My Story

Hi, I’m Deeann Bylsma. I’m a wife, a mother, and a grandmother.  I have been interested in food my entire life.  Even as a little girl I was interested in cooking and making food.  As a child I would go to my mother’s garden and pick whatever I wanted to “cook” with, whether it was ripe or not.  I’d make my creations.  Fortunately, I have learned better cooking skills and make much better creations since that time!  Today, I blog about food, from cooking and baking to tips and tricks to make it easier and more enjoyable.

I have two grown sons, one has a girlfriend and the other a wife, with my two grandchildren.  Fortunately for me, my boys have always been great eaters, not picky.  My grandchildren are another story.  It is a challenge for me to find something that my grandchildren will love and enjoy eating.  However, with baking, everything is delicious.  I’ll take my wins with them when I can get them.

I spent most of my life living in a small town in Iowa, but now live in Idaho.  It’s a very different lifestyle being surrounded by mountains instead of being surrounded by fields of corn and beans, a very agricultural area.  I’m closer to my children and their families now, so I’ll take that.  That was the point of moving to Idaho, to be near my son, daughter-in-law, and my grandchildren.

Some of the joys in my life are my family and the time we get to be together.  Oftentimes, those moments involve food which I enjoy planning the menu, preparing it, and enjoying it together with one another.  Those moments are the joyful little things in life.  That is where the name for my blog originated and what it means to me.   My family is my passion and creating moments with them is what drives me.

Joyful Little Things allows me to share what I have learned about cooking and baking throughout my life.  Hopefully others will be able to enhance their cooking and baking skills or maybe just add a new favorite recipe to their list of family favorites.  I write mostly about food, but I’ll sprinkle in some posts about growing your family moments and some thoughts on faith too.

Thanks for taking the time to read about me and who I am.  How about we wander to the kitchen and see what we can whip up?  Happy cooking!

Deeann