About Me

Introduction time!

My name is Rob.  I am a father of three amazingly weird and wonderful children.  My wife Michelle and I are in the process learning how to adjust to having food restrictions in the house (more on that later).

For as long as I can remember, I have loved being in the kitchen.  It seems like all great family times happen there.  I learned to cook by helping my mom make dinner almost every night.  In middle school, I was one of the few guys to take a Home Ec class, and cooking was my favorite part.  I always thought I would love to go to culinary school, but I wouldn’t be able to handle the stress of being a chef.  As I have gotten older and learned more about food, I have learned that food can do some amazing things.  It can teach culture, it can bring people together, it can influence our mood, it can remind us of wonderful time… and in the case of two of our kids, if we aren’t careful, food can bring illness, pain, and torment.  Food is a powerful thing.

My oldest daughter is Emily. We adopted her when she was a newborn.  She is an amazing big sister and a wonderful blessing.  She’s also a strong-willed and emotional girl, so sometimes I need to step back and remind myself of the previous sentence!  Emily loves to help me in the kitchen, and often tells my wife, “I’m the chef, and daddy is my helper chef.” 

Next comes Lennox.  Lennox was a bit of a surprise.  We were on the list to adopt a second time when we found out that Michelle was pregnant.  She is a bundle of loveable energy.  She looks like an exact copy of my wife, but her personality is all me.  Every time she does something weird, Michelle just shakes her head and says “She’s your daughter.”  Lennox has a mild peanut allergy.  She often will remind us that she doesn’t like peanuts because they make her sick.  Fortunately, it is not in any way a severe allergy, so it’s pretty easy to work with.

Then we have Reese.  Reese is our little daredevil, and I do mean little.  Currently (at the age of 3), he weighs about 25 pounds and still wears 18-24 month clothes.  He has a condition called eosinophilic esophagitis (EOE). You can find out more about it by checking out my EOE page.  For now, though, think of it this way: he has what is essentially a digestive allergy to all dairy products, soy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, and we are pretty sure strawberry and pineapple are thrown in there, too.  You wouldn’t know it, though – he is all boy, and will climb anything, jump off of anything, and will happily show you a booger any time you want.

As we learn more about what this EOE thing means and what we can do to help our little dude eat, I will try to chronicle our journey here.  I figure there have to be more people out there who can benefit from a little support, so why not be part of building that community?