Miscarriage and Ectopic Pregnancy – A Chef, A Wife and a Child

by | a chef, a wife and a child, Blog, Children | 2 comments

A chef a wife and a child - miscarriage and ectopic pregnancyHave you ever noticed that many people have gone through the same struggles as you have, but you never knew it until you started to talk about it?  This happens to me all the time.

I had no idea how many women had miscarriages until I had one.

After the initial excitement of finding out that my chef/husband and I were going to have our first child, my thoughts and fears headed straight toward miscarriage.

I know now that many women have miscarriages, but my Mom had 14.  Yes you read that right. 14.  I am an only child and she was on bed rest the majority of her pregnancy with me.  I am like my Mom in many ways, but would this be one way I was like her as well?  I of course had no way of knowing.  So as we started to pray for our unborn child, we prayed that if it was God’s will, I would carry him/her full term. (more…)

Who Knew? A Blender, a Box of Clothes and Cheese – A Few of My Favorite Things – June 2014

by | A Few of My Favorite Things, Blog | 2 comments

{This post contains affiliate links.}

What a month . . . school’s out, the sun is shining, I had pimento cheese for the first time, got some great new clothes, went on a wonderful date with my chef/husband and I discovered this!

There are not many times where I can tell my chef/ husband about something new in the kitchen.  Actually, I don’t think there has ever been a time . . . until now.

I’ve already made it very clear that I’m obsessed with mason jars.  But who in the world knew you could attach a mason jar to the blade of a blender.  Well, apparently the people over at The Kitchn did as they are the ones I have to thank for changing my life!!

We drink a lot of smoothies and make a lot of salad dressings and salsas.  We don’t have a Vitamix. . . just an ordinary Oster blender recommend by Cook’s Illustrated a while back.  It works fine, but when you use a mason jar with it, it is AMAZING!!  The smoothies are so much thicker and frothier (is that a word?).  You don’t have to take the top off the blender and scrape down the sides.  It just works great!!  Plus, it’s one less dish to wash since we drink out of mason jars.  (Because washing the blender is so much work!)  I wish I would have known about this when I was trying to make baby food a few years ago! (more…)

The Death of a Parent and the Chef’s Wife

by | Being Married to a Chef, Blog, Friends and Family | 7 comments

Today would have been my Mom’s 66th birthday.  We lost her to cancer 12 years ago.

You would think after 12 birthdays, 12 of my parent’s wedding anniversaries, 12 Mother’s Days, etc., it would get a lot easier, but it really hasn’t.

There are so many things that come flooding into my mind on these types of days:  memories of being told she had cancer, seeing her suffer, seeing the helplessness in my Dad’s eyes, pleading with God to heal her or take her home to be with Him so she would no longer be suffering, feeling so alone and sad while home alone at night after she died, etc.

There are of course happy memories as well:  family vacations, playing the piano and singing together, doing puzzles, playing with play-dough in the kitchen while she cooked dinner, etc.

death of a parent (more…)

Last Minute Changes in Schedule

by | Being Married to a Chef, Blog, Chef Life, Children | 8 comments

So what hours does your husband work?  Besides being asked if my chef/husband cooks at home, this is the second most frequently asked question I get because of my husband’s profession.

The hours are crazy and always changing, but harder than the long hours, is the last minute change in schedule.  While my husband is the Executive Chef (and currently the interim General Manager) of the restaurant he works at, that is a ton of responsibility.  So if something comes up and it happens to be on a day he is scheduled to have off, he works.  Obviously there are others in the restaurant that can handle a lot of things, but sometimes, it has to be him.

Last Friday was a perfect example.  He was scheduled to be off, but a last minute meeting came up and he had to go in for a few hours (with 2 1/2 hours commute time as well.)  🙁 (more…)