Gwyneth, Eva, and Sheryl…the chefs?

It’s a little curious to me how many celebrities are putting out cookbooks these days. Not chef celebrities, just straight up celebrities. And if you’re wondering what in the world I’m referring to? Just browse’s Amazon.com’s 100 bestsellers today and you’ll see a few of them…

Gwyneth’s book is sitting pretty at #6 on Amazon right now with Eva and Sheryl at numbers 52 and 90, respectively. Is this a new trend? It’s certainly not something I’ve noticed in the past. I remember Alicia Silverstone putting out her cookbook a few years back…

But that didn’t seem too unusual to me since her book was full of vegetarian recipes and her advocacy for animals is something she’s made pretty widely known for years. Where as many of the “cooks” listed above, well, I haven’t ever really known them for their cooking. Just for their uncanny ability to stay really slim, believing they always had a chef at home helping them out. Granted, I haven’t picked up a single one of these books, so maybe I don’t have room to have an opinion, I’m just putting the question out there…do we really need celebrity cookbooks? Or should they leave room on the shelf for all the real chefs to get published. Maybe there is room in the world for both?

All my curiosity on this new trend aside, as a book marketer, I have to give a gold start to Paltrow’s marketing team. They organized a partnership with the very popular One Kings Lane who sold a limited number of signed copies of the book, cohosted a dinner party for 60 people with the Oscar-winning author (which she has documented on her beautiful blog), and then offered the same table settings, serveware, and tabletop accessories used at the party for sale on their site! I, for one, an impressed. Marketing partnership well done.

So will you be purchasing any of these celebrity cookbooks? And if yes, I’m just curious, what motivated you to buy?

Happy Birthday Cricket!

A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost.  ~Marion C. Garretty

I’m so late in the day getting this post up, but I have to show some love to my little sister today as it is her BIRTHDAY. Happy twenty-eight years to you little Laura K. “Cricket” Womble. I am so grateful to have you in my life and I can’t wait to celebrate with you this weekend!

From our most recent visit together here in Nashville…

My SXSW Highlights

The past few days I’ve had the opportunity to experience my very first South by South West event in Austin, TX. I have heard about and longed to attend this event for years and could hardly believe when I was offered the chance to go this year. While the events of the last 48 hours are still fresh on my mind, and before I pass out from exhaustion, I want to recap for you how this event totally lives up to all the hype, how it’s absolutely worth attending at least once, and how Austin has proven to be as cool of a town as I’d expected…

Within my first few hours of landing in Austin, TX, I made my way to the rustic old house that is the Lustre Pearl for the Team Android at SXSW party. This would turn out to be my favorite party of the week. Rather than just listening to loud music and standing around for hours aimlessly, this party kept you entertained with tons of raffle giveaways (we’re talking brand new phones and tablets here!), new app presentations, and just the right amount of opportunity to mingle and make new friends.

But let me back up for just a second as I recognize that not everyone out there really knows what South by South West even is. And if you do, you’re probably most familiar with it as a huge indie music festival (which it is). But the music festival comes after a week of what they call Interactive sessions as well as an indie film festival. I was there to attend the Interactive part….the geeky, nerdy, five days (although I was only there two) of compelling presentations from the brightest minds in emerging technology. The Interactive portion of SXSW (as attendees like to abbreviate it to) has become famous as the place to launch your new social network (it’s where Twitter was launched), your new app, your cool new phone/tablet/laptop technology, and anything and everything else that can be loosely tied to those things. There is so much energy and innovation at this event, it’s hard to not get swept up in the excitement and just dive in and start trying new things. And while the day time is packed with panels, presentations, and keynote speeches, the night time is equally teeming with party after part after party. Most you are allowed into with your badge, in theory….depending on the line to attend and the capacity of the venue…and most all are sponsored by some company or new technology wanting promotion and attention.

Which brings me back to the Team Android party. This was for fans of Android technology who wanted to hang together, maybe win some swag, and learn about a few new apps. A few apps that impressed me the most, in case you want to check them out:

@foodspotting: is a visual guide to good food and where to find it….complete with food photos, who doesn’t love that?

@sparkmyphone: a customizable home screen for Android with Facebook, Twitter, News, Sports, Deals, Location-aware Weather & More.

@gowalla: an app developed in Austin, TX, this one was definitely the home town hero. Much like FourSquare, but claiming to be better.

Monday I was able to attend a panel about how to effectively tweet/set up a Twitter following if you are a non-profit, followed by an Online Mom Community lecture, discussing how these communities are “hotbeds of influencers.” The highlight of the day was the session with Gary Vaynerchuk (@garyvee) where he discussed the message of his latest book, Thank You Economy. The man is hilarious, energetic, visionary, and passionate and I 100% understand why he is so successful. He knows how to build a profitable business and he’s incredibly talented in motivating others to be able to do the same. I have a feeling I’ll be reading this book as soon as I can fit it in. The evening time involved a lot of walking around downtown Austin, a short time in an area they call SoCo (South Congress), which is a part town I’d like to spend more time in, and checking out SXSW parties till I was too tired to go any more.

Today has been equally full and energizing. I made it to two sessions this morning – one on Unwritten Rules: Brands, Social Psychology, and Social Media…another “how to” do social media as a brand. The second discussed How to Create an Internet Phenomenon from Peanuts led by the man who started Smith magazine and the 6 Words Memoirs.

What had to be the highlight of my session time though was the keynote presentation from founder of TOMS shoes (@TOMSshoes), Blake Mycoskie (@BlakeMycoskie). I love this guy’s heart, his motivation, and his message: entrepreneurship that does good for others instead of only looking to charities and non-profits to do this work. If you aren’t familiar with TOMS, they have a 1-for-1 business structure. For every pair of shoes you purchase from them, they give a pair away to a child who is in need. Blake suggested that giving doesn’t just feel good, it’s actually a really good business practice as well – and it turns your customers into your best marketers. I couldn’t agree more!

All in all it’s been an exhilarating, exhausting, but totally worth it few days. My head is full of new ideas and I’m so grateful that I had the chance to make this trip. If I can help it, I’ll certainly be back next year!

Why I blog, tweet, and facebook

I spend a fair amount of my time keeping up with other bloggers, blogging myself, tweeting, and checking up on Facebook. There a numerous ideas out there about how to be involved with social media and how to do it without it taking a lot of time. The truth is, at least for me, no matter how efficient I am, tracking social media takes time, it is a commitment, and I benefit from it the most when I regularly check in and stay on top of my Google Reader posts and Twitter lists. It becomes a burden only when I’m behind and playing catch up.

But why do it at all?

I know more than a handful of people who still proudly live in blissful ignorance of social media and are happy to be disconnected. And I don’t judge them for their choice. There are days when I, too, wish to unplug and just ignore the online world altogether. But for the most part, I have found entirely too many advantages to staying connected that it’s worth the effort I make to stay involved.

What could I possible gain from social media, you might ask?

Being clued-in when it comes to current events.
Inspiration to be crafty from people more creative than myself.
Cooking tips and recipe ideas.
Motivation to stay in shape and suggestions on how-to.
A heads up on time sensitive deals and bargains…

Just to name a few.

And not to be overlooked, social media also often clues me into the latest in technological advancements and ways that the marketing world is evolving and progressing. Working in the book industry, it is critical that I be tapped into not only how books are going digital but how tools to promote those books have long ago gone digital and only continue more in that direction daily. Like it or not, our world moves at a faster pace today than it used to. For me, the best way to keep up has been to to jump in at any point and figure out how to make social media work for me. If it’s new to you, understand that you may have to tinker with your daily routine a bit to find what works best for you, but it is possible. And from my experience, totally worth it.

So what motivates you to stay plugged into social media? Or, if you’ve chosen to stay checked out, why?

Valentines Day Cookies

Hello friends, Happy Valentines Day!

In honor of the holiday of love, I have a sweet treat to share with you. This heart cookie idea comes courtesy of Southern Living and I have to give thanks to my sister for finding this great recipe.

You can find the complete recipe for these heart-shaped sugar cookies here. It’s very easy to follow, but I do have one recommendation from experience. The recipe calls for them to bake for 8 to 9 minutes or until lightly browned on the bottom. I found these to be two very different things. If I took them out at 8 to 9 minutes, they weren’t browned at all, but if I waited till they browned lightly (almost 20 minutes) they became hard when they cooled. This could just be my oven, but I would recommend taking them out at 8 to 9 minutes, not when they brown. As you can see, I baked about half of the cookies per the “browned lightly” rule and the other half per the “time” rule. Quite a difference.

You’ll also notice that my cookies are round, not heart shaped….I just didn’t have a heart cookie cutter, I didn’t have any cookie cutters actually! So I used the rim of a glass instead. I used the icing to bring in the heart shape, as you can see in the finished product below.

My favorite part of this sugar cookie and icing recipe? The fresh lemon juice and the grated lemon rind…it’s such a wonderful addition. I hope you enjoy this sweet treat and enjoy the day of love with someone you love!

Winter Wonderland

I may be the ONLY ONE, but I LOVE how much snow Nashville has gotten this winter and we are expected to get a few more inches this afternoon. Bring it on!

Since much of the snowfall we’ve gotten this year has happened during the work week, I’ve not been able to play in it as much as I’d like. But I hope to change that tonight. Zach and I made a trip over to the local Ace Hardware on our lunch break and purchased his and hers sleds.

I should know better than to try this whole sledding business again, based on past snow injuries. But never fear, any hill I attempt tonight will be a bunny slope compared to the downtown Nashville capital hill.

For now, I’m going to try and focus on some afternoon work while I wait anxiously for the big 2-3 inches we’ll hopefully get this afternoon.

Sincerely,

Hopeful Snow Bunny

Favorite soup from a box

Every winter I rediscover how much I love soups. Being the career girl that I am, I am always grateful to find easy to make soups that I can take with me to work and eat on my lunch break. This winter I have been so happy to stumble upon some new favorites…

Created by Pacific Natural Foods, they are the most wonderful, unique soup I’ve found. Many of them are gluten free, vegetarian or even vegan friendly and the package is make from renewable resources. Best of all, I don’t have to go to pricey Whole Foods or even upscale Publix to find them, they are stocked at my regular ole Kroge, but in the “all-natural” section.

Priced at only $2.50 a piece, they have proven to be a big win for a healthy winter lunch. The Poblano Pepper and Corn Chowder and the Chipotle Sweet Potato Soup are two of my favorites.

Healthy Recipe of the Week: Chicken Salad

Hello dear friends! I hope you have all been sticking to your New Years Resolutions….maybe a little better than I have. I’ve done a perfectly average job of sticking to my goals of eating better and working out more and I’m always trying to do better, but aren’t we all? To help, I wanted to share a recipe that’s been a delicious addition to my healthier eating diet and I have to give 100% credit to my little sister for this dish.

Healthy Recipe of the Week: Chicken Salad

Tear off the white meat of a plain rotisserie chicken. Discard or give the dark meat to a friend or boyfriend who isn’t so worried about eating only the lean meat. Chop chicken into smaller pieces. I love the pre-cooked whole chickens that you can find in the deli area of most grocers – one such chick would work perfectly in this case.

Mix with ½ cup yellow mustard, ½ tsp black pepper, ¼ cup chopped shallots, ½ tsp garlic salt and one small chopped tomato. While the recipe calls for 1/2 a cup of mustard – just a heads up, this has proven to be a bit much for me and I would suggest ¼ of a cup instead…it is, of course, entirely up to your taste preference.

Arrange on a bed of fresh spinach or lettuce.

As a side, Laura suggested a handful of Sun Chips or other whole grain chips/crackers. I tried these Toasted Asiago crackers from Kashi, which went well.

This recipe makes two generous servings so you can enjoy one for dinner and enjoy the leftovers for lunch the next day.

I know there are dozens of Chicken Salad recipes out there, but I liked this one because of how easy it was to make and it’s not weighed down with tons of caloric ingredients. I’d love to hear any additions or suggestions you may have to spice this up further.

New Year’s Resolutions and Easy Squash, too

Hello friends! Happy New Year to you all!

I know I’m not alone in making New Year’s resolutions, and mine aren’t even that original. Lose 10 pounds, work out more, eat better, save money, pay off debt, cook at home more, and and eat out less. And along with many of my fellow bloggers who have failed in keeping the blog site up-to-date, I’m also hoping to post much more often. My goal is to share easy and healthy recipes that I discover in my quest to eat better along with a few new craft ideas mixed in too.

With my darling new apron in tow,

I bring you my first easy, healthy recipe tip of the New Year. I found this while flipping through a copy of Shape magazine at the gym and now that I’ve tested it out myself, I can promise you it’s a must try. And, best of all, it couldn’t be simpler to make.

The main ingredient is this wonderful organic, cubed squash that can be found in the frozen food section of Whole Foods.

Follow the cooking instructions on the bag and you’ll have delicious squash ready to eat in under 5 minutes. The squash mashes up nicely and looks more like sweet potatoes than what you would traditionally expect squash to look like. The best suggestion from Shape was to add a spoonful of apple butter on top of the squash. A fantastic, nutritious, super simple side dish is the result…enjoy!

Turning 20+10 in 2010

It’s hard for me to believe, but I am officially no longer a 20 year old. I am 30. Knowing this day was coming, I’ve spent many hours mulling over what it is I want to accomplish in this next decade, feeling the pressure to write a long list of goals and desires for where I want to go and who I want to be. But my mind keeps taking me back over the last ten years, who I’ve been and the life journeys I’ve taken and I land at a point of gratefulness and contentment. Thankful for the good times as well as the heartache and resolved that if the next ten years are nearly as full as the last have been, I will be enormously blessed.

In that vein, I ask God for his blessing on the years to come. That he would continue to use my life for his pruposes, that he would continue to show himself to me in the big and small wonders of daily life, and that he would continue to teach me and mature me into the woman he wants me to be. I can’t wait to see what’s in store.