Meet Mandi Marie

  I'm Mandi Marie. I'm 26 and live in Orlando, FL with my fiance. I'm Cuban-American, born and raised in Miami. I'm a cancer survivor and recent college graduate, now teaching third grade in public school. I'm the kind of person that can't just sit at home and do nothing. I'm used to having way too much to do in way too little time. It started in high school, when I was in just about every extracurricular club. Then came college, and I held a job each semester aside from my course load. By my last year in college, I was living with my Honey in the house of my dreams. Honey is perfectly happy lounging around the house on the weekends do little to nothing, and until now, this hadn't been a problem because I had a load of things to catch up on (homework, studying, papers, classes, work, housework, guests...). But as graduation got nearer, it became apparent that something would have to be done if Honey and I were going to be able to survive each weekend (with him being able to lounge, and me not dying of boredom). Fast forward through a hundred or so "Honey, I'm bored"s, a couple dozen Martha Stewart Living magazines, and a few trips to Ikea and this is what was waiting for me on my birthday:

  This was back in March of 2011. Until then, this had been a guest room. Its funny to look back on this now, since the room has changed so much since then. This room (and the Cricut machine my dad and stepmother gave me for graduation) ended up striking the match and lighting my adult-crafting fire (Honey isn't complaining..). I have been crafting in one way or another for as far back as I can remember, all thanks to Mom. Growing up, my sister and I spent every other weekend at Mom's, and she always kept some of those cheap craft kits around the house (make your own lipgloss kits, jewelry makers, beeswax candle kits, etc). We had so much fun! I never stopped crafting, but now I stick to bigger and better tools.


 I've got some strong cooking and baking genes, too. My mom is a big baker, and I loved joining her. She's known for her cheesecakes and pies in our family. As a little girl I would get excited to put on an apron and help my grandmother on my mom's side "bake" after school (looking back, all I really did was stand on a chair and scoop or mix ingredients and maybe open the cans). My grandmother on my dad's side (Abuelita) is Cuban, and everyone just about claws their way to her table when food is served; real homemade, made-from-scratch goodness. I can only HOPE to someday cook like that! These days, I don't do too bad for myself. I have a few dishes that friends and family beg me for time and time again. Even Abuelita has asked me for a recipe or two. Whether a recipe turns out right for me or not (though I just about throw a tantrum when it doesn't - it's not pretty), I really enjoy it. I have been cooking dinner for my family since I was about 12, and when I moved in with friends in college, I was the "mom", cooking dinner for us each night. I was asking for kitchen tools for birthdays and Christmases since I was 18. 


  I don't pretend to be an expert. I've never taken a cooking class; what I know is a combination of watching my family when I was younger, the Food Network, and good ole trial & error. I'm not Martha Stewart. What you'll find here is not an end-all-be-all. It's purpose is to instruct, to document my improvement over time, and to solicit ideas and tips. Enjoy!