Hi! I’m Christina, the chief cook and bottle washer behind It Is a Keeper. If you are looking for delicious recipes that are easy to make, you’ve come to the right place! I love to collect and share recipes that are easy to make and taste great.
I’m a busy work-at-home mom, wife, blogger, Cub Scout leader and Sunday School teacher. I’m also a self-proclaimed recipe hoarder who reads cook books cover to cover like most people read a juicy novel. I live in gorgeous northeastern Pennsylvania with my husband of (almost) 15 years and my smart, silly and spunky 9 year old son.
These guys are my taste-testers. They help me decide if each and every recipe I made is a “keeper”. They don’t complain, though….most of the time!
The little guy is also my sous-chef. I’m happiest when it’s just the two of us in the kitchen cooking, chatting and making memories.
I’ve always loved to cook. Cooking is very cathartic to me. I’m truly in my element in the kitchen. Maybe it’s that I’m using all of my senses – the feel of the dough, the smell of the sauce or the sound of the vegetables being chopped. Whether I’m making an old favorite that I know by heart or trying a new recipe, it’s exciting to see it all come together.
When I started It Is a Keeper in 2010, I was working full time. At the time, blogging was a hobby. A way for me to do what I love (cooking) and share it with others.
Today, blogging is my job. I am so fortunate to have the opportunity to work from home doing what I love. Some days, it’s crazy busy, like the running-my-dishwasher-three-times-in-a-single-afternoon kind of busy. But most days, I’m able to connect with all kinds of amazing people, swap recipes and hang out in the kitchen.
It Is a Keeper is a look into my kitchen. You get a first-hand look at what we are really eating. Most of the things I cook are not fancy and I don’t use hard to find ingredients. They are everyday recipes for everyday life.
20 Things About Me
- I am named after two of my great-grandmothers
- My middle name has a letter that is not in our alphabet
- I graduated from Penn State with a BS in Management Science and Information Systems
- I’ve never really worked in the Information Systems field
- We have a (really) big black cat named Jack
- We live in the Scranton, PA area — you know, the city from The Office
- I’m a BMX mom
- My favorite song of all time is Convoy by CW McCall (most people have never heard of it)
- My favorite movie is Footloose (it’s also my second favorite song)
- I detest the Electric Slide
- My husband and I met at work
- In high school, I was on the Rifle Team…really!
- I was also a pretty good trap shooter (the clay bird type) back in the day
- I have a soft spot for veterans – they are true heros
- My favorite flowers are hydrangeas
- I am fascinated by all things Southern – I think I was born on the wrong side of the Mason-Dixon line
- I’m very clumsy – I once fell off the end of Norway
- I am a (s)mother – I worry a lot, hug a lot and always want to be involved
- I have a hard time saying NO
- I am petrified of snakes
My Accomplishments
- Contributor on WNEP’s (local ABC affiliate) Home & Backyard program
- Field editor for Taste of Home magazine
- Featured as Taste of Home magazine’s Bloggers We Love (April/May 2015)
- Featured on Huffington Post’s Awesome School Lunches
- Featured on QVC.com
- Featured on AllParenting.com
- Appeared on WBRE’s (local NBC affiliate) PA Live program
- Named one of the Top 25 Women in Business (2015) by the NEPA Business Journal
- Named Best Blog in 2014 by Happenings Magazine
- Named Best Local Blog in 2014 by The Weekender’s Reader’s Choice Awards
- Named Best Local Blogger in 2013 by The Electric City
Check out the rest of my media features here.
Let’s Connect
I would love to hear from you. Feel free to send me your feedback and questions. You can leave me a comment or you connect with me here:
- Email me at itsakeeperblog@gmail.com
- Follow me on Facebook
- Tweet me @itsakeeperblog
- See what’s inspiring me on Pinterest
- Check out what’s going on on YouTube
- Take a look behind the scenes on Instagram
All photographs and content on It Is a Keeper are taken by me and are copyrighted (unless otherwise noted). Please don’t use any of my posts or photos without prior approval. If you would like to share my recipes on your website, you may use one of my photos with a link back to the original post on my blog.
