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The Andie Summers Show

The Most Amazing No-Bake Birthday Cake

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Author Andie Summers

How does this failure of a mom celebrate her favorite son’s birthday? With the most amazing no-bake birthday cake!

Something Special

Happy 12th Birthday to my remarkable little dude. There is definitely something special between a mother and her son. It’s a different kind of bond. Just like the love is different between your parents and your partner, your partner and your child, one child from another. My daughter Tori is definitely one of my best friends, but Leonard? I want to gobble him up.

most amazing no bake birthday cake

Tell me you don’t want to eat him up!!! (5 yrs old) Photo by Andie Summers for BBGI Philadelphia

Bad Timing

Leonard’s birthday usually lands within the first couple of days of school. It’s not bad for him now because he’s young enough that the teachers make a big deal about it. But I have been failing him. When your kid’s birthday is at the end of summer, and your kid is young enough that they don’t really hang out with their school friends all summer, it’s really hard to pull a birthday party together. He is never sure about a guest list. I have a hard time tracking down families. So we came to the decision a few years ago that he could have a theme party later in the school year. For his birthday, just later. One year it was a Halloween theme. One year we took a bunch of kids to Dave & Buster’s on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving (they had the day off, and it gave parents a chance to get ready for the holiday). But most of the time I forget to plan anything and he gets the short end of the stick. So much for our special bond.

Most Amazing No Bake Birthday Cake

He. Is. Delicious. (especially with icing on his 7-year-old nose) Photo by Andie Summers for BBGI Philadelphia

Turning It Around

This year, Leonard is involved in so many activities he didn’t have a hard time coming up with a guest list, so we had a picnic at a park and played games – kids vs. adults. It was a blast. But the main attraction was the cake.

A few weeks ago, when Leonard started getting excited about his party, he found a photo of a cake online and jokingly asked if I could make it. Honestly, it was so simple. Store-bought cake with a bunch of junk food on it. Every boy’s dream!

Most Amazing No Bake Birthday Cake

This cake is amazing! Photo by Andie Summers for BBGI Philadelphia

Most Amazing No-Bake Birthday Cake

  • Store-bought sheet cake, iced.
    • Sure, you can buy and bake a box cake. This was faster.
  • A thousand dollars on junk to put on top of the cake.
    • I’m exaggerating … but only slightly
  • Here’s what we used:
    • Mini chocolate doughnuts
    • Cupcakes
    • Chopsticks to hold up the doughnuts and cupcakes
    • Chocolate-covered, then mini chocolate candy-covered pretzels
    • Chocolate sandwich cookies
    • Chocolate chip cookies
    • Chocolate animal crackers
    • Peanut butter cups
    • Chocolate pop tart
    • Pocky
    • Candles

Andie Summers has been the morning show host on XTU for the past 25 years. She is a two-time CMA Major Market Personality of the Year winner and two-time Gracie Award recipient from the Alliance for Women in Media. As a content creator for XTU, Andie enjoys sharing parenting and travel tips, and loves helping you shop online with Must Haves.

If you loved this birthday cake short-cut, check this out … 

11 School Lunch Hacks Your Kids Will Love

It’s back to school time! And with it comes so much stress and so many expenses! (This list will help you save money.) Check out these school lunch hacks your kids will love, and you’ll love to make!

So. Much. Stress.

I’ve learned to compartmentalize my issues so I tackle just one at a time. It helps me from becoming overwhelmed. Helps. And I can use all the help I can get. (Like these great items every mom needs for back to school!)

One thing that used to really give me anxiety is packing my kids’ lunch. When my daughter was in kindergarten, she wouldn’t eat a sandwich. (I mean, really? No peanut butter and jelly, no turkey and cheese, not even grilled cheese!) That was a challenge I tackled, and feel I won. Both she and my son were known for their fun little “bento box” lunches that included kabobs and deconstructed sandwiches.

You do what you have to do.

Thank GOD for the internet. I was on every mom blog, Instagram, and TikTok I could find to figure out how to be creative with healthy foods for the kids. Okay, relatively healthy foods. They are kids. My goal was to get a fruit and or vegetable in them at lunch. I knew the carbohydrates and proteins would be a little easier.

Don’t break the bank.

But here’s the thing. You know as well as I do that eating healthy foods that are fun and enticing to kids can be easy if you’re willing to pay an arm and a leg for them. It’s a real shame that junk food is so much more accessible and more cost-effective than real food. But our kids have enough hurdles to overcome, especially at the beginning of the school year. So, let’s take this one for them.

Don’t reinvent the wheel.

And getting creative with your kids’ school lunches doesn’t have to take up all your time and energy, either. Don’t reinvent the wheel. There are others who came before you (who somehow have time to create snazzy social media posts) who really want to help. Use their ideas and let’s do what’s best for our kids.

School Lunch Hacks Your Kids Will Love:

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