Mom of 3. . . busy with kids and our wonderful life. . . love to cook and try new things, but it's hard to please 5 people who have different preferences! I love Allrecipes.com for simplifying my recipe searches and providing valuable feedback from the members. After years of being stagnant in the kitchen, I'm loving to explore and create again. . . I'm a pretty good baker. I love to make cookies and the challenge of beautiful three layer cakes! I really enjoy almost anything with fresh veggies- the more the merrier. (now if only the rest of my family would agree...) :) I'm also always trying to make food healthier and more natural. After 10 years of marriage, my husband commented that I had finally mastered the art of chocolate chip cookies and he (now) likes mine the best! Doesn't sound like a big deal, I know, but I don't even like chocolate chip cookies- and he is pretty hard to please with food, so this made me feel great! For my first dinner party as a very young newlywed, I attempted a recipe from Gourmet for filet mignon (I don't eat steak, or know how to cook it!) something with alfredo sauce (in which I used the nasty green bottle of parmesan, instead of fresh) and my first attempt at gravy (which was lumpy and tasted terrible!) I'll never forget the kindness of those friends and neighbors as they waited patiently, and then ate it anyway! My husband's friend even insisted on taking seconds of the gravy, even though the rest of us agreed it was horrible!! Now that I've remembered this humiliation, I should probably call them all up and have them over for a proper meal. . .