I come from a large family of all boys-six brothers and no sisters. My mom died while I was young so between these things and the fact I have loved cooking since I was 4 Years old I was given the opportunity to have my own kitchen since I was 13 years old. I've pretty much cooked 3 meals a day since then--giving me the opportunity to try and develop many recipes. Main dishes...Holiday Foods...Ethnic and Historical Dishes...Food for Events...Potlucks I love having the kids in my family over to make Popcorn Balls or a Taffy Pull using my mother's old recipes circa WWII. Another is Green Dinner on St. Patricks Day including a green beverage. An "All hordevoure party" on New Year's Eve ending with champagne and Apple Cider toasts at midnight. Every course is served finger/appetizer style including dessert--chocolate and carmel fondues. I've won a few baking contests which I'd like to try doing more often now that I have more time. My biggest triumphs are those when I make a mistake and it ends up better than the original. Like my casserole we named "Doodle" when I inadvertently confused two different casseroles making a mixed up combo of both. Everyone loved it and it's been a family favorite for 6 years now. When I was on a teriakyi kick and tried to invent teriakyi grilled fish. It was soo bad no one ate it. Homemade Buttermilk Cornbread using a different recipe than usual. It came out a cross between a stale bisquit and corn tortilla. We were all glad I'd made a double batch of chili that night. A homemade version of "Hot Pockets" for the toaster--bad idea--the cheese began to leak out (filling the toaster with slime) and nearly causing a kitchen fire.