Superstar mini horse Stewie Vuitton and other things that made us smile this week

Editor's Note: This is a roundup of this week's moments of joy from WBUR's seasonal newsletter, The Pick Me Up. If you want a little bit of good news to help you get through the week and push through to spring, sign up here. 

From a local mini horse to a pop-up donut shop to a Women's History Month exhibit arranged with plenty of care, here are three stories that brought us joy this week.

That sweet smell in the air is a new late-night donut shop — previously only available to those on Martha’s Vineyard — opening by Fenway Park this month.

NBC Boston reports that Back Door Donuts, an Oak Bluffs staple that serves up freshly baked apple fritters, donuts and other baked goods, will be coming ashore in the form of a pop-up shop inside of Loretta’s Last Call on Lansdowne Street. The opening is slated for March 15 — and you can bet I’ll be there soon after, ready to enjoy some tasty-looking late-night donuts.

It also makes the Fenway area a mini-hub for gourmet donuts, with Union Square Donuts inside TimeOut Market and Blackbird Doughnuts one block over on Kilmarnock Street.

I mean, who needs peanuts and Cracker Jack?

Move aside, bunny rabbits: Stewie Vuitton, a mini horse from Andover, is a finalist in Cadbury’s 2023 Bunny Tryout Contest. Cadbury’s classic, purple-packaged chocolates have flanked the aisles of convenience and grocery stores for decades. But for the first time, a horse might be the brand’s cute spokes-animal.

Stewie Vuitton (I can’t get over that name) is smaller than your average pony due to dwarfism. He was rescued over a year ago from an auction by Lifting Spirits Miniature Therapy Horses, a service-based organization that brings mini horses to those who could use a smile. Now, at 4 years old, Stewie conducts therapy visits at more than 100 facilities in the New England area.

You can vote for Stewie to be Cadbury’s 2023 Bunny (or horse, I suppose?) through next Tuesday. Whether or not Stewie wins the chocolate championship, we still think he’s pretty sweet.

Every March, the glass case at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood houses a joyful arrangement of 49 hand-designed dolls, each depicting an influential woman from history with intricate detail.

CBS Boston reports that this fascinating collection is thanks to 94-year-old Norwood resident and retired teacher Martha Colamaria, who owns the dolls and uses them to share lessons about pioneering women throughout the ages.

Martha’s display includes Vice President Kamala Harris, Eleanor Roosevelt and Ann Bancroft — along with 46 other superb women. With a world full of influential, creative and strong women, we can’t wait to see who will be the 50th face in the collection.