Hello Friend Podcast

Jeannette Kaplun is the founder of Hispana Global, which encourages women to be, feel and do their best, especially Latinas. She is an award winning parenting author, TV personality and blogger. I am grateful to call her a friend and I am constantly inspired by her giving spirit. She is a person who believes in using her voice and influence to help others. She doesn't just talk about it, she lives it.  In this episode of the show, Jeannette and I chat about her growing up in Chile and raising bilingual children. She also shares her thoughts on the importance of embracing language and the opportunities it presents. We also talk about why she is so passionate about helping others. And, how could I forget our discussion about being curly haired women and how we show our children how to embrace and love who they are.  Enjoy the show! Find Jeannette online: Hispana Global Hispana Global on Instagram Hispana Global on Facebook Hispana Global on YouTube Jeannette on Twitter Jeannette on Instagram

This week, I am talking to my friend, Jane Maynard about one of my favorite things...food! Jane has a wonderful blog called This Week for Dinner where she shares her weekly menu. She has grown a community of home cooks who not only share their weekly menus, they also encourage each other to prepare more meals at home with their families. In this episode, we talk about how Jane started This Week for Dinner and the evolution of the blog into a podcast. We also discuss how cooking is becoming more sophisticated because of our access to information and better ingredients. She also shares how she involves her children in planning their meals and enjoying cooking in the kitchen. There is a lot of great information in this show and I hope you enjoy it.

This week's show is for my listeners. I wanted to thank those of you who have left me ratings and reviews in iTunes. Your support of my show thrills me to pieces and I plan to include you more in upcoming shows. Also, I received a few listener questions and answered those on today's show.  Enjoy the episode and be sure to share with others.  I want to hear from you: What is your guilty pleasure song? Share with me via your favorite social media channel using the hashtag #hellofriendshow, or you can leave a message on the Hello Friend Podcast Facebook page or send me an email at lucrecer AT hellofriendpodcast.com

This week's Hello Friend guest is Elisa Camahort Page. We met at BlogHer and have never had a chance to sit down and have a real chat, so I was looking forward to having her on the show. Elisa is one of the co-founders of BlogHer and currently the Sr. VP of Community Content and Events with SheKnows Media.   In this episode, we talk about the vegan lifestyle, how Elisa, Jory and Lisa started BlogHer and evolved the event into what it is today. I asked her to share some advice with people who are interested in hosting their own conference and she offers some great insights about producing the event and her take on conference swag, which may surprise you. We also talk about her interesting cat, Backyard Kitty, comedy and how she has grown to embrace Instagram for sharing more of her personality even though she loves using Twitter. And, we take the guilty pleasure song to another level by sharing many of our favorite groups from the 90s.  Enjoy the show!

This weekend, I attended ProductCamp Cincinnati. I enjoyed mingling and learning from super creative people from a variety of industries in my area. ProductCamp is an unconference for passionate product people. While everyone who attended may not have been a product person specifically, we all had something in common. We were there to inspire and be inspired. I love being surrounded by makers and doers. The organizers did a great job hosting the event and creating an awesome experience for the attendees.  In this episode, I share my takeaways from the event and the four sessions I attended. I hope you glean something positive from the show. Enjoy! Find Angie online: ProductCamp Cincinnati ProductCamp Cincinnati on Twitter #PCampCincy on Twitter

Angie Keiser, mom of Sydney, aka Mayhem, is a talented photographer who runs a studio with her husband in the Cincinnati area. A couple years ago, she started making dresses out of paper with her daughter and took the fashion world by storm with their paper creations. When Mayhem was 4, she landed a gig designing a line of clothing for J. Crew. Angie and her daughter have also recreated looks from the Oscars red carpet and met so many amazing people along the way. In this episode, we talk about how Angie started making the paper dresses, how she has gone about growing and curating her Instagram following, how she selects opportunities for her daughter and the business of photography. Make sure you check out the dresses on Angie's Instagram page and enjoy the show! Find Angie online: Fashion By Mayhem Fashion By Mayhem on Facebook Fashion By Mayhem on Twitter Angie on Instagram I want to hear from you: I want to hear what your guilty pleasure song is. Share with me via

Jessi is hands down one of the funniest women I know and she has amazing eyelashes. Seriously, her eyelashes are ridiculous. They frequently cause me eye envy. We met last year at BlogHer and created a series of videos with Jenny Ingram, Kathy Bouska and Jenni Chui. It was some of the best fun I have ever had with other vloggers and it made me want to create more collaborative types of content. Jessi was definitely my inspiration for stepping up the sound quality of my own videos. Recently, one of Jessi's videos went viral. It was not her intention to create a viral video, but it resonated with many parents whose kids have headed back to school. In this episode of the show, we talk about the viral video and how it came to be, as well as how she started creating videos. We also talk about how consistency is ten times more important than trying to create something you hope will go viral. And, Jessi shares her guilty pleasure song and it almost floors me...becaus

Jason and I first became aware of each other through the coaching group, Achiever's Alliance. I am not sure what prompted us to start chatting, but I knew he was a kindred and incredibly smart.  Jason started sharing pictures of people he was having coffee meetings with from his Facebook account and I had to find out what this was all about. He shared the back story of how he got started with the 100 Cups and I knew it was one of the smartest ways for someone to start networking when your situation changes. In this episode of Hello Friend, Jason and I talk about how he was forced into entrepreneurship a few years ago and what he did to get started generating business. Jason also started creating videos, called Sip of the Day even though it was not perfect. If you are an entrepreneur or even thinking about it, Jason shares a wealth of knowledge in this episode that will help you improve your networking skills and take action. Enjoy the episode! Find Jason online: 100 Cups Consulti

Karen Walrond is one of my favorite people of life. She is an inspiration and a force unlike any I have had grace my life. She is a talented photographer, author,  and I love the glimpses of her life she shares through her photos. Her book, The Beauty of Different is more than a pretty coffee table book. It is filled with stories of people and her experiences and an exploration in finding the beauty in differences.   I know my running across her blog, Chookooloonks, years ago was no accident. She's a kindred and my sister in mass tomfoolery. I knew this episode would be full of shenanigans, laughs and a conversation she and I should have way more often than we do.  In this episode, we talk about being innovative and relevant in a noisy world, journaling, rum and Karen's experiences in hosting her first retreat. Plus, she takes away a few of my cool points after hearing about the song I recently put on my phone. I would be ashamed if it didn't have such a funky beat

I have been listening to Todd Henry's podcast, Accidental Creative for a long time. It is one of my favorite podcasts and I never miss it. When his first book, The Accidental Creative came out, I devoured it. Then he wrote Die Empty and it made me want to step up the life I was living and have no regrets. Then his latest book, Louder Than Words came out a few weeks ago and I have already read it twice. If I read a book that much, it is resonating with me on a soul level. It was an honor to have Todd come on my show and talk about his latest book. You will want to listen to this episode again. Todd drops mad knowledge and offers you actionable tips you can use right now to develop an authentic voice that resonates and creates impact. I like this book so much, I am purchasing and sending a copy to one of my listeners. It is one thing for me to tell you how great it is, it is another thing for you to read it for yourself. Louder Than Words is a boo

Nicole Blades and I will forever be bonded by Google Glass. We first met at BlogHer in Chicago in 2013, but we were talking to each other on Twitter well before that. She was one person I was excited to meet in real life. Nicole seems like a quiet person, but there ain't nothing quiet about her. She uses her words and her presence to make a difference. The way this woman paints stories with her words is awesome. She has a couple of books coming out in the next two years and I eagerly await them. I know you are going to enjoy our conversation. In this episode, we talk about our children and how we are amazed by their knowledge and joy in learning. We also discuss Franklin, the Peanuts character and how the importance of his being introduced in the comic gives Nicole hope for the future. She also shares how her own voice and platforms are evolving and how she is using them to make a bigger impact in the world and she shares how you can use your voice to speak up and stand for what matters to you. Nat

Last week, I was among the 1,000 current and aspiring podcasters to visit Fort Worth, Texas for Podcast Movement. I have attended some nice conferences over the years and this one is definitely in my top five. The organizers put together a great experience for the attendees and I enjoyed meeting lots of new people with great ideas. Being around that kind of creative energy gave me life. I was reminded creativity has to be nurtured and you must surround yourself with people who encourage and inspire you to be your best. I am not often thrilled by the session line up at most conferences. Many of the speakers spend more time telling you how awesome they are instead of respecting the audience time by giving them value. That was not the case with the sessions I selected to attend at Podcast Movement. I was honored to kick off the PMx style talks on Friday and it was one of my favorite talks I have ever given. I took the attendees back to my childhood dream of being a DJ and the mixtapes I used to make.

When I go to conferences, I tend to have a person or two I really want to meet. I don't always know why, but when I do, I know I have met a kindred. C.C. Chapman is one of those people. He ain't afraid to speak his mind or advocate for the things, people and causes he believes in. We have quite a few things in common and one of those things is Prince. Both of us are huge fans of His Royal Purpleness and I find out in this episode that C.C. is a hard core fan. We also talk about photography and he shares  why it remains a passion for him. He attended the Misfit Conference this year and his pictures truly told a story of the event and the experience. His recap of the event has me wanting to attend next year. C.C. is a true storyteller and you will hear that in our conversation. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Find C.C. online: C.C. Chapman C.C. on Instagram C.C. on Twitter To subscribe to the podcast, please use the links below: Click Here to Subscribe via iTunes Click H

Jenny and I met at the EVO Conference in 2010 and I loved her instantly. Firstly because she gifted me with a can of glitter spray and she instantly made me feel welcomed in a suite filled with 11 other moms I only barely knew. Jenny is a true kindred spirit. I know this woman on a soul level. We get each other. Jenny is known for her hilarious videos. It is never a surprise when her dogs Kevin and Gus show up at random times video-bombing while she is recording. I love it when her husband Paul and the kids make appearances in the videos, too. It's because I love them like family and quite frankly, they are awesome! In our conversation, we chat about our kids growing up, our love of bacon and Jenny's secret life as a pig farmer nanny...I had no idea! I hope you enjoy our talk. Find Jenny online: Jenny on the Spot Jenny on YouTube Jenny on Twitter Jenny on Facebook

Rey Brown and I never have a problem coming up with something to talk about and this episode is full of our tangents in conversation. Rey and his wife are about to welcome a new member to their growing family and he shares some of the many names they are deciding on for their newest daughter. He is big on helping people sync technology with their lives and shares quite a few tips on teaching your children to be responsible online and how to protect yourself by making changes to a popular app many of us have on our phones. Rey also has plans for a new podcast, Darn Technology and I am really looking forward to seeing what he and his co-host do with this one. Find Rey online: Rey on Twitter Smartphones Made Easy

Ryan E. Hamilton joined me as a co-host for the first episode of Hello Friend and he took his co-hosting duties seriously. So seriously, I chucked my notes out the window and we got right into the conversation. Ryan and I met last year at Type A Parent Conference and this conversation is a continuation of that and more. We share a mutual love (or obsession depending on how you look at it) of notebooks as well as a mutual respect for children's sidewalk art and sketchnotes. He also goes into how he got started in blogging by sharing a compelling story of personal triumph as well as how he is an unlikely podcaster based on his background as a coder. Ryan also shares the beginnings of Life of Dad and the strength and support of the dad blogging community. This was a great conversation and one I hope you enjoy. Find Ryan online: Ryan on Twitter Life of Dad  

Hello, Friend! In this preview episode, I introduce you to me and the podcast. I have an incredible group of people to introduce you to in upcoming episodes and I can’t wait for you to hear their stories.