Teal/Green 50th Birthday Cake

This weekend my mom turned the big five-oh, so there were no excuses for no cake.
When deciding on the design of the cake, I wanted to do something that represented the essence of my mom. Anyone that knows her will tell you she is fun, bright, kinda funky, and a little bit...loud. Hahaha.
I knew she had some great tops that really suite her personality, so I decided to design the cake after one of them. The bottom layer of the cake was her favorite: carrot cake with walnuts and raisins, topped with a cream cheese frosting.

I thought it would be fun to see the cake with the top against the background, and it does make for a pretty cool photo!

This cake was pretty time consuming, and I did wonder a few times if I was crazy for picking such a complex design, but my mom totally deserved it.
She's really not your average 50 year old. This past summer I was selling some stuff around the house. One item was our old foosball table. A couple of athletic looking guys in their late 20s came to pick it up. One asked, "hm, should we move the car closer so we don't have to carry it so far?" (it was about 20 feet away from the table). I said "oh, it should be no problem, my mom and I carried it down the steps this morning" (and that WAS a challenge!). I think the guy was kinda embarrassed after that.
Not only am I impressed with my mom's physical strength, I really love her positive spirit. I am extremely fortunate to have had her influence in my life, and I owe her so much more than a deliciously intricate cake...but it's a start.
Happy Birthday Mom!!! :)