Chicago Food Bloggers

So I went to this a couple of weeks ago:
http://on.fb.me/1aJBIOb

I joined the Chicago Food Bloggers not too long ago, but I hadn’t attended an event yet.
I have been poking around at the site, getting to “know” the bloggers and seeing what other people are up to in my city, but this event gave me a chance to meet other writers/food lovers in person.
I’m up for networking events but often don’t make it to them. I jumped on the brown line and headed down to The Chopping Block (my former employer) at the Mart. It was a welcome change to attend a cooking class from the opposite point of view. While the recipes weren’t life-changing, they were tasty and it was a nice thing to do with my Sunday afternoon.





And if you’re a Chicago food blogger, join them! I’m looking forward to the next meet up.

let it marinate.: BALANCE.

let it marinate.: BALANCE.: Underemployment is an interesting thing. Especially in the summer. And it's a constant balance to be...

BALANCE.

                                     

Underemployment is an interesting thing. Especially in the summer. And it's a constant balance to be a good/fun mom, and to work dilligently at WORK. workplayworkplayworkplayworkplay.
I really try not to do the guilt thing, but I often feel guilty when I'm inside [read NOW] instead of outside on a beautiful fleeting August day, yet when I am am outside playing with my toddler, I feel equally as guilty that I'm not stuck inside looking for work. I know the work-life balance is a classic struggle moms go through, yet looking for a job poses its own unique problems.


Something's brewing. I'm going to be featured on a major coupon site, which is awesome, but there is a lot of work to be done in the meantime. And I'm confronted with a dilemma: do I continue to look for work, or spend my "free" time pursuing my dream of working for myself, or at the very least freelance? I'm fortunate to have something lined up for October, but what about until then?

Anyone else come upon these unique circumstances? I did come up with a temporary solution, if she's up for it: I have a SAHM friend who is also an outstanding playwright. On the days where she doesn't have coverage, maybe we can watch each other's kids, taking turns working. You up for it SAW?
                                                                                                                 image courtesy of toxel.com

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creating a website, finally.

MsCareerGirl Event

You know when you have second thoughts about attending a networking event for some silly reason? Yeah, well I had those about this particular event. I'm too old. I don't have a complete vision/business plan yet/it's a pain to go downtown, blahblahblah. And that's all those thoughts were. I am SO happy I went! I have to say, I am going to really make an effort to go to these events from now on. Some will be better than others, but I firmly believe that when it comes to reaching out, none are wastes of time.

MsCareerGirl herself: http://www.mscareergirl.com/ couldn't be nicer, and after reading her blog, I realized she too had some fears and trepidations about hosting as well. If we all had these and let them hold us back, nothing would be accomplished.

I FINALLY met Jill Salzman of: http://foundingmoms.com/ (who also couldn't be nicer and more supportive) and promised I would attend the next founding moms event. It's already on my calendar. Again, I didn't attend these meetings (mainly for mom entrepreneurs) because I didn't want to bring Z, they were "all the way" in Oak Park, or for some other foolish reason. But on the days/nights when I'm feeling like I'm in this alone, these meetings will help me. Even meeting Amanda Young: http://simplifiedmom.com/ (who had the cutest bookmarks promoting her book) and finding out she had similar things that were holding her back helped.

So this are definitely BABY steps, but steps nonetheless. I've applied to http://www.kraftfoodscompany.com/welcome.aspx. (Cross your fingers!) I'm making steps toward this candy biz. I need a name. (Any ideas?) Jill gave me homework of coming up with one before the meeting (and bringing said candy with me of course).

Now I wish I was going to blogher 11! I guess I have to write more first.

I'm getting somewhere.

Small steps. I met with a woman this morning (before work!) who works for Plum District. I'm not sure what the result of our meeting up will entail, but these are small business steps for me. On a different note, I also want to WILL start making candy to test out a few different recipes. Having a close pregnant friend who might pop at any moment is reason enough for gift giving and fun caramel/toffee/candy making. Even though the bacon thing is over saturated, I think it would make a great caramel, so I am going to experiment with that. Speaking of experimenting, I am also in the process of getting my foot in the door at a test kitchen, which would be super fun and a great opportunity. Working part-time and hangin' with the toddler set part-time? I like it. I see a tumbling class in our future, a block away, with the twins.

Too bad I can't take advantage of my time at Kellogg and take some type of mini-classes or something. If they were giving degrees out I probably couldn't get in. But I digress.
So..getting more focused. Honing. Thinking. Networking ideas. Ice cream? You never know. Etsy? Craft fairs? Farmer's Market?
babystepsbabystepsbabystepsbabystepsbabystepsbabystepsbabysteps