Visit Miss Clara's intriguing work space

My very good friend (even before life with Barefoot), stellar ambassador and team member Melissa East recently sent me this video clip of Miss Clara, stating, "I think she's magic."

My boys and I agree, having read The Snow Queen in one marvelous sitting. Enjoy a peek into Miss Clara's workspace and no need to worry if you don't speak French - magic translates remarkably well.

Sorry, CultureBox has taken the video down. Be sure to have to look at Les Carnet de MissClara and you'll even find some pictures of her recent work at the Concord Museum.

Meet our team!

These smiling eyes and dimples belong to Colleen O'Hearn who hails from Wilmington, Massachusetts.  Happily, I'm able to claim her as a Tier 2 team-member which makes her something like a second-cousin to all of you.  Ambassador Leader Carie Miele has full bragging rights.

In her own words:

I'm a mom.  I am the keeper of the healing magic in band-aids. I am the griller of cheesy sandwiches. I am the master of hugging, and I am the remarkable reader of all stories. I have the most wonderfully exhausting job in the world. I'm the mom to my two beautiful children. 

Colleen truly is "the remarkable reader of all stories."  So much so that a recent forum post caught Barefoot's eye and they asked Colleen for an interview.  Of course she obliged, and now we get a peek into the O'Hearn family storytime over at the Barefoot mother blog:  The Importance of Storytime:  Part 2. 

Join Colleen at Destination:  Happy for a window into her wonder-filled world.  Be warned, do not read her posts until you've swallowed your coffee as Colleen looks at the crazier moments of mommy-hood with that same twinkle in her eye.

 

Meet our team...

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of sitting down to tea with Ambassador Leader and team member Sandra Price to ask her to share with us a bit about herself.  Okay, okay, wishful thinking...in reality we were exchanging emails since she lives a three hour drive from me in eastern Massachusetts, close to the New Hampshire border.   I just know you will enjoy meeting Sandra as much as I've had the pleasure of knowing her and having her as a colleague.

Sandra, you have such a great and unusual Barefoot business.  I know you were a former elementary school teacher who never lost her love for teaching.  Please give us a peek into your world.

"Wow, what a great display of beautiful children's books!" Five years ago, that was my first thought and introduction to Barefoot Books. As a former Educational Publishing Sales Rep I sold literacy materials to schools in New England. I was an exhibitor at an Early Childhood Conference and met Amy .....who had a very creative book display of Barefoot Books. Everything about the books, art and story, (sound familiar?) were so engaging. I wanted the opportunity to sell the books in any creative endeavor I chose. I decided I would use my relationships with District Curriculum Coordinators and offer Family Literacy Presentations to parents after school.

Tell us about your favorite Barefoot moment.

My favorite Barefoot moment, well, I have a couple of them. After a presentation, a dad came up to me, shook my hand and thanked me for the idea of using emphasis and tone to make the story come alive with meaning. He never thought of that! During another presentation, in which I had a Spanish interpreter, many of the parents were sharing their at-home literacy activities and clapped after the presentation. Simple but very rewarding. For them and for me!

So, how do you stay motivated when running your own business?

I keep motivated by just doing what I am doing (and not worrying about what I can't do). While I don't sell full-time now with Educational Publishing sales, I do work full-time at the American Textile History Museum in Lowell, MA. I am able to schedule my presentations after work.  

Textile history...sigh...fascinating.  Okay, Sandra, how about some fun information about yourself we probably don't know.

I know some of you already know this about me, but some of you don't. I have an identical twin sister. She is now retired from a rewarding career as a Reading Specialist. She enjoys Barefoot Books as much as I do!

Seeing you with your twin at Barefoot gatherings is so much fun.   Thank you Sandra for sharing some of your story with us.  It's truly been a pleasure to work with you.

Please join me in congratulating Sandra on her fourth year(!) with Barefoot Books, which will be celebrated on October 3rd.  Congratulations Sandra and many happy returns!

Crafts For Your Business

I wanted to share with you two fun, simple and inexpensive crafts to use at your events. Adding a craft is a great way to get a reduced booth fee or gain entry into an otherwise closed event.

Enjoy!

This little book is so easy to make and doesn't use glue, tape or staples.



This origami bookmark is so simple you can teach children and adults in less than a minute. If you won't be standing at the craft table, you can make a "how-to" by having a mock up of each fold.
Note - You may want to turn the sound off for this one.

Do you have a favorite craft to use at Barefoot events? If so, let us know!

The Winner is...

My display at a monthly street festival held in our small city.

Amanda Courtright who said,

Hi Richele - so glad to meet you virtually :). I too am under Karen who is such a great helper! I've jumped right into this business and she has been there to support me 100% of the way - by allowing me to borrow stock to do an event!! I am super excited about all that Barefoot has to offer and soo excited to come to conference and meet more people with the same passion!! Hoping to get a chance at that $75 worth of stock - every bit helps!!

Congratulations Amanda and it's great to hear about your passion! I'm looking forward to meeting you and Karen at the conference as well.

Thank you all for your comments and see below where I addressed the most popular topic of getting started and acquiring inventory.

Slow and Steady

Photos from a booth that fellow ambassador, Tricia Santos, and I set up at a yearly holiday craft fair. We both started small, building our inventory in order to attend larger events.

My Mac just returned from the computer hospital and I'm officially back on-line. Now, where were we...

Most of the emails I receive have to do with getting started and building an inventory. Since there are so many new team members, I want to direct you to an oldie, but hopefully a goodie, post entitled Inventory and Money.

It has also just come to my attention that Barefoot's "Getting Started" training calls are not taking place for the time being, so this is your official invitation to schedule a call with your leader or up-line leader for a personal call. I'm happy to work around your schedule. If you would like to set up a call with Barefoot's Group Training & Development Manager you can do that as well by writing: help@barefootbooks.com

Either way, via the website, email campaigns, calls and blogs, we want you to get the information you need.

Team-members, you have until the 9th for a chance to win that book give-away below!

Introduction and the beginning of the Give-aways!

Hello. This is me barely able to lift my fork to my mouth after seven hours, three parks, one zoo and one museum on that trip to NYC I emailed you about.

Our team has exploded (in a good way) in recent months so it's time to pick this blog up, re-introduce myself and have some fun with a team give-away.

My name is Richele and I'm a bookaholic. You too? Also, I've never stopped reading children's books and, well, I'll bet you haven't either. I'm a working mom. Ditto? I'm in the midst of spring cleaning as well. Which room are you currently de-cluttering?

If you noticed that I'm wearing my wedding ring on my right hand, it's because I'm married to a Russian man and that's what they do - just a wild guess but I'm thinking you're not. Besides reading, I love to write, cook, bake and eat (not necessarily in that order) and am a bit gaga for all things Charlotte Mason, a British educator who believed children should be taught as whole persons through a wide range of living books, firsthand experiences, and good habits.

As for my official Barefoot life, you can check out my Barefoot profile for that. In addition, those on our team that work with me closely can tell you I am like a mother hen when it comes to my Barefoot team. I cluck, I brood, and I worry that I am either doing too much for you or not doing enough. It is hard to strike that balance.

My passion is helping you reach your goals in your own business. Coming up on five years in this Barefoot life, I've done about any type of event you can think of. I now spend my working time by answering your emails, working with other leaders and the office to further the Ambassador program, giving presentations and teacher trainings using Barefoot books, and handling my key accounts.

Enough about me, what about you? How can I best help you achieve your goals?

If it's team building and you have a blog, please send me your link and I'll post it to the right. Our many non-team visitors can check out your blog and sign up under you.

If it's inventory building, leave a comment (team members only) and you'll be entered into a random chance drawing to win $75 in Barefoot.so.beautiful.you.could.lick.the.pages books.

You have two weeks to think and comment as the drawing will take place Monday, May 9th.

Barefoot in February...brrr!

Not much has changed here...our boys still love to read in front of the wood stove. Max's "Thinking Cap" is a new addition, though.

Busy 4th Quarter followed by a short break and then a jump into taxes. I'm working on a newsletter to get out to all you lovely people as Laurie and I are still playing around with how to reach those that want to be reached in the best manner.

Most exciting, of course, is team member Robin Muskin's win of a hybrid car. Word on the street is the Honda Insight is her choice. Hmmm, how many books fit into one of those anyway?! Congratulations, Robin!

Anything special you'd like to know about for 2011? Leave a comment and I'll feature it in the next post.