You see, I’ve been following The CRAVE Company for some time now, ever since I saw Kelly Beth (whom I attend DCC with) tagged in a photo at one of their parties a few months back. I’ll be honest. I was green with envy. And I drooled a little bit. Okay, a LOT. I only wished I could have been at that party – everything looked so incredibly amazing and fun. So I had to check it out and see what CRAVE was all about.

Turns out, it’s a group of incredibly awesome female entrepreneurs in major metropolitan areas around the country. So I did what any girl would do – I hopped on Twitter and started following the three cities that are most relevant to me: Denver, Seattle and Phoenix to see what was going on. Then I learned about the CRAVE guide. So I asked about it, and immediately got a call back from Mia, who heads up the Denver chapter.

Long story short, I decided with that one phone call to jump in with both feet. I could not be more excited. So look for me in the book come December. And if you are a woman who owns her own business in one of these areas, I encourage you to check it out.

Growing up, my mom was always “dressing up” the food she made – mac & cheese would have little chunks of ham or tomato in it, Top Ramen would be brought to life with a cup of frozen peas & carrots, a little bit of orange zest cooked in with the cranberry sauce, or a pot of green beans would be more delicious with a few bits of bacon cooked in.

I hated it.

I remember a day that I told my mom that when I grew up, I was going to make normal food and not add a bunch of crap to it. She laughed and pointed out all the things I love that aren’t “plain” – fried rice, peanut butter and banana sandwiches, or grits with cheese and gravy. I think she knew that some day, I would recant my statement.

Somewhere between that day and a rainy afternoon outing in Seattle, I decided I wanted to be a chef and open a restaurant. I had developed an intense passion for food over the years but being in Seattle, where there are so many wonderful eateries, intensified this passion. I knew I was a “foodie” when I realized that when giving directions, all of my major landmarks were restaurants.

When I wasn’t out enjoying a fabulous meal someplace, I was cooking up a storm. My “plain” Thanksgiving turkey transformed into a spiced apple/sage rubbed bird with a mushroom gravy. My fajitas were marinated in a chipotle-garlic sauce before grilling. I attended classes with Tom Douglas and Martin Yan. I loved experimenting with new flavors and methods, even when they failed.

Further research into the restaurateur profession uncovered the sad truth of the industry – high-risk and high-failure. Yeah, not for me.

So I’ve limited my enjoyment of culinary arts to eating at new restaurants and cooking in my own kitchen. Last night, I had the pleasure of enjoying a Tweetup with my Flagstaff Tweeps at the Tinderbox Kitchen. I had heard raves about it, but hadn’t yet had the pleasure of experiencing this delightful establishment in my hometown. Not only was I completely wowed by my dinner, I was amazed at the ambiance and the service.

We enjoyed happy hour at the Annex, then my mom and I headed over to the main restaurant for dinner. I had to snap this picture with my phone before devouring it – a Kobe Sirloin, topped with a blue cheese fondue, marinated onions and bell peppers, served with pepper fries. I had to refrain myself from licking the plate. Seriously.

I can’t wait to go back.

]]> http://www.eunicebrownlee.com/2010/09/spotlight-tinderbox-kitchen/feed/ 0 http://www.eunicebrownlee.com/2010/08/back-to-school-special-2/ http://www.eunicebrownlee.com/2010/08/back-to-school-special-2/#comments Tue, 24 Aug 2010 15:58:26 +0000 Eunice http://www.eunicebrownlee.com/?p=418 I can’t believe it’s already that time again – the neighborhood is bustling with kids walking to the school bus in the mornings. It’s only a few weeks before those leaves start to turn now. To celebrate a new school year, I am offering a special through August 31st.

The nitty-gritty: reservation must be made by August 31st. Session date must be prior to October 15, 2010. Payment is due in full at the time of booking. Due to the nature of a mini-session, all sessions are limited to six people. If you need a session for a larger group, please book a regular portrait session.

Please note that I will be in Colorado from September 15-21st, and I am happy to book sessions during that time as my schedule allows.

Book now by clicking here!

Mike and Gina met through e-Harmony, and it was an instant click. He’s a teacher. She’s a social worker. Together, they are magic. In Gina’s words, “he’s just perfect!”

On the eve of the high school prom he was chaperoning, Mike proposed to Gina by putting the ring in the dessert case at the Cheesecake Factory. I am a total sap for sweet proposal stories, and that is – well, awesome (yes, I welled up a bit when she told me the story).

I was so excited for their shoot! We headed to Manitou Springs, a quaint little town at the foot of Pike’s Peak in Colorado.  I had never been there, but it’s one of Gina’s favorite places.  I can’t wait to go back and visit again! I loved all of the cute little shops, and the whole town had the sweet smell of incense.

First, we headed to the COG Rail Station after ducking out of a cloud burst that we had hoped didn’t spoil the session.

Gina found it quite serendipitous that we caught a rainbow right after the storm. She pointed out that the rainbow is God’s promise to us, and their wedding is their promise, under God, to each other.

We took a few shots at the base of the Incline – a trail that is 1.1 miles at a 68% grade – and marveled at the fact that a friend of ours had hiked it a couple of times. As for any of us attempting it – well, we’ll see. I got winded just walking up to the parking lot.

Then we headed back into town.

This was the cutest little church.

A little arm wrestle challenge! Mike won, but Gina put up a good fight.

Gina and Mike are getting married in December in Frankenmuth, Michigan. I am so excited to visit this Bavarian town and shoot some Christmas-y wedding portraits of these two! Congratulations Mike and Gina!

While I appreciate the beauty of motherhood, I wasn’t sure how to incorporate this milestone into my style. So when Naomi and Billy asked me to shoot their parents to be portraits, I had to get my creative juices flowing.

Boy did they make it easy. With their dogs, Bella and Molly, we got a nice family portrait.

We got a quick belly shot of little Brechtel Paul on the inside.

We got some shots out on the street nearby.

These two were cracking me up with their flirting. And yes, she’s grabbing his crotch. That’s how these two roll! So funny!

If I didn’t know better, I’d swear this was an engagement session! These two are so totally in love with one another. And excited for their new addition!

We headed over to a nearby park, where we got some fun shots.

I even got Naomi to climb a tree! Let’s just say getting her up there was much easier than getting her down without hurting her. But so glad she was game!

This one just cracks me up because it totally reminds me of those Toyota commercials from the 80′s.

This session was definitely one of my favorite sessions ever. I’ve never laughed so much! Congratulations, Naomi and Billy, on the arrival of your sweet baby boy, Brechtel! Also a special thanks to Michael Kuhns, who did the photo editing on this shoot.

We all know the economy’s been a little tough on us, and affording such simple luxuries as professional portraits have been ousted for more important things, like new clothes to wear to that job interview. For some, it hasn’t been so bad – for others, it’s been worse. While it might be easy to be diligent about scheduling regular family portraits, sometimes it’s hard to be able to afford all the prints and fun products you’d like to splurge on when the budget is trimmed down.

So from now through July 31st, ALL sessions booked will receive the full amount of the session fee in product credit! Interested in a collection instead? Great! The full amount of the collection price is yours in product credit!

To see our variety of sessions and collections and book your appointment, click here.

Colorado clients, I will be in Denver from September 15-21st and will have 8 sessions available that week.

The fine print: All sessions must be scheduled for a date prior to September 30, 2010. A $50 retainer fee is due at the time of booking.

While I completely and totally understand the gist of this article is creative ways to save money on your wedding while still keeping it special, you should know that you get what you pay for. And if that’s what you want your wedding to be, great. You can stop reading now. Otherwise, if you think it’s realistic to have the wedding of every girl’s fantasy on that kind of budget, read on.

What I do love about this article, is their approach – the most important thing to nail down at the beginning of your wedding planning is what you expect out of your day and go from there.

So if you want exotic tropical flowers for your November wedding, and you want a photographer that comes with her own entourage and you want a cake with multiple tiers and custom flavors and you expect to have your wedding at a high-end country club on a Saturday night in the middle of summer, do not expect to fit that into a $2000 budget. While there are certainly ways to minimize the costs, you still need to be realistic on where you’re willing to give in. Is it more important to you that your guests rave about the delicious menu, or that the DJ gets them all out on the dance floor? Decide on your priorities and then you can find ways to fit the details into your budget, not the other way around.

Keeping this in mind will help you to have a special wedding day,  no matter what your budget is.

So let’s start with a few announcements!

First thing’s first — the show at Il Posto is still happening. It’s just postponed, thanks to a small personal crisis that left me unable to make it to Denver on time. I know, nice of me to tell you ten days late. It’s been a crazy month and I’m actually relieved that it’s over. I’m sorry for the delay, but the show will open on July 16th and I hope to see you there.

Secondly, I promised a portrait special, so here it is! For all portrait sessions booked now through July 31st, you will receive the entire session amount in product credit. Session dates may be booked through September 30th. To set up your portrait session, click here.

Denver fans – I will be in Denver September 15-21st, so if you’re interested in booking a session, please let me know right away! Only 8 sessions are available.  Book now.

There are still a few spaces available for 2011 senior models. If you’re interested in getting the most out of your senior portrait experience, contact me for more information.

Lastly, the big re-design/re-brand project is fully underway. I’m really excited to pull everything together in the next few months.

There is a lot more going on, but with the J.O.B. and summer school, it’s been tough to keep up. More to come soon!

I promise I won’t give or sell your information to anyone, for any reason, ever. I hate spam and telemarketers as much as you do. You can opt out of receiving the newsletter at any time. Thank you for being a fan!