Bearthday Cake

My family has a tradition of getting a bear cake made for one year old birthday parties.  I thought it would be fun to continue the tradition, and since my friend who makes fabulous cakes was otherwise occupied (on maternity leave, how selfish of her ;) I decided to give it a go, and make it myself.  Eli helped, too. Of course, my friend the cake maker would have done a much better job.  But, I did end up having fun in the (chaotic) process.  We chose a brown bear to represent Eli's love for Eric Carle's "Brown Bear, Brown Bear," and I decorated the plate with his name and some anchors to go with the nautical party theme.  Here are some pictures to document our baking/non-eating experience:

E liked playing with the candle (it was a musical candle that played "Happy Birthday").  However, he refused to eat the cake.  Jason tried to give him a tiny bit of frosting, and he gagged.  I wasn't offended.  This is what Eli does with most food that isn't baby food, and he's never had sugar.  We had a wonderful first birthday with him, and I will post more about the party later.