Meet Our New Contributors: Sarah, Ashley, and Michele

This week we are introducing you to our new contributors. Yesterday you met Mina, Anissa, and Kellie. Today we’re introducing you to Sarah, Ashley, and Michele!

Meet Sarah

Hi! I am Sarah and I am a wife to an amazing husband and the mother of a delightfully rambunctious toddler. I am an Iowa native, and I grew up in rural Benton county, outside of the small town of Atkins. I attended Luther College in Decorah where I earned my BA in Biology, and also met Jonathan, my future husband. After college I spent two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in a rural village in Honduras teaching health and nutrition topics in conjunction with the village health center. When I completed my service in 2004 I returned to Iowa City to start graduate studies at the University of Iowa in their Physical Therapy program. I graduated in 2007 and worked for a few years at St. Luke’s Hospital in in-patient adult care before moving into an out-patient position as a pediatric physical therapist at Witwer Children’s Therapy Center in Hiawatha. I’ve been there ever since and I would have to say it is my dream job. I love working with children with various disabilities and challenges and helping them to reach their highest potentials. Every day is different, and I get to do everything from snuggle babies to help kids take their first steps to even go swimming for work! I also love the fact that the job allowed me to move to part time after my son was born, so that I can continue in a career that I love while not sacrificing all my weekday time with my kiddo!

A huge surprise was waiting for me when I returned to the United States from Peace Corps service. Although Jonathan and I had been good friends in college we had never actually dated. Low and behold he decided that should change when I returned stateside and so he took a leap of faith and moved from Minneapolis to Cedar Rapids right before I finished my service. Fast forward a few years and we married in 2007, just before I finished graduate school. We moved to North Liberty and have called this wonderful community home ever since. We especially enjoy the bike trails and community center and all the activities that are offered in the area to families. The 2012 arrival of Aaron made us a family of 3, and what an adventure it has been so far! He is currently one crazy ball of 3 year old energy who loves Star Wars, Daniel Tiger, gymnastics class, and playing on his guitar. On the days I am home you can often find us at the park, in the sandbox, drawing on the sidewalk, or mixing cookies in the kitchen.

Practicing the balancing act between work outside the home and family life keeps me pretty busy, but when I have a free moment I enjoy running, baking, crochet, playing the cello and piano, and dabbling in photography. I am by no means a professional but occasionally I get the light just right, and I keep telling myself I am going to learn how to use Photoshop someday. Running in particular helps me deal with stress and stay grounded when life throws curveballs. I have run several half marathons and completed one full marathon (although slowly!) and I enjoy participating in local 5K and 10K races. I am also an accredited Breastfeeding Counselor through the Eastern Iowa Chapter of Breastfeeding USA and I enjoy counseling women to help them reach their breastfeeding goals. We are also active members of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Iowa City, where we have found many wonderful friends over the years. I am excited to be part of the Iowa City Mom’s Blog community, and hope you enjoy sharing in my musings on life and parenting!

Meet Ashley

Hi! I’m Ashley. I am a Stay at Home Mom to 4 amazing kiddos: Rilyn is 7, Casen is 4, and Brigg and Brooks are 2. My husband, Cody, and I are originally from Arizona and we have been married for 10 years. Over the past 10 years we have had quite the journey. After graduating from Arizona State University with my Bachelor’s degree in Communication, my daughter was born (2 weeks after graduation to be exact) and I have been lucky to stay at home with her ever since. When Rilyn was 2 we packed up and moved to Erie, Pennsylvania for my husband to attend medical school. While we were there we welcomed Casen into our family. When Casen was 1 we moved to Scranton, Pennsylvania (yes, like The Office) and stayed there for about a year and a half. Then it was back to sunny Arizona for a few months so that I could be by family when the twins were born. Our medical journey has brought us to Iowa where currently we live in beautiful North Liberty and have been here for almost 2 years while Cody has been working as an Anesthesiology Resident. We absolutely love living in Iowa and hope that we will be here for many years to come.

When I am not busy chasing kids around I enjoy reading, running, and spending time with family and friends. I am the Vice President of Iowa Medical Partners, a group for the significant others of people training in the medical and dental fields at the University of Iowa, and spend a lot of time helping with events and service projects, as well as running our blog. I love spending time outside and like to attempt to garden (key word on that one is attempt). My children are very active and I work hard to keep up with them. This coming spring I am coaching t-ball and soccer and am the assistant coach for my daughter’s softball team. Thank goodness only two are old enough for sports! I am very excited about the opportunity to join Iowa City Moms Blog and cannot wait to meet more moms in the area!

Meet Michele

Hi! I’m Michele. I’m a wife and mother of three little girls. I’ve lived in Iowa all my life, growing up in Sioux City then moving to Iowa City to study studio art and interior design. My husband, Casey, and I moved to North Liberty in 2006 and have enjoyed raising our family in this small town while having access to everything Cedar Rapids and Iowa City has to offer. I have had the amazing opportunity to work from home as an in-home childcare provider for 4.5 years. I am also a mompreneur, primarily creating custom accessories and children’s apparel, as well as specialty desserts. I started my own blog this year as a way of challenging myself to grow. I love all things creative and my personal goal is to create something new every day, whether it is food, art, or memories.

I consider food to be an art form and I embrace all challenges in the kitchen. I love cooking and baking, as well as learning about new ingredients. Being in the kitchen is always a unique experience for me as I enjoy baking from scratch, trying new techniques, practicing food styling and decorating, and constantly challenging my photography skills. That doesn’t even include the best part – EATING!

It’s nearly impossible to narrow down what types of craft I enjoy most. It is probably easiest to say that I cannot draw and I have yet to figure out how to knit or crochet. Other than that, I probably do it. My life feels like a Pinterest board. However, I rarely make the same thing twice and as soon as I figure out one technique I’m ready to learn something new.

I’m excited to share some of what I know as well as learn from others on the ICMB team. I hope this opportunity will help me grow as a person as well as create some lasting friendships and memories.

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