Susan Senator

Ned and I were at a bit of a loss as to what Max’s birthday cake should be. We had done many Myst-related or Uru cakes already, which came out great, (look in my blog index to see them, too many to link to). It is hard to capture the interest of a very cool now 15-year-old.

But — the other day I was talking to Max about where he would want to go if he had his choice of places. And this conversation was actually leading up to a real possibility because Ned and I have found a sleepaway camp that we are going to send Nat to! So Nat will be away from home for a week, for the first time ever, doing all kinds of amazing activities, mostly extreme sports. And it is only kids on the autism spectrum!!! I am so psyched for him, and for us, to have this opportunity to try separate vacations (just the four of us, without Nat).

So — what to do? Go to the Rockies? Europe? Japan? I looked into all of these things. But Max said he wants to see ruins. He loves ruins.

So I told Ned that Max loves ruins, and right away Ned sent me a link to something called, “CakeHenge.” Devil dogs cut up and lined up like the stones in England. I said, “We so have to make that. And do it better.” He agreed.

Last night Nat, Ben and I baked and Ned came home with a bag of buildable candy (Three Musketeers, Twix, and the inevitable Hershey). Ben and Ned mixed up some grassy green, or thereabouts (so hard to get intense colors with the pastels of frosting), and I worked on a rock color. I frosted the candy bits with my fingers; so much more control than a frosting knife, and it allows you to give the surface a rock-like texture. And — sigh — an opportunity to lick frosting off the fingers.

The cake turned out magnificent. Ned had the brilliant idea of shining a flashlight to simulate the StoneHenge sunrise, and I had the idea of getting a Lego druid, which Ben put together. Nat came in and obliged us by “cleaning out” the frosting bowls. A true family effort. And Max, of course, was delighted with his CakeHenge.

Max turned 15 today.  He didn’t have a specific idea for a cake, so Susan and I riffed on the theme of ruins, and came up with Cakehenge.
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