Happy Birthday, Sunshine!

Eight years ago today, God graced us with our second child and first daughter, Xanthe. Her name means "golden", and it suits her so very well. She is sunshine and sweetness personified the vast majority of the time. A wonderful friend who creates world-famous digital scrapbook graphics made a gift of a special layout with her newborn picture, and it was even chosen for publication in an uber-popular magazine dedicated to that hobby. Wanna see?

Wasn't she a pretty baby? She's just as lovely today - inside and out. She has been called my mini-me, but I'd have to say that's mostly from an appearance standpoint. That's because Xanthe is far sweeter than I've ever been. She is a sharer, quick to compliment, comfort and forgive. She is thoughtful and wildly creative and nurturing. She laughs easily and often. In short, she is a blessing in the truest sense of the word.

Every year, we tend to do two birthday parties: one for Henry and Lula in December, because their birthdays are a scant five days apart. Due to generally inclement weather, Henry and Lula get to have their party at some manner of fun indoor venue. But because Xanthe's birthday is in the summer, we always host her party in the backyard. She's asked for indoor venue parties before, but when we explain that they're expensive and her birthday is the only one that allows for an outdoor party due to the time of year, she graciously accedes. (And we do allow all of the kids to invite their own friends to both the summer and winter parties, in an effort to be fair.)

Because she's such a great sport about it, I try to make her party something special...and for Xanthe, that special something is CAKE. (Okay, maybe she is like me in more than just appearance.) I poked around online until I found this. I have to tell you, I studied to make this cake like I was taking a final exam. That's the thing about layer cakes - it's not like you can cut into it beforehand to make sure it looks and tastes good. You just have to say your prayers and hope for the best. I wanted it to be a surprise, so all of the baking and assembly was done over the course of several very late nights. Wanna see the results? Here's the cake before it was cut:



And here are a couple of shots during the big reveal. I love the gaping mouth on Xanthe, here:

Birthday girl gets the first slice, of course.



There were smiles all around! Here's a close-up of a slice, minus the bottom purple layer, which had already been swiftly consumed.

Last but not least, I made a chocolate layer cake with gooey chocolate Neoclassic Buttercream Icing:

And, lo and behold, there was just one slice of chocolate cake left after the shindig! Yes, I admit it...I had cake for dinner that night, but in my defense, I only got a taste of cake during the party. Besides, the eggs in cake count as a protein source, right?

I have to say a special thank-you to Kaitlin of Whisk Kid for the amazing rainbow cake idea and the detailed and wonderful instructions on how to make it successfully. I followed her advice faithfully and was rewarded, and the rest of her blog is beyond lovely and delicious, as well. (Is it any surprise she's a Michigan State University student? I think not! Go, Spartans!) Kaitlin, you made my sweet girl's birthday even sweeter. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!