I’m a Master Chef Champion and now get to dive into a very new adventure into the culinary arts.

Family has become my biggest inspiration in life. The love I feel from my Family makes me want to go out and do great things. I did the same as a dancer but as a dancer I pulled from a lot of hardships as well as Joy. Both fueled my desire to be successful in much similar ways and the boost I got from the struggle through pain was often times the dances that meant the most. Dance is the most incredible form of art because it requires you to give every single morsel of strength and emotion to every movement. That’s why I love it so much. It pushes me to my limit.

It’s much the same in the Kitchen! I have felt pushed to my limit quite a few times but have pulled through. I think all creativity is about telling a story and most of the chefs I have been inspired by so far tell me that that is the same when cooking the perfect meal. Different combinations of ingredients make people feel different sorts of ways.

After being a judge on Got to Dance for 5 years speaking about a passion I’ve had for 25+ years in comparison to being a Celebrity Master Chef Winner is incomprehensible. Since I’m quite new to this World I know I’ve got a lot to learn and in my experiences the best way to get good and stay good at anything is to always remain a student.

My aim to create healthy habits come from a Passion for Food and Fitness. Ever since I had Willow I’ve been a Mum on a Mission to do good. I want to inspire my little girl to be in love with life. I want her to care for the World we live on and find something in life that inspires her the way Dance has done for me for so many years

Food and Fitness are the ingredients to a firm foundation in life.

One of my favorite lessons I will cherish from my time on Master Chef was when John told me to find my rhythm in the kitchen. To find movement that could help me enjoy the process as much as the end result. I’m excited at the prospect of putting that to the test.

It’s fun to be a student again. I love to learn. I love to train hard and I love achieving amazing results. Food has become the Sport of my Mind, Body, and Soul.

FOOD – LOVE – LIFE

Passionately starting a new quest…

I’m on a quest to be the best Mother, Wife, Friend, Sister, ‘Human Being’, I can be. Spending time with my Sister in Stone Harbor, New Jersey was brilliant. My two young nieces are such little sweethearts and watching them play ‘big sister’ to Willow are moments I will never forget. Willow is loved so much and knowing that and seeing that is the most precious thing I’ve ever seen. My Grandma Jane would be so happy to see us all hanging out. My Sister, Kristi, and I had a really special bond with Grandma. Actually, she had a special bond with every single person in the family. Her duty in life seemed to be keeping everyone together. She is a huge reason we are as close as we are. Grandma Jane kept us together with food, card games, lots of support, long chats about boys and lots and lots of love.

Now that she is gone and we both have kids we look to recreate that feeling Grandma Jane showed us.

…So off I went to Stone Harbor to spend time with my Sister. We layed on the beach, waded in the water, had gorgeous dinners, talked, and played with the kids or watched them both dote over Willow.

My nieces got Henna Tattoos and Hair wraps. We took nice walks through the cute little town and shopped, ate locally made ice cream from a proper ice cream parlour with a line that filled the whole block. The anticipation from waiting made it all that much better to finally get to have your first lick.

My Brother-in-law, Steve, took us crabbing. We caught our own dinner and he cooked it. This was all new to me. One reason I like working with Fish is because I know that if it came down to it and I had to source my own food and feed myself, I could catch them and cook them. I would love to be a Vegetarian – and I have tried and I am inspired by a lot of Veggie dishes but what can I say… I love food.

Stress and anxiety can be a so tough on you that they effect your health. I’ve been there and knowing that dealing with those feelings would become a full time job I started doing research. Seems to me that being mindful is the most important practice I can do. I’ve always lived chasing a dream so my present no longer really existed… only my projection of what I was working hard for coming to fruition.

The practice of being mindful comes in many different forms; yoga, meditation, writing in a journal, angel cards, fitness, working in the garden, knitting, crocheting, cooking, or as my sister does, adult coloring books. I know…. I’ve never heard of it either but I’m kinda loving it! I see her working on one and she just goes into a really content place, it takes her mind off of all her stresses and manages her anxieties. Women are such emotional creatures. At least that is what I have come to believe. It takes a lot for us to balance and embrace our hormones…. especially once you become a wife and a mother. Practicing everything I learned about creating a calm, content, peaceful environment is put to the test. Plus you have the most innocent of eyes looking to you for answers… learning from your every action, triumph, and mistake.

The Owl is very present in my sister’s life and according to Google: “It symbolizes the ability to cut through illusions and see the real meaning of someone’s action or state of mind. When the owl is one of your power animals, you have a strong intuition and can access information and wisdom that’s usually hidden to most.”

My sister must be meditating on this when she colors them. 😀

So my Food adventure into being a generally Sustainable Human that gets to do extraordinary things continues.

The Joy in Food #MumonaMission