Of all the milestone events in a person’s life, none is more special than becoming a parent.  Having a baby changes the lives of the new mom and dad in unimaginable ways.  When a relative or close friend announces the blessed event, you want to honor her.  You can celebrate and be involved in preparing for the baby’s arrival by hosting a baby shower.  You’ll want to include a special cake at the shower to be the centerpiece of the day and provide a unifying element for the party. 

To decide how to decorate the cake, brainstorm all the accessories associated with babies, then choose a design that represents “baby.”  Here’s a start to your list:  stroller, booties, bottle, pacifier, nursery rhymes, crib, diaper pin, blocks, teddy bear, stork.  This certainly isn’t a comprehensive list, but it gives you an idea of all the different themes you could incorporate into your decorating ideas. Continue »

When you decide to host a baby shower for a relative or close friend who’s expecting, one of the fun parts is to bake or order a fabulous cake.  As with a wedding, the cake can be a unifying centerpiece and depict the theme for the entire event.   You could go to the grocery store, pick out a sheet cake, and have the clerk there pipe the date in frosting and add a generic decoration.  But why not let your imagination run wild and design a unique cake for this special day?  Whether you bake it yourself or work with a baker, the cake can represent you and your love for the mom-to-be. 

To get ideas for the cake, first think of all the accoutrement surrounding a baby.  Here is a partial list of items associated with babies:  booties, blocks, teddy bear, nursery rhymes, stroller, bottle, pacifier, little feet, pregnant belly, stork, diaper pin, moon and stars.  Some of these items really lend themselves to being re-created in cake.  For instance, a stroller is mostly round shapes, with perhaps a little cutting and creative frosting to define the look of a stroller.  A lying-down teddy bear, too, can be created with different sized round cakes, or a sitting-up, three dimensional bear can be made from cake baked in bowls or bundt pans. Continue »