I have cooked and baked since before I entered school, and have pictures to prove it! My aunt was a caterer and decorated wedding cakes for a living. I used to stay with her over the summers, then moved in with her during college. I remember begging after school one December day, "Please, let me pay you rent! I'm too tired to bake more cookies and I have to get to work by 3:30!" Her no-nonsense reply was "No. I need your help too badly."

I was diagnosed with Juvenile Diabetes at the age of 9, which resulted in needing two double-organ transplants (kidney and pancreas) within the past 15 years. Both are working like a charm now--lots of bathroom breaks thanks to my new kidney, and my pancreas is producing insulin like a gas pump on Labor Day weekend. No more Diabetes! Is that why I crave the sugar business? Perhaps. But I love the meticulous decorating and precise measurements of it all, too.

Others can't believe the energy and time I put into my passion of baking and decorating, but if I didn't, would it be a passionate business, or just a hobby?

Since my recent transplant, I've started my little business called Sweeties. Locally, my most popular selling items are my chocolate covered Oreos. I find this so ironic, since I take pride in my "snooty" baking skills and my love for traditional French methods. I desire to make people "ooh" and "aah" from my creations, but to be honest, my real reward is when I turn out a perfect genoise, and my European meringue buttercream is frosted as smooth as glass. :)