About Me

Hello friend, welcome! I started this blog in the hopes of helping you as you embark on the crazy adventure that is marriage and family. I’ve been married almost 15 years and I have to tell you, married life is nothing quite like I envisioned. It’s not quite like a Hallmark card (or movie, for that matter). It is exciting and passionate and mundane and difficult and heartwrenching, sometimes all in the span of one day. Motherhood is all that, but on steroids. But no matter how hard it gets, and how much we have to struggle to make it work, it is so very worth it. I believe that strong marriages and strong families will save the world, one couple and one family at a time. I want to celebrate your courageous choice of a seemingly ordinary life which will be your path to happiness — and save humanity to boot. As G.K. Chesterton so eloquently put it, “The most extraordinary thing in the world is an ordinary man and an ordinary woman and their ordinary children.”

If you are a single gal wondering where all the good guys are; or a newlywed wondering why this marriage thing is so unexpectedly challenging; or a young mom wondering why you sometimes feel like dropping your bundle of joy off at the nearest fire station, then this blog is for you. I’ve been all those women and the struggle is real! I give dating advice, marriage advice, advice for new parents, thoughts on education, and recommendations for good, soul-nourishing entertainment. So grab a cup of tea and stay a while. I wish you all happy, fulfilling, life-affirming marriages!

Random factoids about me

• I’ve been married 15 years to my incredible husband and have three crazy boys and one tough princess.
• I was born in Lima, Peru and came to Toronto Canada at the age of 11 with my parents and sisters. We just celebrated our 30th anniversary in this glorious country!
• My parents insisted that we speak Spanish at home and I’m so glad they did! Speaking another language expands your brain and gives you endless opportunities in life. Not to mention the added perk of threatening disciplining my kids in a foreign tongue.
• I have a BA in Psychology and Economics from the University of Waterloo and a Masters in Marriage and Family Sciences from the University of Navarra in Spain. Yes, that one I did completely in Spanish. See? Learn a second language.
• I have an older sister and a younger sister. We are as different as can be but we are each other’s best friends. Siblings are the greatest blessings.
• We didn’t have a TV during our teenage years. It’s the best decision we ever made as a family. I knew nothing about Friends and The Simpsons until I got to university.
• My parents are the best cooks I know.
• Peruvian cuisine is the BEST in the world. This is fact.
• I met my husband the week after Frosh week at university. He was wearing a Molson Beer hat and socks and sandals, and I was wearing jean overalls with a Mickey Mouse shirt. I had braces. Clearly it was love at first sight.
• When we met, I was a lukewarm Catholic and he was agnostic. His agnosticism eventually led me to fall in love with my faith. The Lord sure works in mysterious ways. One year after we married and eight years after meeting me, my hubby converted. Our faith sustains, nourishes and guides our lives.
• We struggled with infertility during the first years of our marriage but thanks to natural family planning, we were able to have not just one, but four bundles of joys. We are ever so grateful.
• Every baby we’ve had has been born in a different house.
• I homeschool my kids. It’s something that we started in kindergarten (because how badly could I mess up my 4-yr old kid?) and we’ve never looked back. It’s the hardest and most rewarding thing I’ve ever done.
• Scratch that. Potty training is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.
• I have a bad temper and I’m a morning grouch. My poor kids.
• I avoid crafts but my second son loves them. I often find him rummaging through the recycling bin for materials. Poor kid.
• I have a lifelong battle with exercise. But I’d like to live to see my grandchildren, so work out I must.
• When I’m stressed, I bake. Then I have to exercise the sugar away. Ugh.
• As we, um, enjoy long winters in Canada, I am in love with the idea of koselig.
• We love, love, love to travel. We’ve been to France, England, Peru, Mexico, and all over the States and Canada. We’re off the Prince Edward Island this summer and I can’t wait.
• We drive a used Honda Odyssey, which happens to be my dream car back when I was in high school. I see now why I wasn’t in the popular crowd.
• I took 9 years of piano and but then went away to university and never touched it again. Sorry mom and dad. Now that my kids are starting to play, I’m reigniting my love affair with piano. It’s never too late to start again!
• I took up biking again after 15 years of not riding a bike.
• I took up skiing again after 10 years of not skiing. You can sense a trend here. Next up – skating.
• I love to read. So much. My greatest dream is to curl up on a comfy leather chair in front of a fire, reading a delightful book written by a British lady from the 1800s.
• Unfortunately I don’t have a lot of time to read nowadays. So I’m getting into podcasts. My favorite is The Art of Manliness. Yes, it’s for guys, but whatever, I have three sons and a husband so I’ve earned the right.
• I can’t follow a simple IKEA instruction booklet. Somehow the words dance before my eyes and I get dizzy. Is this a condition?