Icing Smiles Cake!

 I posted a few months ago about Icing Smiles, a charity that provides cakes for critically/terminally ill children and their siblings.  As soon as I got my business started and all of my licensing was in place I volunteered as a baker to this wonderful charity!  I was so excited a few weeks ago to have received my "Call to Action" and last week I was working on a very special cake!

They have 2 different "levels" of cakes they offer.  The "Fun" cake or a "Dream" cake!  I created a "Fun" cake for a little boy who loves Blues Clues!

 

While I knew right away that I wanted to volunteer with Icing Smiles, I did not know how amazing it would feel to be able to make this cake!  I am lucky enough to have two healthy kids, and they can have fancy cakes whenever they want (well, within reason, lol)... So, while I LOVE to decorate and bake, we often see cakes as "just cake," a regular occurrence in our house...  But that isn't the case for the "Medical Families" that Icing Smiles serves.  To them these cakes MATTER!  They are so caught up in tending to the needs of their sick children, things like birthday parties and cake, sometimes, have to be over looked.  Knowing what goes in to these cakes I know they are expensive, and with mounting medical bills "Medical Families" sometimes can't afford the expense of a birthday cake, let alone a custom art cake...

But Icing Smiles, who delivered their first cake in January of 2010, works with their volunteers to bring a little brightness to these special and deserving children.  I am so happy to be one of their volunteers and to have made this cake for Alex, for whom this was the first year he had a birthday party because his brother has been sick.

I had agreed to take on this cake, for the same weekend of the CT Cake Competition (I'll post on that later!).  So last week I was really busy and stressed trying to get both cakes done.  My Icing Smiles cake, rightfully, took precedence and I wasn't able to spend as much time on my competition cake.  But there is NO WAY I would have turned down making the cake for Icing Smiles!  It was my honor to be chosen as the baker for this family... and the "Thank You" letter I got from the family brought tears to my eyes... it made me realize just how lucky I am, and how an act of kindness can mean so much to someone else.  It made me realize that any amount of stress I "suffered" was nothing compared to what these families live with on a daily basis.  And my "stress" suddenly didn't matter... I hope I have the opportunity to do this again!

Icing Smiles' motto is "Baking a Difference" and that is exactly what they do/provide for these families!  They rely on the kindness of others to be able to serve these children.  There are many ways to support Icing Smiles, and you don't have to be a professional baker to do so.  They accept donations as well as rely on volunteers for fundraising, deliveries, professional bakers, nonprofessional bakers, and even just getting the word out.  So, if you are so inclined, check out their website to see how you can get involved and support Icing Smiles.  "Like" them on Facebook and help get the word out!!

Happy Caking :)