I could give you the basic biography. I am a 40-something wife and mother and I work in an administrative job. I received my Associate’s Degrees from Snow College and Salt Lake Community College and my Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Utah (GO UTES!)
I considered it, but then I asked myself, does that really tell you about me? Maybe the surface stuff. I have a feeling you might want a little bit more.
Here goes …
I call myself a non-traditional traditionalist. My entire life, I have craved the life that many I knew had. Born and raised in the same town, lived in the same house until I graduated high school. Eventually, get married, raise a family, and become a stay-at-home mom who joined the PTA and did volunteer work. A little bit like Carol Brady, June Cleaver, or Donna Reed.
I should have realized … early on that my life was just not meant to go that route.
My childhood was spent as an Army Brat, and I lived in many places across the United States (literally from sea to shining sea) and Europe with my mom. This early exposure to cultures and the world significantly impacted who I am today. These experiences gave me a love of people, cultures, traveling, and the desire to learn as much as possible.
During my first year of high school, my mom retired from the United States Army, and we moved to the Beehive State and lived in Salt Lake City. I graduated from East High School. After high school, I moved to Ephraim, Utah, to attend Snow College, where I earned an Associate of Science in General Education. I then chose to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the beautiful state of Indiana.
After my mission, I started working administrative jobs in education. While I enjoyed the work I was doing, I never felt like I could find an area that I “loved,” so I never went back to finish my schooling. Instead, I focused on my social life, making friends, traveling, and working on enjoying my life. I felt a void in my life, so I started trying different things, such as volunteering for Utah’s Junior Miss (now known as the Distinguished Young Women of Utah), Best Friend’s Animal Society, and more.
The most significant void I had was that I had a strong desire to be a mother. So when the idea of becoming a foster parent presented itself in 2013, I felt strongly that this was a path I was supposed to take.
As a foster parent, I welcomed nine children into my home. Working with these children and their families has been some of my life’s most challenging and rewarding experiences and motivated me to return to my schooling and continue my education. I earned an Associate of Science in Psychology from Salt Lake Community College and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Utah.
While gaining my education I came to have some new knowledge, which led me to learning more about myself. In the Summer of 2021 I was diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Learning that I have ADHD has had it’s challenges, and there have been some growing pains, but this diagnosis has brought a lot of peace and acceptance into my life.
During my nearly ten years as a foster parent, I experienced many meaningful rewards, including earning my degrees and supporting children and their families. However, the greatest gift was the opportunity to adopt my two daughters. Becoming their mother transformed me and gave me the sense of purpose I had long been searching for.
I raised these two girls as a single mom for eleven years, and then, at the end of 2024, our family experienced a significant change.
When I least expected it, I had a plumbing problem – ha ha. Enter Warren. Warren came to my house in December 2024 to help me with a leak in my bathroom, and little did I know how his coming over would change my life. We started dating that month and quickly realized that we wanted to spend our lives together. We married in the Taylorsville Utah Temple in May of 2025. Our marriage merged our two families; together, we have eight children and eleven grandchildren.
Now I am living my non-traditional happily ever after.