After years on the road, gospel singing family The Browns say there's no place like home

And here's the kicker: the cattle that went into those steaks came from the heartland of America.

"They were Omaha steaks," Michaela, of the gospel music group The Browns, said with a smile. "We can tour the world and, still, some of the best food will always come from the Midwest."

It's true that Michaela, her brothers Adam and Andrew as well as mom Shelly Brown know a thing or two about life on the road.

As the The Browns, a Dove Award-nominated recording artist family, they regularly perform at the American Theatre, in Branson, Missouri, Dollywood, in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. as well as on Royal Caribbean and Carnival cruise ships.

"I can't even begin to tell you how many states we've been in," Shelly admitted.

Though Adam Brown will note the family's spacious tour bus -- which was once owned by The Judds -- has more than a million miles on it.

If the family isn't on the road, they're racking up frequent flyer miles by touring Canada and Europe.

Which is good news for Michaela, a Cordon Bleu-trained chef, cookbook author and self-professed "foodie."

"No matter where we go, I try to sample regional foods," she said. 

In a similar vein, Adam likes to scope out the theaters and entertainment venues for inspiration.

It has been nearly a decade since the Browns converted a former century-old bank building into a state-of-the-art performing center in their hometown of Le Mars, Iowa.

Located at 11 Central Ave. N.W., the Browns Century Theater is the site for the family's local concert series as well as "A Brown Family Christmas," which is running now through Dec. 21.

"I love seeing what other, larger cities are doing with their performance centers," Adam said. "If feasible, we'll try to incorporate it into our theater."

However, Shelly Brown is the point person when it comes to merchandise sold inside The Brown Theater Gift & Chocolate Shoppe.

While visitors will be able to purchase all of the Browns CDs and DVDs in addition to Michaela's three cookbooks, the store features unique gift items from across the country and around the world.

"I'm a bit of a shopaholic," Shelly said with a laugh. "But I try to convince myself I'm also doing research for the store."

Reflecting on her family's nearly quarter-of-a-century of performing, Shelly admits to a few bumps in the road.

"Like every family, we've had our ups and our downs over the years," she said. "Though we've had more good times than bad times."

That was certainly the case with Andrew Brown, the youngest of the Brown children.

"I was probably 4 years old when I started performing with the family,"  he remembered. "I couldn't wait to start singing."

"Originally, we didn't want him to sing," Adam said, teasing his younger brother. "Knowing we couldn't stop him, we've let Andrew be a part of the group."

Nevertheless, the constant touring took a toll on the family.

"Once performing began feeling like a job for the kids, we knew we had to pull back a bit," Shelly said. "Having our own theater in our own hometown has been a godsend because it has cut back on our on-the-road time."

According to Adam, it also made traveling more pleasurable.

"In the past, we'd be playing one show after another," he said. "Now, we have the luxury of actually spending time in whatever city we're in, seeing the sites and taking in the scenery."

"Or in Adam's case, scoping out a town's pizza places," interjected Andrew.

"That has become a Brown Family tradition," Adam said. "As soon as we finish a show, we're starving and I'll be on the phone, ordering pizza to go."

"Michaela is the chef of the family," Shelly said. "Adam happens to be the pizza authority. No matter where we're at, he knows which local pizza place will be the best."

On an unusually warm day in mid-October, the Browns were finishing a run of "Oh My Iowa!" -- a musical salute to the Hawkeye State -- at the Century Theater.

"This is actually our last regular show of the season," Shelly said as guests filed out following the late afternoon show.

The much-needed break gives the men an opportunity to finish combining at the family's farm, located in rural Plymouth County.

It also gave Michaela and Shelly time to get the family's Christmas show ready.

"From the music to the decorations to the food, we're a family that takes our Christmases very seriously," Shelly said.

Even though Andrew has literally grown up in a family of on-the-road performers, Le Mars will always represent home.

"No matter how much we travel, there will never be a better place than home," he said.