Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Me!

Sorry, dear Noah Kahan, but it's time for Vermont's "Season of the Sticks" to take a backseat to Virginia's Season of the Sneeze.

Ah, Spring!

My time has arrived. April grasses stretch and groan as baby blades sober up to begin cutting their teeth on the newly loosening clay-packed soil here in northern Virginia.

Deciduous trees shake off their long winter grumpies, unfurling dazzling buds in a limey green explosion that puckers my mouth into a sweetly acidic kiss.

Everywhere, pastel shades abound. Cherry Blossoms dance hungrily, setting the world on fire, getting their Festival on, coming out in showy pinks that peek-a-boo their sultry brown branches for the gathering crowds.

Now's the time for Spring's girl, Breeze, too. She dances and shakes her skirts like a pro. She comes to distract you from her real intentions, that no-good, dirty rotten scoundrel! She coaxes you into believing that her soft, gentle caress is a love tap, that she only wants to inspire poems and sonnets and plays, happily invoking delightful rebirth analogies. But no. That damned Breeze is a con artist!

I'm telling you. She comes around picking up pollen, like a champ, and depositing it—and I do mean all of it—on my noggin and my shoes and my car and, well, every single aspect of my tangible life...

A-freakin-choooo to you too.

In the midst of all the sneezing, and more sneezing, I celebrate my birthday. Yay me! For years I hated the idea of my birthday, seeing as my relationships with the parental units were fraught.

Check out Mother Mine and Fawn to read about those experiences.

Anyway, since their passings, my birthday has taken on new, happier, meanings. I've become one of those irksome folks who loves celebrating my birth month, not just the day. A tad nauseating, I know. But I'm making up for decades of lost time.

In truth, my birthday spoilage is an extension of the spoiling my husband and I give to each other all year round. For us, love is a verb, so it needs its exercise.

My New Favorite Place

Speaking of love... I've found my new favorite space...

My husband and I stumbled upon the Paris Baguette Bakery Cafe yesterday. Apparently, we are quite late to the party! These stores have been popping up all over the US in recent years, and are already all over the globe. And with good great reason. Deliciousness! Absolute deliciousness.

According to Wikipedia:

Paris Baguette (Korean: 파리바게뜨, romanized: Paribagetteu) is a South Korean multinational chain of bakery-cafés, owned by the SPC Group and headquartered in Seoul. In 1986, it was established as a subsidiary of Shani Co., Ltd., and opened the first 'Paris Baguette' in Gwanghwamun, Seoul, and the first high-end bakery 'Paris Croissant' in Itaewon the following year, and the corporate name changed to the same as the brand name.

In 1988, Paris Croissant launched Paris Baguette, a popular bakery café franchise brand. As of November 2023, the chain had over 3,600 retail stores in South Korea, 99 stores in the United States, and 6 stores in Canada. Paris Baguette also launched almost 185 retail stores in China, Vietnam, Singapore, and France.

By the time we spotted the exterior of the location near us, I had an inkling I'd want to dive into their entire menu. Once we've slipped in through the double doors, I knew I was on to something magical. Suddenly we were in Paris, France, and I'm over the moon. The sights. The smells. The bread. The coffees. The confections! My mind races and my taste buds perk right up. I'm in stimulus overload.

I've been to Paris, France, but just the once. Overnight. That's not a vacation. That's a nightmare. So close and yet so far. Nothing but a tease! Someday I'll return, but not today. Regretablly, not for a long while. But some sweet day.

In the meantime, I am happy to have found this new local haunt that has my head spinning with wonder.

"Am I dreaming?"

No. It's real. Everything on the menu sounds tasty, but they had me with Nutella.

Why, yes, Paris Baguette makes a Croissant Donut with Nutella! Read that again. O. M. G. And it's better than I'd imagined, and I have a rather substantial imagination if I say so myself. My sweet tooth is even greater.

They also bake a Hazelnut Chocolate Cake with Nutella, and offer a sinful Chocolate Hazelnut Latte with Nutella, too. There are savory treats, too, but I'll have to return to sample those. (Um, yep. 'Have to.' 🥳)

Everything is made in-house, fresh, daily. The bready doughy buttery good sniffs alone are worth the trip.

I know I can't make a habit out of it. But another trip in say, a month, when it's time to celebrate my husband? Yep, that I can do!

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Author's Note: Shout out to Mike Singleton - MikeyDred for inspiring me to write about my recent food find. If I hadn't read and enjoyed his article, Eating in The Grainger Market, I would not have thought to write this piece.

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Copyright © 04/13/2024 by Christy Munson. All rights reserved.