HONOLULU MARATHON 2003
RIO DE JANEIRO MARATHON 2011
RIO DE JANEIRO MARATHON 2011
This was my first marathon! I signed up with Team In Training to run in memory of my father who we lost to cancer in 1996. The mental challenge that is both training for and completing a marathon was so incredibly empowering. I was on top of the world. I definitely don't recommend running and crying simultaneously!
RIO DE JANEIRO MARATHON 2011
RIO DE JANEIRO MARATHON 2011
RIO DE JANEIRO MARATHON 2011
For my second marathon, it was about pushing myself to not only complete, but improve my time. I was told the course was flat after the first hill, so that's what I had prepared for mentally. The brutal hills threw me for a loop, but I powered through and was only 7 minutes from my ideal time!
GRAND CAYMAN MARATHON 2015
RIO DE JANEIRO MARATHON 2011
GRAND CAYMAN MARATHON 2015
I was already a mother of two for this final marathon. Finding the time and energy to train was a whole new challenge. It took everything in to me stay on that course rather than turn left where the half-marathoners exited. My husband and two kids were waiting for me at the finish line. I ran those last few paces with my oldest son alongside me, then proceeded to nurse my baby!
MY FIRST SON 2012
MY SECOND SON 2014
MY SECOND SON 2014
My husband and I chose this journey for our family, and we were fortunate that both my body and our son's allowed for it. Labor was 36 hours. I hit many walls, moments where I thought I couldn't do it anymore, and times where I was told if I didn't progress we would have to transfer to a hospital. After he was born we ended up transportin
My husband and I chose this journey for our family, and we were fortunate that both my body and our son's allowed for it. Labor was 36 hours. I hit many walls, moments where I thought I couldn't do it anymore, and times where I was told if I didn't progress we would have to transfer to a hospital. After he was born we ended up transporting to the hospital for monitoring. It wasn't how and where I had imagined our journey would end, but it pushed me to learn to adapt and reframe.
MY SECOND SON 2014
MY SECOND SON 2014
MY SECOND SON 2014
Fear began to creep in as we chose home birth again. He was breech. Would he turn in time? Would we have to transfer again? It was a roller coaster of emotions but one thing was certain...I knew I could do it, no matter what IT was. And I did! We had an ECV to turn him and he was born so fast we didn't have time to fill up the tub with water and our photographer missed the whole birth!
MY THIRD SON 2017
MY SECOND SON 2014
MY THIRD SON 2017
They say the third is the wild card and they weren't kidding. Fully expecting an hour or two of labor but facing many more was mentally trying. I was 41 years old. Did I still have it in me? Could I really go through it one last time? I wanted a water birth so badly. So when the time came my husband picked me up and put me in the tub. Have someone in your corner y'all!
KNEE SURGERIES
LOSING MY FATHER
LOSING MY FATHER
I had my ACL reconstructed twice, a menisectomy, and another surgery to remove the hardware that was protruding from my tibia. All those surgeries were on my left knee. Did they get me down? Definitely! Did they stop me? Absolutely not! I ran 3 marathons, danced salsa for 9 years, and went on to compete on Survivor Season 46!
LOSING MY FATHER
LOSING MY FATHER
LOSING MY FATHER
I was 20 years old. I wasn't ready. None of us were. He was only 55. People would say, "at least he's not suffering anymore." "He's in a better place now." Grief is so personal. It is raw. It takes time. But my journey through loss and grief has molded me into who I am today.
COSTA RICA
LOSING MY FATHER
COSTA RICA
Before grad school began, I volunteered with WorldTeach as an English teacher in a very small farm town in Costa Rica. I didn't know Spanish, how to navigate the educational system in another country, or how to communicate with the family I was placed with. I was completely out of my comfort zone. Sinking was not an option, so I learned to swim.
PHYSICAL THERAPY
PHYSICAL THERAPY
PHYSICAL THERAPY
I never imagined living in the northeast. I hated the cold. So when I told my family I wanted to move from CA to NY, they thought I was crazy. I didn't know what I was going to do there, there was just a little voice in my head telling me I had to go. I ended up landing a job as the physical therapist for the Lion King on Broadway! Not a
I never imagined living in the northeast. I hated the cold. So when I told my family I wanted to move from CA to NY, they thought I was crazy. I didn't know what I was going to do there, there was just a little voice in my head telling me I had to go. I ended up landing a job as the physical therapist for the Lion King on Broadway! Not a bad start, but there was something more there for me. And then I met my husband! Listen to your intuition!
STAY AT HOME MOM
PHYSICAL THERAPY
PHYSICAL THERAPY
I left my career in physical therapy to become a stay-at-home mom. It was quite possibly the hardest life change I have had to date. Having worked since the age of 15, I didn't know how I would be contributing to our family. What was my identity now? Was I "just" Mom? It took me a year to wrap my head around the notion that this was quite
I left my career in physical therapy to become a stay-at-home mom. It was quite possibly the hardest life change I have had to date. Having worked since the age of 15, I didn't know how I would be contributing to our family. What was my identity now? Was I "just" Mom? It took me a year to wrap my head around the notion that this was quite possibly my biggest role yet in life, and likely the most important.
BUSINESS OWNER
PHYSICAL THERAPY
BUSINESS OWNER
After our second child was born I knew I wanted to step back into the workforce, but I still had to balance that with being a full-time stay-at-home mom. I opened my business on weekends only, then as the kids began to spend a few hours at school, I would squeeze a client in whenever I could. It was the perfect balance for me. I could help others and I could still be home with my family.
