I started cooking at the age of 6, in Grandma's kitchen, and although I have tried lots of things, cooking is the one thing I can't brush aside. I am extremely excited because I get to cook all the time now that I have accomplished culinary school. I haven't found one thing that is my favorite, but I am still looking... My family considers it a party when more than three family members are at the same place(I LOVE that about us)and,because of this ALL holidays come with different traditions. My favorites include birthdays, because there must be cake, complete with candles, and it doesn't matter how old the person. Thanksgiving, because all the women get together ahead of time to cook,(and gossip about kids, husbands...)and we cook all night. I thought I'd never be able to flip an egg and not get it everywhere. Although I still get nervous, I can flip with some of the best of them now! It all started with that first batch of what was supposed to be peanut butter cookies. I was soooo heart broken, and all my grandma could do was smile to keep from laughing. She told me that they were pretty, and they were, but unedible because they were so hard the could shatter a window. I was six years old then. I am sooo glad I was stubborn and pressed on to determine why they came out that way. One of the greatest lessons I learned in culinary school was that "A cook knows how...A chef knows why..." This helps to alleviate present day tragedies.