y’all know what i mean when i say “pinterest baking,” right? that attempt at making something that’s supposed to be super easy, you look at it, and say, “i can totally do that!” i got stuck in that trap this weekend. little mr. re-nest #2’s birthday is tuesday, and i’m already feeling massive guilt that we’re doing his party later in june, so i need to make up for it on his actual birthday. (*note: i realize i don’t actually have to make up for anything, because all he cares about is that it’s his birthday and that there’s presents and that the day is about him.)

so, in fifteen minutes of parenting panic last friday night, i hit up pinterest and typed in “easy diy birthday cakes.” the first thing that popped up: the diy pinata cake. so, i’ve seen these flashing through my facebook feed, and admit, they look pretty darn awesome. i did some you tubing + figured out how to do my very own, homemade, peanut-free, sprinkle-filled pinata cake.

on monday, (after car shopping + watching mr. re-nest do more diy on the great room….more on those later), i jumped in. and, it’s actually not that tough. i had to share my steps with y’all, so in case you want to give this a go, you’ve got the easy instructions!

shopping list:

two boxes of cake mix in your fave flavor (we went with white cake; make sure that each box can make two 8″ rounds)

sprinkles or m&m’s

1-2 8″ round cake pans

2 containers of cake frosting

spatula/cake frosting spatula (i used a small one of these from the pampered chef)

small, round bowl

knife

cooling racks

so, once you have everything you need, start out by making + baking at least three 8″ rounds (you’re going to have extra batter from the second box of cake mix. i’m giving you permission to make that fourth round cake and doing whatever the heck you want to with it. if you eat it, it’ll be our little secret.) once you have your three rounds baked and cooled, it’s time to take the small round bowl and placing it on the top center of one of your 8″ rounds. grab the knife and start tracing around the bowl, cutting out the center of the round cake. pull out the center of the cake (again, i’m giving you my complete permission to do whatever you want to with the cake center….eat it, share it, throw it away.)

next up, take the small bowl and place it in the center of one of the other 8″ rounds. then, grab your cake frosting and small spatula, and frost the outer edges of the 8″ round, leaving the center without any frosting. remove the bowl and set it aside. then, place your 8″ round with the center cut out on top of your bottom layer….and, now it’s time to fill the center of your pinata! pour in your m&m’s or sprinkles (we went with peanut-free sprinkles….m&m’s aren’t an option for us). be sure to fill up to the top of your second cake layer!

in the final stages, it’s all about frosting now….add frosting around the edges of your second layer of cake, then add your other full cake layer on the top. to finish it off, frost the whole cake!

i threw around the idea of adding sprinkles all over the cake, but honestly, i was out of time, and already in my pjs, and didn’t want to make another trip to target. (#momtruth) and, honestly, i knew that it didn’t really matter what this cake was…it was sugar + was going to have a candle + that was all he needed. (p.s. i was right…he didn’t care one bit about more sprinkles. he loved telling people that his cake has sprinkles come out of it, but that was about it. oh, and that it was sugar filled too.)