda for next year, btw!!!
Not sure what we’ll do yet, but it should be something special to mark the occasion. We’ll figure it out. I have to say, Kandi – it’s SO nice to see you commenting on my blog again. I have missed you, my friend!
WoW, those jumbo cupcakes look great!! and so bright and pretty, good job!! And I can’t believe she’s is really 29, ugh, time is flying by and I feel really old. Big Sis’s oldest turns 20 at the end of the month, get me a cane – quick!!
The jumbo cupcakes were spectacular. And spectacularly huge. I don’t get to break out the jumbo muffin pan & liners very often, so this was a special treat. It may be a Hoegarden treat this year, if we’re feeling creative. I can’t believe your first child is turning 20 this month. I know you’re older than me, and I got a jump on the parenting thing, but when did our kids get so OLD? And how have we stayed so YOUNG? I just don’t understand it.
So sweet. And being that I have a great relationship with my momma, I just love hearing this stuff! :)
(And yes, I still wish I had a daughter of my own…but daughter-in-laws will have to do! )
Great cup-cakes. I want one.
Aloha!
I’m still chuckling over Mom on a paddle board. She’s totally rad. Yes, I said it. The great thing about having 4 boys is that you’ll someday have 4 potential daughters to brighten your life. The sad part is that it’s going to happen much faster than you’ll want.
Happy Birthday older-than-me Baby! I hope that she had a glorious day!
And yes – Vegas next year is needed. Because two milestones = twice the celebration. It is non-negotiable. And there, they will even make the cupcakes for you ;) Scratch that. Go for the frozen hot chocolate.
And where is this frozen hot chocolate of which you speak? Such information could be vital. Critical even.
HO yeah baby, we can move Hogarden to January and Vegas! Happy Birthday kiddo! I still remember getting the note at school that you had arrived. I also remember marching you thru the house on my shoulders and cracking your head on the door facing… glad to know that didn’t cause long term damage.
Oh, hail no. Let’s reign that back a little, Baby Sister. I didn’t say we were ALL going to Vegas. It would take more than 11 months to save up that much bail money. Have you SEEN Bridesmaids? Or The Hangover (1 & 2)? I don’t have enough money for tattoo removal and bail in Bangkok. And no one needs a monkey. Well, maybe I need a monkey, but the rest of the family definitely does not!
Hahahaha! I love it! And I loved those cupcakes!! Heck YEAH!! Not sure what we should do next year, I was thinking somewhere with coffee, a view and margaritas definitely!! Thanks for all the birthday wishes from everyone else, it was a great birthday! Especially date night with BamaBoy and girls’ day with my momma!! Thanks, Mom for everything!! (Oh, and thanks to TCP for letting us borrow you!)
Coffee, a view and alcohol sounds like Seattle. And hey, they have whales and a great market and cheese curds, too! Pretty sure the Carolina coastline has coffee and views and booze, too. And Chicago. And Lake Tahoe. And NYC. And cruise ships, too.
Happy belated birthday to your baby! I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than tie-dye cupcakes!
Thanks, Mads. They are pretty awesome. Also really fun to make. Thanks for the birthday wishes. My Baby will appreciate it.