About Me
I was born in Maryland near the Patuxent River. My grandmother lived on the water, so I loved spending the day crabbing on the dock and then eating the crabs that evening. There is still nothing that beats Chesapeake Bay Blue crabs!
After graduating from high school, I attended Liberty University in Virginia. My high school sweetheart and I were married during our college years, and we have now been married 23 years. I earned my Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary English Education, and we moved back to Maryland where I taught middle school Language Arts for two years. My husband became a state trooper while I enjoyed teaching.
When we became pregnant with our first daughter, Mary Jo, I chose to be a stay-at-home mom for several years while we had our other two children, Carrie and Ben.
In 1998, we decided to move to Iowa to be near my sister and her family. Our children attended Mid-Prairie, and I began substitute teaching in the district. I was hired full-time as the 7th grade Language Arts teacher in 2011.
That year was also the hardest year of my life. Our oldest daughter, Mary Jo was diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia. There were several months when we weren't sure if she would need a bone marrow transplant or if the chemotherapy would take affect. We were so thankful when the medicine kicked in and her blood levels started rising. She is now off of her meds and is a full-time student at Liberty University.
While we were just catching our breath from Mary Jo's health scare, my sister, Julie Murray, and her husband, Mick Murray, were killed in a car accident in February 2012. We never expected to become the guardians of my 3 nieces and 1 nephew as they were entering into the world of adulthood, but we are so blessed by their presence in our lives and love having a closer relationship with them.
In the midst of all of our family changes, I fnished my master's degree this past year in Best Teaching Practices and am excited to start a whole new curriculum this year.
I was born in Maryland near the Patuxent River. My grandmother lived on the water, so I loved spending the day crabbing on the dock and then eating the crabs that evening. There is still nothing that beats Chesapeake Bay Blue crabs!
After graduating from high school, I attended Liberty University in Virginia. My high school sweetheart and I were married during our college years, and we have now been married 23 years. I earned my Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary English Education, and we moved back to Maryland where I taught middle school Language Arts for two years. My husband became a state trooper while I enjoyed teaching.
When we became pregnant with our first daughter, Mary Jo, I chose to be a stay-at-home mom for several years while we had our other two children, Carrie and Ben.
In 1998, we decided to move to Iowa to be near my sister and her family. Our children attended Mid-Prairie, and I began substitute teaching in the district. I was hired full-time as the 7th grade Language Arts teacher in 2011.
That year was also the hardest year of my life. Our oldest daughter, Mary Jo was diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia. There were several months when we weren't sure if she would need a bone marrow transplant or if the chemotherapy would take affect. We were so thankful when the medicine kicked in and her blood levels started rising. She is now off of her meds and is a full-time student at Liberty University.
While we were just catching our breath from Mary Jo's health scare, my sister, Julie Murray, and her husband, Mick Murray, were killed in a car accident in February 2012. We never expected to become the guardians of my 3 nieces and 1 nephew as they were entering into the world of adulthood, but we are so blessed by their presence in our lives and love having a closer relationship with them.
In the midst of all of our family changes, I fnished my master's degree this past year in Best Teaching Practices and am excited to start a whole new curriculum this year.