https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Thu, 21 May 2026 20:06:30 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1035925 Thu, 22 Aug 2013 09:56:37 +0000 lemondrop 1035925@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It isn't anything new, my parents have me a cupcake to explore 30 years ago for my first birthday. My son got the same and we had a lot of fun watching him try it out and snapped a few photos of him eating it. We just had a small family get together for his birthday, nothing fancy. </p> <p>Personally I disagree that playing with food is a bad thing, we let him feed himself and explore food. Sure he can get messy, but he loves to eat and I don't have to feed him. I guess it's just the BLW philosophy that has been mentioned above. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1035308 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 22:40:06 +0000 ElbieKay 1035308@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Aimed: I am with you. I don't get it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034998 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 19:03:02 +0000 FancyGem 1034998@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My baby didn't like the cake smash. His pics came out cute, but he didn't like the way it felt in his hands. Lol </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034983 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 18:51:43 +0000 Dandelion 1034983@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I know that some grocery stores will give you a free smash cake when you order a first birthday cake...that's the only reason DS had one. Otherwise, he would've had a piece of the same cake that everyone else had. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034903 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 18:13:45 +0000 autumn865 1034903@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DD's party is this weekend and we are doing the smash cake for her. It's a "cake" a bit larger than a cupcake and is a no added sugar banana cake flavor. I don't think it teaches bad habits. It's all in good fun! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034852 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 17:34:50 +0000 Andrea 1034852@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I gave her a smash cupcake and she had no clue what to do with it. So it wasn't messy at it. She picked at it and we got a few cute photos at her party! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034820 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 17:16:15 +0000 sunny 1034820@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We brought a cake to our 1st birthday shoot. Our LO destroyed it and it did seem wasteful but it was fun for her to get her hands into the frosting. She wasn't terribly into eating it... more just playing with it like playdoh. I think it was fun for her and it was just a small cake so I don't feel too bad about wasting a giant expensive cake. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034816 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 17:13:50 +0000 Mrs. Train 1034816@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>we didn't do a smash cake. We just gave each kid a piece of their birthday cake and let them explore and play with the frosting. We did take their picture while they ate but we didn't have a separate photo shoot. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034803 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 17:05:57 +0000 MamaJ 1034803@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: agree with everything you said.</p> <p>My video of my first birthday shows me shoving my hands into the sheet cake. Which ended up ruining it for everyone else. This way LO gets to enjoy cake whether he smashes it or not and the guest can enjoy their cake too. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034796 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 17:01:21 +0000 DigAPony 1034796@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I hate that calling it a smash cake makes it seem like some new thing! It's just giving baby a piece of cake/a cupcake/a small cake that's separate from the cake you serve to the rest of your guests so he/she can go to town. I have pictures from my first birthday, and my mom made me my own tiny cake to eat in my highchair. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034784 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 16:52:46 +0000 autumnlove 1034784@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I gave her a smash cupcake! :-) I thought it was a little silly but she had a blast with it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1034781 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 16:49:24 +0000 sarac 1034781@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I thought it was stupid too. I even went to a first birthday recently where the parents were like, cajoling the kid to smash the cake. He didn't even care, but we spent 20 minutes sitting there waiting for it to happen. </p> <p>I think it's an annoying waste of a nice cake too. I gave my daughter a piece of cake, and told her to go nuts. She mostly rubbed it on her father, and then we ate the rest of the cake.</p> <p>@Pink Champagne: Yes!!! My neurotic sister and brother in law did a staged shoot where their daughter was allowed to smash a bunch of cake all over herself. Then, at the actual party, she was of course dressed in a fancy dress and barely allowed to touch it. Just, no. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033633 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 10:39:26 +0000 HabesBabe 1033633@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@artbee: ditto! we got the guests' cake at albertson's and they threw in a 5" free cake for LO. not gonna argue with that. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033565 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 10:24:42 +0000 littlebug 1033565@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yeah, I'm not into the whole staged cake smash photo shoot thing. But I'll probably bake D a small cake or cupcake to eat at his first birthday party, and we'll take pictures of that. I'd rather that than have him rip and tear at a cake that I then expect our guests to eat. Ew. Plus, that way I can control the amount of sugar and other crap in the cake. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033560 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 10:23:20 +0000 LovelyPlum 1033560@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My parents were VERY anti-cake smash for this exact reason. I can see giving a baby a cupcake or slice of cake to eat /get messy with, nut I really don't like anything more. It just seems so wasteful! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033535 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 10:16:34 +0000 Pink Champagne 1033535@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm not a fan of the photo shoot. I think it's cute to take pictures of your baby when they turn 1, but kind of weird to stage a whole photo shoot around the cake smash. Take pictures of the actual event at the party and be normal.<br /> I made a "smash cake" out of a 4" cake pan. I have no idea if it even tasted good, because the recipe was all jacked up. It looked cute, LO kind of picked at it with his fingers, and that was it.<br /> As others have said, letting a baby go at a piece of cake (or a whole cake!) is not a new concept. I have pictures of myself at my first birthday with my fist in my cake. My poor family that had to eat that cake after.... </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033514 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 10:11:07 +0000 SugarplumsMom 1033514@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I made DD's smash cake. She has a milk, egg and gluten allergy, so I didn't really have a choice. But even if she didn't have allergies, I would have still wanted to make her smash cake. I'm no baker, but because its so small, it wasn't very intimidating. You can even do a semi-homemade cake (for instance: buying an angel food cake, cutting it small and adding whatever filling and icing you want). </p> <p>I also thought of it as BLW. My DD was very gentle with her cake. She just poked around at the icing and only really ate the strawberry on top. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033488 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 10:06:11 +0000 MapleMoose 1033488@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Most "smash cakes" I've seen for babies have just been a separate piece of cake or cupcake that babe gets to eat and explore on their own without being spoonfed. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033462 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:55:26 +0000 Mrsbells 1033462@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Aimed: I'm not a fan of smash cakes at birthday parties or weddings, so I never did it. I think its a waste of cake.</p> <p>I also didnt let me daughter have sugar in her 1st birthday cake, we sweetened with fruit, and the frosting was cream cheese with apple sauce </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033459 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:54:17 +0000 lovehoneybee 1033459@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I made him his own small cake for his actual birthday (and cupcakes for the rest of us there), put it on his high chair and let him go to town. He did make a mess of his tray (and himself) but we practice BLW with him so him getting messy doesn't phase me. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033409 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:42:10 +0000 mrskc 1033409@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: you described it great! I was just going to say it's like baby led weaning. And when I was little, we just ate from the same cake that got served to all the other guests. So I think it's nicer to give the baby a separate cake or cupcake all to themselves. </p> <p>I think of it as fun little first birthday tradition. It's supposed to be baby's first taste of sugar! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033370 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:35:14 +0000 yoursilverlining 1033370@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think some people are more into it than others. We gave LO a piece of cake, because it was her birthday. I'm not into (and don't really get) having whole separate cakes for babies and organizing photo shoots around it...but that's because I'm just not into it/don't love those pics.</p> <p>I also hate cake smashing at weddings, but that seems entirely different to me! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033366 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:34:05 +0000 artsyfartsy 1033366@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Call me crazy but until recently I had never heard of he idea of a smash cake. I also never had birthday parties much as a kid. A friend had one for his LO and I thought it was cute, but then I started seeing them everywhere! I didn't know it was a thing/tradition. I follow a lady on FB that makes all of our cakes for events and shes constantly posting pictures of cute first birthday cakes with a matching smash cake beside it.<br /> I think it's kind of cute though. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033363 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:33:37 +0000 Grace 1033363@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm with you, Aimed. I can understand having a piece of cake and letting them eat it, but I've been to parties where the baby destroyed a giant sheet cake. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033270 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:05:24 +0000 prettylizy 1033270@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We did a small cake for her to eat herself. It was technically a 'smash' cake, but she didn't smash it. She poked at it for a bit then cried whens he saw that I had hummus and carrots! lol!</p> <p>I don't think it's a new thing to let 1year olds eat their own cake on their birthday. My 25 year old cousin did this at his first birthday and it was hilarious! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033267 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:04:31 +0000 JerricaBenton 1033267@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'd never heard the term 'cake smash' before HB, but I am all for giving her a piece of cake and letting her go at it. Whether it's super messy or not so much is up to her. Most kids get messy so I guess it became a thing. I'm certainly not going to shove it in her face or anything LOL! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033254 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 09:01:25 +0000 heffalump 1033254@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We did a smash cake.... it comes free when you buy a cake that says "Happy 1st birthday" at our grocery store. LO just sat there licking the icing off. I didn't mind her making a mess.... she was a baby, that's what she does. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033227 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 08:53:28 +0000 lamariniere 1033227@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We just did a cupcake. I think DS ate like 2 bites of it and just kind of poked at the frosting. He didn't get as into it as other people's babies seem to and really wasn't that messy, but it is still a fun memory for us. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033205 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 08:43:36 +0000 aprk 1033205@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Aimed: I'm with you. I do not like the cake smash idea. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/smash-cakes-am-i-missing-something#post-1033203 Wed, 21 Aug 2013 08:42:47 +0000 Mrs. Pen 1033203@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: I couldn't have said it better!</p> <p>There was definitely no cake throwing or being deliberately messy. We wanted J to be able to explore and experience his birthday cake in a fun and memorable way! </p> <p>I'm probably a little alternative though and I don't care if my child plays with his food, as long as there is no throwing and he eventually eats. I think food is just as much a sensory experience as playtime. I remember when I was younger building play villages out of my mashed potatoes and carrots and my parents didn't reprimand me - and I still ate my food! It wasn't a tactic to try not to eat, it was merely fueling creativity. </p>