DIL and I haven't had lessons. We are both interested in decorating, so a trip to Micheal's and a Wilton beginner's book and we were off and running for a weekly practice session.
OK, so we still basically produce amature looking products.
The beautiful thing though, is the wonderful bonding that is happening between us.
We have always been close, but there is something about creating a beautiful cake together that brings people closer together.
These times together are becoming some of my sweetest memories.
If more daughters and MILs made cakes together, this would be a better world.
Has decorating done more for you than teach you how to make a better cake?
I'd love to hear YOUR story of how decorating gave you a better life or relationship.

My sister and I have taken all 3 Wilton courses together and few other courses.. we have shared so many laughs, cake disasters together ... I will forever have these memories of all the good times we've shared

I learned the basics of decorating from my mother when I was a kid, when I was 10 or so I got a bunch of cake stuff for my present.
When I was 15 & 16 my grandma made me make elaborate cookie houses that I hated doing at the time (it turned me off for several years) but now I wish she was around to do those things with.

Now that I have kids I do stuff with them, they get to help cut out cookies, do their own cakes and help me do simple stuff. My oldest helped make the wand for his Harry Potter cake and they both love to plan their cakes, my youngest wants a "Cars" theme for his. We also have other kids over (with parents for the younger set) to make cookie houses during the Christmas season.

I love these stories! Any more?

DF and I brought cookies and icing to dd's preschool for their party (thank you everyone for your ideas!). It was a memorable time, and we had fun baking them with her and being around all her classmates to get to know her environment at school.

DS has always though cake decorating was "cool" for mom to do, but not to be involved in. I let him help with ideas and sampling.

My 13 1/2 year old son has always wanted to help me do cakes, so we gave him a gift certificate for all three Wilton classes. He ended up only doing 1 & 3, because school demands became too much to be able to just not do homework on the night of the cake class for four weeks in a row. (We live about half an hour away from Michael's, and by the time he got home from school and relaxed for a little while, it would be time to get the supplies together, grab a quick dinner, and run. He would get home around 9:15, at which point he had time to shower and go to bed.)

So...my husband decided that he'd take Course 2, and teach my son on the weekend. He had a blast, and has been making cakes to bring in to work. We have worked together on a couple of cakes, and I don't feel like I am working hard on something while he plays on his computer.

RP

I wanted to take decorating classes and I asked my daughter to go along with me. She is 21 and could have cared less but she went and attended every single class (all 3 courses) with me. She ended up loving it. She and I would come home after class and practice making flowers. We had the most fun laughing at our mistakes and being proud of our successes. I don't sell cakes but I make them for our family. Most of my cakes are made just because I want to decorate. Now when I am decorating, my daughter will come into the kitchen and make suggestions on colors or placement of flowers. We are getting ready to start gumpaste classes just to learn some of the fancier flowers. My daughter has already agreed to go with me. I love having this time with her and it is so much fun. She made me the best birthday cake this year that I have ever had because she made it and decorated it.
Families bonding over cakes and icing....how can it get any better?

OK, I'm trying to imagine my MIL and me doing anything together besides cleaning (as that's all she thinks about) and I'm dying thinking about it! LOL

She watched me ice and decorate a cake last week and the only comment she made was that she would never have the patience for it. Plus, NO WAY would she put up with or dare to create the mess that I make while decorating - all those bags, tips, spatulas, bowls, etc.

I SWEAR the main reason she doesn't have hobbies and doesn't like to cook is because she doesn't want to create a mess - what a totally boring life!

However... my son and I do things together all the time - cookies though. I can't wait to make cookies with him again. Now that he's ten he's a real participant and not just my stirrer! LOL

Melissa

I love having my nephew's 5 year old daughter come over and help me with my cakes. She loves to get up on a chair and dump all the stuff in the mixer. She also loves to help clean up. What a girl!

For Christmas my sister (her grandma) bought her a kid set of baking items. I can't wait until she gets it so she can bake cakes with me all the time.

For the past two years I have thrown a Halloween party for her and her friends. One year we decorated cupcakes and this year we did cookies. She loved it and so did all the other kids.

I also have made small cakes for her to decorate alone. She gets a kick out of doing it and always makes them for someone else.

Sad part is that she really doesn't like to eat cake though. She just likes to help make them and see how pretty they turn out. But, at least she won't get fat eating them all.

My mother and I took the classes together about a year ago. Since then we have made all of our cakes together. We love spending the time together and being creative together. We also recently found out that my mother has leukemia so that makes the time we spend together even more precious. If it wasn't for my mother asking me to take the classes with her I wouldn't have found this hobby that I truly love doing, and one of the few things that my mother and I can do together.