Convert old grill into roll-away tabletop for Cuisinart 3-in-1

You know how it goes. You buy a new piece of outdoor cooking gear, and suddenly there's this old grill cart just sitting there — rusting, taking up space, not really doing anything useful anymore. Most people would drag it to the curb. I looked at it and saw a project.

I had just picked up the Cuisinart 3-in-1 pizza oven, grill, and griddle, and right away I could tell it needed a proper home outside. It's a tabletop unit, which is great for portability, but you still need something sturdy to set it on — something at the right height, with room to work. I wasn't about to spend money on a new cart when I had an old grill base in the garage and a stack of leftover wood just waiting to be used.

So here's what I did, why it worked, and what you should know if you want to try something similar.

Vanilla Extract Revisited — One Year Later (And It Made the Best Christmas Gifts)

About a year ago, Tytus and I made our first batch of homemade vanilla extract. We used Siesta Key silver rum — the clear one — along with a little spiced rum and some toasted coconut rum, poured it all over vanilla beans, sealed the jars, and let time do the work. Then we basically just... waited.

Fast forward almost a year, and I pulled those jars out to show you what happened. If you haven't seen dark vanilla extract before, you're in for something. That clear rum we started with? Deep, rich brown. Almost like molasses. You can see the vanilla specs still floating in it and the beans right there through the glass. That's when you know you did something right.

We bottled it all up as Christmas gifts — and this video is us doing exactly that, with Tytus helping every step of the way, a year older and still just as much my kitchen partner.

Lyon Family Farms — The Fall Day Trip Worth the Drive from Huntsville

Some days you just need to get the family out of the house, off the screens, and into something that actually feels like fall. That's exactly what we did when we loaded up and headed to Lyon Family Farms in Taft, Tennessee — and it was one of those outings where you're glad you made the drive.

We got there early, which I'd recommend. The morning light was beautiful, the crowds were still thin, and the whole place just had that crisp fall atmosphere you can't manufacture. By the time you're reading this, you might already know about Lyon Family Farms — they've been drawing families from all over the Tennessee Valley and North Alabama for years. But if this is your first time hearing about it, let me give you the rundown.

Early morning at Lyon Family Farms — the best time to arrive.

Teaching My Son to Serve — Why We Show Up for Our Community Twice a Month

Two Saturdays out of every month, Tytus and I show up to serve. We're not doing it for recognition, we're not doing it for content — we do it because we genuinely believe that one of the most important things you can pour into a child is the habit of showing up for other people. And cooking is our lane, so that's where we plug in.

Last year I decided Tytus was old enough and mature enough to start coming alongside me for real. Not just watching, not just tagging along — actually working. Cutting, prepping, cooking, serving. And he has risen to it every single time. I'm proud of him in a way that's hard to put into words. Watching your son understand at a young age that his time and his skills are worth something to other people — that's the kind of thing that sticks with a kid.

Tytus putting in work — this is what showing up looks like.

Easy Home Pickles — No Recipe Needed, Just Leftover Pickle Juice

Stop pouring that pickle juice down the drain. I mean it. That leftover liquid sitting in your empty jar of dill pickles is already seasoned, already acidic, already flavored — and it's ready to go to work again. You don't need a recipe, you don't need a canning setup, and you don't need to buy a single extra ingredient. All you need are some fresh vegetables and about five minutes.

This is one of those kitchen habits that once you start, you can't stop. Tytus and I knocked o
ut a whole jar of mixed pickled vegetables in the time it takes to chop everything up. Here's exactly how we do it.