First I was a big sister, then a babysitter. This led to volunteering in educational settings (elementary school, Brownies, Cub Scouts, music, drama, library, storytelling, tutoring, reading aloud). When our own four children arrived, we homeschooled. This led to developing seminars for parents, volunteers and educators: Seven Predictable Patterns®. Public speaking brought travel. Meanwhile, in the springtime I was learning how to raise a garden and chickens. In the summertime, I learned where to gather fruit. In the autumn I learned how to store huge amounts of food for the winter by canning, freezing, pickling and making jam. In the wintertime I bake bread and make patchwork quilts.