So…Topper.
We meant to eat him on our first anniversary (or at least taste him for sentimentality, since we didn’t really like him when he was fresh), but we forgot.
So we left him in the freezer. And moved, with him, twice. Topper unfroze and refroze dozens of times during power outages and freezer doors being left ajar, but he lived on.
And today, Topper is turning thirteen.
He’s getting kinda moody, spends a lot of time alone in the freezer, and is sprouting peach fuzz in lots of new places.
To help him process his hormonal blossoming and remind him that it’s important to have strong bonds with one’s parents, we felt it would do him good to get him out of the basement and go on an adventure with us.
So we took him on our anniversary trip.
We made sure to keep him properly restrained during the drive,
But he’s a bit sulky about the booster seat, so don’t give him a hard time about being a Little Cake.
We got him out to see the sights, starting with the courthouse in Ashville, Alabama on the way to Asheville, North Carolina. It’s always good to paint a brooding adolescent a clear picture of consequences for actions.
We made it to Knoxville by dusk, so we took Topper up to Sharp’s Ridge to see the city. He seemed to appreciate our sightseeing, but you know – he’s in that quiet angsty stage, so he didn’t say much.
We arrived at the Grove Park Inn fairly late, and we put him right to bed. He slept till noon, of course, so we took him to see the view before he’d made it out of his pajamas.
But he insisted on primping a bit and taking a Grove Park Selfie.
He enjoyed the giant fireplaces in the lobby, but we couldn’t let him sit too long, or his face would start to break out.
Plus, there were loads of old people who wanted to talk to him, and he just shrugged his piping and moped.
So we gave him his space when we weren’t sightseeing.
When we did make him go out in public with us, Chris carried him comfortably, not embarrassing him or forcing him to converse with too many strangers.
But we did strategically nudge him into some low pressure group activities.
Of course, we also learned about the glorious excesses of The Industrial Revolution. He got pretty excited, but we’re not going to make him write a report about it.
His one request was that we take him to French Broad Chocolate Lounge so that he could check out the artisanal ladies.
But he seemed to get a little jealous when he had to watch us drooling over our fresh dessert – yet when we touched him, we washed our hands with scalding water and soap – because of his raunchy teenage B.O.
Topper even got to see snow, which he loved because he keeps his room pretty frosty at home.
And of course, as you should do any teenager, we absolutely forced him to take part in family traditions.
And his birthday present? He gets a brand new Ziploc Bag.
Because that old one now takes the fun out of funky.
Happy Birthday, Topper!
I cannot believe you still have your topper. That is a great post! My grandmother made wedding cakes, so naturally she made ours when we got married. She carefully wrapped our topper in everything freezer safe you could imagine. We traveled to Asheville for our one year anniversary, It thawed on the way and we enjoyed every bite! But I’d have to say your traveling topper is much more interesting (and very photogenic!)
Oh yes – you definitely need to go back and do it right!
For the record, we stayed in a cabin in Pigeon Forge for our first anniversary – in a very un-private cluster of cabins…and it had a heart-shaped bathtub.
First anniversaries are meant to be cheesy and low-budget. ;-)
PS – Random but true. We stayed in a ROACH motel that year. It was awful and we still laugh about it. Maybe we’ll go back for our 10 year and upgrade to The Grove.
This was hilarious! You guys have the weirdest, most creative ideas! Love it!
Thank you! The weird ones are usually attributable to Chris, for the record.
Amazing!
Our topper was in my parents’ freezer and thawed out during the power outage of the April 2011 tornadoes. One month before our first anniversary. Also whoever wrapped the topper at our wedding left the LIVE ROSES on and wrapped them right up with it. Needless to say we never ate ours either. But we did take it with us on on our first anniversary trip so we could pretend. And my mom made us a new one to actually eat.
There’s the benefit of having a mother as a baker!! :-)
Our cake was delicious at our wedding, and we froze the topper quickly, so I had high hopes on our first anniversary. (Especially since I only had time to eat a teeny sliver of that scrumptious cake at the wedding.) Unfortunately, we were pretty disappointed–it did not taste good. At all. We ate a tiny bit for posterity and dumped the rest. Love all the Topper photos!
Cakes were just not meant to be eaten a year later. Tradition or not.
LOL! You guys are awesome! I can’t believe you took topper all over and took photos. Too funny! I bet that was a funny sight for your fellow travelers to see! Happy Anniversary!!!
Yes, I got kinda tired of explaining his presence, but they were all highly amused, so I guess it was all worth it.
That is HILARIOUS. Your cake topper is the Flat Stanley of cakes.
What a cute way to document your anniversary. My husband and I have been married 13 years too – our anniversary is early Dec it tends to get a bit overshadowed by the end of year madness. It looks like you had a lovely break away. Happy Anniversary and here’s to many more!
Thank you! And happy (late) anniversary to you guys!!
Okay, I know who you were targeting with the “no report” slam
What?? I never had to write a report about Biltmore… ;-)
I seriously loved this post. I’m glad you let Topper accompany you on your trip. Happy Anniversary!
That’s hilarious. I can’t believe you guys still have it! We ate ours after a year & it was actually pretty good!
I have to know though. … What did you do with topper after this trip??
Well of course Topper went back to his home in the freezer!
Love this post! You guys crack me up!