I'm new to decorating and everytime I try to practice, my small children (ages 3 and 4) have to put their noses in my mix, supplies, cakes ETC. Does anyone have advise on any tips to keep them at arms length without squashing their enthusiasm? I want them to grow up with good baking memories but at the same time, I need to concentrate. Any tips would be appreciated.

Mine are 3, 3 and 6 and find it's best to cake when they are asleep . But if they're awake, they're more than happy just to pour one or two ingredients or crack an egg, then lick a beater . While I'm doing fondant, if they are in my hair I give them a couple of small pieces and some cutters and they go to town.

i'm with hilly, i do my baking during nap time and decoration at bed time. if i'm in a hurry and they have to be there during....i get out desposable bags and a little icing, or fondant and cutters.

Thank you for the tips!! I guess I'm in for a few late nights decorating but it's worth it.

I'm right there with you, my oldest is 3 and just stopped taking naps!

I usually do the same as the others and let him stir or give him a piece of fondant to play with, He thinks it's the best kind of play-doh ever!

When my kids were real small I made a point to work while they were at Grandma's house, napping or late at night after they were in bed. Makes for late nights, but worth it if you don't have to touch up little fingerprints in the side of the cake. When they got a little older, I made them a deal that if they stayed at their little "workstation" (across the room from MY workstation) I would bake extra cupcakes just for them which they could decorate for their customer (Daddy) while I was working on the cake for my customer. Daddy even "bought" his cupcakes from them with pennies so they could be in business like I was. Sometimes it kept them occupied and sometimes they would get bored and want to play elsewhere. I think the fact that I didn't forbid them to be in the kitchen kind of took the novelty and mystery out of it. Once they were in school I just worked during the day and made a point to be Mom in the evenings when they were home. Now they're 13 and 10, and my daughter (13) helps me regularly in the kitchen with baking and comes along to wedding deliveries and opens doors, takes empty boxes back out to the truck, sets up cupcake bars while I set up the display cake. She's a great help and saves me a ton of time, and is quite a pro at throwing together a buffet table! My son isn't terribly interested in helping with the business, but he still loves it if I have extra cupcakes and he can decorate his own snack with leftover bags of icing. I am loving this stage and am so glad I stuck with it through all the late nights when they were small.

Same here - want to share my baking passion with my daughter but can´t work on orders with her around. So orders= night time
And to share with my daughter we do small cakes, cupcakes, cookies just for fun. I just can´t have her around when I'm doing something important - I get SO stressed and short tempered..............

Cindsters, I too have small girls, 3 and 7. They are so used to me caking now that its not such a big deal but if they really want to help, I give them small jobs to do like getting ingredients, washing dishes, stirring, etc. Cutting and rolling fondant always works wonders and then they wander off after getting a taste of the sweets. It can be a hassle though to clean up their mess as well as my own!

MY babies are 2 and 3, so I bake one night and decorate the next, late, while they sleep or while Dad occupies them. Also, really earlY on Saturday. mornings. When they are around they eat icing

I'm the same as everyone, I do most of my decorating well into the night while they are asleep. My 4 and 7 year olds love to help but they now know the difference when its and order or just for family (they tend to leave when I say this is a special order cake). One thing I like to do is give them some fondant and let them use there playdough cutters instead of my good ones.

I was wondering how yall did it! Ha. I have a one year old that wants me to hold her EVERY TIME I am wrist deep in cooking/baking. She screams until I give in, or make daddy get her! Ha.

I'm going to have to try some of this stuff myself! I usually end up staying all night when I'm decorating. My son (3) loves playdough and baking, I can't believe it didn't occur to me to give him sme fondant to ue with his cutters and rolling pin!

Add me to the list of caking when the kids are in bed. It makes for a late night, but it's so much faster than trying to do it with 3 small children in the way.

Obviously, the consensus is to bake while the kiddies are asleep...However, it's not always possible....
My 16 month old now how his own beater (first casualty of trying to make RI with a hand mixer) and plenty of bowls, and loves to sit on the floor and copy Mommy.

I've decorated a cake with my baby in a sling For now she can still sit in a sling or mei-tai when I'm baking or stay on the kitchen floor. She's only 5 months old and doesn't sleep much during the day and when she's finally asleep at night I go to bed as well - so no night time baking here.
When she gets older I plan to let her 'help' or make her own cakes like some of the previous posters. I only bake as a hobby so I don't think it will be a problem.
If I were to make a wedding cake or something similar I think I would keep her sticky little hands out of the kitchen.

im very lucky to have my husband around most days (Works from home) so he usually takes our little boy to the park or something for an hour while im working, or just keeps him occupied else where in the house

If my hubbys not around, i wait till hes asleep, i sometimes let my son help out , give him a ball of icing to sit and play with, doesnt last long but sometimes its just enough