What I am asking is:  Would you all out there in CAKELAND mind sharing your best tips for making the whole getting prepared for multiple orders a little easier?  I typically don't do more than one/weekend but know I can do more, as they are not huge cakes. 

I get a little anxious.  I'm not gonna lie....I've been a SAHM for 12 years.  Haven't had to work "hard," as in pushing myself to appease a slave-driving boss, in 12 years.  Yes, being a mom is hard, but I am my own boss now and gotta say I'm pretty easy on myself because I get really nasty with my family if I am stressed and they get in my way.  So I just try not to "go there."  I don't want them to resent me doing cakes.  Which has happened in the past.  I've been trying really hard to get myself organized and on the ball.

What do you spend your time doing when you have a few hours of nothing to do, but want to do cake work to get you ahead for that next order?

These are things I have considered: 

Putting a ton of dry mixes together of my best selling flavors.

Making double batches of icing even if my order only requires one and freezing the rest (or just spend a day making icing).

Gluing many base boards together so they are good to go, cutting out many plaques so they are good and dry for when I need them.

Buying an extra of just about everything when I go to the store, even just for home groceries, so I don't find myself running out of something at the last minute.

TIA for any/all help!

A fellow cake friend and I were just talking about this.  Baking multiple cakes scales well.  If you are going to dirty your kitchen, might as well be baking multiple cakes!  Also, if it takes 3 hours to do one cake, it doesn't necessarily mean it will take 9 hours to do 3. There is a lot of overlap of both supplies and time when doing multiple.  You can be smoothing one cake while another is setting up, etc etc.  I have found it helpful to create a plan of action for the cakes due that week. Included in that plan is a list of everything I need to do/make for that cake.  Bake this day, sculpt figures that day, torte fill and settle another day.That way I can go through and see if there is any of the little things I can do ahead here and there to make things go faster.   I do make sure I have all of the cake boards and boxes ready to go a few days before the orders, too.   I found that once I let go of the panic it really wasn't that much harder to do multiple cakes than to do just one.

I do about 4-5 two and three tiered cakes a week.

Get anything that possibly can be done ahead done. That includes coloring fondant.  No exceptions.  (Exceptions and procrastination is why I pulled all nighters the last three weekends in a row.)   Then even if it takes 5 hours to fondant and stack the cakes, actually decorating them doesn't usually take more than another 6 hours. And it can be less. I often hire someone to help me deliver. Especially if I have Sunday cakes and need to be working on Saturday.

that's how you should book your cakes too --book an intricate cake then a few easy peasies to round things out--because it is easy to toss a couple extras in the oven--as has already been stated--make more icing--

howsweet, if i move to texas i will apply for a delivery job w/you--i love to deliver wedding cakes --nothing funner than flying around on a saturday with a car fulla cakes--

well, i mean that's one way to book cakes--of course not the only way--i sounded a little too convinced/final there-

If I have a busy cake week, I put every step on my calendar.  That helps to keep me organized.  If it's a lsow week, or a no-cake week, I make icing and freeze it.  I try to bake the layers the weekend before the cake is due and freeze; that way, all I have to do at the end is take the cake/icing out of the freezer and do the decorating, which is the fun part for me.

ADitto to writing down every step. I find that when I won't do this is when I feel the most scattered. It really helps. Coloring ahead too. I make double batches of icing it freezes well. Make all possible things ahead of time. The last step in my week is the actual baking and icing and covering. I typically don't spend more than 6 hours on the decorating part.

Time management is your friend. Sunday morning get a cup of coffee and write out a plan of action. You may not have to be that literal about it lol. I have to do that because in a scatter brain

Definitely write everything down. After you've iced the tier, label what's inside.