Macaroons Update

From the cruise ship: I just want to quickly note that I got an e-mail from Kathy letting me know the salt was wrong in the macaroons recipe (1/4 teaspoon instead of 1/2 teaspoon), and she also told me how big the bag of coconut was (14 ounces). I will correct the original recipe but wanted to let those of you who have already read it know about the correction.

Now I'm off to spend time thanking and honoring our cruise achievers. I'll post more when we get back. Have a wonderful week!

Idaho, MDS, and Macaroons

 

I had a great day yesterday at Kathy’s workshop—for so many reasons! First, this was the only workshop that didn’t involve a flight! Not that I don’t like flying, but it’s getting a little old after so many workshops, so it was nice to climb into a car, drive a few hours, and be there without having to stand in security lines, sit packed into airplane seats, eat airplane food, and. . . well, you get the picture.

My traveling companions were different on this trip too. Sara really needed to stay home for a couple of days before heading off again, so my assistant Kellene had planned on coming with me from the beginning. And then when Kathy made a rather unique request for her demonstrator event (she asked if it was OK if we spent some time learning My Digital Studio), we also invited Karen Hauley (one of our home office My Digital Studio experts) to come along.

What a delightful way to spend the afternoon! Kathy greeted each of us with a warm hug, and we got right to work! We laughed a little because it’s not every day you meet someone and they invite you into their bedroom, but while it sounds strange, that’s where her desktop computer is, so that’s where we set up camp.

Initially Kathy had asked if I could come and teach her and Laura, her downline (who flew in from Arizona), some MDS basics. I smiled when I heard that—while I’m very excited to learn all about this fun software, I haven’t had the time to get nearly as acquainted with it as I would like. I knew I was definitely NOT the one to do the teaching. Karen walked us through creating a page, step by step, and I LOVED it!

So did Kathy (I think). Every time she discovered something new, you could see the excitement in her eyes. I also loved listening to her exclamations of discovery. She was a quick learner, and she actually created and printed her first page, which looked pretty good! She was appreciative, enthusiastic, and such a sweetheart!

After our MDS class, we went to dinner at a fabulous local Mexican restaurant (Momma Inez—I’d definitely go there again if I had the chance!) and then headed to Kathy’s church, where she had set up for the workshop. The next couple of hours were delightful! Kathy’s friends are as genuine and warm as she is, and I enjoyed getting to know each one of them.

It was a large group, with lots of diversity (more younger—30 years or so and younger—guests than most of the workshops). Kathy got four bookings, and I was impressed at how good she was at following up with each of the women who took a book-to-look card; together, they looked at her calendar and set a date right there. Kathy hasn’t ever done a workshop (she does mostly clubs), but she is excited to try workshops and I think she’ll have great success! I always try to present a very duplicatable workshop, so I’m hoping that I was able to share something that will help her as she ventures out into the world of workshops herself!

The projects were both Mother’s Day cards (appropriate for this time of year), and the Make & Take gave the guests an opportunity to try several products and techniques. We had a decent number of newbies, and everyone did a great job and seemed to enjoy making the projects.

A highlight for me (and I’m a little embarrassed to admit it) was the coconut macaroon cookies. I have never tasted a macaroon so good! Kathy claims it’s one of the easiest cookies ever to make (I’ve included the recipe below--it's only got four ingredients!), and if I hadn’t been leaving early this morning for a half-day regional and the cruise, I would definitely be trying my hand at it. For now, I’ll just have to settle for the plate full of leftovers she sent home with me!

Easy Coconut Macaroons

1/4 tsp. salt
2 1/4 tsp. vanilla
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 bag (14 oz.) coconut

Mix the first three ingredients together. Add the coconut; mix well. Drop by spoonful onto parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  

Exciting News!

OK, believe it or not, I’m sitting on the side of the road, halfway between Salt Lake City and Pocatello, Idaho. I’m on my way to Kathy’s Workshop of a Lifetime  and I stopped to grab a sandwich and realized I haven’t told you my fun news—and I can’t wait any longer.

I’m expecting my 14^th grandchild! Well, it’s not me, of course. Sage and Jason are expecting; it’s been a long time coming, and we are so excited! She’s almost through the first trimester, and we hope that the morning  (and afternoon and evening and night) sickness will be ending soon.

She told me quite a while ago that I could share the news, and she wanted me to announce it before cruise, so if anyone sees her leaning over the edge of the ship, they’ll know what’s going on. I keep forgetting to post it, and since I knew tomorrow I’d be blogging about Kathy, I had to do it right now.

Congratulation, Sage and Jason!

Breakfast and Awards

I work with great people! And I am reminded of it all the time, but never more than during our annual employee appreciation breakfast. Most years we space the two breakfasts out a bit, but this year we scheduled them back to back because of the tight Workshops of a Lifetime schedule.

So I got up in the wee hours of the morning (around 3 a.m.!) yesterday and drove (well, Dale and Rich took turns driving) down to Kanab so we could cook breakfast down there and honor our dedicated employees. Then I got up early this morning so I could be at work by 6 a.m. and start breakfast in the home office. (All the Corporate Team members participated in the breakfast here.)

It’s a treat to serve these wonderful men and women who work so hard all year long. Breakfast is a small thing, but it means a lot to me to walk around, refill their glasses, and thank them for everything they do! It was especially meaningful this year because I’ve been on the road so much in the last few weeks that it’s been a long time since I’ve seen most of them.

We also take this opportunity to present our annual Heart of Stampin’ Up! awards. These are awards given to employees (who have been nominated by their coworkers) who go the second mile, who do that little (and sometimes lot!) something extra.

Usually I read the nominations myself, but this year was different—because Sara was with me last week doing the Workshops of a Lifetime, I had her read them while I drove from one workshop to the next. It was interesting to share the insights I always gain when I read the nominations. She would often have to stop and clear her throat. I realized that I wasn’t the only cry baby in the family (I guess I already knew that!), and I also realized that I’m not the only one touched by the loyalty our employees feel toward Stampin’ Up! and toward each other.

Nomination after nomination told of employees who care for each other, who reach out and help others succeed, who care about what we’re doing and are committed to doing it. It was wonderful to hear of our Stampin’ Up! family members who really are trying to live the Statement of the Heart.

I want to congratulate this year’s Heart of Stampin’ Up! employee winners: Julie Daley, one of our quality control professionals in Kanab; Irais Moreno, our facilities services supervisor in Riverton; Krishna Golakoti, an IT genius; and Rett Christensen, one of our finest Demonstrator Services employees! They truly are wonderful people who work hard every day to make sure Stampin’ Up! does it’s best.

And to be honest, there are many, many of our employees who could be recognized with this award, who live the ideals and principles of the Statement of the Heart. Like I said, I work with great people. So while I’ve had to get up very, very early the last two mornings—I’d do it again tomorrow if it meant that I could spend time with these people I care so deeply about. . . .

Creating with Cherie

Sara and I are back at home—after a wonderful week of workshops! While we are happy to be home, we had a great time, meeting demonstrators and customers alike. We spent yesterday with Cherie Bruce and her family and friends in a group meeting and workshop ended the weekend in grand style.

Cherie is a bubbly, fun personality, who loves stamping, and it shows. You could see the guests at both the demonstrator event and workshop appreciated her enthusiasm and enjoyed sharing this hobby with her. Another one of Cherie’s hobbies was also obvious when we met her—her love of landscaping. She works at a local nursery (so this is a very busy time of year for her), and her yard is amazing, bright with blooming flowers and meticulously manicured and designed. She has a great talent for creating—in her yard and in her stamp studio (her group is called “Garden of Life” demonstrators).

We enjoyed meeting Cherie’s family as well. Her husband was supportive and fun (and spent most of the evening “watching” their dog, who is definitely one of the family!) Her parents drove all the way from New Jersey, just for the Workshop of a Lifetime, and it was great to meet them and see their enthusiasm and support for Cherie!

I loved the projects we showed at Cherie’s workshop; they’re some of my favorites so far. I’ve mentioned before that I love the Awash with Flowers set, one of the stamps you can earn free this month with a qualifying workshop. What I haven’t mentioned (but what I have shared at the workshops) is that initially I was not in love with this set—I just didn’t think it was anything special.

Then I started playing with it, and now it’s one of my favorites. You can do so much with this set. And when I talk about it at the workshops—and when we use it in the demonstration—it really does work great; we’ve had several guests book a workshop specifically because they want to earn that set. So that’s just an example of how you can use a personal story, and a personal favorite product, to encourage bookings.

Cherie admitted last night that two-step stamping isn’t her favorite technique, and she not a Brights girl either. But after seeing the projects (they featured both), she got excited about both. Demonstrating and teaching with eye-catching projects really is powerful and can motivate people to explore things they normally wouldn’t . . . .

After the workshop, we had a group meeting, which was packed full of business tips, recognition, stamping, and sharing (one potential recruit signed up!); it also featured a pot luck dinner, complete with some of the best vegetable and fruit pizzas (on separate pizzas, of course) I’ve ever tasted! Yummy. (Sara and I have both resigned ourselves to the fact that we’re going to gain 30 pounds before these workshops are over—a small price to pay for the opportunity of meeting so many great people!)

So, I’m home for a few short hours tonight. I’m off to Kanab tomorrow morning before dawn; we’re having our annual Employee Recognition breakfast tomorrow at Kanab and Tuesday in Riverton at the home office. It never slows down, does it? (smile)