The things we do for our grandkids. The car cake I did recently for Liam’s 3rd birthday inspired me to offer to make the cakes for my granddaughters’ combined birthday party. To go with their Hawaiian theme based on a Nancy Drew mystery, Molly requested a black volcano cake while Emily selected cakes in the shape of flip flops. I thought the volcano cake would be the hardest, but it wasn’t. I had the brilliant idea of making a chocolate angel food cake, turning it upside down. String some alternating red, orange and yellow icing from the hole in the middle over the top and down the sides for molten lava and voila a volcano.

The Flip flop cakes were harder than I thought, but only the cutting out part. Hard to get them the exact same shape and size. Which I didn’t. But add tons of blue icing (Emily’s favorite color), colored candies to decorate around the sides, a little fruit by the foot for the straps donned with edible flowers and you’ve got yourself a pair of flip flops.

The flip flops were placed in their carrier, lid secured, ready to load. When I lifted the volcano onto the base of its carrier for the life of me I could not get the cover to snap closed. Only after I went to the store to purchase a ‘non-defective’ one did I discover that I had the base turned upside down.

I had a large box, flaps torn, and worked on how best to load them in. They would be traveling in the back seat of Grandpa’s truck, 4 hours on IH 35 with all it possibilities of sudden stops and long delays, so travel prep was important. The flip flops box went in easily, as did the container of ‘volcano rocks’ (cake scraps left cut into rounds and drizzled with glaze), nestled perfectly next to it. The volcano was another matter. Sitting on a cookie sheet on top of the other cake covers, it worked. Only one box to carry the cakes. Only one problem. It slid around with each step. Not good.

Grandpa to the rescue. He put duct take under the foil holding the volcano, then duct taped the cookie sheet to the top of the other cake cover. It was such a great idea I don’t know why I didn’t think of it. But finally, there they were, traveling cakes enthroned in the back seat. We were on our way.

We were 3 minutes from home when the first rain drops fell. I wanted to move the bags of gifts and books from the bed to inside the cab. As I watched drops hitting the glass my wonderful husband whom I love said, “Check the weather on your phone,” meaning maybe it won’t rain hard or for long and he wouldn’t have to pull over, put the truck in park, open the door, retrieve the bags from the truck bed, open another door to put gifts inside, then get back on the road. Men do not like to stop.

“Once we are on the road we can’t pull over,” he said firmly. “Yes we can,” I replied, just as firmly. “It IS possible.” Silence. As we approached the underpass to turn and get onto the highway I stated calmly, “It’s ok honey, I’m prepared to arrive with soggy gifts for our grandchildren and tell them it’s all grandpas fault.” The light turned green. Without a word he turned into an IHOP parking lot and put the gifts inside the cab. When we were moving again I thanked him, then I thanked him for putting up with my stress and cake-nerves. He said nothing. His way of acknowledgment.

My husband likes me to use the traffic app on his iPhone when he’s driving and I’m the navigator. I am a dedicated android phone gal but the iPhone traffic app I’ve learned. No red between us and our destination – I prayed it stayed that way. And it did, consistently. As consistently as my husband driving 50 mph whether on the freeway or on a flyover. I placed one hand on the cake box, the other on the door handle, closed my eyes and prayed as we took the flyover. We made it onto the highway safely and merged into traffic behind several big trucks. Just as the low fuel chime came on. He pushed a button, dismissing the warning. “What do they know?” he remarked. It began to rain.

But all’s well that ends well. The amazed looks on the girls’ faces and their delight at seeing their special cakes was worth it all. And their mom figured out how to repair the flops – by then melted from 4 hours on the freeway. Taking her grandma’s suggestion to add sand, she brought out the brown sugar, placed it around the neatened-up icing on the flops and it looked perfect. Better than using duct tape – but grandpa had a roll handy just in case.