About Me

The short version:

I’m Joy.  I’m a wife of six years to my best friend, Peter.  I’m a mother of two adorable children, Zoe and Noah. I’m a DONA trained doula and I’m a Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator.  I’ve also worked as midwife’s assistant.

The long version:

I was born on a Summer Sunday in 1977.  In August of 2011, my little family moved from Denton, Texas and shortly after settled in the Chicago area of La Grange.  Peter, my husband, is a hot intellectual, and a grad student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.   This means that often the intellectual and I have way over my head meaningful conversations together about art and culture.

On March 7, 2009, Peter and I became first time parents when I gave birth to our beautiful daughter Zoe, she is absolutely perfect, I won’t mention the fact that she didn’t sleep through the night till she was a year old.  On April 13th of 2011, we celebrated the arrival of our adorable son, Noah Luke. He is also absolutely perfect.  Like his sister, he does not sleep through the night – not even close. We also have the pleasure of owning a crazy border jack named Nutters, Schnoofy-puff, Schneebers Nutmeg, who loves squirrels, saltine crackers and long walks on the beach.

I’m a stay at home mom who obsesses over  how much water I take in a day, and whether or not I’m doing it right (raising children) and how wide  my hips have spread since childbirth.  I think and often write about God, politics, the demise of my immature faith,  justice and injustice, shopping, the unimaginable splendor of loving my children, my work as a doula and childbirth educator, the size of my pores, my brainy husband who loves the best and worst of me, and how I should not give Nutmeg two doses of heart worm pills in a month.

I am a DONA trained Birth Doula and a Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator. I hope to help guide women towards accurately informed options during their pregnancy and childbirth. But most of all, I desire to see more women cared for, respected and even empowered through their childbirth experience(s). Plus, I really love helping moms and moms-to-be, especially during labor!  While living in Denton, I worked as midwife’s assistant or what they called a birth assistant at a local birth center.  I also spent over a year teaching childbirth classes modeled from the Birthing From Within method every Tuesday night.  Currently, I’m on an extended maternity leave, and not actively doula-ing or teaching (beyond this blog).  All these things (including my family) keep me insanely busy, but also spectacularly content.

And since I can’t currently afford therapy, I also use this blog to pour out my soul in the most authentic way I know how. I promise to be honest here, and not only give you my best thoughts but also my most candid, outrageous and horrible thoughts.  Hopefully you’re okay with that.