Knowing today would be the beginning of a new chapter for Ree and her family, I couldn’t help but feel happy for the Drummonds once The Pioneer Woman show aired. There is something very special about celebrating “firsts” of new beginnings. To celebrate for them and with them was a gift in itself to many of Ree’s friends, fans, and readers which I am very grateful to have been a part of.
It has been so much fun to share with you both joy and excitment as we counted down the days until the show’s premier. I loved reading stories during our Facebook Discussion on how fans met Ree at book signings or as a guest at her ranch. Reading supportive tweets on Twitter and comments on Savory Sweet Life fostered a sense of community. By sending our best wishes and thoughts to Ree, we were able to cheer her on and show our support in this new chapter of her life, which I know she appreciated so much. [click to continue…]
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Only two more days until The Pioneer Woman show premiers on the Food Network and I am getting really excited for our Twitter Watch Party! I hope you’ll join us because it is going to be so much fun! The official hashtag of the party is #TeamREE. I’ll be hosting the party on Twitter as @SavorySweetLife. Ree’s handle is @ThePioneerWoman and the Food Network handle is @FoodNetwork. Feel free to leave Ree a word of encouragment and find out all the details of the party including how to join our Facebook Discussion here.
To celebrate the launch of the show, both Ree and I are giving away some great prizes. We started our pre-funk party by giving away an All-Clad Non-stick Double Grill and Griddle – congrats Tricia! Today we are giving away another one of Ree’s Favorite Things. This Cuisinart Deluxe 11 Cup Food Processor is going to make cooking in the kitchen so much more enjoyable for one of you. As I type this I confess I’m already coveting this kitchen appliance because I’ve been wanting one since I got married. She is a beauty, isn’t she?
All you have to do is answer a fun trivia question about The Pioneer Woman. One winner will randomly be selected from the correct answers and the winner will be required to bake me a pie. Just kidding. Maybe not kidding. No, really. Apple, please. Or else. No prize. Just kidding. [click to continue…]
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I’ve always been the type of person who loves to celebrate special life events and accomplishments of friends and family. Last year after playing three seasons on the same soccer team, my older daughter Abigail scored her first and only soccer goal in the second to last game of the season. I’ll never forget how her teammates, their parents, and coaches erupted in cheers and jubilation when this happened because we all knew this was a huge achievement for my daughter. Abigail’s face lit up with an unforgettable smile as she was swarmed by her teammates eager to give her high-fives and bear hugs as several of them lifted her off her the ground. What made the day so unforgettable and special was the genuine excitement and joy of so many sharing in that spectacular moment.
I share this story with you because for several months I have been very excited for my friend, Ree Drummond, in the same spirit of joy my daughter’s teammates exhibited the day she scored her first soccer goal. [click to continue…]
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Food blogging (and general blogging) conferences and workshops are all the rage right now. One cannot log on to Twitter without someone mentioning an upcoming conference event or listing their recaps of highlights from such weekends. Last month I flew to NYC to attend BlogHer and Big Summer Potluck. This past weekend I attended the sold-out International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC) in Seattle. Lately I’ve been attending many of these events and already have plans to fly out to San Francisco next month for another one. All these conferences begs the question, why?
I cannot speak for anyone else but myself but I have made some observations worth noting. Conferences are opportunities to learn, network, refuel, and reconnect with friends, old and new. Depending on where you are in your blogging career, you will be motivated to attend for different reasons and that is okay. My primary motivation for attending these events are going to be different than why someone else decides to go. And for the record, my main motivation for attending these conferences is to see friends. Where else are you going to find so many people you connect with on a daily basis in one place? [click to continue…]
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Earlier this week I posted about my exciting time at the Martha Stewart Omnimedia office. It was so exciting and an honor. It was everything I hoped it to be and more. But now I want to switch gears and share with you about the rest of my time in New York City.
Once I booked my plane ticket to NYC, I didn’t have to wait very long for the rest of my schedule on the East coast to be packed with appointments, meetings, and connecting with friends – both old and new. Social media is changing the way people communicate and Twitter is a predominant gateway to building instant community. Immediately after announcing via Twitter I was heading to New York City, friends Erika of Ivory Hut and Maggy of Three Many Cooks invited me to be the keynote speaker at an all-day food blogging workshop in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. More on this in a future post.
I flew in Thursday morning on the red-eye flight from Seattle and my wonderful friend, Jennie Perillo of In Jennie’s Kitchen picked me up at JFK at 7:30am. That’s love. She dropped me off at our other friend’s apartment, Olga of Sassy Radish, where I stayed throughout the weekend. Olga is very generous and the type of friend who insists you stay with her even though she herself wouldn’t be there. She even stocked her freezer with homemade mango sorbet for me to enjoy as a guest in her beautiful home. That’s love.
I took a 1.5 hr nap and was out the door for a series of working lunch dates and meetings before finishing the day off at Martha Stewart’s offices. It felt so surreal to be meeting new colleagues and bosses I will be working with this year for the first time. [click to continue…]
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