Welcome Week #52!

It’s the last week in 2016 and can you believe how fast it went? I know, it’s totally cliche’ to write about how time flies, but it does! I don’t remember that being the case when I was a kid, but Mason said to me half way through this year, “Man mom, time is going so fast!” He was 12, but I suppose when you live a life like his as a kid, it would feel more grown up. Today Mason did his last television appearance of the year in Sacramento. He talked about how to make New Years Eve festive and fun for kids…he would know. 

It’s funny how much things can come around in just a few days. Last week I was really struggling with the whole gift situation that comes this time of year. Mason has been a normal 13 year old and all about what am I getting? It’s been driving me nuts because I want him to be more aware of the spirit of giving and how the magic of Christmas and Santa is really about giving and making other people’s dreams come true. The bottom line is, he’s a kid and as amazing and mature as he is in other realms of life, he’s still a little boy who is loving video games and gaming systems, and he wants more air soft stuff than he can likely use, he wants to go to the movies and he wants to eat crap food, and as his mom I need to just let some of this stuff be. It will pass and I really do not need to worry that he will grow up to be an entitled, selfish human, I don't think that's the case.

While I reflect on our year, how can I feel anything but gratitude? Mason worked a lot this year and by the looks of this last television appearance, it’s showing. After his segment while we were cleaning up, the anchor called to us to say, “In my ear, producer just said, “THAT WAS AWESOME!” that never happens! Good job Mason, you know how to do this and your set looked great!” That’s high praise and even Dave said to me, “Good job Kath, tell John Howard Swain he taught you well…so well, you’ve been able to teach Mason.” 

We were in Chicago in January shooting a pilot for a kid cooking show, Mason did his usual live cooking demos for the Home Shows, fairs, and festivals through the spring, summer and fall. I went to Las Vegas for the licensing show where it looks like I may have landed a gig for my RiverLights Originals art work in 2018, and we came home to get Dave his most favorite of all birthday presents, his Bernese Mountain dog puppy, Gunner. Mason and Dave then went back to Chicago where Mason filmed a spot with Steve Harvey while I was on a girls trip to NYC with Lisa Anderson. No sooner did we all touch down the same day in Sacramento, just two days later, Mason and I were back down in LA to shoot another spot for the pilot show we shot in January. That one will be interesting when it airs in 2017. From there we were back on a plane to Sheboygan, WI where Mason did a job for Johnsonville Sausage. That was a great trip! Not only did we have plenty of down time, we got to meet the good people at Johnsonville, and it looks like there might be more collaborations in the future. That project will likely be revealed next month, so stay tuned! 

Bring all of this full circle with Saturday Thanksgiving surrounded by our friends in the (not so) new house, I turned 50 (how the heck did that happen?!), and we shared another epic Christmas. There just isn’t room for anything in my heart except love and gratitude for this amazing life with my little family. 

Thank you for being on this journey with us, it wouldn’t be the same without you. Happy New Year, may you find this same kind of awesomeness in 2017!

2016 Mandarin Festival is a Wrap!

Another Mandarin festival is in the books! Thank you Gary Gilligan for all the hard work you put into this event and for including me as part of your team. I am honored to run the cooking stage and work with amazing home cooks and professional chefs side-by-side teaching people, having fun, entertaining, and most of all making good food. So many people make this happen, there's no way to thank you all. But just let me say, I'm just so honored to be a part of this event and the group of people who make it happen. It’s interesting to me as I travel the country with Mason as a kid cook, how many people don’t know about live cooking demos. Oh sure, they know Food Network and the celebrity aspect of a culinary show, but it seems that live cooking demos at fairs and festivals is not the norm. I think we are so lucky to be able to do what we do on cooking stages and the more I travel, the more I realize we really do create unique and special culinary experiences for foodies, both novice and professional, and the audiences who sit and watch us.

One more thought on this years festival, I want to congratulate Rachel Griffith for sweeping the recipe contest today at the Mountain Mandarin Festival. For those of you who know, the Griffiths and the Partaks have an ongoing rivalry to see who can win more with the recipes. It's been fun through the years and I could justify that Dave and Mason did not win anything today because I work the cooking stage and Mason mans a booth. However, if I were to do that it would be a complete copout. Rachel also mans a booth at the festival and I'm here to say that it is a challenge beyond belief to prepare a recipe, or two, or three to have at the festival before it opens when they're not due until noon. Rachel did that today and swept the contest winning three awards. Yes, three awards! I believe she won a first, a second, and the Snow's Citrus Court award. Rachel, correct me if I'm wrong. I just want to tell you that I'm so proud of you, you worked really hard, you earned it today and I'm so happy to call you friend. You go girl! Check her out at Polkadot Dinners.

He Doesn't Want A Kids Menu

Having an accomplished kid cook provides for some interesting experiences dining out. Tonight we were out and the first thing they ALWAYS ask, "Do you think you want a grown-up menu, or a kids menu?" I get it, but it doesn't matter that he's a kid cook (of course they don't know that), he looks more like a teen than a child. Then when he orders, most of the time the server gets that he has a better understanding of food than most kids his age. Not last night. Mason ordered like this, "I would like such-and-such burger, absolutely pink, all the produce, with sweet potato fries with a chipotle aioli please." The server, "Oh honey, are you sure you want pink, you know that's rare? And we don't have chipotle aioli, we have Sriracha, they are the same, I bet you will like it." Mason replied politely, "Yes, thank you, I know pink is rare." he looked at me and rolled his eyes as she walked away. 

My favorite part comes when they ask him how his meal was... "The burger was seasoned beautifully, but well done, absolutely not pink like I ordered. The sweet potato fries were cold, but the mozzarella sticks provided an epic cheese pull! My mom had to take it for me because my arm was not long enough to keep it going. Other than the meal taking a really long time to come out, which is probably why the fries were cold, it was okay." 

I guess I'm just trying to say, if we give our young people a little more credit, listen to them, I bet they will rise to whatever the occasion is and impress the heck out of us adults. #SayYes #EmpowerYourKids#HeDoesntWantAKidsMenu