I'm a mom of two beautiful daughters, Ashley and Tyler and our three cats. I'm very fortunate in that kids were born with mature palates and will eat just about everything I make. My parents are both European so I grew up eating lots of German food. My fondest memories include my Oma spending all day in the kitchen cooking and baking the most wonderful dishes. I thank her for being who she was and for inspiring me to cook with love. The kids and I love Mexican food, but we also love the comfy cozies like stews, chili and soups. We're also big seafood eaters so I'm always looking for different ways of preparing fish. A few years ago I developed a love for baking bread. I have no interest in owning a bread machine because to me, kneading your own bread is almost comforting, not to mention theraputic! I also love cooking and sharing recipes with my friends on our cooking forum. If you'd like to join in the fun please feel free to register at http://thefriendshipdiner.proboards.com/index.cgi? We have a great time chatting, playing silly games and trying new recipes together. Since my kids were babies, I have made a heart shaped meatloaf on every Valentines Day. I use onions to spell out "I Love You". A big pot of pea soup with sausage is our Halloween dinner tradition. After walking around in the cold with our friends, there's nothing like coming home to that comforting bowl of soup! Making six hundred cookies at Christmas time is something that my whole family and friends look forward to every year; and Christmas would not be Christmas without my Omas' famous and delicious walnut crescents. My mom is an amazing gravy maker and for years she tried to teach me, but mine never turned out nearly as well. Her method was a bit confusing to me. One day I was watching the "Frugal Gourmet", (remember him)? and he demonstrated gravy making step by step. His method made sense and was so much easier than my moms way. I can now FINALLY say that my gravy is as delicious as moms. Oh gosh, I was a teenager and decided to make chicken soup which was one of my Oma's specialties. It was actually starting to smell really good and I was beginning to feel pretty darn proud of myself. It came time for the noodles and I stupidly dumped the whole package into the broth. What I ended up with was chicken flavored noodles!