In the South, I think, food mirrors our lives. When I was growing up, no matter what you were grieving or celebrating, my mama would be at the door with a cake or a pie.

Growing up, my parents were my heroes, in the way they conducted their lives.

Growing up, I remember I had several different 45 singles. But the first album I received was from a family friend: Emmylou Harris' 'Roses In The Snow.' It was so incredible. This record, to this day, is the favorite album of my life.

I played a million different sports when I was growing up. I started when I was probably five or six, and we'd just go from activity to activity to activity. I think, finally, my parents just realized that we were missing something in our lives. They realized that it was time for us as a family to start going to church.

I was an all-sport athlete growing up. My dad, I think, hoped I would go to college on a scholarship.

I think it's very important that we instill in our kids that it has nothing to do with their name or their situation that they're growing up in; it has to do with who they are as an individual.