Welcome to My Life From Scratch, a blog about my experience as a woman, a writer, and a parent.

My Life From Scratch is about my struggle to bring the best ingredients–honesty, authenticity, integrity and humor–to my daily life. I’ve lived too much of my adulthood out of a box, pre-mixed and pre-measured, using other people’s recipes. It’s taken a while, but I’ve finally figured out that the seemingly quick, easy, canned version of life doesn’t work for me.

For years, I longed to be a writer, but hid inside a job I hated. It was only when I realized how much time I’d wasted, more than a decade, that I finally quit and decided to write my way into a new life. But it wasn’t easy. Writing groups, night classes, workshops, conferences and an MFA later, all while raising my two daughters and trying to hold my marriage together, I’m finding my way.

Most of the time, creating my life from scratch isn’t pretty. I’m in the kitchen hoisting fifty-pound bags of flour, grinding every spice and herb, hauling out every pot, pan, and utensil I can find. I’m kneading, basting, stirring and chopping through my days, praying I won’t burn down the house. If I’m lucky, when I’m at my best, I make something that tastes delicious, and if it looks good too, I’m especially fortunate.

In the past, I tried to make it all seem easy and effortless. I accepted compliments and betrayed my hard work. I didn’t want to bring folks back into my sloppy kitchen where they could see the cluttered counters, the heap of dishes in the sink, and the scraps of food on the floor. But no more.

In this blog, I’m telling it like it is, nasty bits and all. I’m inviting you into the kitchen of my life. So grab a beer from the fridge and pull up a stool.