My husband, Lance, and I met in the fall of 1995 just a couple weeks after starting college and were married in 2000. He proposed on April Fools Day…that should tell you something about our relationship and our sense of humor. We love sharing a laid back life; listening to good music, binge watching TV, and reading books to each other. We value loyal friends who act more like family and, if we were being honest, we would probably live in a commune if the opportunity presented itself.

 

We grew up in the DFW area and moved from there to Austin in 2003 so I could pursue my career as a child life specialist in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit. Since making Central Texas our home, I have earned my masters in early childhood special education at The University of Texas, he is the creative director at one of Austin’s top tech companies, we have bought two homes, been involved in five different churches, and run together in three half marathons. The years in Austin have brought us countless friends and a feeling of community that means we can call it home.

Personally, I rarely wear make up, I don’t wash my face every day, I am not good at accessorizing, I get my hair cut once in a blue moon, and the last time I colored my hair was in 1998. Embrace the gray, ladies. I love free events and will drag my kid (and my husband if I’m lucky) to go check them out. I enjoy running, cycling, yoga, and swimming. The struggle is striking the balance of being a mom and wife and finding time to be active. I dig traveling…in fact, I once spent six weeks living among the Mouk tribe in Papua New Guinea. I like organizing and can be a little OCD at times, but this does not necessarily mean that transfers to an immaculate home.  I love western novels and watching war movies. And if you give me a dark chocolate covered caramel apple I’ll be your best friend. Things I cannot stand…the sound of people chewing, lizards, role play, and listening to children’s choirs. No level of reasoning can explain the last one. It just is.

So, back in May of 2011, ten years and 8 months after my husband and I got married, we toyed with the idea of having a child. Apparently that was all the encouragement that God needed because, boom, we were pregnant within that same month. Seven short months later, Benjamin Lev arrived on the scene. He was delivered 9 weeks early after a routine appointment discovered his heart was failing. He stared down death and since then he’s been a spirited and determined little boy not easily shaken. His crazy start also quickly confirmed for us how much we truly did want to experience parenthood together…and what a ride it has been!

As a stay-at-home-mom, it is so important to have a strong community of moms. I love to plan outings and am so grateful that I have many fellow SAHM’s in our neighborhood to spend time with each day. The possibility to expand this network of mom’s through Austin Moms Blog is so exciting and I can’t wait to see who comes into our lives through this experience!

So that’s me…in all my weirdness. What did you expect from an Austinite?