Mama Bear Cookbook Series
Celebrates Great Food & Family Memories
Mama Bear Cookbooks, Ltd. is a family owned business, located on an island in the middle of no-where (as Lauren describes it).
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The Mama Bear Story
I have loved bears, for as long as I can remember. From this intense passion, my kids started calling me “Mama Bear”, a title that has stuck to this day. It all started with my desire to have a great recipe. From there I started collecting recipes and organizing them into book categories. Soon the family started cooking from my stapled together copies (which became torn and tattered with use). My mother started pushing me to publish my collections, but I was so busy being a mom, living life and raising a family, this never happened.
I started 2017 coming to the realization that (a family that I had taken in), people I so dearly loved, were only using us. It was devastating to me, to realize just how deep the deception had gone, in their attempt to tap into our fortune (so they thought). The split was not a gracious one, I was left with a head concussion, which took 8 months just for the dizziness to stop. Then in September of 2017, I was hit with a divorce after 24 years of marriage (not to mention a host of other facts to digest). Then one month after my divorce, I was told I had a lung disease, that would eventually take my life (a lung disease inherited from my mother). It was a difficult year, to say the least. Looking back, I realized the kids would constantly text me, asking me to send them (the key lime pie recipe, the chocolate cake recipe, the carrot nut muffin recipe). Trent started having friends over for barbecue and he was constantly texting me saying, “Mom can you send me a copy of my barbecue sauce recipe?” I soon began to realize, that if I didn't get these recipes written down into something a little more permanent, than cell phone screen shots (& stapled paper), these recipes would die along with me. After my "pitty party" was over and I had time to emotionally recover, I decided it was time to get to work. Compiling all of this into something a bit more permanent than just handwritten notes. Something the kids could use and remember, about special little things that happened in our lives over the years. My mother said it well when she recommended that I write cookbooks. She said if you do a photo album, people only look at that once or twice a year. If you do a cookbook, with family photos, people will look at it every day, every week, every month of the year. I soon realized, she was right. So I started gathering my recipes and pictures, things I wanted my my kids to remember. I started getting up at 3:00 a.m. every morning and writing for 4 hours every day. After four months, I had completed five cookbooks. 1. Belizean Roadside Bakery - Biscuits, Muffins & Sweet Breads 2. Belizean Jungle Sunrise - Breakfast & Brunch 3. Grandma's Candy Jar 4. The Belizean Cupcake Queen 5. Trent's Belizean Barbecue When my family saw the final product, they fell in love with what I was doing. My friends began asking me for copies of some of my recipes, encouraging me to publish my books so they could have a copy. Soon, the entire family started getting involved. I am happy to say, in February of 2018, Trent & Marcy signed their first book deal (Trent's Belizean Barbecue), followed by Lauren's cookbook (The Bealizean Cupcake Queen). Christina's cookbook, Belizean Jungle Sunrise, is due to hit press the end of April. With Marcy's book on beverages scheduled for publication by the end of June. We started talking to various business, asking if they would be interested in selling the books as souvenirs? The response was unanimous by all vendors, yes we are interested just bring them in when you are ready. I got commitments from Brodies, the Belize Zoo, Mirab's, Caye Supermarket, nearly all the grocery stores, and several local island resorts. Our first printing was for 2,000 cookbooks, it was a gamble but something inside me said, "do it". Christina and Marcy took charge and said, "We'll take care of the book sales Mami" (since I didn't have the energy for it). Before long, it became a real business, and the kids found themselves trying to organize themselves into what to do and how to go about structuring it. What has brought me the greatest satisfaction (thorough all of this), is knowing that my books have created a business for my children. A job that they can do from home, to be with their babies. They don't have to travel, unless they do it together (because everything we do at this point - is a team effort). I truly feel that Jehovah has blessed my efforts in so many ways. Though our family has gone through a tremendous amount of heartache and pain in the last few years, ironically every milestone thrown at us, has ultimately resulted in a blessing. I'm happy to tell you today, that Mama Bear Cookbooks, Ltd. is a thriving healthy business, that my children can support themselves on in the years to come. What started out as a desire for a good recipe, has now turned into something for my children to call their own. 
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About The Author - Mama Bear
People ask me (all the time), why do you love bears so much? My response, “Think about it! One of the first toys we are given (as a child), is a teddy bear. When we need comfort (from crying), we are handed this same teddy bear. In time, we begin to equate teddy bears, with security, love and comfort. Not to mention, they are big, soft, and cuddly.”
One of my favorite films growing up as a child was, “The Jungle Book”. I loved the story and I especially loved the bear (Ole’ Blu). He was a free spirit, he didn’t let life get him down, he was positive, he danced, he sang, he made the most out of any given situation, and he was especially fond of his man-cub. That pretty much describes me.
I am a natural mother to five children (three grandchildren), and I’ve adopted many children in my heart. I gave birth to all my children at home (with the exception of one). Of the ones born at home, one was born on the kitchen floor. To me, home has always been a special place. Many would even say, “Home is where your story begins.”
I presently live in the country of Belize (on a small island – off the mainland coast), where we have lived for the past few years. My children and I have enjoyed many wonderful memories and adventures together. Over the years, I have collected numerous recipes from my mother, grandmother, friends, relatives, neighbors and acquaintances. I have now compiled all these recipes, to create what I call “The Mama Bear Cookbook Series”,
It is my sincere desire, that you enjoy this cookbooks, as much as we do. Life is about “doing things together”, and cooking is one of those things – we can do together.
One of my favorite films growing up as a child was, “The Jungle Book”. I loved the story and I especially loved the bear (Ole’ Blu). He was a free spirit, he didn’t let life get him down, he was positive, he danced, he sang, he made the most out of any given situation, and he was especially fond of his man-cub. That pretty much describes me.
I am a natural mother to five children (three grandchildren), and I’ve adopted many children in my heart. I gave birth to all my children at home (with the exception of one). Of the ones born at home, one was born on the kitchen floor. To me, home has always been a special place. Many would even say, “Home is where your story begins.”
I presently live in the country of Belize (on a small island – off the mainland coast), where we have lived for the past few years. My children and I have enjoyed many wonderful memories and adventures together. Over the years, I have collected numerous recipes from my mother, grandmother, friends, relatives, neighbors and acquaintances. I have now compiled all these recipes, to create what I call “The Mama Bear Cookbook Series”,
It is my sincere desire, that you enjoy this cookbooks, as much as we do. Life is about “doing things together”, and cooking is one of those things – we can do together.
Cooking With Mama Bear
I’m do not claim to be a professional chef, I’m just a mom, who likes cooking to a good recipe. I dedicate the entire “Mama Bear Cookbook Series” to all my natural born and adopted children of the heart. They have been the inspiration behind every meal, I have ever made. Each individual cookbook (in this series), carries its own unique theme and is dedicated to a different member in my family.
The inspiration behind the Mama Bear Cookbook Series has been my mother (who passed away in March of 2014). My mother and I were constantly collecting recipes, tweaking and changing ingredients to make them better. In time, we had collected, created and tweaked enough recipes, that she pushed me to publish them in a book. For years, I was never able to do this, because I was busy raising a family. Now that my family has grown and moved away, I have had the time to compile my books and publish them for you to enjoy.
Cooking is a great way, to spend quality time with your kids. The great thing about cooking together, is eating what you’ve made. Children enjoy cooking, especially when it tastes good and everyone loves it. This inspires them to cook more. As my mother said on her death bed, “Do you know what makes me happy?” she asked. “Tell me mom, what makes you happy?” “Doing things together”, she said. So let’s do something together, let’s cook something and remember that each day is a gift.
The inspiration behind the Mama Bear Cookbook Series has been my mother (who passed away in March of 2014). My mother and I were constantly collecting recipes, tweaking and changing ingredients to make them better. In time, we had collected, created and tweaked enough recipes, that she pushed me to publish them in a book. For years, I was never able to do this, because I was busy raising a family. Now that my family has grown and moved away, I have had the time to compile my books and publish them for you to enjoy.
Cooking is a great way, to spend quality time with your kids. The great thing about cooking together, is eating what you’ve made. Children enjoy cooking, especially when it tastes good and everyone loves it. This inspires them to cook more. As my mother said on her death bed, “Do you know what makes me happy?” she asked. “Tell me mom, what makes you happy?” “Doing things together”, she said. So let’s do something together, let’s cook something and remember that each day is a gift.
