It's never going to be balanced perfectly, but I think if you schedule it out and you plan it, then it can happen.

– Patricia van Essche

On this episode of the Plan Simple Podcast, I’m so excited to talk with Patricia van Essche, a multipassionate artist, entrepreneur and mom. Her kids are in college or working now, and I love getting tips from parents a little further down the line. We talk about how she has flowed from one focus to another and the creativity that flows through it all.

She explained how she left a big job to be home with her kids. During that time she began doing decorative painting. When that fell out of fashion, she focused on her illustrations. Most recently she discovered pilates and is training to be a pilates teacher. She’s very passionate about her work, but also about being with her kids and about the food. We dove into how she found balance through systems, planning creativity.

While, I’ve been shifting away from focusing only on food on the show, Patricia’s passion for food is strong. We talked about the food she ate growing up and the desire for quick food, and about how she pulls things together quickly, even if it isn’t a fast meal. She talks about recipes that incorporate what she has on hand, using a slow cooker, and paying attention to the beautiful details.

We talk about:

• Being creative with food and showing your kids how to be creative and independent
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• Favorite kitchen tools that keep good food simple, like a juicer and slow cooker
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• How paying attention to the beautiful details helps us and those around us eat better
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• Focusing on how your body feels as a way to look better and the 80-20 rule (20% exercise and then 80% nutrition)
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• Pilates as a restorative practice that benefits mind and body and can help us heal
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• EFT as way to release and putting love into what you do greatly
• 
  
• 
  

BIO

Patricia van Essche, better known to her clients, fans and followers as PVE, is a bon vivant as well as an accomplished artist and illustrator. She has worked for numerous private commissions as well as with exclusive clients including J. McLaughlin, Secrets Gourmet, The Park Avenue Fund, The Princess Grace Foundation and Lava Barre. PVE lives in Westchester County, New York.  PVE is devoted to living artfully. She’s the mother of a college student and 25-year-old twins. And she most recently trained to teach Pilates and practices Yoga, Meditation and inspires others to find the joy of art and wellness.

LINKS

http://www.pvedesign.com/

Doable Changes from this episode:

• Know what you're going to have for dinner in the morning. Patricia got this tip from her mother, and it is one I share often. Simply knowing what you will have for dinner in the morning takes a lot of fretting and uncertainty out of your day. Plus when you know the plan, you can move food forward throughout the day.
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• No toys at the table. Dinner is a sacred time to connect with your family, to talk about what was good and bad about the day. You can’t do that when people are plugged in to their technology. Create a basket for phones or another system so that you can can focus on your family at a meal. (You can even ask guests to follow this ritual as well.)
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• Keep binders of food ideas. Patricia talked about Thanksgiving as a favorite meal and how she uses a binder to keep notes that she can refer back to the next year. You can also use binders for simple recipes you want to try (tap into...