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Birthday Fun

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Right after the holidays, I get to celebrate my two daughters’ birthdays in quick succession—the first in late December, and the next less than a month later in January. My kids are still just toddlers, but they are starting to recognize that they get a day of presents and cake.

I try to make their birthdays a little extra special with fun decorations for them to wake up to in the morning. I keep things pretty simple with just some inexpensive party supplies—plastic tablecloths, balloons, cake plates, streamers, etc. Easy and cheap, but cute. :)

For my oldest, who turned four in December, I gave her a mermaid themed tablescape complete with an aqua color scheme, a blue vanilla cake (at her request, and which she helped make), and the most perfect cute wrapping paper I was lucky enough to find on holiday clearance. She received a mermaid doll and dress up outfit as well, which she adored. She makes a pretty cute mermaid, if I do say so myself.


My second daughter turned three in January…
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April Fools Cake

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Spring is officially here (finally!), and we are approaching the final days of March. This Friday is April 1st, a.k.a. April Fools Day. What better way to end a cold, dreary winter than with a day of silliness. Here's a fun dinner idea to celebrate—a meatloaf "cake" with a mashed potato "sundae."

For the cake, I pressed the meatloaf mixture into two six-inch round pans lined with parchment paper (about a pound of meat in each). I baked them at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. I ended up with two "cake" layers, which I assembled with a layer of mashed potato "frosting" in the middle.



I then spread mashed potato over the entire meatloaf cake so it resembled a frosted cake. I piped more mashed potato decoratively around the cake, just as I would with regular frosting, and embellished with peas and ketchup lettering.




And, of course, cake is always better with ice cream. I created a mashed potato "sundae" with gravy "chocolate sauce," a dollop of sour cream "whipped topping," and colorful veggie "sprinkles."



Life is short. Have lots of fun, and eat cake for dinner. :)
Happy April Fools!
Niki

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