BIRTHDAY HISTORY
The ancient Romans were the first people recorded to celebrate birthdays. It started with celebrating the anniversary of the opening of the temple of their favorite gods, or the favorite gods of people in power. This evolved into celebrating the birthdays of emperors, or others in power, who were considered to be gods themselves.
Early Christians refused to celebrate the birthdays of emperors as gods, and some of the earliest martyrs came from that refusal. Early Christians celebrated the time of physical death rather than physical birth, because physical death marks the transition into everlasting life with Jesus.
Today, in some Eastern societies, it is customary to note the number of years a person has been around, without paying attention to the actual date of the birth. Each year at the time of the new moon, everyone is considered a year older.
Even though the celebration of birthdays has an unsavory origin, our family loves to celebrate! We choose to dedicate the birthday celebration, giving thanks to God for creating the fearfully and wonderfully made human being that we love, and allowing that person to be in our lives.
This is especially true when we celebrate the birthdays of our children. The Bible says that "Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from Him." (Psalm 127:3) We celebrate the wonderful and special gift of life that God has given!
CAKE IDEAS
SUNSHINE CAKE
Bake a round cake and cool on a cooling rack over a baking sheet. Carefully cut notches from ice cream cone tops (without the ice cream) with a serrated knife, to make them lay flat, and not roll around. Mix up a large batch of bright yellow frosting. Heat frosting in microwave until the consistency of heavy whipping cream. Carefully pour over the center of cooled cake and spread around. Allow to cool and add second layer, if desired. When cake is cooled completely, move to the center of a large serving platter. Cover cones with yellow frosting, and position around the cake, like sunbeams. Add frosting or licorice whip sunglasses and smiley face.
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FLOWER & BUTTERFLY CAKE
Contributed by homeschool mom Joy Marie Dunlap of CA
Bake two round cakes (regular size) and about a dozen cupcakes. Cover a large piece of cardboard with aluminum foil. Lay one of the round cakes down on the lower half of the board. Frost it with a flower center color such as yellow or orange. Frost the cupcakes a flower petal color, such as pink or purple. Arrange the cupcakes (petals) around the round cake (flower center). Now cut the second round cake in half, down the middle. Separate the halves, and put them together so that the round edges meet in the middle instead of the straight edges. This makes a butterfly cake. Frost in blue, yellow, green, or any butterfly color you desire. Now
you have a flower cake with a butterfly cake hovering over it! Stick two chocolate chips at the top of the butterfly for eyes, and use licorice for antennae.
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SOUTHERN BELLE CAKE
Butter and flour a METAL mixing bowl. Using your regular cake recipe, mix up the cake batter in a different mixing bowl. You may need to double the recipe, depending on the size of your baking bowl. Make sure there is enough batter to almost fill the bowl. Pour all of the batter into the bowl. Bake at 300 degrees F., until cake feels springy and pulls away from the sides, and a tester inserted into the center comes out dry. It takes longer than if you baked it in a shallow pan.
After removing from oven, allow to cool 5-10 minutes, then invert on a freezer-safe plate. Cool in freezer until cold and firm, but not frozen.
Cut layers into the cake with dental floss by wrapping dental floss around the cake, bringing the ends toward you. Tie the ends, like you are about to make a knot, and gently pull. The dental floss should cut the cake and knot inside the layers. Gently pull out and repeat until you have all of the layers you want.
Carefully place layers on individual plates. You may need to freeze entire cut cake before you do this. If it seems like it might fall apart, freeze before handling.
Assemble cake, starting with the widest layer on the bottom. Add frosting, then the next widest, and so on until you have re-assembled the bowl-shaped cake, and frost entire cake with a "base" layer, don't decorate yet.
Strip a new Barbie of her clothes. Tie the hair up with an elastic, or cut hair short. Wrap body and legs in Saran Wrap, and insert into top of the cake (you may need to use a smaller "Stacy" or "Kelly" doll, if your cake is small. Before baking, test by standing your doll next to the inverted bowl, and see how high it comes to her. You want the cake to reach the Barbie's middle.)
Now decorate the cake with frosting, bringing the frosting up over the Barbie's top, to form the rest of the dress.
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PICKUP TRUCK CAKE
Mix up enough batter for two 2-layer cakes. Split the recipe between two loaf pans. Cook on a slightly lower heat than the recipe calls for (about 50 degrees lower), until center of cakes spring back when touched lightly, cake begins to pull away from the sides, and a tester inserted through the center comes out dry.. Cool completely, and remove from pans.
Place one loaf cake on a serving platter or cookie sheet. Frost all the way in your child's favorite color (mix a few drops of food coloring into white frosting). Cut the second cake loaf in half, vertically, in the center. You'll only need one half and can freeze the other half for another day.
Put the cut half on top of the cake loaf on the platter, matching up the ends, so that the cut side is on the inside. Use frosting as the "paste" to hold it in place. This is the cab of the truck. Cover with frosting, and seal up any gaps between cakes with frosting.
Now decorate your truck. Using frosting for paste, stick on 4 Ring-Ding round treats for tires. You could also use chocolate frosted doughnuts. Add white Certs for headlights, cinnamon Tic-Tacs for tail lights, and pipe in the windows and doors with frosting in a decorator's tube. Press in a rectangular area of the "truck bed" with jelly beans. Add a few loose jelly beans on top of the others, so it looks like the truck is carrying a load of rocks.
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HEART SHAPED CAKE
Bake a cake, using your regular recipe for two layers. Bake one layer in an 8" square cake pan, the other layer in an 8" diameter round cake pan. When cooled, cut the round cake in half. Lay the square cake on a jelly roll pan or large serving platter, sideways, so the corners of the cake are facing the flat sides of the pan, forming a diamond shape. Using frosting for paste, stick the flat side of one of the round halves against the upper left flat side of the diamond shape. Do the same with the other half on the other side, to form heart shape. Cover entire cake with frosting and decorate.
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HEART SHAPED CUPCAKES
Mix cake batter according to your regular recipe. Line muffin tins with cupcake paper. In each cup, place a wadded ball of aluminum foil on the outside of the paper, pushing the cupcake into a heart shape. Only fill half-way, or you will lose the shape upon baking.
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PUMPKIN CAKE
Have a fall-themed birthday? Cook two identical bundt cakes. Trim the top of one of them, so that it can sit flat upside down on the platter. Put the other bundt cake rightside up on top of it, securing with a layer of frosting in between. Frost the outside with orange-colored frosting, making long vertical ridges in the frosting, and top with a piece of the trimmings covered in chocolate frosting for a stem.
BIRTHDAY SONG by Sarah C.
Sung to the tune of the traditional Happy Birthday Song
Sarah C. wrote, "I asked the Lord for a song to sing on my son's birthday.
He has been talking to me about celebrating the creator verses the
creation. Even what we write on cakes it should be a thank you to the Lord
for another year of life. So, I asked him about a song. The whole
earth sings a Happy Birthday Song on birthdays, but the lyrics were not
right since I received this understanding. He brought to my heart Psalm
139:14 for a new song and still keeping the same tune.
Praise the Lo-rd on this - Day!
For you're fear-fu-lly made.
Praise the Lord on this Day!
For you're wonderfully made.
If my message speaks right to your heart, please share this song. so
others can partake on this wonderfull truth and praise the Lord who is
worthy to be praised." - Sarah C.
Very special thank you, Sarah, for this wonderful idea!! - kf
