About Me

Hi, I'm Alexandria, Welcome to my kitchen.  I guess the first things you might want to know about me is that I believe in God, the Father Almighty and His Son Jesus Christ. My favorite time of year is Christmas.

I'm named after my dad whose name is Alexander. I am not an only child, but because I was a late-in-life baby, I grew up as if I was. I have lived a bumpy life. I have experienced many joys. I never think "What if..."

I was born in May -- unique because no other month begins or ends on the same day of the week in any year.

My birthstone is the Emerald, and I love this gemstone. Some people believe that wearing an Emerald brings wisdom, growth and patience, and this may be true except that it may not happen until you've lived a lot of life.

My favorite flower is the Gardenia, even though the birth flower for May is Lily of the Valley, I love soft music that moves me and movies with a moral. I love food that looks good, smells good and tastes even better. I could easily drink too much yummy coffee, but I don't. I'm not a big fan of chocolate. I don't like to shake hands, but I do. I trust people until they disappoint me, and then I don't.

I like the old ways where one parent stays home to look after the children. I did and then didn't, and now I'm home again. I gave birth to three kids who are grown now.  

When I launched this blog, my honey and I were married. I'm sure it was love at first sight.

I've always known I wanted to help others, Doctor. Lawyer, maybe, but life got in the way. Writer. Yes. No one wanted to listen to what I said. Writing was perfect. 

I like to help people because that helps me feel that I am giving back for the plenty that I receive. I am grateful. I pray and try my best to be a good mentor.

My favorite charities are Paralyzed Veterans of America, which I have supported for many years; Make a Wish Foundation, a charity for children that son Tim got me involved with a year or so ago; and the ASPCA for the protection of animals, a cause very dear to my heart.

I am devoted to my family and my dog. I love being a wife and mother --and I love home sweet home, colors like red, white and blue, and thoughtful people. I am American, but I honor my Mexican heritage. ¡Olé! 

I Love to prepare food, but I'm not a good cook. It just isn't a talent God gave me. That's okay. I keep trying.

My love for food may have started when I was three or four and anemic. My dad used to make a bowl of whipped cream and spoon feed me to fatten me up.

I jumped on the real cooking bandwagon after I started this blog. I had to learn better technique and better ways to spice food, because much of the food I made was awful! Not even the dog could eat some of the food I made. One or two dishes even made me gag. Yuk! Garbage [disposal dregs for sure].

I have come a long way with food. I am certainly not a chef with restaurants and cooking schools or even cooking books to my credit. 

On the contrary, I am an ordinary home cook mom with years of time in the kitchen before I realized that I couldn't really cook. But I tried to change that.

When I took cooking lessons. It came to me that there's more to cooking than a list of ingredients. That's when I became more serious about finding out what's good and what's not. At first good (to me) meant easy to make, ingredients easy to find, tastes good.

After I was diagnosed with diabetes, (My grandfather on my mother's side died from it.)  I learned that I had the disease for ten years. I wanted to shout out so this "not-knowings" didn't happen to other people. I blogged about being a diabetic. I started blogging about health and exercise. That led me to blog about food.

I love being a homemaker.   But that's not all there is to know about me and who I am. I dress up once in a while. I get dirty in the garden. I don't like to travel, but I do 'cause there's lots to see in this country. I love sparkly things-- diamonds and emeralds, sequins and shiny beads, but I don't pretend to be what I'm not. Yes, I had good training. The Ebell Club, proper conduct for a young lady, etiquette and all that, but I prefer the simple things in life. 

I really dislike strangers in my home, cleaning and what not... I'd rather take care of those needs and nots myself.

Knock on my door and if I let you in... you'll see cows and pigs, bows around gathered lampshades, chrome, Shaker and lots of Battenberg lace. Yup! I'm a simple girl, but there's nothing simple about me.

I am a planner. I feel best when I have a plan that I can follow to an expected outcome. I like to be organized. I enjoy routine, but I am flexible.

I don't mind being by myself to work, write, think. I am a private person but not so much that I fail to share. When someone offends me and then says "I'm joking." I think it's a truth said under the cloak of joking.

I love to give gifts more than "get gifts." I truly enjoy seeing the smiling faces and cries of joy over some little thing I picked out. Son Steven gave me a Walmart gift card for my birthday. I thought WOW! What a great gift... any time. I have always tried to be generous, but now I'm older and on a fixed income. It's sad for me that I can no longer give the gifts I want to give.

It has always been a challenge for me to find my way driving from place to place... It made sense to stop driving before I injured someone. So I did. 

I am a person who is most comfortable when I feel safe. I am uncomfortable in a crowd. I appreciate being appreciated. I believe in prayer. I value respect and loyalty. I realized that I see things differently than most. I think God has to do with that. A gift I think.

Writer By Trade

I write. I used to code. Nothing big. HTML mostly. I am self-educated. My school is the local library and common sense. I have a Doctorate from the "School of Hard Knocks." Try and try again sharpened what I learned. My life as an empty-nester is pretty much the same as when I was a Work At Home Mom (WAHM).

Over the years, I did hold several conventional-type employments. I was a receptionist. I worked for a lawyer, a fellow who manufactured nails (that was interesting), a mall developer, city government, I corrected type galleys word-by-word with an Exacto and paste (that was one of my night jobs), worked for a small printer, big printer, ad agency (not in that order). I gained experience, but I called it, taking care of my children. I did what I had to do, but that is not even close to all I am.

Like so many moms, I also wore many hats: Homemaker Mom aka American Mom, nurse, taxi, teacher and the best "job" I treasure most is Being Mom. I suffered through disappointments; I made mistakes; but I have no regrets about who I am, and the decisions I made in my life. I owe everything to God.