I hope you enjoy my mixture of healthy and indulgent recipes and want to encourage you to wake up and look for something great in each day!

A few fun facts about me: (Just in case you were wondering)

Why I wanted to start blogging:

Much of my recipes are some of my family favorites from childhood, get-togethers, and new discoveries I’ve tried and loved along the way. After my grandmother passed, I realized that some of her and other family recipes might be lost or never made again and wanted to cherish and create a place they could live forever. I’m still digging up and enjoying and posting some of her recipes in-between some of my own creations. (My mom’s too!…and it’s so hard to recreate some of hers because she doesn’t measure.)

Early Childhood:

I grew up with three older brothers in the country. We loved exploring the land around us and our uncle had a chicken and cow farm we would ride our bikes to and spend the day naming cows, feeding them persimmons, fishing at the pond or enjoying fresh plums or peaches straight off the tree. Those were the days!

Our parents instilled strong work ethics by delegating daily chores such as mowing the lawn, and working in the garden (…and countless buckets of snapping beans!) Of course, at the time I hated it, but looking back I am very grateful for everything our parents did for us. Thanks mom and dad! My main chore inside was to set the table and clean up the kitchen after dinner. I thoroughly enjoyed setting the table, folding the napkins, getting everything “just so.” Mom did most of the cooking, but since I was around eight years old, mom would let me experiment with making cakes, pies, and always let me help make Christmas cookies, loved it! (my favorite ones were candy cane cookies)

I have an obsession with cookbooks!

We had lots of cookbooks, my favorite was the big orange Betty Crocker one. When I moved out, mom wouldn’t let it go, understandably. I was so attached to it, I made it my mission to hunt one down, and behold…I found one in an antiques store a few years later, to have and cherish forever! I’m addicted to recipe books, I have over a hundred of them. To me, they are a new adventure awaiting with each recipe and I love to “tweak” or “reinvent” them in a new, fun, healthier way. My favorite places to look for interesting ones are at library sales, yard sales, and Goodwill stores.

As a teen, I hated school, but loved soccer, dance class, and automotive technology was my favorite (I love cars!) I excelled in automotive and went to national competitions two years in a row. It wasn’t long after, I got my first full time job as a Parts Specialist at a local car dealership at the age of 18 and made it a career for the next 25 years….and love it! I’m currently still in the automotive industry as a Account Development Manager for Automotive Company and create recipes in my spare time.

My family:

My fun-loving husband, Kevin, helps with the photography sometimes and loves reaping the rewards of my hard day’s work by test tasting….oh, and he is my FAVORITE travel companion!✈ We are best friends and SO MUCH alike, and raised alike it is not funny. I have an amazing son that is a Marine veteran…so proud of you Ryan! OORAH!!! I also have two sweet step children, Shelby and Hayden…also my test tasters, thanks guys!😉

My favorite foods:

I’m in love with sweet potatoes!!! I bake some almost every week to eat for lunch. I just enjoy them plain…they are sweet enough if cooked just right. NEVER, EVER, boil sweet potatoes!!! …you’ll boil the yummy goodness and nutrients right out of them.

Close seconds: Dark chocolate, coffee, eggs, hummus and guacamole….and my husband would be disappointed if I didn’t mention I drink a LOT of water, like I need it within arms reach wherever I go…he thinks I’m part camel.

Foods I avoid:

• Corn! I avoid corn like the plague. It reeks havoc on my digestive system and is high in starch. Don’t get me wrong, at one time I LOVED corn on the cobb, popped corn, creamed corn….the taste is great, but not worth it. (Try finding a cereal without corn in it, VERY few out there!)
• Dairy
• Sugar…..ok, I want to fully avoid it, but lets be real…..I WILL still indulge in desserts at special times and occasions, or just to treat myself. (It also motivates me to workout harder so I CAN indulge a little! MOTIVATION BY FOOD!!!)
• Peas. I just never liked the taste and texture….and as kids, we couldn’t leave the dinner table till we ate all our veggies, so I would slop on some A-1, or mustard just to down them.

Random facts:

• I am an introvert (although I don’t seem like one when around people)
• I am an extremely routine person – I even eat the same thing for breakfast almost everyday: Two eggs, scrambled in coconut oil, turmeric and pepper, and shredded wheat cereal with fresh blueberries (and a cup of coffee…of course!)
• I am terrified of bugs and spiders, I would rather come across a snake.
• I love cars and driving fast! I have even been to the Uvalde Proving Grounds in Texas to test drive vehicles with Continental tires
• My favorite season is fall for many reasons: Weather is just right, beautiful color in the trees, pumpkin everything, and it’s the start of the exciting holidays!