Who Am I?

On the eve of my 55th birthday, I find myself looking at my life - and I want to share who I think I am.

Since I can remember, I've loved children.  I'm told that I'd go grocery shopping with Mom when I was a toddler and point at babies in other carts and say, "I want one of those!"  I was never blessed me with children, but that has not prevented me from surrounding myself with kids - to teach, to enjoy, to laugh with, to share stories with, and more.  Kids are so honest, so innocent, and so funny.  I think that's why I like them so much! 

It's also why I feel so protective of kids.  So, this has been a difficult week, learning about the tragedy of children being harmed at Penn State.  It actually hurts my heart - and I tend to get pretty riled up when I hear of anyone who would harm a child or turn a blind eye to knowledge of abuse. 

What else defines me?  I'd like to think a sense of humor - inherited from my Dad, who always has a ready smile and an easy laugh. 

Family is important to me - and although both of my parents have instilled a love of family in me, it was particularly important to Mom, since she had a tough time growing up.  It's great to get together with our own family - as well as the extended family. 

I really love spending time with my nieces and nephews - and seeing them grow up, seeing how they remind me of my sister and my brothers, hearing their thoughts on any topic, learning their lingo - and using it out of context, much to their delight. 

I have been told I'm approachable - I like when people feel relaxed around me.  I never want anyone to feel uncomfortable, so I try to be open and welcoming to those I meet. 

I'm a good listener (although, truth be told, probably more of a good talker)!  I love having gabfests with my oldest, dearest friends - and I find it's easy to pick up where I left off, even if I haven't spoken to a friend in a long time. 

I'm direct - you know where you stand with me. 

I am loyal when it comes to love - in any of its variations - if you're a friend, family member, or someone else I love, you know you're stuck with me!  I'm inquisitive - I like to ask questions - and I really AM interested in the answers.

Oh, yeah, and reading back on this, apparently, I like myself and have no faults!  ;-)

And, I have an excellent memory. When I look back at this blog at age 65, 75, and beyond (if blogs are even used by then - who knows what the future will hold?), I hope I can still say that I have a good memory! 

With that, I think I'll put on a pair of Depends, take out my teeth and put them in a jar on my nightstand, and go to bed early!  (Just kidding!!!)  Happy Birthday to ME!!!

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!!