cupcakes!

Three days a week I walk a different route to work in order to pick up the office mail from a PO box. While I fully expect to be paid for the extra 15 minutes that it takes me, I secretly look forward to the walk which leads me past a stretch of adorable antique shops and cafes. Though I'd passed by it many times before, somehow I had never noticed this little gem along the way, the Cupcake Parlour, which serves its collection of tasty treats on vintage-style dishes.

So I wondered who to take with me. If I were in Minnesota it would be an easy decision, as my friend Mandy and I are frequent samplers of the delicious items available at Cupcake near the University of Minnesota campus - this s'more cupcake (below) has been calling my name for a long, long time. But I'm not in Minnesota with Mandy, which made the decision-making process much more difficult. But a quick mention to a couple of friends from church led to what I think is a brilliant idea - hosting a month of cupcake tastings around Christchurch in an effort to determine the best cupcake in town.

So for four Saturdays in May, we'll invite the teenage girls to come with us to cupcake shops, bakeries, and farmer's market stands where we'll mutually indulge our sweet tooths and start the morning with some girly conversation. But the best part of the whole thing has been embracing my inner crafter with the help of the ever-awesome Alice, the youth intern who makes her own 50s-inspired clothing and whose primary method of transportation is a very cool periwinkle scooter. I'm jealous every time she rolls up to church wearing that helmet and leather jacket. We spent Monday afternoon shopping at boutique stationery stores, where we located a perfect designer paper with little retro cakes printed all over it, which we're planning to cut into strips to wrap around the gift boxes that we'll be making to house a homemade cupcake and an invitation for each girl. Should have them done by the middle of next week - if they turn out well, I'll post a picture. If not...just forget I ever mentioned them. :)

-Rachel