I am a local mom of 3 littles and a Publisher for Macaroni KID Bel Air MD. I am originally from Pennsylvania. I grew up in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, roughly 15 minutes from the Philadelphia Airport. I graduated from Penn State University in 2013, which is where I met my now husband. We moved to Maryland and got married shortly after graduation. I have worked in the healthcare field for the entirety of my career so far and am now working as a Publisher/Owner for Macaroni KID Bel Air MD. I love to swim and would spend most of my time in the water if I could. I love playing and watching sports with my friends and family; however, I am also down for pampering and crafts. I love traveling and trying new things.
Q: Please tell us a little bit about your family.
I have been married to my husband since 2014. We will be coming up on our 10-year anniversary this year. I have 3 beautiful children aged 6, 4, and 1. I have 1 boy and 2 girls, so I get to experience all aspects of parenthood.
Q: Please tell us about your current, past, or future career. What do you love most about what you do?
My full-time job is in project management; however, I am also working as a Publisher/Owner for Macaroni KID Bel Air MD. In my Publisher/Owner role I maintain a website of family friendly resources and events for the local community of Bel Air MD and the surrounding Harford County area. I know how time-consuming it can be to find fun, affordable things to do as a family. Macaroni KID allows me the opportunity to become the local resource for fun family activities and to help take some of the stress out of planning. I also understand how important it is for local businesses to reach young families in their communities. By utilizing my connection with local families, I can assist family-oriented businesses in reaching their target audience. What I love most about what I do is connecting with other local small businesses in the community. I am building such a great connection with the community, and it makes me feel truly at home here.
Q: What are a couple of your favorite restaurants in our community?
My favorite restaurants in our community are Fuji Sushi – Bel Air MD, Enotria Restaurant & Grill – Forest Hill, MD and Plaza Mexico -Fallston, MD.
Q: How long have you lived or worked in our community?
I have lived or worked in our community for 6 years.
Q: Who is the most interesting person you’ve met here in our community?
Nicole Hackett, Author of The Perfect Ones. Nicole is a local mother who works full-time, while also writing her own novels. Her first published novel, The Perfect Ones was released in 2023. Nicole’s drive to become a published author, while working, and raising a family is truly inspiring.
Q: What is one of your favorite movies? TV shows?
My favorite moving growing up was always Remember the Titans. I had all the songs memorized and they were my motivational hype songs for my school swim meets. I watched Remember the Titans every time I was home sick from school. My favorite show is Shameless. I love the story line and how different it is from typical television shows. You never knew what was going to happen next while watching Shameless and it always kept you on your toes.
Q: What advice would you give to people?
Be confident in yourself and do not be afraid to ask to be a part of something. It can be very intimidating to put yourself out there as a new business owner, but the worst that someone can say is no I am not interested. Then you move on and find success somewhere else.
Q: What current or former local business makes you the most nostalgic about our community?
Fuji Sushi in Bel Air MD makes me the most nostalgic about my community. When I was pregnant and had a new baby, my husband and I visited Fuji Sushi often or brought home take-out. They made us feel welcome with our new children, no matter the mess or noise we brought to the restaurant. We were very nervous about going to restaurants with a young child because of this reason, but Fuji Sushi always welcomed us with open arms. They even told us we were their best customers on one occasion. Unfortunately, Fuji is a little far from us now in our new house in the more northern part of Harford County, but we still visit as often as is possible.
Q: If you could choose anyone that is alive today and not a relative; with whom would you love to have lunch? Why? And where locally would y’all meet for this lunch?
If I could have lunch with anyone that is alive today, I would choose to have lunch with Emmy Rossum. She starred as Fiona Gallagher in my favorite tv show, Shameless. The real-life version of Emmy is vastly different from the person she portrayed in Shameless, however I love Emmy both in Shameless and in the real world. I love the way Emmy protects her family and lives a normal life while also being a tv star. I love the way she fought for herself for equal pay as her male costars to hopefully improve the path for other female stars to also earn equal pay. We would definitely eat at The Mint Room because I feel like Emmy would love the food there and I have been wanting to visit The Mint Room badly, I just have not made it there yet!
Q: What is your favorite thing or something unique about our community?
My favorite thing about our community is the community. This is the first place where I feel truly at home and where I am supposed to be. I have met great friends, built my own family, and embedded myself in this warm and welcoming community. Harford County MD is our forever home.
Q: Where do you see yourself in 5 to 10 years?
I see myself continuing to work hard in my career, living in my home that we have now, and watching my children grow with my husband. We will probably have more pets, because my children love animals, but hopefully my children can help us to raise these future pets. But hey, let’s not rush time and let’s love the hear and now! ????
Q: (Even for friends or family), what is something interesting that most people don’t know about you?
Something interesting that most people don’t know about me is that I tend to stay up really late and work on passion projects, including crafts, Macaroni KID resources, etc. I thrive in my alone time when the rest of my home is silent. I feel that my brain works best at night.
Q: What would you rate a 10 out of 10?
I would rate being active 10 out of 10. In the last few months, I have struggled to be active because I have been working on several projects, but I do not feel myself when I am not active. Regular exercise puts me in a great headspace and makes me feel the most alive. I enjoy being active for the internal feeling it gives me.
Q: Who inspires you to be better?
My children inspire me to be better every day. I fought hard to have my children, going through multiple rounds of IVF and a few miscarriages along the way. Because of this and many other reasons, my children are my biggest inspiration that I can do anything. They are the sweetest, loving children, who always want to be by my side, and they make me feel truly loved. They inspire me to continue to be the best version of myself.
Q: What community service or volunteer work do you participate in for your local community?
I provide a free local resource for families in the community to find all of the family friendly events available through our local businesses. Through my calendar of events, weekly newsletter, and social media sites, I connect families to businesses in the community and connect businesses to families in the community.
Q: Finally, what 3 words or phrases come to mind when you think of the word HOME?
Family, Safety, Community
