I've been cooking for over 35 years but only in the last few years have I felt more confident in my abilities. I've experimented more with the help of All Recipes, the Food Network, and magazines like Quick and Easy and I actually enjoy cooking now! I've been a dispatcher for the Sheriff's Dept for nearly 28 years and am looking forward to retiring in the next year or two. Then I'll do some traveling and hope to pick up recipes from all over! I love using the slow cooker as it's such a time saver after a long day. I love meals that have fewer, fresher ingredients that I can put on the table in an hour or less. And I love making soup with every vegetable I have in my kitchen. I once made a Raspberry trifle which was not only beautiful to look at but everyone raved about how good it was. My mother could not stop sampling it. I was proud of that since I don't really bake much and don't do many desserts. And every Thanksgiving I get compliments on my meal (with the help of some wonderful allrecipes.com recipes). I have a few recipes that people insist that I bring to potluck dinners. Years ago, I tried a recipe for "chili dog pizza" that I thought would interest my family. It was tasty but with the way it looked, my husband wouldn't even taste it! Now if we want a chili dog, I don't make it in pizza form....