I grew up eating “comfort foods”. My parents were of the generation that did not know frying foods was bad for you. Or that there was any such thing as “too much” of anything! I’ll never forget playing outside all day and being called into the house for dinner – totally ravenous! Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, buttery home-made yeast rolls and, of course, dessert with every meal!

So, it’s no wonder that those foods denote “comfort” for me. However, it’s certainly not a diet I can maintain these days without ever-expanding my waistline in the process. Comfort foods now must be enjoyed only occasionally.

What causes food to give us comfort? First, “comfort food” is generally defined as “food that causes a psychologically pleasurable state for a person. Studies have shown that what we define as “comfort food” is determined at an early age and caused not only by hunger, but also by conditional associations.

Gender differences also define what we consider comfort food. Men tend to prefer foods that their mother’s prepared for them, while women tend to go for treats like chocolate or ice cream.

A common thought is that we indulge in these foods when we are sad. However, the opposite is more likely true, we indulge when we are happy, and celebrating or congratulating ourselves. Our moods can also affect what we reach for – chocolate when we are depressed – or maybe popcorn when we are bored.

A specific trigger often causes the desire for a certain comfort food. If your mother always gave you chicken soup when you were sick – that could be a big comfort to you as an adult when feeling ill. If your Dad took you for pizza after winning a baseball game, then that may be your favorite way to celebrate an accomplishment as an adult.

Food can certainly be a strong trigger for memories, both good and bad. If you’ve ever gotten sick after eating a particular food, you know what I mean! My Father, who passed away some time ago, loved buttermilk. And although I don’t like it myself, the thought of buttermilk brings fond memories of him.

Since indulging in our favorite comfort foods is a wonderful experience for anyone, it makes a perfect gift. This is especially true during the holidays, when the wonderful memories of great food and loving families are all around us.

This Christmas, consider sending yourself or someone you love the gift of the ultimate comfort food!

Food is something we can’t live without! But it is also something we thoroughly enjoy. I don’t know anyone who eats just to stay alive. In fact, most of us live to eat!

Everyone has a favorite delicacy that they just can’t resist. At times I give myself a night off, away from the house and the kids (and sometimes the husband as well). On those nights I try to have the foods that I love very much but don’t get to indulge in that often. If you were to give yourself one of those nights – what would you choose?

Chocolate, of course, would be a very common choice for most women. Or for a romantic evening, maybe champagne and strawberries would be a wonderful choice. I have often wondered what makes us like or dislike certain foods. In my experience, it has seems to be genetic. Otherwise, why does one small child love carrots, and another one hate them at first taste?

Genetically, we all have a preference for sweet and salty and a dislike for sour and bitter. Psychologists believe this genetic preference/dislike is a built in survival measure. Most foods in nature that are poisonous have a bitter taste.

However, once exposed to these flavors, we can grow to like them. One interesting fact is that most likes or dislikes of foods has more to do with texture and smell then with actual taste. Sight and touch can also play a part in whether or not we like certain foods.

Each experience we have as a child with food will influence whether or not we grow to love or hate that particular food. Peer pressure seems to also have a great influence over whether or not we learn to like certain foods. If your best friend in first grade loves peas, and you watch them eat peas for lunch over a period of time, you may also decide you like peas.

I personally watched my Mom enjoy avocados for years before I finally decided to give them a try. At first, I still didn’t like the taste. But over time, each time I tried one it tasted better. Now I love them!

There are certain foods that just about everyone loves and that make awesome gifts. Luscious chocolate truffles, fine wines and delicate cheeses, fresh baked muffins, or assorted cookies – all make wonderful gifts.

So, the next time you are struggling to decide on a gift, consider sending something that will be sure to please – send a food gift basket!

This Mother’s Day I’d like to share an article that I wrote in 2000 on being a successful parent. I think that every Mother at one time or another wonders if she is making all the right choices for her children. I hope you enjoy the article and as you read, think about how important, often difficult and sometimes thankless the job of being a Mother really is. Sometimes the weight of responsibility can be overwhelming. This Mother’s Day, show your Mother how much you appreciate all she has done for you.

Raising children is not an easy thing. Much of your time is consumed taking care of their physical needs, doing their laundry, preparing their meals, and organizing the events of their day. The majority of your energy is consumed taking care of their emotional needs, listening to their stories, talking to them, settling their differences with each other or others, advising and teaching them. When they are very small, it’s wiping their noses, changing their diapers, feeding them, rocking them, playing with them, and trust me there is no time for anything else. Parenting is like being a manager, a secretary, and a servant at the same time only as a parent you know that your only compensation is that hopefully they will grow up to be decent, contributing members of our society, who make you proud! That is if you’ve done your job. Of course there is always the fear that if they don’t turn out exactly like you expected, it all falls back on you, much like a project at work that fails or a program you’ve written that doesn’t perform.

Taking a look at the last 15 1/2 years that I’ve been parenting my eldest child, it seems that most of the time just flew by. I wish that I had taken a step back every couple of years to see what wonderful transformations she had made, instead of just having it hit me one day when she was talking about getting her drivers license! It’s too bad that often as parents, our lives are so full with other things that we have no time to enjoy our most important job! And all too often, some of that job gets pushed aside until later. Only later, the kids are grown. Just what is a successful parent? Is it measured by the success of our children? Is it measured by how close we are as a family? Or is it simply making it through another day without pulling out your hair?

If we want to look back on our lives someday and remember the beautiful memories, we have to work hard today to create them. So plan that next vacation as a family, a trip to Disneyland, a road trip, or a week at the beach or even a walk in the park. And remember to take pictures. They are nice to look at now, but they are a vital part of your history tomorrow. For today, for me, being a successful parent, is remembering to stop and smell the roses. Time waits for no one.

Contributed by Wendy Layne

Mother's Day is May 14th! Don't forget to tell your Mother how much you love her this Mother's Day!

Chocolate Gift Basket A chocolate lover's dream come true! It's all here in this sweet selection of dreamy chocolate treats.

Gourmet Gift Basket This magnificent gift basket is abundantly filled with many savories and confections. This basket will definitely leave them with a lasting impression.

Just when you thought at sending flowers would be the easy thing to do for a friend or loved one; you learn that it can actually be a lot more complicated than that. Flowers actually have many different meanings so choose wisely when deciding what type and color of flower to send as a gift, I’ve done some research on a few popular flowers and found the symbolic meaning and other interesting information about them.

Daffodil

The Daffodil is one of the first flowers of spring. Both the Greeks and the Egyptians related the flower with death. The flower is used as symbols for unreturned love or vanity. According to a Greek myth a young wood nymph named Echo fell in love with a man named Narcissus who was granted great beauty by the gods. The gods told Narcissus that in order to keep his beauty he could not look at his own reflection. However Narcissus became so infatuated with himself and his beauty that he ignored Echo who was consumed by love for him. Soon all that was left of her was her voice. Angered by his treatment of Echo the goddess Nemesis led the vain Narcissus to a lake so that he could see his reflection and he faded away. The other gods thought that Nemesis had been too harsh and so they changed his fate from nothingness to a flower, the Narcissus. A more modern, popular meaning of the Daffodil is “you’re the only one.”

Daisy

An ancient Celtic legend tells us that daisies are the spirits of children who dies at birth, they believe that god sprinkled the flowers all over the earth to cheer up the grieving parents. This is the reason that this flower has the meaning of innocence. Other meanings of this flower are loyal love, I'll never tell, purity and is associated with the fifth wedding anniversary.

Forget-Me-Not

According to Christian lore when God was walking through the Garden of Eden after the Creation, He noticed a small blue flower and asked its name. The flower, overcome by shyness, whispered, 'I am afraid I have forgotten, Lord.' God answered, 'Forget Me not. Yet I will not forget thee.’ Another legend is about a man who jumped in the river to swim across and pick the beautiful blue flowers for his lover who was with him. She pleaded for him not to because the currant in the river was strong; he made it to the other side and picked the flowers. However, on his way back he got a cramp and could no longer swim; with the last of his strength he flung the flowers at her feet and cried, “Forget me not!” After he drowned she never forgot him and wore the flowers in her hair until her death. It is no wonder that this flower symbolizes true love and constancy.

Roses

There is a legend that suggests that roses became red when white roses were covered with Abel’s blood when his brother Cain killed him in the bible. Roses have many different meanings depending on the color. Here are some color meanings of roses:

Red

• The spirit of love. True love stronger than thorns.
• True red is the lover's rose.
• Cardinal red: sublime desire
• Carmine: deceitful desire (not true to color)
• Fiery red: flames of passion.

Yellow

• In Victorian times the yellow rose meant jealousy.
• Today it is given as a sign of friendship, sometimes as a sign of sympathy. It is the rose of familiar love and domestic happiness.

Pink

• Pink roses are associated with friendship and marriage, and for either gender, they express warm feelings, happiness or pride. Grace, gentility, elegance and refinement. The rose of sweet thoughts.
• They are wonderful given as a birthday bouquet, anniversary arrangement, or to celebrate landing that coveted job!

White

• A white rose symbolizes innocence and purity as well as youthfulness.
• Loyalty, penetrating and platonic love. Able to captivate secret thought, love stronger than death.

Blue

• Fantasy and impossibility. Hoping for a miracle and new possibilities.

Orange

• Also associated with fantasy but dealing more with want and desire.
• Also could mean I am proud of you.

If you are uncertain what to say, you can’t go wrong with a mixed bouquet and combining a multitude of emotions with your gift. The list of flowers and meanings could go on for hundreds of pages but these are just a few fun facts to help get you started in finding the perfect way to express what you feel with flowers.

Contributed by Wendy Layne

Daffodil Gift Basket This Double Daffodil Basket of bulbs comes potted and ready to grow! Your basket contains 8 Assorted Double Daffodils.

Alstroemeria Bouquet, Peruvian Lily Deluxe bouquet consists of 20 Stems of Assorted Alstroemeria which is also known as a Peruvian Lily

Delicious Romantic Gifts
by Wendy Layne

Romantic gifts are probably the most difficult to give. Certain holidays like Valentine’s Day always elicit the same types of ideas for gift giving. Candy or flowers are standard choices. Other times, you may want to just say "I Love You", but not want to buy an expensive piece of jewelry to do so. Yes, you could just send flowers again, but why not open your mind to a more creative idea that will be thoroughly enjoyed by your loved one and yourself?

Next time you’re in a quandary over what to give, consider a romantic gift of food or wine. What about a decadent chocolate assortment like the "Say It With Chocolate" gift basket? This sumptuous basket was created with the chocolate lover in mind! Filled with a variety of Ghirardelli chocolates, chocolate-covered sandwich cookies, chocolate-covered espresso beans, chocolate chip cookies and chocolate-covered grahams, this gift will put your lover into orbit!

Maybe you’d like to plan a romantic weekend just for the two of you? Our "Wine Country Weekend" gift basket makes the perfect addition to an evening by the fireplace. Start with a perfect wine - Columbia Crest Merlot, a balanced fruity wine with deep color and flavor. A merlot-infused cheese spread, summer sausage and California Crisps crackers make the perfect accompaniment. We’ve added decorative cocktail napkins and wine glass markers as well. Finish it off with delicious chocolate-dipped almond biscotti, California pistachios and chocolate truffles – heavenly!

What could be more romantic than champagne? Adding chocolate truffles to the gift! Our "Champagne and Truffles" gift set is the perfect romantic gift selection. Enjoy a superb bottle of wine along with sinfully rich Joseph Schmidt chocolate truffles.

The next time you’re looking for a romantic gift for that special person in your life, don’t just send flowers. Think outside the vase and send a romantic gift basket!

We always see the label Chinese New Year on our wall calendars but did you ever stop to wonder why the Chinese have a different time to celebrate the new year and how they go about bringing in the new year? If you have then you have come to the right place! The Chinese New Year is the longest and most important celebration in the Chinese calendar. In America we have a linear perception of time, our years are dated from the birth of Christ, so if it is 2006 this means that it is 2,006 years after the birth of Christ. However the Chinese culture uses a cyclical method of dating. Meaning something is repeated time after time according to a certain pattern.

Read more!

I will never forget the scent of baking bread that flowed through the air and in through my nostrils, filling me with a sense of warmth and happiness. This wonderful aroma became a sort of trademark when it came to my grandfather.
With every visit to my grandparent’s house, I was exploding with excitement. The two-hour car ride there seemed like an eternity; the whole while absorbed in my own thoughts of the bread that I was about to consume. I would burst out of the car and into my grandfather’s arms.
“Will you make bread Papa?”
“Will I? I’ve already begun, would you like to watch me finish?”
And of course, I would watch. I sat with amazement as he carefully kneaded the dough. His hands would melt into the odd ball of clay as if he was becoming one with it. And there were always those few moments where his hands would disappear completely, only to emerge suddenly and dive once more into the midst. Ever so often he would shower the dough with the flour that was always close at hand. This was a very delicate process according to my grandfather.
“The importance of kneading is greatly under-estimated. It is a necessary step in bread baking for both taste and texture.”
He would use big words with me which at the time I did not quite grasp, but I would quietly nod my head in an effort to pretend.
There was a test, he’d say, in deciding whether to stop kneading or not. He would hold on to each side of the dough and begin to stretch it in opposite directions. If the dough stretched easily and did not break, it was ready to be left alone. If it broke, it was time to begin the kneading process again. The many shapes the dough could take on continuously baffled me. Papa would stretch it in every which way, and made it a point to make me laugh while doing so. Sometimes he would poke holes through the dough so as to show his face through the other side. Other times he would carve pictures into the moldable surface and tell stories with them. It was always an adventure.
Soon, the transformation would begin. The dough was left in a bowl to rise before we could begin to bake it. It was fascinating to watch, and would sometimes take up hours of my attention. Any attempt to lure me away would fail. I was determined to watch this mysterious metamorphosis from finish to end.
Beginning as a small lump the spherical figure would slowly begin to grow, encompassing anything in its surroundings. Bulging from the sides it would expand like a balloon, erupting and constantly changing until finally it would stop.
“Papa, is it ready?”
“He’d check it, and then begin once again to transform the bread. This was where he would get creative. It was as if my grandfather had turned into a sculptor and the bread was his masterpiece. He would twist and carve and sculpt the dough until it was exactly how he wanted it. Then, he would place it in the oven and I would watch anxiously.
The aura began to change. The smell of the bread would fill the room, and the saliva in my mouth would develop. I could almost taste the warmth of the bread with every breath. When my grandfather would open the oven the smell would plunge through the air filling ever corner of the room. I would place my face next to the bread and feel the warmth that was being released, and my grandfather would scoop me up in his arms and ask me the same question every time.
“You know why this is the best bread in the world?”
And I would always answer the same way.
“Why Papa?”
“Because I made it with a special ingredient. My love for you.”
That was when I realized that this was more than just bread. This was a legacy.