Culture, cuisine, comfort. In a nutshell, this was my life growing up. 

Culture – More often than not, my parents were entertaining friends, guests and colleagues from overseas. I would sit amongst them, listening to stories about life in their countries and could only imagine what their homes, their food and daily routines looked like. And when our schedules allowed, we traveled the world, often tagging along with my father on his business trips, in addition to points of interest on our own personal travel lists.

These global adventures shaped my view of the world and how I currently live my life. As a budding linguist, I was totally in my element, able to practice speaking different languages and assimilating into the culture.

And this is where Cuisine enters the picture. The food!! As a lifelong foodie, I loved trying different foods and later recreating the recipes at home. Both of my parents were regulars in the kitchen, and my heritage also played a big part of my culinary upbringing. My Danish grandmother taught me how to bake – everything from traditional Springerle and Almond Butter cookies to cakes, candies and tarts. My ‘nonna’ and other Italian relatives in Italy taught me how to cook soups, pastas, contorni, desserts, different techniques and most importantly, mastering the skill of cooking without over seasoning the pot. I have no fear in the kitchen whether it’s making a Fijian ceviche or mastering a French cooking technique!

Comfort – this is a lot of different elements and feelings for me – I like to refer to them as creature comforts. From the pleasure of sitting at a long dinner table surrounded by good food, stories and laughter to the act of practicing self-care whether it’s soaking in a warm bath, sipping homemade honey lemon ginger tea when my immune system feels compromised to enjoying a long afternoon hike. Being comfortable in your own environment is especially important as it leads to a more balanced mind, body and soul.

I hope you’ll join me on this journey of learning and discovery!

About Caryn

My mother once told me that everything you do in life adds to your experience. At the time I couldn’t possibly see how all the pieces would fit together, but as time went on, I began to understand and couldn’t agree more! As I look back at my life – my upbringing, travels with my family, exposure to different cultures and languages – I see clearly how it has shaped my view of the world. While at the School of Languages and Linguists at Georgetown University, I learned how babies acquire language and went on to launch Early Lingo and develop language learning apps for children. This checked off two boxes for me – my love for languages and kids.

I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit, and being a mom to two boys, every day my skills are strengthened as I’m forced to multitask, refocus, start and stop projects and then actually follow through, problem solve (LOL), use critical thinking, etc. My executive functioning skills are on point! I’ve also added entertainment director to my resumé as I’m constantly having to come up with ideas to keep my kids entertained, active and culturally enriched – aside from Netflix and YouTube – which hasn’t been easy over the past year, but I try my best and feel like I’m doing a fairly good job most of the time. At the end of the day, at least I know they’re well fed and happy.  

You can find me in the media, I have appeared on all major networks nationwide – ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, CNN/HLN and am currently hosting a ½ hour cooking show in addition to my YouTube channel and Social channels. As I dive into Cultivated by Caryn, I’m excited to share this platform with you to help make your own lives a little easier and a lot more comfortable.