A Fabulastic Playmobil 2nd Birthday!

Thank you, friends, for your input.  It's nice to know that you're out there, and that I'm wanted.  I shall continue blogging with renewed energy and inspiration!  I'll try to be more consistent, too.  I have some good stories cooking up in my little brain.  Stay tuned for blogging greatness.

But today, I'm doing the obligatory cake post.  I realize that the only person requiring this is me.  Not a one of you requested more cake posts.  I'm mildly sorry to throw all of your requests to the wind. However, it was Hobbes's birthday this week, and I made a cake, so now I'm telling you about it.  And it's my very own blog now (thanks, Spiff), so I'll do what I want!  Ha ha!

Spiff requested a Playmobil cake because Hobbesie does love his little "guys".  I think it turned out great, and definitely better than expected.  And it was actually fun, so I'm calling it a definite win.

Here's the finished product.  I'm sure you already saw it on FB.

I always always Always have hiccups when making cakes.  The first one was a problem with the ganache I used to frost the cake.  I used the upside-down frosting technique, which worked perfectly until I peeled the parchment paper off the top in the morning.  The ganache didn't harden like it should have, and the whole top layer of ganache peeled right off the cake with the parchment paper.  Bummer.  I had to redo the top.

Hiccup #2 was awesome.  I got Hobbes up from his nap, went to the kitchen where I had been working on the cake, and turned my back on him for 2 seconds.  

That, folks, is all it takes for a 2-year-old to do this:

That is a tiny handprint, where he grabbed and smashed his cake!

And that's when I might have cried a little, and felt ridiculous while I begged him to "Please, please please, don't touch your own birthday cake, Honey!"

Good thing the top wasn't perfect anyway because of the whole parchment paper/ganache thing.

And good thing that I can just cover all of that up with some decorations.

The third one involved circle cutters I ordered online that took a week too long to get shipped to my house.  They arrived in the mail at the nick of time so that I could create this.

Once again, the Wax Paper Transfer Technique worked like a dream.

I just love my little Hobbes.  I can't believe that he is two!  It's hard to believe that it was two years ago that he was a tiny baby, and Spiff was a 4th-year med student, and we still lived in St. Louis with our good friends there.  And now he has lived in his third house in his third city.  Time flies.  He is such a sweet, energetic little guy.  He is a momma's boy.  He is a skipper and a tromper.  He loves being outside more than anything else in the world.  He is a lefty.  He loves whatever his brother loves.  He is a free spirit; we have to approach interactions with him in a completely different way than with Gunner.  He is a master of being quietly curious and getting into trouble.  I have to watch him (or at least know where he is) at. all. times.  He is learning new words every day, and I love his little gibberish speech.  My friend said that he sounds like these guys from Despicable Me.  He totally does.  They are almost real words, and we can almost understand him.  But not quite.  :)  

And it's a good thing that we don't really post pictures of our kids on our blog because I couldn't get a good picture of him if I tried.

See?!

So, Happy Birthday, Hobbes!  We love you and look forward to another great year!