My abuela, aunts, and cousins all told me that I would have to learn how to cook if I wanted to reel a man into my life, and then use my cooking abilities to keep him. Is this not the craziest stuff to hear growing up as a little girl??!! Well, luckily for me, I enjoy cooking, and I have enjoyed it since I was a child.

One of the most vivid holiday gifts from childhood is my easy-bake oven. I loved that thing! I asked for it and when I received it for Christmas I was overjoyed. I still remember mixing the little packets with water, and then putting them into the small trays, which would then be pushed into the small oven opening to bake. After a few minutes, you were able to have a small cake or brownie. I used to feel so accomplished! I would eat it up as if it was the best dessert on the planet.

I remember developing more love for cooking in middle school, when one of our rotations was a home economics course. I enjoyed putting on my apron, measuring ingredients, and baking a variety of dishes.

Not too long after this course, my mom passed away from cancer, and I had to put my cooking skills to use for my family. In my household it was me, my 2 brothers, and my father. I was the only female in the house, (my older sisters no longer lived with us) and it was expected that I led the house in cooking, cleaning, and washing clothes.

When I went to college, I stopped cooking, and I mainly ate fast food or ate at the dining hall. But my cooking resurfaced again when I started dating. As much as I make fun of my family members at the beginning of this post, I did use my cooking skills to reel my husband in---I know I am the worst! After we went on a few dates, he found out that I knew how to cook, and I saw how excited he got from hearing that I was pretty good at it, so I went ahead and made him a few dishes. Let's just say it was a wrap...no pun intended...lol. He loved my cooking, amongst many other things, and we were inseparable.

So, there you go, the easy-bake-oven is one of my favorite childhood christmas gifts. And I still love cooking today! Cooking has always been a source of meditation, a practice that helps me to get lost in a familiar activity. It's like a pianist who has played since he was a child, and the songs he plays are effortlessly played with his fingers. While I am cooking, for that period of time, I let my hands do the work, and I smile in the comfort of knowing that my final product will be enjoyed by my loved ones. I guess this shows that the holiday gifts we ask for as children may reflect a lot about our interests, passions and what we love.

Outfit time: I found the skirt on Amazon first and I thought it was adorable, and I wanted to get it as a definite look for the holidays. I think it's a perfect skirt to wear to church, a big holiday event, or if you just want to walk around 'lookin like a gift! I like the shape of this blouse and how festive it was, so I thought it would really make me look like Christmas by pairing it with this skirt. The shoes are awesome! They are holiday red and they have adorable bows on the back. I will be wearing these a lot this month! Click below for more details on this look.

Happy Tuesday!