Hobby Cake

• When retirement is approaching, many people begin looking forward to spending more time on a specific hobby. Consider creating a cake that goes along with his favorite hobby. For example, if he enjoys playing golf, create a cake that looks like a golf course, complete with trees, golfers and a flag over the hole. Maybe he prefers fishing. In that case, consider making a blue cake and placing a plastic fishing boat on top of it.
  
  

Family Cake

• For some people who are facing retirement, the thing they are most looking forward to is spending more time with their families. Consider baking a cake that is an homage to her family. For example, have a picture of the retiree with her entire family made into an edible image at a local bakery. Bake a cake and place the picture on top with a frosting border piped around it.
  
  

Goodbye Cake

• If you are making a cake for a co-worker, consider baking and decorating a cake that shows how much you are going to miss him when he is gone. Create a cake with a "going out on top" theme. Bake a cake, shape it like a hot air balloon and decorate it with brightly-colored frosting. Pipe "Congratulations on Going Out on Top" onto the cake.
  
  

Schedule Cake

• A person who is retiring is likely to have a quite empty schedule pretty soon. Surprise her with a cake that celebrates all of the time she is about to have on her hands. Bake a large, square sheet cake and pipe smaller squares onto it so that it looks like the calendar of the month when she is retiring. Pipe a schedule onto the days of the month when she is working, such as meetings, lunches and other events she must attend. Then, pipe the word "empty!" onto the remaining days or weeks of the month following her retirement date.