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Susan Palsir Huber ’87: Martha Stewart for the rest of us

By Kathleen S. Carr ’96

After graduating from Holy Cross, Susan Palsir Huber went on to earn her law degree at Villanova, then practiced law as an associate prosecutor for eight years in Trenton, N.J. During that time, she married, had three children and, eventually, “retired.”

Huber spent the next 10 years raising her family, volunteering and working in her kids’ classrooms. At one point, she started a party planning business—but decided that it was so labor intensive it didn’t make sense for her.

“I have a good friend, Kim, who is a Wharton business graduate and a computer person,” Huber explains. “She came to me with a business proposal to start a Web site together.”

From there busybeelifestyle.com was launched. Huber’s Web site offers practical advice on everything from packing for a trip to organizing an outdoor cocktail party.

“Some sites in our niche spend a lot of time trying to be hip and cool,” she says. “That isn’t me. I write about whatever is on my mind. Right now, we’re getting ready for a ski trip, so I’m writing about how and what to pack. I’ve also started to give lectures to moms’ groups, with hands-on workshops.

The site gets an average of 1,600 visits a day. The most popular searches? High School Musical party ideas and birthday treats for school classrooms that are not cupcakes.

“I answer all the questions I get from people who write in,” Huber says. “I once received a question from a woman asking for fashion advice for a family traveling to Paris, so I did a bit of research and gave her some tips. I do all the writing, and my business partner does the marketing, advertising and posting. We hope to bring in more expertise down the road—including fitness, finance and fashion advice.

“My friends have dubbed me, ‘Martha Stewart for the rest of us,’” she says. “I try not to recommend anything I haven’t tried myself.”

As proof, Huber notes that she once almost set her house on fire while trying out more than 500 different pumpkin seed roasting recipes.

By the way, for all of you Holy Cross tailgaters who are already planning for the fall, search the site for tailgating advice, and you’ll find recipes, serving ware and accessories.