Moms That Blog (The Interviews)

Introducing......Jenni -  She's a stay at home mother of one gorgeous little girl.  She not only shares her super awesome, yummy recipes on her blog, but she lets you take a peek inside her recipe box as well and that's what makes her a great Mom That Blogs!

 

Tell us a bit about yourself.....My husband and I met in college, where we were both Biology/Chemistry double majors, so we had a lot of classes together. One thing led to another, and now we are married! My husband went on to Medical School, and is in his first year of Residency for Internal Medicine. We have one beautiful daughter, who will be 2 in June. We also have two "furry kids" Peanut and Scout, our dogs, who are 5 and 7 and have just as much personality as our daughter! I have really enjoyed being a stay at home mom the last year! I think it is so amazing being able to watch my daughter grow and learn, and I feel so blessed to be able to share my days with her, even if our beds don't get made or the floor isn't swept, I try to make sure our days are full of laughter, hugs, and plenty of books!!

 

Name 3 fun facts we may be surprised to learn about you......1. I love to read a good book, and if I am not playing with Ladybug or playing in the kitchen, you can often find me curled up somewhere reading. I also have a weak spot for buying books (which means I always have a giant pile of "to read" books! 2. I love to be outdoors (as long as I have a good SPF on, being a red-head means I burn!) whether hiking, camping, or just sitting outside on the porch. 3 Before our cross-country move and becoming a stay at home mom, I used to work at a Crime Lab (yup, a real life CSI!). I worked in the Firearms Sections, so I got to play with guns all day long. It was a lot of fun, but not nearly as glamorous as TV makes it seems (even if I did wear high heels everyday). 4. (You said three, but I thought of one more! Haha) While in college, my goal was to become a veterinarian, and I worked with quite a few large animal vets where I got to help do everything from pulling calves to bottle feeding foals to assisting in surgeries. It was fun, and hard, and I came home every day really really needing to take a shower!

When did you first start blogging.....I started blogging in June of 2009. My husband was in med-school, and I was bored. My husband suggested I start it as a creative outlet for me while he was studying.

What is your blog about........Mostly it is about the food that I make, but I also use it as a sort of journal and a way to keep family and friends around the country (and world) abreast of what is going on with our lives.

Why do you blog......There are several reasons why I continue to blog. The first is that I love the community of friends that I have built. Even though I have never met these people, I have met some truly wonderful and special people who I am so glad to call my friend! I also use this as a kind of journal, to talk about what we are doing in our lives, and to help give me a few moments each day when I can actually formulate an adult conversation in my head. And lastly, I also keep this blog as a way to record and store all the great recipes that I have tried. I tend to scribble recipes down on random scraps of paper, which rarely ever have a title, and invariably get lost somewhere, so it is great to be able to have everything written down in one place.

Must read blogs that you visit daily.....I am really bad about visiting other blogs on a daily basis, as my limited amount of "me" time must be devoted to maintaining my own blog, attempting to actually finish a book for my book club, spending what tiny bit of time with my husband that I can each day, and, well, showering. Haha But when I have the time, I always visit these blogs on a regular basis: C Mom Cook for her down to earth personality and great recipes, Willow Bird Baking for her beautiful photography and thought provoking writing and her ability to make any complicated recipe seem do-able, and Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Linedrives, for her awesome jaw-dropping creations. I also tend to do quite a bit of food stalking at Annie's Eats, Smitten Kitchen, and Joy the Baker.

What inspires you.....What doesn't?! I try to find inspiration everyday - things to remind myself to love deeply, give freely, live simply, and be happy. To make the most out of my life without being attached to things, and make the most of what I have. Some days are better than others, of course, but there is never a day that passes that you can't find something beautiful.

Do you have a bucket list - name a few things on it.....Yes! I would desperately love to go to Egypt one day and meander through all the ancient ruins. And not on a guided tour, either - I want to stroll on my own schedule, touch something, and dig in the dirt. I also think it would be awesome to learn to make cheese, the kind I imagine some habit wearing monk making in a dark cold cavern somewhere! In my heart and soul I am a traveling adventurer, so I would love to see more of the world, and to have some very tiny adventures (but nothing too dangerous!)

Do you have any blogging advice that you would like to share.....Be yourself. I think it is so easy to get caught up in what you think others expect of you, or what other bloggers are doing, or how to get a cookbook deal that you forget why you started it in the first place. Remember that it is a hobby, not a job, and you can do with it what you want, and I think you will be much happier with the result (even if you never do get a cookbook deal! But hey, who wants to do all that work?!)

To learn more about Jenni - check out her blog The Gingered Whisk.  You can also find her on facebook.