About
I get a serious case of writer's block whenever I sit down to churn out a little bio of myself. I mean, where do I even start? Do I summarize myself by how I spend my time? Do I highlight things I've accomplished? Do I mention what I'm trying to develop in myself? What I collect? What irritates me?
- Whenever I start to get overwhelmed, I resort to bulleted lists. I guess that's the first thing to know about me.
- I was born in San Diego and spent 12 developmental years growing up there, dude.
- I collect vintage pottery of the sea foam green variety.
- My immediate family consists of my partner Matt, our bloodhound Hoss, our two chickens (who are also named in the Bonanza genre), and our son, Henry (born 2/28/11). (Editor's Note: They are listed in order of acquisition.)
- I spend my days running two blogs, facilitating an online course about preparing your mind, body, and life for pregnancy, writing a book about how to plan a meaningful and memorable wedding without losing your savings or sanity, starting a national network of Montessori charter schools, and volunteering as the Director of Operations and Compliance for Austin Achieve--but only during Henry's nap times. Thankfully, he's a good napper and goes to bed early.
- I used to be an over-achiever because my biological father never wanted anything to do with me and doing good work helped me garner the appreciation and love I so desperately wanted from him. Now I'm just an over-achiever because working on different things keeps me engaged and interested.
- I spend my free time playing board games that involve letter scrambling, reading, jogging, doing yoga, crafting, making templates, or planning adventures.
- I'm passionate about educational reform (first as an AmeriCorps member, then a Teach For America corps member, a KIPP teacher, independent consultant, public Montessori teacher, and now as the founder of Montessori For All, a national network of high-performing, authentic, public Montessori schools in diverse communities). I believe that the kind of world we create will depend on how we nurture our children.
- I've been a vegetarian since 2001 for environmental, ethical, and health reasons.
- I'm a staunch supporter of same-sex marriage and feel ashamed to live in a historical period that has such a huge example of blatant discrimination hanging over its head.
- I'm pretty terrible in the garden and the kitchen, yet I wholeheartedly want to be better in both areas.
- I'm not so sure about how to end this list. I was born in 1978, so I have a lot of years to pull material from.
I guess I'll end with one of my favorite expressions:
Egad!
