THE CUPCAKE HUG

I made this Red Velvet Cupcake Hug for a friend a few years ago, when he lost his dog.
(Yep, the word is edible-handwritten by me onto parchment paper out of red candy melts).

♥

I have a dream for this Cupcake Hug. For it to change the world.

And last week, The Cupcake Hug started to mean even more to me than it ever has.  I'd like to think that it has the power to help fight cancer. I'll explain.

♥

I was actually going to write about the Cupcake Hug last week when I really needed one myself, but I couldn't come to terms with what to say.  Two weeks ago, my sweet Uncle Burt was diagnosed with terminal cancer.  He was my mom's brother, my dad's best friend, a husband to my aunt, a father, a grandfather.  He was here and gone in a matter of 4 days. His memorial was last Thursday. Not even a week ago.  I traveled to see him 2 days before he passed. We shared hugs, and one of the first and last things he told me in my visit was, "I Love You."  

I have never had the chance to say good-bye to someone when I knew that I'd never see them again here on this earth.  I remember whispering to my mom in the next room, "How do I do this?"  She told me to do whatever was on my heart. So after our "I Love Yous" I chose not to say good-bye.

I said, "See you later."
And I drove back to Wisconsin in a haze.

Even through my misty eyes on the drive back home after this farewell, I realized that my last memories with my Uncle Burt were rare beautiful gems.  Memories that everyone wishes they could have with the one they love before they have passed away.

♥

The grieving process initiates thoughts.  One thought I had never put together until now-was that almost everyone on my mom's side of the family has fought cancer.  My mom fought cancer and won.  Her sister fought cancer and won too.  Sadly a few years ago my mom lost her sweet younger sister Rachel to cancer (she is missed everyday).  My mom sat with her own mom until she took her last breath after a battle with cancer.  My middle name "Marie" is named after my mom's favorite aunt who passed in her thirties from cancer. In my moments of grief, I can see more than ever now that I am not immune to cancer either and that I need to do some possible genetic testing, and be aware of my health more than ever.  The thing is..no one is immune to cancer.  I just have to believe that the more positive we all are, and the more we fight against this evil with good..the more likely we are to conquer the villain that is cancer.

..and that is where my dream of The Cupcake Hug comes along. Bigger and brighter and bolder and with more passion than EVER.   I've always dreamed of creating my own non-profit organization called "The Cupcake Hug" and using the organization to go out and do amazing non-profit things to change the world through the idea of cupcakes. Hopefully this organization will happen someday.

But until I reach that success, I'd soon like to start a line of cupcakes at The Cupcake Mansion or maybe even my other retailers called CUPCAKE HUGS.  A portion of their proceeds will help someone or an organization that helps others with cancer...and I am sure more things that touch my heart in the future.  But to start..cancer is on my heart.

The Cupcake Hug is inspired by..
♥All of those with broken hearts or ailments that only a hug will heal.
♥The woman who visited me at my cupcake shop crying, telling me that she just lost her mother so she just needed an Amanda Cupcake cupcake.
♥My mom who has fought cancer, and is now also fighting Parkinson's Disease. She could be your mom too. My Uncle Burt could be your Uncle too, your best friend, your husband, your grandfather. My mom's sister Rachel could be your younger sister too. 

♥The warm happy feeling you get when a friend gives you a cupcake and everything feels ok for a moment.
♥The superhero side of you who wants to make a difference.


Look for the Amanda Cupcake, Cupcake Hug to launch soon ♥ (wthin the next month, as soon as I find the right first organization to benefit).  I just thought World Cancer Day (happening in about 5 minutes) would be a good time to announce my plan to make a change close to my heart with all that extra glittery love on my cupcake creations.  The true reason I started making cupcakes in the first place.

This blog dedicated to my Uncle Burt. I named my new Hobart mixer after my Uncle Burt so he'll live on forever through all of my baking. The mixer was given to me as a surprise gift (with an awesome love note) the last day I saw my Uncle alive. ♥

Cupcakes Make People Happy.

2012 ended two weeks ago, but I just haven't found the words to blog here about it until now.  And that is because it was an amazing year. Can you believe I was left sort of speechless?!  So I decided to start my blog with how I ended last year. ♥

You see these cookies? They are signature Amanda Cupcake cookies! Inspired by my cupcakes.  I believe in soft sugar cookies...that are little discs of magic when you bite into them. Swirled with pillows of frosting on top and glitterized with sprinkles and all kinds of edible gems. I made them especially for one certain boy in mind ♥

Kayden is the boy I made them for. ♥

This is his mom Tina.  She is one of my volunteers.

She's a single mom, who goes to college full time too.

And somewhere in the midst of all of this, she finds some time to help me in the kitchen.

Her favorite thing to help me make in the kitchen is my frosting!

This is Tina at my Cupcake Mansion.

She does laugh the whole time she helps me make my frosting.

On a more serious note..she told me right before Christmas that her hot water heater had died, so she had to use whatever money she had to buy a new one.  Because of this, Kayden wasn't going to get any new presents, she was going to wrap one of his old fire truck toys to make it look like new and put it under the tree. I thought for sure I could do something, now that I live in the Cupcake Mansion, a place where people come from everywhere to eat cupcakes.

This was my Facebook post on my Amanda Cupcake fan page, and look at all the thumbs up.  Everyone in New London and the greater area wanted Kayden to have a Merry Christmas too! The best part after this Facebook post was when Tina surprised me by knocking on the door of my cupcake mansion that night.She just wanted to come and give me a hug :).

♥

So people came in, one by one bearing gifts.

And in return I fed the town of New London cupcakes ♥

I liked these special handmade ornaments that were especially custom made for Tina & Kayden because they will tell a story even when Kayden outgrows all his toys.

On Christmas Eve ♥

I gave him all his presents donated from the town of New London..and some donations even came through the mail from other states! He didn't open them on Christmas Eve though, I made sure to pile them all in a big bag-so he could unwrap them all on Christmas morning!

♥ This picture makes me smile, and giggle a bit. But really..it shows that cupcakes are a wonderful medium to make a big difference in one person's life. 

Like a kid in a cupcake shoppe, I let him pick whatever treat he wanted. He dove for a signature M&M sugar cookie!

This was Kayden's variety pack (his selections from the cupcake mansion)...

Some of my best cupcakes of the year:

♥A chocolate Snowman that I built out of frosting & oreo cookies

♥A chocolate peanut butter Rudolph with a shiny m&m nose

♥A sugar cookie that looks just like a cupcake

♥A Cupcake with a mini sugar cookie on top 

♥A Chocolate Mint Hug Cupcake with a thin mint baked inside

♥A Chocolate Peanut Butter Gem

I thought the best way to wrap up 2012 would be to focus on one big goal that I turned into a reality right at the end of the year.  I've always wanted to use cupcakes as a medium to make a difference in someone's life.  I have this huge dream of committing random acts of cup-kindness all over the world.  Some would say I am cupcake obsessed.  This is the reason.  The wonderful people that I meet and make smile, the lives behind the cupcakes.  This story says it all, and the fact that I was able to use my cupcakes to make someone truly happy..means that this dream of sending hope out into the world through cupcakes...is well on its way ♥ Welcome 2013. A year of cupcake hope!