I’ve got a new hobby. I’ve been at it for about a year and a half and it’s probably the worst hobby you can have as a mom wanting to lose the baby weight.

I like to decorate cakes and cookies.

The interest began around the time I made my oldest daughter’s first birthday “cake”. My mom always made fun cakes for our birthdays, and I wanted to continue the tradition!

I actually began said hobby when I signed up for a cake decorating class at my local Michaels. My daughter’s second birthday was nearing and I thought I could use my new tools to make her a pretty cake. Well, we celebrated her birthday before I learned the pretty things, so this is what she got:

When I first got my handy little box of decorating tools, I was itching to try them out. I don’t advise this, but it was Valentine’s Day and I wanted to do something fun. I didn’t even know how to put the tips on my icing bags, so the result was messy gobs of icing everywhere!

Those cookies were terribly ugly. I was pretty discouraged, but decided not to give up until I actually took the class.

And, I must mention, this class was a ridiculous thing for me to attempt. I was 9 months pregnant, and it was 4 weeks worth of classes. That’s right. The final class was to take place a week before my due date.

This was so dumb. Please heed my words. Do NOT sign up for a cake decorating class the month before your baby is to be born. It was so much more work than I imagined! In addition to a 2 hour class each week, I spent several hours on my feet preparing icing and goodies for the next class.

Silly as the whole idea was, I managed to make a pretty cake and graduate from my class:

Those results were a bit better than the crazy heart cookies, so after baby was born I was ready to try out my new skills. Our small group was the perfect place to have an excuse to bake.

Since then, I’ve made treats for a few other occasions:

I’m pretty pleased with the progress I’ve made! Hubby and I are getting ready to celebrate our birthdays, so I’d like to make something that could work for both of us. What should I make?? Cookies or cake? What should be the theme?? I would love your input!