What Cupcake 10 was all about

A couple months ago, or so, I was chatting with my bloggy friend Heather of the Extraordinary Ordinary and we were thinking we should make more of an effort to meet up soon since she only lived in Minneapolis (at the time) and I in Northwest Indiana. Surely we could meet half-way somewhere and have dinner or something.

We took it to Twitter and, well, before you know it Heather had found an amazing house in Wisconsin and people were actually sending her money and SIGNING UP to spend a weekend with us.

Just what were we going to do?

Our vision was pretty simple. We wanted to get together with some fabulous women we'd met through blogging and Twitter and just hang out.

And there should be cupcakes.

Photo by Carrie
We didn't have a keynote or any sessions but we did have a circle, where we went around and said a little about our journey with blogging and where it has brought us, and how it brought us together that very moment, at Cupcake 10.

Allison & Hyacynth

Not everyone knew each other or read each other's blogs. But we do now.

Elizabeth, Maggie, & Sara

It was a small group, but the perfect size.

We sat around in yoga pants and ate the biggest potluck meal I'd ever seen. (Seriously, we put churches to shame.) There were cupcakes and wine, but no one got drunk. There were swag bags- more like favors to take home and you know what? Those bags hung in the hallway all weekend until people left.

That spoke volumes to me.

Our little get together wasn't about the business of blogging, or even about blogs or Twitter. It was about the heart of the person that writes the blog or tweets a tweet.

That person commenting on your post, your favorite writer, you, me, we are so much more than our blogs.

Sarah & Haley (with Kristina devouring a cupake in the background)
photo by Haley

The honesty was humbling. And inspiring. I can't stop thinking about it.

I stayed up late, in my pjs, legs tucked up on a window seat in the kitchen with Esther and Sarah after everyone else had gone to bed.

Photo by Hyacynth

In the morning, we all stumbled about armstretched for the coffee pot. Bed head and no makeup, my bangs going every which way. It was like we were at home. With family.

It was just like that.

This past weekend I was surrounded by positive women, truly caring for each other, and it blessed me.


That's what Cupcake 10 is and was. And I have a hope that bloggers and tweeters from all over will do the same in their area. You don't need a big agenda, and it's better if you don't have a large attendance. Keep it small, simple, and real. Good things will happen there.

More photos here.

Subscribe to my blog here
Twitter me- I'm babysteph