Jackson is... 2???

How did that happen?! 2 years ago today we got to finally go home after his open heart surgery after being born, which you can read about RIGHT HERE

What a fun little man we have on our hands.  He runs around all day.  Loves anything to do with balls, cars, and trains.  Typical boy.  He talks in full sentences, sleeps in a big boy bed, and we will soon start potty training! He also sings songs the ABCs and many songs he has learned at church.  So cute to listen.

Thank you Lucie for the adorable pictures!









 



For his birthday I really wanted to do something low key and not too much work.  Of course that doesn't apply to the cake, the most fun part!

We took what Jackson loved and made a party out of it. A ball party.  We had it in our backyard, invited a few of his friends (also my nieces and nephew were in town!) and played with big and small balls, all sports balls, and bubbles (ball shaped).






















Now for the cake.  SO MUCH FUN! It took a couple of days to complete (just to make it easier on me).  I found some inspiration on pinterest and made it happen. I used this blog for help making my cake ball cake. Next time though I will try to line up the balls better so there isn't the same color right on top of each other.

I used several ideas for the decorating.  The icing a cake with a paper towel did NOT work for me though.  PINTEREST FAAAAAIL.  So I just dipped my knife in hot water and used that to smooth out my sides.  I then used fondant for the side decorations and gum balls for the top.  It turned out so fun!



All week (well really since Scott's birthday in April) he has been singing the Happy Birthday song.  Since Trevor (our friend) was the last birthday he had sung for, he kept singing "dear Trevor".  Finally, he understood that it was his birthday next! He was kind of confused when everyone started singing to him.  It was super cute though!

Comments

  1. Fatima DedricksonJune 18, 2014 at 10:37 AM

    You are the cutest mom, I can't believe he's 2 already!!! SO handsome :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mary LouJune 19, 2014 at 11:07 AM

    Lesley....
    A ball party!! How fun!! ;-D
    That cake!! Wow. Just wow!! The directions on that Blog look so very complicated!! But you did it!! I want a piece!! I love, love, love white cake!! ;)
    Happy, happy, happy birthday, Jackson, my Kindred Spirit "Cranio" Buddy!! Here's to many, many, many more!! ;)
    Love you later, Raelyn

    ReplyDelete
  3. ShantelSeptember 22, 2015 at 2:07 PM

    I love, love, love this! I'm obviously a random person who found your blog through Pinterest and I recognize that you wrote this post years ago. But you said you put gum balls on the top of the cake. How did you get them to stand up? What kind of wire did you use? I know you are probably very busy, but I'd love your suggestions! (I have follow-up comments being emailed to me, so if you reply to this I should get it!) Thanks again, well done!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lesley ThalmanSeptember 22, 2015 at 3:05 PM

      Hi Shantel! I'm so glad you found us! Thank you so much, the cake was so much fun to make! To get the balls on the top of the cake I bought floral wire at a craft store. I don't remember what size, but it was thicker than most but just pliable enough for me to make cute curls out of them. I then stuck a gum ball on the top and pushed the whole wire all the way through my cake! SO easy! Let me know if you have any other questions!

      Delete
    2. ShantelSeptember 26, 2015 at 10:54 AM

      Thank you for your response! We are going to try it this weekend. Wish us luck!

      Delete
  4. Deborah StauchApril 25, 2016 at 11:17 AM

    Hi Lesley! A very late congratulations on your cake! What an adorable party. So happy to see that the cake was a hit and that you had fun making it. Hope you and your family are well.
    Sweet regards,
    Deborah

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lesley ThalmanApril 25, 2016 at 2:05 PM

      Hello! Thank you for checking out my post! This post has gotten so much attention on pinterest because of the cake I made. Have you been getting an increase in traffic from me linking you to it?

      Delete
  5. UnknownMay 24, 2016 at 9:57 AM

    Hi there!
    Love this party theme! A couple questions: What type of wire did you use on your cake topper? And how did you get the gumballs on there?
    Also, where did you find your plates, etc?

    Thanks so much!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lesley ThalmanMay 24, 2016 at 11:18 AM

      Hello! Thanks for stopping by! They have this wire in cake decorating sections at michaels or hobby lobby but they are much more expensive. So I used wire that you find in the floral department. I think it's called floral wire. I used a thicker kind so i could curl it but it was still sturdy to stand straight up. For the gumballs, I just stuck them right in the ball. They weren't super stable that way but well enough that it worked!

      Delete
    2. UnknownMay 27, 2016 at 12:59 PM

      Awesome! Thank you so much for responding:)

      Delete
  6. jenJune 26, 2019 at 7:03 AM

    I really love this cake I’m planing on trying to make it for my 2 year old can you tell me what the things are on the gum balls ?

    ReplyDelete

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