Kathy Patalsky - Notes
Notes is the audio home for the writing and voice of Kathy Patalsky — an author, writer, and photographer living in Los Angeles.
It’s a collection of unfiltered short essays that say out loud the thoughts many people carry quietly, capturing modern life as it unfolds in real time.
A mother and creative entrepreneur, Kathy writes with emotional clarity and a sharp cultural lens, moving between personal reflection and cultural observation with ease.
An elder millennial with deep ties to pop culture, technology, and online storytelling, she has been creating on the internet since 2007 — moving through an iconic blog, cookbooks, screenwriting, paid brand collaborations, contributor roles, and digital media. A two-time cookbook author with a global audience, her career has unfolded publicly, alongside the culture itself.
Kathy Patalsky - Notes
pink lemonade
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
If you need one easy win this week - this is it.
In this episode, I’m talking about the blur of weekends with a young kid, the moments that don’t stick, and the one thing we did that actually did: homemade pink lemonade.
It’s simple, it’s fun, and I walk you through exactly how to make it .. plus why it ended up being the highlight of the entire weekend.
hosted by Kathy Patalsky
IG: KathyPatalsky + notes.kathy
Not because making lemonade is groundbreaking, but it's one of those classic, cheerful, slightly magical things. You're listening to notes with Kathy Petalski. Today's episode, Pink Lemonade. So spring break is coming up, which means a lot of us are about to be home with our kids, staring down long sunny afternoons, trying to figure out what exactly we are supposed to do with all that time. And I have an activity for you. It's easy, it's cute. It's called homemade pink lemonade. It's a simple activity that kids will love. If you had asked me what I did over the weekend, I honestly could not tell you. I know we were busy, I know there were activities, I know at some point we were in the car with snacks and water bottles and half-finished coffee and somebody's sweater and probably one sock that Rosalie pulled off of her feet on the floor because she doesn't really like socks right now, but she kind of needs them for some of her shoes that are still too big on her, and that's just a whole thing. But what I really remember about the weekend planting flowers that we had just picked up at the garden store, spraying the hose and seeing that little prism rainbow show up in the sun. I remember some fluffy pancakes and fresh blueberries, foamy soy lattes. I remember being late for gymnastics, and I remember jumping on our giant trampoline in the backyard until the sunset. And at some point after that, you hit the part of the day where you need a bridge activity, a mood shift, something that gets everybody out of that weird late afternoon slump where your kid wants to melt into the couch, but it's still too early to fully give up on the day. Do you want to make lemonade? Wait, do you want to make pink lemonade? And suddenly we had a plan. And this is why I'm telling you about it. Not because making lemonade is groundbreaking, but it's one of those classic, cheerful, slightly magical things. It feels like a life skill. And this recipe is easy enough to remember. Yes, it's on my blog, healthyhappylife.com. It's six cups of water, one cup of sugar, one cup of fresh lemon juice, a pinch of salt, a lot of ice, and for the pink, some frozen dragon fruit. That's it. Pretty simple. And the thing is to dissolve the sugar, you want to heat up some of that water really, really hot, and then dissolve the sugar into that hot water. And then you just mix everything together, stir it really well. I love these frozen dragon fruit cubes, but there's also pataya smoothie packs. There's also dragon fruit powder. Suddenly the whole pitcher will be this Barbie pink color. The whole thing felt like making a potion. I pulled out some green glasses and she poured. And for reasons I still do not understand, she filled every glass to the absolute top, overflowed every single glass. I think it was a creative choice, and it fit the vibe. The pink lemonade was bright and extra and sweet and a little over the top in the best way. Fresh and tart and cold and cheerful, the kind of drink that makes total sense after a hot long day. The kind of thing that feels like childhood in a glass, but better than the version you had as a kid. We took the glasses outside and sat on the warm wooden deck with our overflowing lemonade. And that's the moment I really remember from my weekend. Not the busy schedule or going from place to place. I remember her on that little stool, the picture turning pink. And I remember her insisting that we needed three glasses because I couldn't forget daddy. And I remember those ridiculous overflowing cups, how I grabbed the paper towels and cleaned up the mess. And I think that's why I wanted to give you this one. Give you the moment. If you're looking at a long spring break afternoon or summer weekend, or just one of those days where everything is home and a little tired and bored, and you need one good idea that is easy and happy and actually delivers, this is a good one. It doesn't take all day. The cleanup is totally manageable. And your kid gets to make something real and feel proud of that. So if you need one good, easy win this week, this is it. Pink lemonade. This was Notes by Kathy Petalski. For more, follow Kathy on Instagram or visit healthyhappylife.com.