Pampered Chef-iversary

Happy March!...?!?!  

As per usual, this post is a little belated, but I recently (2 months ago...still relatively recently, right?) celebrated my one year anniversary as an Independent Pampered Chef Consultant!

It may be a blessing in disguise that I "waited" so long to commemorate this milestone with a blog post, because since it's March, now, I can share the new spring/summer products with you!  How exciting!  Click here to check them out!  And, of course, let me know if you'd like to host a party (cooking show/catalog party/Facebook party/bridal shower) to earn FREE products!

My goal for the year was to be an "active" (submit $150 in sales) consultant each month, and thanks to many of you, I reached my goal...and beyond!  I earned some great commission, as well as some awesome new products for our kitchen.  

I had another goal, too: I didn't want to beat down anyone's door to drum up business...or become any sort of "pushy salesman" type.  I met this goal, as well!  I didn't ask anyone to host a party - all my hosts came to me of their own accord.  Word of mouth was my friend, for sure (as was my mother and her PC-loving friends! ☺)! 

My hope for the future of my Pampered Chef business is to build more clientele in the KC area.  Many of the parties I helped host this past year were from Topeka and/or Lincoln connections (and included a couple bridal showers - my favorite!).  This was to be expected, and I'm so thankful for all the support of friends and family in those previous home cities of mine.  I'm looking forward to continuing to meet new people in my current home city and hoping to bring some great products to their kitchens, too!  ☺

In an effort to spread the word about our businesses to our KC area friends, my BFF (who sells Norwex - I could write a whole post about these awesome products.  Please check them out and let me know if you want/need her contact info.!) and I hosted an open house last fall!  We had a good turn-out, and had so much fun fellowshipping and sharing our love of all these products with all who came!  Here are a few pictures from our day:

I still have a few of these left, if you see something you'd like!

Yes, the fruit is cut in shapes.
Unfortunately, the product I used to do so has been discontinued, but you're welcome to borrow mine! ☺

Used the brownie pan and the mini muffin pan for these yummies!

A "before" shot of the Sausage & Pepper Biscuit Frittata.

Apple Nut Ring before...
...Apple Nut Ring after!

Thanks to all who were able to join us!  We had so much fun, and just may have to do it again someday!

Thank you, again, to those of you who have helped support/encourage/further this business adventure of mine!  Couldn't have done it without you!

Happy cooking, all! ☺

Pampered Chef-ly,
Kensy

Favorites of the day:

our home

sunshine

Mini Robin Eggs

Starburst jelly beans

New Year, new news

Happy New Year, all!

I trust this finds you well and excited for the year ahead.

You already know how I feel about resolutions, so this isn't a post about those.  It is, however, a post about a new adventure I'm embarking on starting this year:

I'm officially a Pampered Chef consultant!

This is something I've been considering doing for years...literally...almost 20 years, probably.  No joke.  My mom hosted many a Pampered Chef party throughout my childhood, and I've grown up using the products as long as I've been active in the kitchen.  So...I guess you could say it's in my blood...or something.

Seriously, though - I'm really excited about this, you guys...for these reasons (in no particular order):

• I don't know how much I've written about this somewhat-little-known fact on here, but I could watch cooking shows all day.  We didn't have cable/satellite growing up (still don't), so whatever was showing on PBS on Saturday mornings started this obsession.  Late-night baby-sitting gigs fed it, because, so long as there was cable, there was the Food Network.  Nowadays, Nexflix provides my fixes.
• I've always dreamed of having my own cooking show.  When I was younger, I was in 4-H cooking class (led by my mom!) and put on live cooking demonstrations on a regular basis.  Somehow, I discovered Rachael Ray and watched her shows every chance I could get!  I've been told on numerous occasions I not only look like her, but also remind people of her in other ways, too - which I take as a very high compliment!
• There are days when I miss being in a classroom setting.  I'm a trained teacher, and though I prefer one-on-one lessons, I still enjoy being in front of a class every once in a while.  This setting seems like a great way to itch that scratch (probably I should find a different way to say that, huh?)...and also a great opportunity to utilize all my little bitty mise en place prep bowls even more!
• I love meeting new people and building relationships.  There's probably a whole blog post here, but we'll just leave it at that. ☺
• The extra cash won't hurt, but that's not really the reason I'm doing this.
• I haven't done something truly new in a pretty long time...my brain is ready for a new form of exercise!

All of these are pieces in the puzzle of reason I put together in deciding whether or not to (finally) sign on to Pampered Chef (poetic...and slightly cheesy, I know...).  I'm anxious to see what I get to do with this puzzle!  ☺

Charlie is also excited...mostly about the packing materials that came in my new consultant kit box (he's excited about the box, too).

If you wouldn't mind doing me a favor, head on over to Facebook and like my new page.  I plan to use this page to promote awesome deals, share recipes and ideas, field questions and comments, and minimize all these posts from coming through my personal account.  ☺

Luckily, I already had a picture of me in a PC apron to use as the profile pic!

Can't wait to help host bridal showers like the one that was put on for me! ☺

As I embark on this journey to share my love of cooking, of baking, of teaching, of meeting new people, and of course, my love of Pampered Chef, I ask for your prayers, suggestions, etc., etc.  Let me know if you have any interest in any part of it, of course, and if there are any questions I didn't answer in this post!  ☺

Thank you, thank you.

Pampered Chef-ly (of course),
Kensy

Favorites of the day:

quality time with friends and family

post-holiday clearance

merely glancing over the list of items to come in a new consultant kit and getting to be so pleasantly and genuinely surprised by the contents of the package when it arrived at our door ☺

Thank you, snow!

So...here I am...on snow day #1 1/2 (we didn't have lessons yesterday, but I nannied in the morning/early afternoon before things got bad)...enjoying the time to actually write a blog post for you all!

But really, there's not a whole lot to report...

Work is good.

The coop is good.

Church is good.

Life is good.

And I made these new vegetable recipes last night...

Coconut Oil Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Broccoli tossed in hummus, and Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower

...and I helped the kids (yes, kids, plural - JP was home from kindergarten yesterday - wohoo!!  We hadn't seen each other in awhile...and cherished the few hours we got to spend together...with MA, too, of course) I nanny for finish putting together the 3D puzzle I gave their family for Christmas.

Who knows what the rest of the snow day will bring!  So far, it's brought cinnamon rolls and the Today Show.  So thankful to be able to work my "day job" from home. ☺

In case I have some time to write a more substantial post in the near future, I'd like to open the floor for suggestions for blog post subjects/topics.  Ready...set...GO!

Warmly (kind-of...),
Kensy

Favorites of the day:

a whole day to be productive!!!

yoga

Skype

P.S. If you're on Facebook, check out the video I was tagged in recently...

Grocery Shopping

I love grocery shopping.  Really.  I don’t know what it is about it, but I genuinely enjoy going to the grocery store (namely HyVee).  I’m a coupon-clipper (thanks to my mom), and peruse the ads before stepping foot into the store.  Call me crazy, but I find great satisfaction in getting something I need (or a treat) for a fraction of its original price.

Did you know that you can sign up for “mobile alerts” from HyVee?!  So far, these alerts have been amazing coupons.  Last week was a half-gallon of OJ for $.49, and this week was a pound of hamburger for $.59.  You should sign up!

http://www.hy-vee.com/company/mobile-alerts.aspx

By the way, while we’re discussion my love of bargain shopping, I got flip-flips at Old Navy yesterday for $.47!  Nope, that is not a typo – I really got them for forty-seven CENTS!!  Now, I don’t feel bad about throwing out some of my old, grungy pairs.

In honor of the season’s first snow (it happened a couple days ago), I’d like to share a tip I read my Rachael Ray magazine last month.  I haven’t tried this, yet, but I sure hope it works:

Mix 3 parts water with 1 part white vinegar, pour into a spray bottle, and spray on your windshield at night to ward off the morning frost.

Speaking of the Rachael Ray magazine – I LOVE it!  If you haven’t checked it out, and you like fun (and lots of other great adjectives) magazines, you should look it up or ask me if you can borrow a couple of mine!  It’s a cooking, travel, life, shopping, and lots of other things magazine all in one!  I also just love Rachael Ray (and the Food Network!!!).  In some class, at some point in my education, we were asked to name a famous person as our alter ego.  I chose Rachael Ray.  I don’t know that I fully understood what “alter ego” meant – all I knew was that people told me I look and act like her…and I love to cook (and bake, which she doesn’t really like to do).  In fact, I’m making a dessert for a luncheon tomorrow…I’ll share the recipe once I decide what to make!

Here’s a link to Rachael’s website:

http://www.rachaelray.com/

That’s all for now.  Enjoy the rest of your Sunday! 

To God be the glory,

Kensy

Favorites of the day:

Fresh raspberries (yep - they were on sale)

Sunshine