My mom was a wonderful cook and baker. Childhood memories include bread fresh from the oven, Sunday and holiday dinners, themed birthday cakes and special touches for the certain holidays (like mashed potates tinted pink for Valentine's day). All of the kids enjoyed helping Mom make cookies from my grandmother's recipe. Mom had cookie cutters for every occasion! I am sure she taught both my sister and I how to cook. I don't remember cooking many things on my own. But I know I absorded much because I knew how to cook certain things when I got out on my own. I tend to try different things because Mom was always experimenting. However of the two of us, my sister learned more from Mom because she too is an excellent cook and baker, having mastered Mom's homemade rolls - always a meal time staple. Mom still enjoys cooking, but at 89, has slowed down considerably. Still, her cooking and baking are still in demand, just as they were when I was growning up!

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