Let Them Eat Cake

The night before Thanksgiving my then 7-year-old boy, Mr. Monk, found it difficult to fall asleep because he was giddy with excitement: grandparents and uncle were flying to celebrate the holiday with us, and his birthday fell on Thanksgiving this year.

“Mom, you know why I love Thanksgiving?”

“Why?” I asked, knowing he was excited about his birthday and the presents.

“Because I can ask you to cook and you wouldn’t ask, ‘So are you going to eat it?’ And you wouldn’t be too busy to cook.”

Yeah, I am Mother of the Year.

Because of his temperament, Mr. Monk has never really looked forward to a big birthday party at one of those dreadful places with crappy rides, screaming ruffians and giant horrid animals (Think: Chuck E Cheese). Since his birthday is always in the Thanksgiving week, he is content, and possibly happier, to simply celebrate it with the grandparents.

This year though I feared that he might have been shortchanged. On the morning of his birthday, after I wished him a Happy Birthday with lots of kisses and hugs, I started dishing out assignment for him to help get the house ready for our guests from out of town.

“I know it’s your birthday, but Thanksgiving takes precedence today!”

Mother Of The Year.

To make it up for him, I let him help me prepare the dishes.

The morning after Thanksgiving, I was beat. I slept till 10:30 am when Mr. Monk came to wake me up.

“Mom. Mom. Mom. Wake up. WAKE UP!”

“GO AWAY!”

It took me another half an hour to remember that it was supposed to be his “make-up birthday” day.

Mother. Of. The. Year.

I sort of made it up for him by letting him help crack the eight eggs required for the recipe, zest the lemons, squeeze lemons with the citrus press, bake his own birthday cake, make the frosting, and frost the cake.

This was our first try at making a “fancy” cake (i.e. NOT cupcakes) from scratch complete with homemade frosting: When I saw Velva’s Luscious Lemon Cake on her blog Tomatoes on the Vine, I knew I had to make this for Mr. Monk because

1) he’s been begging for a homemade birthday cake forever (Remember he somehow envisions me to be some sort of a June Cleaver without even knowing about June Cleaver)

2) he loves the lemon loaf at Starbucks (and yes it IS indeed kind of embarrassing how familiar he is with Starbucks)

The results?

The cake was a hit! (Thanks, Velva!)

Mr. Monk had loads of fun in the kitchen with mom and grandma.

And he LURVed the lemon frosting.

It was well worth it even though I burnt the hand mixer making it, with smoke coming out of it and all…

So.

Mother of the Year?

32 thoughts on “Let Them Eat Cake

  1. wanderingmenace

    Mr. Monk is absolutely adorable. I love the cake pics!
    So cute of him to help you out-and so he’s familiar with Starbucks-just means you’re properly teaching him how to efficiently find food and drink for oneself.
    I’d say that qualifies as mother of the year.
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  2. Mary Lee

    I’m so glad you made that cake. It’s the one her husband made for her birthday, right? I thought it sounded yummy.

    Next week. My house. That cake! How soon can Mr. Monk get here?
    Mary Lee recently posted…Reeling Me InMy Profile

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    1. Absence Alternatives Post author

      Yes. Of course I don’t even know where to begin to make it look that fancy. Her husband even frosted the cake, I think. Isn’t it amazing?!

      He actually cannot eat his own cake right now because his other front tooth is hanging with, eh, a tooth?… Poor kid. He’s eating yogurt instead…

      Reply
  3. Kernut the Blond

    It sounds like it was a wonderful time, and a great memory for both of you. It makes me a little wistful for those days… I remember making cookies with my mom. We didn’t get to do nearly as much as Mr. Monk, but we got to add (pre-measured) ingredients, stir, help drop the cookies on the tray, and – the best part – lick the bowl. That’s probably the main reason we helped.
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  4. Andrea

    Awwww, those pics are precious, and you make a lovely June Cleaver. Nice work! And most people like the smell of mixer-smoke in the kitchen. It’s a sign you’ve been working your ass off. 😉

    Reply
  5. Kathryn McCullough

    I love cake in all its fabulous forms and love your blog almost as much. Found a link on Lisa’s “Notes from Africa.” This is the third time I have tried to comment before either losing my electricity or wireless connection. It’s election day here in Haiti, and the electrical grid is even more unstable than usual—so here we go again. Hope you get this!

    Reply
    1. Absence Alternatives Post author

      Thank you so much for visiting and commenting! I hope the election turned out well. Next time you could just email me and I will add your comment (if you wish)!

      Thank you so much for the kind words. I can’t wait to check out your blog in details!

      Reply
  6. TechnoBabe

    The cake does look delicious. I will go over there and check out the recipe. I really really like lemon. I forgot how much I like lemon and when I read this post I tried to remember the last time I tasted a lemon bar. Your son sounds like a gem. He loves you for you.
    TechnoBabe recently posted…Library In A Small TownMy Profile

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  7. Wicked Shawn

    Time in the kitchen with my parents is some of my fondest memories from my childhood Lin. Also, the days I spent with my grandmother, learning how to make pie crusts and life lessons….I wish I could get 10 minutes of any one of those back. Mother of the Year? Definitely in his eyes you are Mother of the Year, which is all that matters. The Narcissist still comes into the kitchen and cooks with me when he has something really important he wants to talk about. It’s our thing. Always has been. I love you even more if it is possible. Something tells me Mr. Monk does too!! (I may have laughed at you a little for burning up the mixer though.) 😉
    Wicked Shawn recently posted…Bring on the Madness- Bring on the NoiseMy Profile

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