I'm No Professional

When my friend Megan got married we somehow decided I would bake her wedding cake. It was years ago and I think there was a bottle of wine involved so I dont even remember how it came up or how either of us thought it would be good idea much less possible. Nevertheless, I made the cake and she was thrilled with how it turned out. It was a small wedding and a charming little cake with giant lillies that hid any flaws quite well.

Last fall as our friend Felecia planned her wedding I received a text message asking if I would make her wedding cake. I think I was out shopping having and great time and in an amicable mood so of course I said "Sure, I would LOVE to!". Come to find out her wedding would NOT be small. A charming little cake for 40 wouldnt work for the 250 guests she was planning. Uh oh. Too late to back out and crush her I steeled myself for the task. I took the day off from school (but sent the kids - of course), got up early and set all the supplies out. I paced in front of the many boxes of cake, cartons of frosting and cans of filling. No way would this cake be from scratch. I developed a plan of action and put it work. 6 boxes of cake in I sent my husband to the store for more cake mix and eggs. I am pretty sure he thought I was crazy and was laughing on the inside waiting either for my meltdown or the kitchen to explode. I got all the layers baked by mid afternoon. I carefully cut their puffed up tops and flipped them over doing my best, as my husband critiqued from the couch, to keep them level. As they cooled I frosted them one by one with the crumb coat. I spent 30 minutes rearranging my fridge shelves and contents to find room for 5 layers of cake - not yet assembled of course. By then the kids were home from school and we had to get moving to the rehearsal and dinner. Did I forget to mention that on top of cheif cake baker I was also the mother of the flower girl? 5 hours later I arrived back home and added the second coat of frosting - back in the fridge went the segregated layers. I fell into bed and had nightmares about frosting melting and the cake falling over. First thing in the morning I was back at it. 3rd and final layer of frosting and carefully into the back of my SUV and off to the reception hall. I carried each layer in one by one praying I wouldnt trip. Or sneeze. I inserted the supports and added the spacers and assemble the cake. The last step was to decorate. On went the topper - a sparkly snowflake and bejeweled monogram of the happy couple. Silver ribbon around each layer. Oh crap - forgot the pins for securing the ribbon. Had to improvise. The snowflake decorations would have to hold the ends of the ribbon in place. That worked out to be a happy mistake because it looked perfect (and I wasnt really sure what I was going to do with those snowflakes anyway). Finishing touch - sugar crystals. Phew! I had pulled it off. I got lots of compliments and heard that it was delicious - though I never even got to taste it. I had an exhausted flower girl who had reached her limit hours before the cake was cut and had to be taken home to bed. The moral of the story is that though I am no professional I learned to have more faith in myself. I think that when I set my mind to something I can pull it off. Within reason...