We love food. All kinds. Seriously, we’re not picky eaters, especially when it comes to trying new foods. Fortunately, Chicago offers us a wide variety of cuisines in many ethnic neighborhoods. We can enjoy Indian, Vietnamese, Israeli, and Polish food less than 10 minutes from our home. I have so much fun introducing Evie to […]

Last month Chris and I took the kids to an apple orchard in Indiana. We hope to make this an annual family tradition as it is a very pleasant way to spend time together as a family on an autumn afternoon. When I think back to our trip last year I can’t believe how much […]

As much as I hate to say goodbye to summer, there is something rather warm and comforting about fall. Autumn traditions like apple picking and pumpkin carving evoke cozy memories from my childhood. I’m so grateful I can now share these customs with my own small family. Fortunately, Chicago has enjoyed a mild October, so […]

Baking can be a challenge for me. In general, I don’t like sticking to any recipe; I like adding more of one ingredient and less of another to make a dish my own. While this approach works fine with cooking, it doesn’t always work with baked goods. Baking is an exact science – too much […]

I recently conquered one of my fears. For years I have been interested in jarring and canning to preserve foods, but the process always intimidated me. All that boiling water…and fears of botulism contamination if the process wasn’t done exactly right…and what a waste of time and money if the jars didn’t seal…I was getting […]

I’ve been fortunate enough to visit India on a few occasions, and it is one of my absolute favorite places in the world. From the moment I step off the plane all my senses are energized. Bright colors everywhere, smells of spices and exhaust, sounds of people laughing and yelling and begging. It is overload. […]

Today started out kinda crummy. Evie, Mack and I were supposed to meet my husband in South Bend to cheer on our alma mater Notre Dame, but due to the rain and clouds and chilly temperatures we opted to stay in the city at the last minute. That left me with two energetic little ones […]

We started our weekend off right with a fresh batch of homemade waffles this morning. While Chris and Mack were upstairs slowly waking up, Evelyn and I worked on breakfast together. I measured the ingredients and she was in charge of pouring everything into the bowl. While she made a big flour mess as she […]

Little Evelyn is a total chocoholic. Just like her grandma, she needs at least a little bite of it every day in order to maintain sanity. So, when my friend Sarah over at PersonalFaves.com blogged about chocolate cookies she recently baked I knew I had to try out the recipe. Evie refused to nap this […]

Today at the farmer’s market Lane’s End Farm was selling baskets of “ugly” organic tomatoes for $1.50 per ound. While most people would look at the misshapen, bumpy, and uneven colored tomatoes with suspicion, I knew I found a little gold mine! My favorite was this two-for-one tomato that looked like a portly and friendly […]