Worrying - I come by it naturally!

I try hard not to be, but as the daughter of two of the biggest worriers ever, I do worry.  I try to keep it under control - not to worry about things that I can't control.

But, at this time of year, I always worry about the cooking camps I have scheduled for the summer.  Will anyone sign their kids up for my camps?  Did I schedule too many camps?  Will the kids enjoy it?  Will the camps run so I can stay out of the poorhouse?

This summer, I have some new worries.  Will my new instructors do a good job and want to continue teaching Kitchen Wizards programs?  Will they show up?  Will they understand when I train them?  Will the kids like them?  Will I have all camps covered?  Have I bitten off more than I can chew?

I feel that I've prepared well, have brought on some dynamic instructors who are chafing at the bit to get started, and am continuing to spread the word, in hopes that my camps fill.  But, in this uncertain economy, who knows?!?!

All I can do is put one foot in front of the other, say a few prayers, and keep doing what I'm doing.  But, if YOU want to help a small business owner, you can spread the word for me - camp schedule is listed on my website - http://www.kathysjustdesserts.com/kitchenwizards/programsandclasses.html.

Thanks! :-)

Upcoming Programs and COOKING CAMPS for Summer 2012!

At LAST, I think I have most of the summer schedule nailed down.  Please let others know if they think their child/grandchild would be interested in a fun, educational, tasty camp this summer.  Camps are generally 2 hours/day for 4 days.  All campers will receive a meal each day, recipe booklet, certificate of completion, apron, and chef's hat.  What fun!

UPCOMING PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS:

After-School Programs being held for students at the following schools:

Ss. Simon & Jude – West Chester

St. Patrick – Malvern

St. David’s – Willow Grove

St. Norbert’s – Paoli

St. Philip Neri – Lafayette Hill

Norwood-Fontbonne Academy – Chestnut Hill

Programs open to the public:

APRIL –

KIDS - Whitpain Twp. Parks & Rec @ Wissahickon Valley Public Library – Sweet and Savory Snacks - Tuesdays, April 24 – May 15 – 4:30-5:45 PM – Register here - http://www.whitpainrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=26432

ADULTS - Whitpain Twp. Parks & Rec @ Wissahickon Valley Public Library – Candy Making - Thursdays, April 26 – May 10 – 7-9 PM – Register here -

http://www.whitpainrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=26432

MAY –

ADULTS – Upper Dublin Twp. Parks & Rec – Brunch Foods – Wednesday, May 2 – 6-8 PM – Register here - http://www.upperdublin.net/store/item.aspx?cat_id=23&item_id=1186

ADULTS – Phoenixville Parks & Rec – Fabulously Easy Desserts – Wednesdays, May 9-23 – 7:15-9:15 PM – Register here - http://www.phoenixville.org/_Departments/Recreation/Programs.html

JUNE –

KIDS – Country Day School of the Sacred Heart – Monday, June 11 – Thursday, June 14 – 10 AM - noon – AG Doll Camp – Register here - http://www.cdssh.org/domain/57

KIDS – Country Day School of the Sacred Heart – Monday, June 11 – Thursday, June 14 – 1 –3 PM – Cooking Around the USA Camp – Register here - http://www.cdssh.org/domain/57

KIDS – Phoenixville Parks & Rec – Monday, June 11 – Thursday, June 14 – 10 AM - noon – Beginning Cooking Camp – Register here -http://www.phoenixville.org/_Departments/Recreation/Programs.html

KIDS – Phoenixville Parks & Rec – Monday, June 11 – Thursday, June 14 – 1-3 PM – Cooking Around the World Camp – Register here -http://www.phoenixville.org/_Departments/Recreation/Programs.html

KIDS – Country Day School of the Sacred Heart – Monday, June 18 – Thursday, June 21 – 10 AM - noon – Beginning Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.cdssh.org/domain/57

KIDS – Country Day School of the Sacred Heart – Monday, June 18 – Thursday, June 21 – 1 –3 PM – Cooking Around the World Camp – Register here - http://www.cdssh.org/domain/57

KIDS – Upper Dublin Twp. Parks & Rec – Monday, June 18- Thursday, June 21 – 10 AM – noon – Beginning Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.upperdublin.net/departments/parks/programsguide.aspx

KIDS – Upper Dublin Twp. Parks & Rec – Monday, June 18- Thursday, June 21 – 10 AM – noon –Cooking Around the USA Camp – Register here - http://www.upperdublin.net/departments/parks/programsguide.aspx

KIDS – Country Day School of the Sacred Heart – Monday, June 25 – Thursday, June 28 – 10 AM - noon – Cooking Around the Clock Camp – Register here - http://www.cdssh.org/domain/57

KIDS – Country Day School of the Sacred Heart – Monday, June 25 – Thursday, June 28 – 1 –3 PM – Eat Like the Pros Camp – Register here - http://www.cdssh.org/domain/57

KIDS – Margate Rec Center – Tuesday, June 26 – 3:30-5:30 PM – Candy Making – Register here - http://edrec.margateschools.schoolfusion.us/modules/groups/integrated_home.phtml?gid=2101874&sessionid=aa49fb0fe74953c0186651020bc6d691

JULY -

KIDS – Mermaid Country Day Camp – Monday, July 2 – Friday, July 6 (no camp on July 4) – 10 AM-noon – Beginning Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.mermaidlake.com/mcdc/specialty.html

KIDS – Mermaid Country Day Camp – Monday, July 9 – Friday, July 13 – 10 AM-noon –Cooking Around the Clock Camp – Register here - http://www.mermaidlake.com/mcdc/specialty.html

KIDS – North Penn Community Ed – Monday, July 9 – Thursday, July 12 – 10 AM-noon – Beginning Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.npenn.org/5577992912550/site/default.asp (Link for Happy Camper Brochure)

KIDS – North Penn Community Ed – Monday, July 9 – Thursday, July 12 – 1-3 PM – Cooking Around the USA Camp – Register here - http://www.npenn.org/5577992912550/site/default.asp (Link for Happy Camper Brochure)

KIDS – Margate Rec Department – Monday, July 9 – Thursday, July 12 – 3:30-5:30 PM – Beginning Cooking Camp – Register here - http://edrec.margateschools.schoolfusion.us/modules/groups/integrated_home.phtml?gid=2101874&sessionid=aa49fb0fe74953c0186651020bc6d691

KIDS – Mermaid Country Day Camp – Monday, July 16 – Friday, July 20 – 10 AM-noon – Eat Like the Pros Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.mermaidlake.com/mcdc/specialty.html (scroll down on page)

KIDS – North Penn Community Ed – Monday, July 16 – Thursday, July 19 – 10 AM-noon – AG Doll Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.npenn.org/5577992912550/site/default.asp (Link for Happy Camper Brochure)

KIDS – North Penn Community Ed – Monday, July 16 – Thursday, July 19 – 1-3 PM – Eat Like the Pros Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.npenn.org/5577992912550/site/default.asp (Link for Happy Camper Brochure)

KIDS – Methacton Community Ed – Monday, July 16 – Thursday, July 19 – 10 AM-noon PM – AG Doll Cooking Camp – Register here – http://www.bookking.ca/bkmsdpub/courses/index.asp

KIDS – Methacton Community Ed – Monday, July 16 – Thursday, July 19 – 1-3 PM – Cooking Around the USA Camp – Register here - http://www.bookking.ca/bkmsdpub/courses/index.asp

KIDS – Margate Rec Department – Monday, July 16 – Thursday, July 19 – 3:30-5:30 PM – Cooking Around the USA Camp – Register here - http://edrec.margateschools.schoolfusion.us/modules/groups/integrated_home.phtml?gid=2101874&sessionid=aa49fb0fe74953c0186651020bc6d691

KIDS – Chesterbrook Academy – Wednesday, July 18 – 10 AM-noon – PRIVATE session for Chesterbrook campers

KIDS – North Penn Community Ed – Monday, July 23 – Thursday, July 26 – 10 AM-noon – Christmas in July Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.npenn.org/5577992912550/site/default.asp (Link for Happy Camper Brochure)

KIDS – North Penn Community Ed – Monday, July 23 – Thursday, July 26 – 1-3 PM – Cooking Around the Clock Camp – Register here - http://www.npenn.org/5577992912550/site/default.asp (Link for Happy Camper Brochure)

KIDS – Margate Rec Department – Wednesday, July 25 – 3:30-5:30 PM – Cooking Baking Workshop – Register here - http://edrec.margateschools.schoolfusion.us/modules/groups/integrated_home.phtml?gid=2101874&sessionid=aa49fb0fe74953c0186651020bc6d691

KIDS – Avalon Library – Monday, July 30 – 11-noon – Cupcake Decorating Workshop – Register here - http://www.avalonfreelibrary.org/kids.asp

KIDS – Upper Merion Community Ed – Monday, July 30 – Thursday, August 2 – 9-11 AM – Cooking Around the Clock Camp – Register here - https://secure.uppermerionparkandrec.org/activity_session_listing.asp?classID=167

KIDS – Upper Merion Community Ed – Monday, July 30 – Thursday, August 2 – noon-2 PM – Eat Like the Pros Cooking Camp – Register here - https://secure.uppermerionparkandrec.org/activity_session_listing.asp?classID=166

KIDS – Steve’s Sewing, Vacuuming, and Quilting, King of Prussia – Monday, August 6 – Thursday, August 9 – 10:30 AM-12:30 PM – Beginning Cooking Camp – Register here - http://stevessewandvac.com/mfg-subcat-item.asp?cID=0&scID=559&mID=-1&Format=

KIDS – Steve’s Sewing, Vacuuming, and Quilting, King of Prussia – Monday, August 6 – Thursday, August 9 – 1:30 PM-3:30 PM –Cooking Around the USA Camp – Register here - http://stevessewandvac.com/mfg-subcat-item.asp?cID=0&scID=559&mID=-1&Format=

KIDS – Margate Rec Department – Monday, August 6 – Thursday, August 9 – 1 PM-3 PM –AG Doll Cooking Camp – Register here - http://edrec.margateschools.schoolfusion.us/modules/groups/integrated_home.phtml?gid=2101874&sessionid=aa49fb0fe74953c0186651020bc6d691

KIDS – Upper/Lower Gwynedd Twp. Park & Rec Department – Monday, August 13 – Thursday, August 16 – 10:30 AM-12:30 PM – Eat Like the Pros Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.lowergwynedd.org/departments/parks/programs.aspx

KIDS – Montgomery Twp. Park & Rec Department – Monday, August 13 – Thursday, August 16 – 10 AM-noon – Beginning Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.montgomerytwp.org/department/?fDD=5-0 (Link for Spring and Summer 2012 Recreation News)

KIDS – Montgomery Twp. Park & Rec Department – Monday, August 13 – Thursday, August 16 – 1-3 PM – Eat Like the Pros Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.montgomerytwp.org/department/?fDD=5-0 (Link for Spring and Summer 2012 Recreation News)

KIDS – Margate Rec Department – Monday, August 13 – Thursday, August 16 – 1 PM-3 PM – Cooking Around the World Camp – Register here - http://edrec.margateschools.schoolfusion.us/modules/groups/integrated_home.phtml?gid=2101874&sessionid=aa49fb0fe74953c0186651020bc6d691

KIDS – Upper/Lower Gwynedd Twp. Park & Rec Department – Monday, August 13 – Thursday, August 16 – 1:30-3:30 PM – Cooking Around the World Camp – Register here – http://www.lowergwynedd.org/departments/parks/programs.aspx

KIDS – Montgomery Twp. Park & Rec Department – Monday, August 20 – Thursday, August 23 – 10 AM-noon – AG Doll Cooking Camp – Register here - http://www.montgomerytwp.org/department/?fDD=5-0 (Link for Spring and Summer 2012 Recreation News)

KIDS – Montgomery Twp. Park & Rec Department – Monday, August 20 – Thursday, August 23 – 1-3 PM –Cooking Around the USA Camp – Register here - http://www.montgomerytwp.org/department/?fDD=5-0 (Link for Spring and Summer 2012 Recreation News)

KIDS – Upper Dublin Twp. Parks & Rec – Monday, August - Thursday, August 30 – 10 AM – noon –Cooking Around the Clock Camp – Register here - http://www.upperdublin.net/departments/parks/programsguide.aspx

KIDS – Upper Dublin Twp. Parks & Rec – Monday, August - Thursday, August 30 – 1-3 PM –Cooking Around the World Camp – Register here - http://www.upperdublin.net/departments/parks/programsguide.aspx

STONE HARBOR – TENTATIVE DATES – Registration Info to Come…

July 9-12 – 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM – Snack Attack

July 16-19 – 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM – Cooking Around the Clock

July 23-26 – 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM – Beginning Cooking

July 30-August 2 – 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM – Cooking Around the USA

August 6-9 – 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM – Eat Like the Pros

August 13-16 – 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM – Cooking Around the World

NORTH WILDWOOD – TENTATIVE CAMPS – DATES TBD – Registration Info to Come…

Beginning Cooking Camp

Eat Like the Pros Camp

Cooking Around the Clock Camp

Cooking Around the USA Camp

COOKING CAMP THEMES

Beginning Cooking Camp - Campers will enjoy kid-friendly favorites for budding chefs, including oven-baked chicken fingers, homemade pasta and meatballs and more! Each member of the family will enjoy these entrees when the kids make them at home. Boys & Girls: Ages 7 - 11

A.G. Cooking Camp - Does your daughter love her dolls, each with its own name and story? Each day of this camp, we’ll make foods that Josefina, Kirsten, Kaya, and Samantha & Nellie would have eaten if they were really little girls in that era. Girls will decorate an apron to use and take home at the end of the week. Girls are welcome to bring their dolls along!  Girls: Ages 6 - 11

Cooking Around the Clock Camp - Each day, we'll make foods for a different meal of the day - Breakfast, Lunch, Snacks, and Dinner.  By the end of the week, your cookin' kid will be helping (or showing YOU how!) to prepare any meal, any time! Boys & Girls:  Ages 7-11

Eat Like the Pros Camp - Love those “boys of summer”?  Want to be a major leaguer when you grow up?  Well, get an early start by EATING like the Phillies do!  We’ll make favorite recipes of some of your favorite players. Boys & Girls: Ages 9-14

 

Cooking Around the USA Camp - Camp will feature food from a different section of the United States of America each day including Southern Cooking, Hawaiian, California Cuisine and “Philly Phoods”. Boys & Girls: Ages 10 - 14

 

Cooking Around the World Camp - This camp will feature food from a different place in the world each day. This year, we’ll prepare cuisines of Italy, Mexico, France, and on the last day, we’ll prepare some recipes from the good ol’ USA.  Boys & Girls: Ages 11-15

Christmas in July Camp – In this camp, those who wish Christmas lasted all year long will enjoy listening to Christmas carols while they bake cookies, made edible gifts, enjoy a “mocktail” party, and more!  Boys & Girls:  Ages 7-11

  

Gearing Up for the Summer!

I'm so excited about the direction of my business - it seems to be going up, uP, UP!!

First of all, I brought a business development manager on board.  Gene is an old college friend with an entrepreneurial spirit and a nice personality.  He is anxious to grow my business for me, and I'm happy to have him handling that part of the business.  It allows me to concentrate on other facets of Kathy's Just Desserts and Kitchen Wizards.

We've been meeting with various local schools and starting programs at many of them.  We've also made inroads with many Parks & Rec Departments, and now we have programs at many more locations.

Next, I had to find some instructors.  I'm thrilled that Wendi, after having her adorable little baby Charlotte, has come back with all the happiness and energy she had when working for me before the baby! 

I've also been pleased to have several other instructors come on board. 

Mare is a substitute teacher - and she's been experimenting with cooking for several years.  I think the "bug" has gotten her, and she's loving the culinary arts. 

Shannon is starting her own cake business - and her work is amazing!  She loves kids and is looking forward to teaching cooking and baking programs. 

Micki is my godchild, my oldest friend's daughter.  She's an actress, and for four years, she's been teaching DramaKids programs.  Since she and her husband have been together, much to her mom's delight, she has become quite the cook.  With her experience and enthusiasm, I know she'll be a great addition. 

And, Ashley is Gene's daughter.  She's a really great young woman who is really excited to take on this new challenge.  She has been getting into cooking, and she loves being around kids.  So, she's going to be a great asset!

In fact, all of my instructors are just the nicest people you'd want to meet - and I trust my programs in their hands.  It's nice to have that kind of confidence in people who are representing my business.  That has not come easily for me, and I know I'm lucky to have found such great instructors!

Next step for Kitchen Wizards?  We're expanding even more!  So, if you know of any locations in the Philadelphia suburbs and South Jersey (including shore points) that might want to host cooking programs - either after-school, weekends, or summer cooking camps, please have them contact us:

Gene Basso gene@kathysjustdesserts.com
Kathy Wolper kw@kathysjustdesserts.com

And, if you know of anyone who wants a job as a culinary instructor, have them contact us, too. 

Remember us for scout workshops and cooking birthday parties, too! 

What I've learned from kids...

It's been quite awhile since I've posted, but I have a good reason.  I've been learning a lot this summer - from the kids!  Yes, I know, I've been conducting camps, so you'd think THEY'd be learning.  Hopefully, they learned a bit from me, too, but if you open up your mind and heart, it's amazing how much you can learn ABOUT YOURSELF from kids!

1.  I have a sense of humor…

Or, so Aiden told his mom at camp this summer when he was regaling her with stories at the dinner table.  This is good.  I don’t mind that I have the sense of humor kids enjoy!  I love it if they think I’m silly, or funny, or goofy.  That makes me much more approachable to them – kids KNOW if you like them.

2.  Be who you are – and DON’T try to be someone you’re not…

Okay, so I’m a mid-50ish woman who could never, in any circles, be considered “hip”.  But, when I misread one of the girls’ aprons at a cooking camp, and thought it said “Holla”, I really should NOT have tried to show off some hip hop talk I learned at Zumba and Hip Hop workout classes.  I will never forget the wide eyes and dropped jaws of the three 12-year-old girls sitting together when I pointed at that apron and said, “Holla atcha boi”.  When I got no laughs, I repeated it.  At that point, the girl told me in an even, clipped voice, “It’s.my.NAME – Holly!”  So, as if it’s not bad enough that I’m not “hip”, I can’t SEE very well either.  DUH!  I sure felt like a dope!

3.  I love what I do – and it’s contagious…

When I get kids psyched about making spanakopita or homemade pasta or inventing their own candy bars, it’s because, even after 10 years, I still get excited about what I do.  The kids who take my programs have an interest in cooking – my goal is to make it a passion for them, like it is for me.  At the very least, though, they should have confidence working in the kitchen after completing a Kitchen Wizards camp.  I love hearing from parents who tell me their kids cooked dinner for the family.  I remember doing that when I was their age, too.

4.  It’s okay to act like a kid…

When I goof around and the kids see that, they know that it’s okay to have fun while you’re learning.  Rarely do kids say something disrespectful, and if they do, it’s not intentional.  But, when they hear me saying how tempting it is to play with the freshly made pasta because it’s like playing with someone’s long hair, I can see that they relate to that.  If I put myself in my cooking kids’ shoes, I can connect with them on their level.  Sometimes their level is not so far from mine – I guess I’m just a big kid at heart!  They love my story of hating mustard – then realizing that it’s only when it’s in a sandwich, not when it’s in a cooked dish.  Having been a picky eater as a child, I can relate to their hesitancy about trying new foods.  And, they know that I won’t force them to eat anything they don’t like, but I encourage them to try new foods or foods they don’t like, prepared a different way.

5.  I am young…or very, VERY old…

When I tell kids how OLD I am, most times, kids will say “you don’t looooook that old”!  But, I’ve learned to just be honest about my age.  Once I asked a pre-school class how old they thought I was and they told me “100 million billion”.  If anything, that made my REAL age seem not so old!

6.  Kids will tell you the truth when they know it’s safe…

I love to ask kids what their favorite recipe of the camp was – and their least favorite.  I’ve noticed that they are reticent until I tell them it won’t hurt my feelings.  Then, I get it with both barrels – ha!  They become quite the food critics as they analyze why the buns didn’t taste as good as they thought (too much sugar) or why the oven-baked chicken fingers were so delicious (couldn’t even taste the mustard).  Developing a discriminating taste will help them appreciate quality food, and that should help curb mindless eating, too.

7.  I can’t wait until the fall programs begin…

Because even after all the hard work (and faux pas) of the summer, I love making a positive impact on kids’ lives!

Enjoy the rest of your summer, and I'll be back soon to talk about the next phase of my journey!

Kitchen Wizards - Why do I do it?

This is my first blog post, and I don't really know what I'd have to say that others would care about, but I'm going to try to come up with something!  ;-)

Almost 10 years ago, I lost my job as a certified technical trainer, and decided to do something that would make me happy and excited - and maybe even make a contribution to this crazy world we live in.  I founded my baking business, Kathy's Just Desserts, Inc. - www.kathysjustdesserts.com. 

Now, before I was a computer trainer, I was an elementary teacher.  The one thing people who know me realize is how much I LOVE kids - whether it was my oldest friend's daughters - taking them out to give their Mom a break, or my "kids" at St. John the Baptist (4th grade) and St. Pat's (3rd grade - in my very own 3rd grade classroom there!), or my nieces and nephews (yeah, I mean YOU - Jeff, Chris, Allie, Ginny, and Katie), or the little ones in the pew ahead of me at church (smiling and winking at them to make them smile), I LOVE KIDS! 

A few  months into my business, I called my sister Mary - who's a marketing consultant.  I asked her what she thought of me offering kids' cooking programs.  She thought it was a great idea - kids love the Food network and parents don't have time to cook or teach their kids to cook.  I thought about it, started planning programs, then started offering after-school programs, kids' candy making birthday parties, Scout workshops, summer camps, Ladies' Night Out events -  programs for kids AND for adults - eventually renaming that segment of my business "Kitchen Wizards", where we help kids of all ages to discover the magic of cooking, one bite at a time!

Kitchen Wizards definitely brings a lot of joy to my life.  You see, I was never blessed with marriage and children.  When I was growing up, Mary and I would hang out with Mom in the kitchen.  We learned to cook - learned to LOVE cooking, because Mom did.  Doesn't every little girl want to be just like Mom? I always thought I'd grow up, have a bunch of kids, and teach them to cook.  That didn't happen.  But, I'm okay with it.  If I'd have married, I WOULD have taught MY bunch of kids to cook and bake.  NOW, I touch so many kids' lives.  I've had parents send me photos of kids cooking recipes they learned in my programs for their families.  That's so great!  I'm stopped in supermarkets by people telling me that they still make the Buckeyes their kids learned in camp every Christmas.  I'm known as the "Candy Lady" by many campers at MCDC, where I first started doing a candy making camp activity for their large day camp.  But, my favorite times are when I'm standing with a group of kids around the kitchen counter, and they're listening intently to how a recipe is made, laughing at my silly jokes, proudly adding their knowledge, repeating the steps I've told them as they make a recipe with their group, delighting in eating what they've made, trying a new recipe, new food - learning that mustard really ISN'T that bad (after hearing my story about hating mustard as a kid), telling Mom they need to stop and buy artichokes on the way home because they're sooooo good! 

As a 20-something elementary teacher, I never realized the impact I had on the children I taught.  I was young and liked teaching, but never imagined they'd remember specific events from 3rd or 4th grade - not until I joined Facebook a few years ago.  My "kids" are now grown, with families and careers of their own, and I love the newfound friendship I have with them - even if it is only online.  It's so great to hear about their lives now.

Age brings maturity (one hopes), and I have an awareness now that I never had in my 20s.  I know that these cookin' kids are going to have some of the memories I have of cooking with my Mom when I was a kid.  I hope they have that memory with their own Mom - but I know they'll remember cooking with me!  And that makes me very happy!!