Surprise Inside {birthday cakes}

My oldest two gingersnaps have birthdays within a couple weeks of each other.  My daughter asked for her cake to be pink and purple and my son wanted a superhero birthday cake.  I love baking my kids special birthday cakes.  And at this age, I feel far less pressure to make it actually taste good, so I put all my focus on what it looks like for them.  Sugar just tastes like sugar when you're three years old, right?!

I decided to use the surprise affect on the cakes this year.  My daughter was thrilled with the bright pink "3" on the top of her cake, but was even more excited when we cut into the cake, revealing the three layers and shades of pink and purple.  It was as easy as two white cake mixes, two canisters of white frosting, and food coloring.  Done.  

For my son's cake, I went with one of the few ideas I found online that didn't use fondant.  His name begins with an R, hence the "super R' on top.  If I were to do it again, I would squeeze in more M&Ms.  The less frosting that shows through underneath the better.  

Chocolate frosting on the outside.  M&Ms on top.  Whoppers bordering the bottom. 

My son was so excited about the primary color surprise when we cut into the cake.  Again - white cake mix, white icing, and food coloring.  Easy peesy, but the kids thought it was great!