Giant Vanilla Cupcake with Buttercream Frosting (and Bradley's First Birthday!)

Happy FIRST Birthday to my sweet baby boy, Bradley Christopher. 

Oh, Bradley. Where has this past year gone? I was in love with you from the moment I first saw your sonogram. When you were born, I didn't think I could love you any more than I already did, but my heart overflowed for you. It was literally love at first sight and you have brought pure joy to my life ever since. Sure, we had some sleepless nights, crying for no apparent reason, exploding diapers and the occasional throw-up on my shirt along the way, but it was all worth it. So, so worth it. Just one quick smile from you is all it takes to make this thing called motherhood the best job I could ever ask for.

You have brought so much joy and happiness to your daddy and me and we can't imagine our lives without you now. You constantly make me laugh and just looking at you brings a smile to my face. I am amazed by you daily. I love seeing you grow and seeing you express your adorable personality. You are so outgoing, friendly and social. You love people, you love to laugh, you love to flirt and you love to explore. I am filled with so much pride over everything you do, even the tiniest things. 

I remember the moment you were born and immediately reaching down to hold your hand. I think that was the most I have uncontrollably cried in my entire life. I was so happy. You entered the world and you were perfect. All 6 pounds 11 ounces of you. How tiny you felt back then. You basically fit in the palms of your daddy's hands. Then a few months later you rolled over...and a few months after that you began to crawl. Slowly gaining some independence, you were off exploring the world and you haven't stopped since. You are by far the most curious little boy I have ever seen, and it's one of the many things I love about you.

I love your laugh. I love your smile. I love your friendliness. I love that you bring everyone in your life so much happiness. I love your appetite. I love your big thighs. I love your little rolls. I love your smooth skin. I love how observant you are. I love when you snore. I love your two little teeth. I love your bright blue eyes. I love your button nose. I love your wobbly walk. I love your babbling. I love your crawl. I love your drool. I love your fishy face. I love when you say "mama." I love every single thing about you.

You are the best thing that has ever happened to your daddy and me and we love you so very much! We are so blessed and lucky to be your parents. Happy first birthday to my precious baby!

For Bradley's birthday, I made him a giant cupcake for his "smash cake." He had a first whirl at it for his professional photo shoot and he loved it, as you can clearly see :) I made him another for his birthday party, which is tomorrow, so hopefully he'll love that one too! Recipe is below!

Photo credit: Jessica Tapscott Photography

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

Cupcake:

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 2 3/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup butter, softened to room temperature
• 2 eggs plus 2 egg whites
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup organic whole milk
• 2 tbsp. rainbow colored sprinkles (optional)

Vanilla buttercream frosting*: 

• 1 stick butter, softened to room temperature
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp. organic whole milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cupcake: Heat to 350 degrees F . Grease and flour a 6-cup large cupcake pan (such as this one); set aside. 

In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. 

In large bowl, beat sugar and butter on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce speed and add the eggs and egg whites one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in vanilla. 

Add the flour mixture and milk beating until just combined; scraping bowl often. Beat on medium speed 1 minute; stir in rainbow sprinkles. 

Bake 45-55 minutes, until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes in pan. Invert onto cooling rack and cool completely before frosting.

Buttercream Frosting: Beat butter until creamy, about 1 minute. Add sugar, milk and vanilla and beat on low until combined. Raise the speed and beat on high for 3-4 minutes, until fluffy. If necessary, add more milk to thin it out or more powdered sugar to make it thicker.

*For chocolate frosting, add 2 tbsp. cocoa powder and 1/2 tsp. milk to recipe.

Source: Cake: NordicWare; Frosting: SK Original