Why I started this Journal
A New Chapter for Whittle Bird
As I sit down to write my first journal post, I’ll be honest: I have absolutely no clue what I’m doing. I’m not sure if anything will come of this journal or if a community will ever grow here. But after devoting the last 1 1/2 years of my life to our little brick-and-mortar cafe in Maine, I knew I needed a change.
Running Whittle Bird Coffee + Kitchen has been a labor of love—one that’s taken everything I had, emotionally and physically. I’ve missed grandchildren’s birthdays, quiet evenings at home (I’m a bit of an introvert and a homebody!) travel, date nights with my husband, phone calls with my kids, and slow mornings with our dog Harvey. Sleeping in until at least 4am feels like a luxury—my days have started at 2am for so long! I miss spontaneous truck rides with Chris, grocery shopping for just our dinner (not for the shop), and Saturday Farmer’s Markets. Most of all, I miss the person I was before I became completely, utterly exhausted.
Running a full-time brick-and-mortar shop is all-consuming, especially for someone like me. Some might call me a control freak, but I prefer “detail-oriented”—it sounds so much better! In all seriousness, letting go of things at the shop has been tough. I think about every little detail, from the menu to how each plate looks, right down to the handwriting on the bakery case and how the pastries are arranged. All of it matters to me.
But through this process, I’ve learned a lot about myself. I’ve realized that I’m a creator at heart—I love to design and make things! What I don’t love is making the same thing over and over, day after day. That was a struggle for me in the bakery world. Customers want consistency, but I want to shake things up and offer something new each day. I’ve come to realize that there’s nothing wrong with how I am; I just need to direct my creativity in a new way… hence, this blog!
Since we began this journey many people at Whittle Bird Coffee + Kitchen have asked me to share my recipes, talk about ingredients, or even write a cookbook. I always wanted to take customers aside, explain how I make something, and maybe even hand them a recipe card. (I am old school that way) I imagined giving out my email so I could walk them through the process. But running a bakery didn’t leave time for that.
So, long story short, that’s why I’m here—and if you’ve read this far, then I am going to count that as a win! I want to share what I’ve learned over the last three decades—not just about food and baking, but also about travel, design, and living small. I plan on roping Chris into this adventure, too, so he can share some of his coffee knowledge. Think of this as “baker geek meets coffee nerd,” with a dash of travel and design thrown in, because we love that stuff too!
Thank you for reading. Please comment below with any questions you have, or let us know what kind of content you’d like to see. We’d love to hear from you!
Entry #1 August 13, 2025
As I sit down to write my first journal post, I’ll be honest: I have absolutely no clue what I’m doing. I’m not sure if anything will come of this journal or if a community will ever grow here. But after devoting the last 1 1/2 years of my life to our little brick-and-mortar cafe in Maine, I knew I needed a change.
Running Whittle Bird Coffee + Kitchen has been a labor of love—one that’s taken everything I had, emotionally and physically. I’ve missed grandchildren’s birthdays, quiet evenings at home (I’m a bit of an introvert and a homebody!) travel, date nights with my husband, phone calls with my kids, and slow mornings with our dog Harvey. Sleeping in until at least 4am feels like a luxury—my days have started at 2am for so long! I miss spontaneous truck rides with Chris, grocery shopping for just our dinner (not for the shop), and Saturday Farmer’s Markets. Most of all, I miss the person I was before I became completely, utterly exhausted.
Running a full-time brick-and-mortar shop is all-consuming, especially for someone like me. Some might call me a control freak, but I prefer “detail-oriented”—it sounds so much better! In all seriousness, letting go of things at the shop has been tough. I think about every little detail, from the menu to how each plate looks, right down to the handwriting on the bakery case and how the pastries are arranged. All of it matters to me.
But through this process, I’ve learned a lot about myself. I’ve realized that I’m a creator at heart—I love to design and make things! What I don’t love is making the same thing over and over, day after day. That was a struggle for me in the bakery world. Customers want consistency, but I want to shake things up and offer something new each day. I’ve come to realize that there’s nothing wrong with how I am; I just need to direct my creativity in a new way… hence, this blog!
Since we began this journey many people at Whittle Bird Coffee + Kitchen have asked me to share my recipes, talk about ingredients, or even write a cookbook. I always wanted to take customers aside, explain how I make something, and maybe even hand them a recipe card. (I am old school that way) I imagined giving out my email so I could walk them through the process. But running a bakery didn’t leave time for that.
So, long story short, that’s why I’m here—and if you’ve read this far, then I am going to count that as a win! I want to share what I’ve learned over the last three decades—not just about food and baking, but also about travel, design, and living small. I plan on roping Chris into this adventure, too, so he can share some of his coffee knowledge. Think of this as “baker geek meets coffee nerd,” with a dash of travel and design thrown in, because we love that stuff too!
Thank you for reading. Please comment below with any questions you have, or let us know what kind of content you’d like to see. We’d love to hear from you!
Entry #1 August 13, 2025