It's no secret. Anyone who knows me well knows I could live off avocados, macaroni and cheese, pizza, and Mexican food. One of my major challenges post-college was learning to integrate the culinary arts into my daily routine. Here are my excuses why:

1. It's hard to cook for one.
   
   
2. Living on a budget doesn't allow for weekly extravagant grocery runs.
   
   
3. My parents spoiled me growing up and through high school. I never had to cook for myself. (I know, I said I was spoiled.)
   
   
4. I'm perfectly content alternating between burritos and pizza  every night.

I was reminded of my excuses most recently when talking with my younger brother, Clay. He and his dog  moved out last month. They both have been living with my fiancè and me for over ten months while my brother was finishing up his Bachelors Degree in Geographic Information Systems . The official graduation was in December, but his stay was extended through February so he could find a job and get settled before finding a place of his own. As acting big sister, stand-in mom (our parents live in California), and Wells Fargo employee, I volunteered to assist my brother in figuring out his finances.

Clay set up an online profile with his bank to see his student loan and checking account balances all at once and also started tracking his spending habits. We were both astonished to discover he had spent over $600 at restaurants last month—no joke. Luckily, Clay had secured a great job, stemming from an internship that paid very well, so he could afford to spend $600 a month going out.

However, that's no longer the case: Enter big boy condo and food budget.

He moved out a few weeks ago, and we resolved to have family dinner twice a week to practice cooking for each other. Not only does it save us the chore of cooking for one night, but also it gives us an opportunity to learn to broaden our menu and challenge our taste buds. My soon-to-be mother-in-law just sent me a cookbook  for my birthday, which was not so much of an insult as it was encouragement for the development of my skills in the kitchen. We'll see how well I do.

Since Clay already has his act together, and a great job, I also recommended that he practice making his student loan payments now. He has a Federal Stafford Loan and his monthly payments have been deferred until June. By making a similar payment every month into his savings account he can build a little savings and prepare himself for that money he'll be repaying in five months. This is the point when he became a little overwhelmed and frustrated because I started acting totally like mom. Hmmm, think I went overboard?

Anyway, my brother has direction, his own place, and hopefully, a great menu planned for next Thursday. I'm so proud.