Butter Me Bacon

Hey, everyone! I’m Tara: Holley’s aunt and the elder of the Butter Me Bacon duo. Writing your own bio is far more difficult than I imagined it to be! No one really likes talking about herself, does she? Yet, here I am…so, here goes!

Just a few brief things to let you know “who” I am: I’m a coach’s wife, a mom of two teenagers (sports mom), a Speech-Language Pathologist, a singer, a baker, and a soul who is much older than her years on this earth. I enjoy traveling, music, cooking, trivia, learning, watching sports, and junking. God and family are the cornerstones of my heart and life. 

I have always loved food. I love the taste, obviously. More than that, though, I have always been infatuated with the preparation, the care involved in crafting a meal for loved ones. I was fortunate to spend much of my childhood in the presence of my grandmothers. I spent many summers helping my Grandma Janice pick blackberries, tend the garden, snap beans, milk cows, and feed chickens. Then I would sit in her kitchen and watch her transform those items into mouth-watering treats of jellies and soups and gravies and pies and cakes and so much more! Likewise, I spent many days with my Grandma Alma, watching her turn the most basic ingredients into straight-up love on a plate. As a pastor’s daughter and granddaughter, I watched food bring people, churches, communities together. Someone has reason to celebrate? Celebrate with food! Someone has reason to mourn? Comfort them with food. Someone is new in town? Welcome them with food. Food is the universal language of love. And as I grew into adulthood, it became my love language, not only to others, but to myself as well. 

I turned 40 at the heaviest I had ever been in my life. For those of you who haven’t joined the 40+ club yet, I can assure you that is not how you envision ringing in what is supposed to be your most “fabulous” decade. I’d been on some sort of “diet” or “healthy eating” kick since I was a teen, long before I ever needed it. I had lost control of my metabolism and self-discipline several years prior, and it had certainly caught up with me. I had many medical issues brewing. Because working in medical speech pathology provides you with a strong base of medical knowledge, I saw the writing on the wall, but I was too stubborn (more likely, scared) to go see my medical provider and be formally diagnosed. I was suffering from severe acid reflux, shakiness and rapid pulse after eating a meal, constant hunger, depression, snoring (probably sleep apnea), joint swelling and pain, blood pressure still considered normal but creeping a bit higher every time it was taken…need I go on? 

Fast forward to March 2020, the Ides of Covid. We began it like most others I know, cooking whatever comfort food we could think of out of whatever groceries we managed to successfully get in our Wal-Mart pickup order. Hello, 10 additional pounds I’d been keeping at bay! I wasn’t happy about it, but I also wasn’t doing a single thing to try to stop it. Church services were being live-streamed rather than in-person, and as a member of our church’s worship team, I now found myself on TV weekly, trying desperately not to be vain but wishing desperately I didn’t see what I saw when I watched that girl on the screen. Easter Sunday was my turning point. I decided I had to make a change, truly make a change and stick to it.

Holley and I had a long conversation about my weight struggles, my past failures, our family medical history, and anti-inflammatory diets. I knew I had to make a change for my health. All things considered, I decided Keto was the best option for me. Here I am almost a  year later, 45 pounds down and still counting, off all reflux meds, no more snoring, no joint pain, blood pressure back to my normal. And can I tell you? I have not gone to bed hungry one single time since I started this lifestyle! I cannot say the same thing for any of the other “healthy” options I’ve ever tried. 

Now that you know my story, let me tell you why I was moved to start this blog. Firstly, this is truly my lifestyle now. It is second nature, and it works well for me. I get constant questions from people asking what I’m doing and then past that, people want help. They are stuck in that same never-ending loop I was stuck in, trying to find the answer that works for them. They need help. They want help. They don’t know where to turn for help. They don’t have a Holley like I do to work through this together. Secondly, my love for food and loving people with food has not changed. It never will! I am always going to be entertaining people. I will forever be baking someone’s favorite dessert for his birthday. I will always feed you if you come into my house. It is my calling. I want to share that with everyone! From the ways I adapt dishes so that Keto and non-Keto folks alike can enjoy them to the great recipes I stumble upon or concoct myself, I want everyone to feel as satisfied and fueled by his or her food choices as I do. This lifestyle does work. It is sustainable. I can honestly say I don’t miss carbs. I want you to be able to say that too. 

So, here were are. Butter Me Bacon. Hopefully, you will find support, answers, recipes, and ideas you are searching for when you read our content. Hopefully, you will enjoy following us on this journey. Hopefully, above all, you will see our hearts in this endeavor. We look forward to experiencing it with you! Come back and visit us soon!

Have a joyful day,

Tara