thank you for the tips and compliments.  I guess i'll be ok sticking with the 3" pans then. 

K8memphis-  both cakes baked nice and flat and i didnt have to torte either one, the first one was slightly off, but i leveled it with the center layer of icing. the first cake i also did trim the sides as they didnt bake as square on the sides as the second cake did.  the second cake i did not trimming at all.  thanks for the strawberry tips, i did learn a lesson on the first cake about the juice from the berries, the juice did soften and liquify some of the icing just a bit.  on the second cake with the slices, i placed all my slices on baking sheets on paper towel and flipped them and patted them and had no issues.  i like the apricot jam tip.

cakefan92-  lol, im positive i dont want to do this for living, believe it or not im a mechanic by trade.  this cake decorating is far more stressful!  never thought about covering the board, might have to look into that just because i do like to present a "polished" look.

BTW- the birthday girl was extremely happy with her cake!  she even swiped her finger in the frosting before i took this picture!

Look at her happy face!  That is what it is all about!  Yes, cake decorating is one of the most stressful things I've ever done, also one of the most rewarding.

awesome -- yeah creating something beautiful that has to be fresh and delicious plus hitting the deadline before it hits you can be quite the ordeal -- you are real good at it though 

the apricot preserves thing -- you can gently melt it first -- probably one of those polaner fruit things is better -- but a little heat to get it to liquify and brush it on -- works on the pretty tarts with the kiwi and blueberry and strawberry slices or whole fruit too

best to you!

-K8memphis, they use apricot preserves all the time on The Great British Bakeoff.  If it is good enough for Mary Berry, it is good enough for me!