How do all of you find the time to do all these cakes I see on this site? I really love to bake and to decorate cakes but lately I have not been able to do much. It seems that I never have any time to practice. And believe me I need to. I do a few cake for friends and family, but not enough. I don't know how some of you do it. I work a full time job and Ihave a family to take care of. I got into this because I love doing it. I want to improve my skill in hopes of maybe opening a shop some day. How do all of you balance everything like family and jobs and still find the time to do cakes? Anyone have any suggestions or advice? I would very much appreciate it.

I never bake, make icing and decorate all in one day. I have a full time job and 2 1/2 yr. old son and aside from occasionally baking a layer or two or a batch of cupcakes, most of what I do is done after he goes to sleep.

I bake my cakes and freeze layers ahead of time. Wrapped in plastic wrap, they can last for a few weeks in the frezer, no problem. I also make icing a few days ahead of time so that it is ready to go when I am ready to decorate. If I have any gumpaste/fondant to color, I also do that ahead of time and make some fondant/gumpaste/royal icing accents ahead of time. Then on the day I'm going to decorate, I don't have to bake, wait to cool, etc. If I did it all in one day, I'd never be able to make anything. Even for a simple 2 layer 8" cake, I'm preparing and starting on some steps a week or more in advance.

I work at night when my kids are sleeping. That's the only time I can get some uninterrupted time...

I personally don't get to do very much myself. I tried all weekend just to make a chocolate cake for us to try a new recipe and just to have but never found the time to get it made. I try to practice gumpaste flowers and my stuff stays out for a week because I'm only able to snatch an hour or 2 occasionally to make them. It gets very frustrating.

I work mostly at night too. I make all the fondant decorations on my cakes as far ahead as I can at night after my kids are in bed and I bake and make the frosting a couple nights before the cake is due. Then I finish it up as much as I can the day before the cake is due and hopefully I'm not up until 3 in the morning. I did take almost a whole year off when I was pregnant with my last child and a few months after she was born. You can't do everything!

I'm a full-time mom, so when I'm not doing housework or doing something with the kids, my time is my own. I don't bake as often as I would like to, but that's mostly because my husband will eat as much cake as I can produce, and it's not healthy for him to eat whole cakes, by himself, a couple of times a week

I make flowers or fondant pearls when I have free time but don't want to make a whole cake. I just put them in the freezer after they're dry, and then when I do have a big project, chances are I'll have some of what I need already made. I've been teaching my kids how to make them too...the 6 year old can make nice little flowers already, lots of them and fairly fast, and my 2 year old will roll them out and cut them, but usually at that point she eats them. I usually keep some fondant in the fridge to play with, rather than having to make some every time I get an idea and want to try it.

I'm a mom of 5- ages 8 months to 9 years. I'm beyond busy! I don't have a lot of time to practice, so I find that I'm a last minute kinda gal. When I get an order I try to bake a week in advance, and then end up working all night long to finish a cake. I stayed up til 2 AM for the last cake I did...but it came out great. I think until the kids grow up a bit more, I have to accept the fact that time is not on my side. My dh is a HUGE help! He gets all the laundry done and cleans the kitchen and takes care of the kids for me while I'm in "cake mode".

I tend to learn on the fly, or when it's necessary to learn or do something new. It's dangerous that way, but if I'm pretty positive I can do a new technique, I'll do it. That being said, I only offer my customers what I know I can achieve. I would hate to have to contact them and tell them I can't complete their order because of lack of skill or practice.

I dont know how you working mums do it either. Im a full time mummy at home with the kids and when im not cooking, cleaning or entertaining my 2 kids thats when i find time to make some of the accents to go on top of my ordered cakes. I would really appreciate some of you ladies giving me your honest opinions on some of my cakes as i think and comments can help us all become better cake makers.

Sometime it helps to know you're not alone. I don't get a chance to bake as much either. I love making the gumpaste flowers and my roses finally look like real roses. But I haven't had a chance to work on them in weeks. I can't legally bake from home and I thought about getting a job with a bakery, but I feel they will just want me to sell. Even my gumpaste flowers - what do I do with them once they are made? thanks for the topic

i, too, pace myself...frosting one day, bake another day or two....fondant/coloring another day, last day? fun and decorating/assembling...

even onthe bake day-i premeausre everything in the morning, when i get home from work i pull out the cold ingredients, it's all about preparing ahead of time,

which is a skill i've learned over time.....came with experience in order to prevent me from a full blown Freak Out.

i could never reconcile being rude to my family because i was uptight about a cake getting done....

last week i went to a gals' house to help HER decorate a cake for her son-he was turning two....not sure i could do that.....it was difficult to start/stop, keep things out of his reach,e tc.

my kids are 9 & 12....i didn't start until they were 4/7
and it was a SLOW progression...

wish i could play that song by the Birds (is it?) that says to everything there is a season....i think when you have small kids, it's not the primo time to take on a career/hobby....learn slowly and when they grow up? pow! you are ready, keep working with the time constraints you have....and it will come.....

sally