As a Colorado native I thought I'd live there for the rest of my life. Who could live in such a gorgeous state and ever want to move anywhere else? You'd have to be out of your mind. Little did I know my college sweetheart would be from the far away land of Cleveland, Ohio and insist on moving back one day. So, I left my family, my life, my home and my tan for a city that boasts a mere 66 days of sunshine a year! It is a constant adjustment, especially due to the distance from my home at the base of the Rocky Mountains.
Hometowns are not the only difference between myself and the hubby. He's tall and I'm short, he's extremely outgoing while I'm fairly quiet and, most importantly, he's Jewish and I'm a proud Irish Catholic. We're striving to build a truly interfaith marriage which will eventually lead to raising our children as a half and half mix as well. I have no doubt this will be one of the more difficult tasks we'll ever face, but it means too much to both of us to give up on our faiths and their traditions.
Just ten days shy of our one year anniversary my life was forever changed when I lost my Dad, my best friend and life-long mentor. He was my strength and my sense of reason and I'm slowly learning to live life without having him just a phone call away. I am so lucky to have had 27 wonderful years with him, chock full of memories, advice, life lessons and loads of fun. Years I can draw from when I need my daily dose of Friendly Fatherly Advice (FFA). Thankfully still, he left us with many traditions that I can pass on to my children so they'll know who their grandfather was. He was by no means a quiet bystander. He was involved in every aspect of our lives. These are the lessons I can pass on to my children and my children's children. Luckily he will live inside everybody who ever knew him. Because he loved, and was loved, he is going to live forever.
As the stories about my dad indicate, I grew up in a very close-knit family which also includes my dedicated mom from whom I know I'll take most of my mothering style from, an older sister who has Down Syndrome yet is extremely high-functioning (to put it in context I was arguing with her one time and she countered with "Jill, give me a break, I have Down Syndrome"), and my crazy younger brother who is every bit a free spirit. I myself am an avid baker and cook and consider both to be an art form. I'm always looking for new recipes and dishes to try out. I love to paint yet don't do so very often. I am in love with our dog "Breck" who, for now, is my only child. She's a sassy little thing that always knows what you're saying, but chooses when she wants to listen.
So that's me and that's what Life, Love and Cake is all about. My relocated life, the family traditions and memories I have to keep alive, living through grief and everything that comes with being a wife and a hopeful mom...well, eventually.
