To let DS blow out his birthday cake candles this weekend ?

[Ishouldtryabiteachdayer]

So having both lots of Grandparents for a birthday tea in the garden. My Dad says he's not eating the cake I'm decorating if DS blows on it. He says as he "might catch the virus." Would I be unreasonable to let DS blow out his birthday candles?

I mean eating birthday cake is optional, I could provide other shop bought cakes ? Seems sad not to let him,,but it is a bit gross when you think about it these days. BTW DS is turning 5.

[Minty82]

We had a socially distant garden lunch for my mum’s birthday recently and I mentioned that maybe candles weren’t a great idea when we were being so good about not touching each other etc. Hadn’t occurred to anyone else, but she complied, blew out some tea lights and we all ate cake. My aunt then turned up with a second cake, with candles already on it, previous conversation was completely forgotten, candles blown out and we all ate more cake! I felt slightly squeamish about it but my mum’s the one most at risk. Anyway, the point is, even she, in her 60s, felt I was taking some of the shine off her birthday by being funny about candles. Don’t do that to a five-year-old! No one has to eat it if they don’t want to.

[Sherloidbaisherloid]

Does it matter if the cling film messes up the buttercream? It’s going to be cut up and eaten anyway? Better than eating someone’s spit

[biddybird]

Late to the party (ho ho) but would this be a solution?
No-one will eat the fondant icing anyway (surely?).
www.bbcgoodfood.com/videos/techniques/how-cover-cake-fondant-icing

[Darshika]

Double the mix and bake two cakes.

Let him blow the big fancy decorated one.

When serving - offer people the option of that one, or the plain sponge same flavour (with maybe a side of icing).

More cake; more fun.

[SockYarn]

Take the cling film off and most of the buttercream with it!

Mmm, a sanitised, cling-filmed cake. Delicious.

[Sherloidbaisherloid]

Put cling film over the cake and put the candles in then let him blow them out. Take the cling film off and everyone can have a piece without worrying about germs being blown over it!

[Northernsoullover]

woosh stop being so bloody patronising. No one is gripped by fear FFS. Its about risk. I agree its completely miniscule. But I still wouldn't do it. Poor little Johnny and his candles (sniff).

[Bluesheep8]

It wouldn't even enter my head to not blow the candles out as normal tbh

[GhoulWithADragonTattoo]

Make two smaller cakes? Let DS blow his candles on one which your household has and share other cake between GPS.

[aSofaNearYou]

It is definitely more dramatic to think it would be devastating for a 5yo to not get to blow out their candles than it is to avoid food that has been blown on immediately following a pandemic.

[Andwoooshtheyweregone]

@midnightstar66 again hilarious that I’m the dramatic one! We both disagree and think we are right so let’s just leave it now this back and forth is going nowhere.

[flirtygirl]

Yum covid cake....

[midnightstar66]

No it isn't, thats just how you've interpreted it for dramatic effect. Gp mentioned he didn't want to eat the cake if it had been blown on and several other options were suggested, which included gp just not having a slice of cake. Stop dramatising!

[Andwoooshtheyweregone]

@midnightstar66 umm it’s the point of the whole thread? Examples of hand wafting the candles out have been suggested.

[MiddlesexGirl]

How can you fit 23 candles on one slice of cake? Just asking as it's DS's birthday next week.
Nope - he'll just blow them out in the same way he has done the last 22 years.

[midnightstar66]

Who on Earth is refusing to let a child blow out candles? Nobody said that either. Not a single poster said do not let the child blow out any candles.

[Andwoooshtheyweregone]

@midnightstar66 you’re right I’m the dramatic one not the ones refusing to let a child blow out a birthday cake candle. 🤨

[U2HasTheEdge]

@00100001

Never said there's no point.

But this old man is going to a social gathering where it will be very difficult to keep distance and stop surface and airborne contamination,and is making a big fuss over a 5yo blowing out his candles,as though that is the only source of infection... If he was really concerned he wouldn't even be going because the risk is too high 🤷‍♀️

And the fact remains that he doesn't have to bloody eat the cake! But he's willing to potentially upset a 5yo over it??

No one knows if he is making a big fuss, or is willing to upset a child or not.

I can't imagine he really cares that much, as like you said, he clearly isn't that worried about catching CV if he is going to a child's party.

[U2HasTheEdge]

OP didn't say that her dad expected or asked that his grandchild doesn't blow out his candles.

I am sure he really isn't that bothered if he has cake or not. Sounds like a passing comment really.

Doesn't look like the OP is coming back though.

[midnightstar66]

No one is 'gripped in fear' Stop being so dramatic. It's just basic mindfulness of higher risk family members than yourself, and the fact a birthday cake would likely be wasted if not shared!

[DappledThings]

@Andwoooshtheyweregone

This thread is very sad, I didn’t realise so many people lived gripped in fear.

I agree. It's such a miserable outlook.

[Andwoooshtheyweregone]

This thread is very sad, I didn’t realise so many people lived gripped in fear.

[aSofaNearYou]

YABU, it's not really that important and is an unnecessary risk. I would do the cupcake idea.

[garbagegirl]

My 5 yr old came up with the idea that you should cut the cake before we sing happy birthday. So you take a slice of cake and pop a candle in it and the birthday child blows that out rather than blowing germs all over everyone elses slices as well

When he said it I immediately wondered why we haven't just been doing this all along when you think about it?!

[Monkeynuts18]

Personally, I can’t help thinking that this obsession with cleaning everything in the wake of coronavirus, while understandable, is paving the way for a generation of very vulnerable adults, with poorly developed immune systems and more susceptibility to allergies, who are going to be fairly well fucked the next time a mega virus comes along.

Yep. My guess is that we’re going to see a huge rise in allergies, obesity, asthma and serious autoimmune conditions like Crohn’s Disease and ulcerative colitis. (FWIW my husband was brought up by a clean freak mother who disinfected everything he ever touched, and he now has asthma, Crohn’s and a selection of mild allergies). To be fair she was also obsessed with antibiotics and used to stash them up and give them to him for colds.

And agree with PP who say that any adult who’s concerned about eating ‘blown on’ cake can just make the enormous, life changing sacrifice of not eating cake. Or, if they’re that concerned, not coming to the party (because your son’s candles are far from the biggest risk).