daddy's birthday cake

i made a cake for jason's birthday saturday morning. yes, jake and i got up bright and early and headed to the store to get the ingredients. we were very proud of ourselves. this is an orange mandarin cake- jason's favorite. i haven't made one of these since his 2006 birthday and it was a complete disaster. i ended up making it three times that day and it was a major tear fest! part of that was probably due to the fact that i had a week and a half old baby in the next room. i couldn't think straight and kept leaving out ingredients. anyway, i decided i would attempt the impossible and i think it turned out great! i think more oranges ended up in jake's tummy than in the mixing bowl. jake didn't understand why we couldn't go ahead and dig in- daddy wasn't home yet!

oh, this had nothing to do with the cake- but i thought it was too cute so i decided to share it with you. everyday we go through family members with jake and their names. he tells us his name, mimi's name, nana's name and so on. well today, jason was teaching him grandma's name- which is ellen hamby. jake thought about it for a few seconds and then he said it -ellen hamby. -but what he is really saying is elephant candy! it sounds just like elephant candy, i mean he says it so clear and perfect...elephant candy! it is so funny to hear!