​Hi there!
Thanks so much for stopping by to check out my website. One of my favourite things to do when reading a kid's book is to check out the author's picture and read about who they are. Up until recently, I always wondered what kind of crazy life and experiences these people must have to come up with the stories they do.

And then I had kids.

Ohh, right. Suddenly the crazy, didn't feel so crazy. They were probably just inspired by real life parenting events. Just like me!

So, what can I tell you that doesn't fit in the blurb in the back of my books?

After years of getting paid to play outside with kids, I completed a master’s degree in Outdoor Environmental and Sustainability Education from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.  This experience, combined with my own childhood spent playing in the mud contributed to my love of the outdoors.  

The mantra "There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing" was engrained in my mind from an early age. 

Imagine my reaction when my own young daughter decided that she only wanted to wear glittery princess dresses and refused to wear anything else. After many front door battles to get my kid out the door in a warm coat, I was inspired to write my first picture book, Princesses Don’t Wear THAT! 

When this same daughter began to dream of the day she would become a real princess, things "got real" for me and the second book Princesses Can Be WHAT? was born.

My husband is a saint with our kids and supporting me on my creative adventures. He's learned to recognize when I've fallen down a rabbit hole of writing, and patiently gets on with ensuring that life around us continues until I return to the land of the living.

My writing is inspired by my own childhood memories, both happy and sad, the long-lasting impact of losing my mom to cancer when I was in my 20's, and now the roller coaster as a parent myself. Every day, I see the strength, independence and feisty nature of my two girls who are now 5 and 8.  My goal is to nurture those qualities while maintaining my own sanity. That's not too much to ask, right? 

I see the current state of the world that provides the backdrop to their childhood and recognize that it will shape who they become more than I would like to admit.  

How do you raise girls, and kids in general, who know their own value? How do you effectively teach them to create boundaries, and be confident in the space they occupy in a room of friends or complete strangers? How do you ensure that they stay open to new people and ideas? How do you encourage them to find balance and joy in the glitter and grit of life? 

If you know the answers to these things already, this may not be the place for you. Bit I will continue to explore these ideas through my writing and creativity. 

I hope you join me for the journey! 

Here are a few pictures of my lovely humans who inspire me, love me and fill my days with joy (and let's be honest, lots of WTF moments). For the sake of their privacy, let's just call them Curly Whirly, T-Dot and The Hubbs.