About me

finding my voice

I grew up in a large family. I am a triplet, and while for most of my life I have strongly believed this isn't a defining characteristic of my personality, I'm finding it is. I went through my childhood being part of a triad and experiencing life with the comfort of not being alone. Any new turn life took, my brother and sister were right beside me. We have a younger brother as well and I can only imagine that finding his voice with such a complicated family dynamic was even harder for him.

Birth order roles don't really fit with my family. We all possess the oldest, middle child and baby personality. I was the baby of the 3 of us but also the middle child and display characteristics of the oldest (I'm very much the mom of the family). When I needed to be heard, I had to speak loudly. And at times the noise around us was too loud to even be heard if I was yelling.

This is where art came into my life. Finding art was an accident. I was put into an art class when I failed to turn in elective selections entering high school. The first day of class, we were to make a portfolio out of brown craft paper. Draw a picture of something starting with the same letter of our first name and draw our name in calligraphy. I raised my hand and told my wonderful teacher "I can't draw. Can I go to the guidance counselor and change my class". She sent me away and I was told by my counselor to give it a chance. So I did. And I never stopped drawing, painting, crafting and now, snapping.

Art became my voice. It helps me say the things that I don't have words for. It helps me process heavy emotions, traumas, joys and memories. It helps to connect me with people, foster friendships and truly be a part of the thing I love most in life - the people.

I have 3 kids now. I have always been a mom in my family so becoming a mom was an easy and natural transition in my life. They are the subject of most of my creative work and I love watching them grow and finding their own voice in this world. Above all, I let them know they have a voice, deserve to be heard, and we are listening to them.

I'm married to Roo. There are very few conversations I have in a day where Roo is not mentioned. He's quite literally my other half and if I'm being honest, my better half.

That's my story. I can't wait to hear yours!