'So why 'The French Poppy Bakeshop'?'

Hello everyone! I'm so delighted that this site has reached so many of my friends and family! The two things people keep asking me are, 'Why is your blog called The French Poppy Bakeshop? Where did you come up with that?' Well, there are actually a couple of reasons for the name and where I came up with it. I guess I'll explain here! Once I graduate in December, I plan on moving back to Corinth, where eventually I want to open a bakery called...you guessed it....The French Poppy Bakeshop! Until I'm able to afford opening my own place, however, I hope to do wedding cakes, birthday cakes, (any special occasion cake really!), cater small parties (bridesmaids' luncheons, baby showers, etc), out of my home. So if anyone has a special occasion coming up.....:) First things first, I'm a total francophile....I love all things French, hence why I'm going to the French Culinary Institute! I love the culture, the history, the music, and especially the language (I took 24 hours of French in college and a year in high school). But anyway, the name came from an experience I had last summer. I spent a month last summer with a chef and his wife, Eric and Madeleine Vedel, in Arles, France. Arles is a b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l town in the Provencal region in the south of France. While staying there, I had the privilege to roam about the outer-lying areas, including a visit to a local beekeeper, potter, winemaker, and olive oil mill. The scenery in this part of France is absolutely breathtaking, but my absolute favorite part was the vast fields of vibrant red poppies. Poppies went on and on for miles and miles as far as the eye could see! One night while I was helping Chef Eric prepare dinner, I asked him what the French word for 'poppy' was, and he got very excited and ran out of the room! I was totally confused, but then he put on a record and explained that the song was about poppies. It was called 'Les Coquelicots.' That word is pronounced 'coke-lee-koh.' Say it! You'll probably fall in love with it the way I did!! So at that time, I decided if I ever opened a bakery, I would call it Coquelicot Patisserie. Well, when I told my family this, they looked at me with baffled expressions and couldn't, no matter how hard I tried to help them, pronounce it right three times in a row. So I decided I would translate it.....and that's how I came up with The French Poppy Bakeshop!!!