October 18th, and Halloween!

This was the birthday cake for my hubby Brian. I made this a week after his birthday. I'll tell ya why incase you don't already know. Brian's birthday is October 18th. This also happens to be a very sad day for our family. My younger brother Craig was tragically killed on this very day. For the past 2 years, Brian has not been able to celebrate his birthday on that actual day, and even afterwards, it just has fallen by the wayside. I feel horrible that he has not gotten the celebration he deserves. It's not his fault this happened on his day. I know he says he doesn't mind, and he understands. But I know I'D BE PISSED! So this year, Mike and I tried to plan a quasi-surprise birthday dinner the weekend after his birthday when we returned home from NYC. Once we decided on the day and the place, we ended up telling him about it, so he wouldn't make any plans of his own. I made this cake that day to bring with us to dinner @ Vinny T's in Dedham, ma. There was probably about 8-10 of us for dinner, and when we were done eating, the wait staff brought out the cake! It was a hit obviously :) I did the little footballs on and around the perimeter of the cake, and the "silver/red/blue" for the Patriots colors. Needless to say, tons of fun and great company and awesome food. We really have great friends.

HALLOWEEN!!

I think halloween is quickly becoming one of my favorite holidays. Probably because it's one of the ones I had minimal connections to my brother in the recent adult years. Other than memories of trick-or-treating together when we were little, he didn't usually come home for this holiday. If I have an idea in mind, I will dress up in costume. I also love making baked goods for the holiday-including cake and cupcakes! I found the most fun cup-cake decorations and whipped up quite a few batches on a whim one nite while I was home alone. I had so much fun practicing the "basket weave" technique. They went very quickly when I brought them into work. I think they were a mix of yellow cake and chocolate cake. My co-workers love me when I bring practice cakes into work!