A very short introduction...

A very short introduction to my little life...

I grew up in rural Ohio, the second child and only daughter of two of my very favorite people. My dad worked in law enforcement and, when I was 21, was ordained a permanent deacon in the Catholic church. My mom left her job when my brother was born and mostly stayed home with us until I started junior high. It was a quiet life filled with love and sports practices. After high school I was incredibly blessed to spend four years at Saint Mary's College where I studied psychology and Christian scripture, met my very best friends, fell madly in love with my Domer husband, N., and drank a lot of cheap beer. After graduation I worked for several months as a counselor at a local life affirming crisis pregnancy center before heading off to Marquette to complete a Master's in Community Counseling. Three days after finishing my coursework in May 2008 N. and I were married. We settled in the Chicago area to start our life together and then came the highs and lows of under/unemployment for me and lots of work travel for N. which lead him back to graduate school and into a totally different career. I eventually landed the job of my dreams as a Cognitive Behavioral psychotherapist. I spent my days (and nights) doing mindfulness practices and exposure therapies with adults and kids with severe anxiety and depression. It was incredibly rewarding and incredibly exhausting. N. was loving his new career but worked long hours and had a lengthy daily commute. We typically saw one another for about 45 in the evening and were too fried to do much besides binge watch our DVR. We had a tiny fourth floor walk up condo with big windows. I averaged two meals a day at Starbucks.When we welcomed our daughter in July 2013 it quickly became apparent that it was time for a change. I decided to leave the practice and my career and N. took a job at a startup just off the Notre Dame campus. We moved to northern Indiana to create a more simple life for ourselves and our family. This is the story of my attempt to cultivate an authentic Catholic life and discover myself as a wife and mother. Thanks for joining me!

Fun Facts:

C: loves Notre Dame football, orthodoxy, beer, car seat safety, reading binges, and mindfulness even though my practice as of late is rare bordering on nonexistent.

N: is from the Southwest, loves running, has a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, plays numerous instruments, does a perfect impersonation of Luigi from Mario Brothers, and is generally accepting of my obsessive/control freak nature.

G: is a joyful and spirited toddler who won't sleep without me, doesn't hold still, loves to wear "accessories" around the house, and likes to shut herself in her room to look at board books without interruption.