loving what you do...

Yesterday was a perfect example. Dane woke me up at 5:30am to take him to open gym at school (he's trying out for the JV volleyball team and wants to make a good impression). Even though I am not an early morning person, I was grateful for my son's enthusiasm and this made it easier to get out the door on a chilly morning.

Later, I spent time with my two favorite clients: Emily Joubert Home & Garden (Judy Sieber) and Bella Rosa Boutique (Deb, Gina, et al). Their passion and enthusiasm for what they do is infectious. I spent a delightful hour with Judy going over some truly exciting changes to her website. Being with Judy is like hanging out with Martha Stewart if she was as warm as she was talented. Hard to believe we got any work done with all the personal catching up going on!

I then rushed out the door to make my next meeting in Los Gatos. At Bella, it hardly felt like work. Imagine being in a beautiful place, surrounded by beautiful,charming women PLUS amazing clothes and getting to walk around with a camera capturing it all. That was my afternoon! In addition, the Bella girls are so excited about learning the new website development tool we are implementing. Coaching and mentoring is one of my passions and Gina is without a doubt my all-time favorite pupil.

Heading home, I picked up Dane walking home from school, then went out the door again to get supplies and snacks for the parent education workshop I was hosting at the middle school (Creative Bookmaking Workshop with Hans and Jen Hartvickson of Mister Lemur). The workshop went off without a hitch, despite it being a pilot program. The mini books the kids made were charming and will soon be available for viewing on www.misterlemur.com. I adore Jen and Hans and had a blast walking around taking photos of the kids and adults. This is one of the many reasons I spend so much time volunteering in our local schools. I'm pretty sure it's a better high than recreational drugs (though I don't have a good frame of reference, of course!).

My boys were on hand; Dane assisting here and there while Tate attended the workshop. I can't tell you how exciting it was to see Tate start sketching ideas for his own book (in addition to the one he collaborated on) and Dane continue to grab pieces of cardstock and create ad hoc illustrations. It reinforced my desire to keep the kids away from the electronics as much as possible.

I ended the evening on a long phone call with my dear friend, Emma Hand (of Snap Stories fame...remember them? http://www.snapstories.com/ if you are interested in seeing one of the best ideas I've encountered in a long time). We talked about all the seeds we plant here and there and how you need to nurture some things and leave others to take root on their own. It reminded me of how much I love and appreciate my core support group: Emma, Pascale  http://fabphotos.biz/ and Calvina http://calvinaphotography.com/ . Being friends with those talented and creative gals, now that is truly lucky!

So, to sum up... I think it is tremendously important to try and do what you love (if it's not feasible now, think about a one, two or five year plan to move to a career that lights your fire). You don't have to make every second or every minute count, just make sure you doing more good, happy, reflective things than not. I think you'll find, like me, that this sort of stuff starts compounding and you realize one day you have created the life of your dreams. Attitude may not be half the battle but it's the best, easiest and cheapest place to start. Good luck!!

P.S. Stay tuned to both www.emilyjoubert.com and www.bellarosaboutique.com to see these changes in the coming weeks!

Posted by Kathryn Besser 

attention parents of girls (and boys)

In case you haven't seen this, here is the trailer for an upcoming documentary, MissRepresentation. As a parent of two boys, I feel this is mandatory viewing (even though it mainly covers media portrayals of women and girls and our lack of female representation in the upper echelons of power).

It's sad and shocking. We need to be aware of the myriad ways our children are influenced by mass media and react accordingly. I plan to see MissRepresentation in theaters - anyone up for a parents' night out?

P.S. Thanks to my friend, Cynthia, for bringing this to my attention.

Posted by Kathryn Besser 

my top five kitchen staples (ingredients)

I fall in and out of love with certain ingredients as the seasons change but my top five "staples" list has stayed constant for years. What I rely on most (and use nearly every day) are:

1. Lemons (always fresh)
2. Mustard (Dijon and whole grain)
3. Onions (preferably sweet, like Maui or Vidalia)
4. Olive oil
5. Soy sauce

LEMONS: We are lucky to have fresh citrus year round in California. Our four trees are always producing, so a fresh-picked lemon is a quick trip to the garden away. I make SO many things with lemons, it's hard to ennumerate them: our basic vinaigrette, lemon-Dijon chicken marinade, lemon-olive oil drizzle on ANY steamed or stir-fried green vegetable, lemon juice on crispy smashed potatoes or french fries, lemon on grilled fish, etc.

MUSTARD: I think I use mustard every day, too. It's the basis for my homemade vinaigrette

http://dirtandsunshine.posterous.com/djion-vinaigrette-step-by-step-by-step

and it seems to make its way into practically every chicken recipe I make (except fried chicken). We especially love Dijon on steamed carrots:

http://dirtandsunshine.posterous.com/carrots-a-la-kathy

ONIONS: My favorite cooking aroma of all time is onions sauteed in olive oil. The scent in the air takes me right to Italy and this combination is the foundation of many amazing meals. We like raw onions in salads (Greek salad and tomato-onion-avocado salad, for example),

http://dirtandsunshine.posterous.com/tomato-avocado-onion-salad

and cooked onions in soups, stews, and pastas:

http://dirtandsunshine.posterous.com/garden-inspired-pasta-pb

OLIVE OIL: I wrote about my family's intense love of olive oil in 'dirt&sunshine'. We really do go through several bottles a month, using a Spanish variety from Trader Joe's for our every day cooking and a rotating selection of the best extra virgin offerings from Italy, Greece and California on salads, soups, pastas, and vegetables. It really is liquid gold to us!

SOY SAUCE: Did you know that many great marinades have a bit of soy sauce for saltiness and texture? It's surprising how many times it pops up in recipes I find (especially for grilled meats). For our family, it makes the best two-ingredient chicken marinade EVER:

http://dirtandsunshine.posterous.com/two-minute-two-ingredient-chicken-marinade

Try some of these ideas and let me know what you think. Also, what are YOUR top five ingredients? I'm curious!

Posted by Kathryn Besser 

why i wrote 'dirt&sunshine'

As much as possible, I'll try to give you my perspective after almost fifteen years of parenting: what has worked, what hasn't, and how our parenting approach has evolved over time (yes, a preview of how patterns laid down in baby and toddler-hood can effect teen behaviors!).

In addition to parenting topics, I'll fill in from time to time with party ideas, recipes and community-related items that catch my eye. I can't get away from my old-fashioned desire to connect people... one party at a time!

And finally, my main point is this: I wrote 'dirt&sunshine' to share the parenting wisdom I've picked up along the way. I originally assembled these thoughts in a handmade book for our friends, Laurie and Kevin. This was after they had their first baby (Max) and I was unable to make the trek to Phoenix to impart my ideas and philosophy in person. We had vacationed with Kevin and Laurie in Italy when Dane and Tate were toddlers and I never forgot Laurie's request that I share my parenting strategies with them. My husband had dinner at their house in Phoenix last night and called me afterwards to rave about how wonderful their kids are. Even though I really had nothing to do with how they've turned out, I'm still a proud psuedo-fairy-godmother!

I hope my book has helped you, too. If you like it, please consider sharing it with other parents you know (it makes a nice baby shower gift). 'dirt&sunshine' can be purchased on Amazon.com and on my website via the link below:

http://dirtandsunshine.com/where-to-buy.html

Thank you to everyone who has bought 'dirt&sunshine'. I really appreciate your support!

Posted by Kathryn Besser 

give something handmade this holiday season

Or break out your pots, pans, fabric or yarn and make something delicious or cozy to share. I'm all for taking back control of our economy through the buying decisions we make. WHERE POSSIBLE, please make your spending dollars count!

Here are a few ideas...

My friend, Alice, is from Romania and she is an incredibly talented illustrator. She just opened up her online shop AND shared the news (today!!) about her newly engaged status. Congratulations and Best Wishes, Alice!!

http://allistrationshop.tumblr.com/post/14160517018/alice

By the way, she designed and produced the lovely blank notebook above. I plan to fill it with my ideas for growing my own small business in 2012.

So you don''t like to can or make jam? Check out my favorite shop, Happy Girl Kitchen Co., for pickled goods, unusual jam flavors and the best rustic ketchup I've ever tasted:

http://happygirlkitchen.com/

They have terrific workshops, too, if you're inclined to pick up some new skills.

My amazing graphic design clients are getting one of the following:

• A custom-designed book printed via Blurb (a great way to support talented local photographers like my friends, Pascale Wowak* and Calvina Yang Nguyen**)
• Delicious handmade chocolates from John & Kiras***
• A French-inspired breakfast basket featuring frozen, rise & bake croissants and imported Echire butter (a splurge, I know) from Milk Pail Market in Los Altos, plus my homemade olallieberry jam and pickalilly sauce

Our family members are definitely on my list for olallieberry jam and pickalilly sauce, of course!

Happy Holidays 2011!!

* http://fabphotos.biz/

** http://calvinaphotography.com/

*** http://www.johnandkiras.com/index

Posted by Kathryn Besser 

'h m h' wrap-up: share what you have

Tomorrow, I'll be sharing some fig-olive tapenade with my fellow volunteers at Help-Portrait 2011. It's an easy, delicious appetizer; the recipe above feeds a crowd. Enjoy!

xoxo, kathy

Posted by Kathryn Besser 

'h m h' week: cleaning your closet to help others

http://www.brandcampblog.com/how-to-help-orphans-in-india-by-cleaning-your-cl...

I've followed Kristen for a number of months and am excited she is taking the proceeds from her "Becoming" class and following her dream to meet and help orphans in India. I had the privilege of taking the class and it lead me to my next big personal project: becoming a more-skilled amateur photographer.

The items above are some of what I'm planning to send Kristen (my husband, Paul, is terrific about gathering hotel and airline toiletries to donate). I hope you can help, too!

Remember to send your in-kind donations by January 1, 2012!

Haunani Kekuna
1587 Promise Lane
Allentown, PA 18106

Posted by Kathryn Besser 

'h-m-h' week: project inspire at full circle farm

Project Inspire will be transforming Full Circle Farm in Sunnyvale this weekend!

The primary project days will be December 9th and 10th. You can work alongside other community members, Full Circle Farm crew, and Nvidia volunteers to help build new horse barns that will be used as farm stands, an educational outdoor kitchen, and a produce-processing facility.

According to Full Circle Farm, two Amish horse barns will replace the current yellow farm stand tents. The barns will be built by Project Inspire volunteers. Inspiring murals will be painted on two sides of the barns to welcome visitors to Full Circle Farm.

Project Inspire volunteers will build the educational kitchen, a place where students, families and community members can gather, learn and eat. Just like the new farm stands, volunteers will create murals in the kitchen. Steel girders, shipping containers, new floors, shelving, sinks and a new cooler will be installed in the Produce Packing Shed.

To sign up, please contact Full Circle Farm at (408) 735-8154 or info@fullcirclesunnyvale.org.

http://www.fullcirclesunnyvale.org/

Posted by Kathryn Besser 

'help me help' week: help-portrait 2011 (join us!)

Help-Portrait 2011 (December 10th) is an amazing opportunity to share your talents and give to those in need. It may seem rather simple: photographing people and families then giving them prints to keep. But it helps instill a sense of pride in self, in family and in being a member of our community.

How many snapshots do most of you take on a regular basis? Probably a lot, like me. Imagine not having family photos because you lost everything and are living on the street? Or having only a few precious mementos because there is limited space in a temporary shelter? A photo is a record of your unique self and it's something many of us take for granted. I sincerely love the spirit behind this type of movement and am happy to give up this Saturday to make a difference in someone else's life.

Won't you consider joining us? There are many ways to help! If you wish to contribute financially, please follow the link below:

https://help-portrait.donortools.com/my/funds/43959-Help-Portrait-San-Francis...

If you want to join me in Berkeley, please leave a comment in the space below.

Posted by Kathryn Besser 

'help me help' week: ellie fun day giveaway

http://www.elliefunday.com/2011/12/05/ellie-fun-day%E2%80%99s-mommy-and-me-gi...

The giveaway ends Sunday, December 11th so don't delay!

Ellie Fun Day is the brainchild of my friend, Sarah; she is raising funds on IndieGoGo to help launch her socially-concious business: empowering marginalized women in India to make gorgeous, eco-friendly baby blankets (see my previous post on the Possibilities Project for more information).

If you're a parent (or even an aunt or uncle), baby blankets are loved and cherished by children FOR YEARS. Ellie Fun Day blankets are a great investment, too; not only are the designs whimsical and child-friendly, they are durably made and will last beyond your child's childhood.

Please check back every day this week as I will highlight more ways we can help those in need during this season of giving.

P.S. I apologize for the short hiatus from blogging...lots going on in my family!

Posted by Kathryn Besser