Back to the kitchen!

Usually when I've been absent from Mia Cucina for a long time, I have a (reasonably) good excuse. I think this one takes the cake-and yes, pun intended. On March 30, all of our worldly belongings were packed up from our home in Germany, and put on a ship back to the States. That's right, after five years in Germany the Army sent Will and I back to the good 'ole US! Luckily we are now living in Boston, so as far as I'm concerned we went from one cool place to another. Unfortunately, it appears as though the Army has lost our household goods, so I haven't been able to cook for a ridiculous amount of time. While the taking a culinary break and eating out in restaurants was fun for about two days, it got old very quickly. Not to mention expensive! So when Will shipped off to recruiter school in South Carolina for two months, I decided to take the opportunity to visit my family in Wisconsin for an extended break. My mom's kitchen isn't ideal, but hey at this point I'll take anything. It's been wonderful looking through her cookbooks, finding new recipes online, and getting a chance to cook for my family. I always knew cooking was a huge part of my life, but I didn't realize until recently how much it defines me as a person. I loved having dinner ready for my parents when they came home from work (my mom especially; she's a special ed teacher who puts in insane hours at her elementary school, and then she would come home and make dinner! What a trooper!), or helping my mom plan a menu for entertaining friends and family.

We also have some exciting news....I'm pregnant! Will and I found out on our vacation in the south of France, and I was able to see a doctor in Milwaukee when we came back to the States before heading out to Boston. I'm due on December 30th, and no we're not going to find out the gender. So we're just telling everyone we're expecting a little stocking stuffer, and Will wants to buy a 2011 sash for the baby. :) As far as cravings go, I haven't experienced anything unusual, but I've found I'm definitely reverting back to my roots and craving Italian food all the time. Pizza, pasta, cookies, etc. So expect quite a few Italian updates in the months to come.

It's good to be back!