For someone’s big first birthday!
Today is Max’s first birthday, and I’m honestly stunned at how fast this year passed. It feels like the days have been moving quicker than ever.
Keeping a blog means you can look back at every moment, which is both amazing and mortifying. I rarely reread my own posts because it’s awkward—like listening to a recorded version of yourself. Still, becoming a mom has made these firsts feel like living life again through Max’s eyes. Every day there are new moments that make my heart swell over and over.
Motherhood has been incredible and exhausting in equal measure. I’ve worked hard to keep this space authentically me over the past year without turning it into only “baby” content. I’m completely obsessed with my son, but I’m also still passionate about my work. Balancing both feels like a constant juggling act, with my head often overflowing with everything I want to do.
The short version: this year has been the most joyful, overwhelming, and exciting of my life.
If you want more baby updates, there’s a dedicated baby page with additional posts about Max, including his birthday plans and favorites. We’re having his party tomorrow, and of course I’ve gone a little overboard like any first-time parent might.
For the party, we debated themes for months—jungle, giraffes (cute but confusing), and then ultimately chose bright colors: red, blue, green, yellow, and orange—plus lots of balloons, party hats, and sprinkles.
This mini smash cake is really my confetti cake from the cookbook, an updated version of my funfetti cupcakes. The recipe makes a dozen cupcakes, which fits nicely into two small cake pans for a layered smash cake. I ended up making tiny rounds to create a triple-layer mini cake, which was too cute to resist.
Today Eddie and I will sing to Max and celebrate quietly at home, and tomorrow he’ll enjoy the slightly larger smash cake at his party. I’m ridiculously excited—this absolutely called for sprinkles.
Mini Sprinkle Smash Cake
1
smash cake or 12 cupcakes
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Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg + 1 egg white
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/3 cup assorted brightly colored sprinkles
Vanilla cream frosting
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon whole milk if needed
- 1/4 cup assorted brightly colored sprinkles
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two small cake pans (about 4 1/2 x 2 inches).
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Whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
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Beat butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until creamy. Add the sugar and beat on high until fluffy, 2–3 minutes. Add the egg and egg white and mix on medium until combined. Add oil and vanilla, mixing another minute. With the mixer on low, add half the dry ingredients, then the milk, then the remaining dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Fold in the sprinkles gently with a spatula.
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Divide the batter between the pans and bake until the tops are set, about 18–20 minutes. Cool completely, then turn out onto parchment. For the mini cake shown, use a 2-inch biscuit cutter to cut rounds from the cakes to stack into a triple-layer mini cake. Reserve crumbs for garnish.
Vanilla cream frosting
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Beat butter and cream cheese together until smooth. With the mixer on low, slowly add powdered sugar, then vanilla. Scrape the bowl and beat on high for 2–3 minutes until light and fluffy. If too thick, add the tablespoon of milk and beat until combined. Frost the cake and top with extra sprinkles.
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P.S. I’ll likely be a puddle of tears—how is he already a toddler?