Hi! I’m Michelle, and I like to write things.

I’m an editor by day and creative writer by night. Typing away from sunny Phoenix, I am on a never-ending quest to sharpen my writing skills, make the perfect cup of coffee and complete my To Be Read list. Writing is my practice and my passion, my way of spreading inspiring messages and making sense of the world.

This blog is my way of sharing my latest thoughts and experiences. Here you’ll find musings on:

Motherhood

My Philosophy: No mom should feel alone in their cluelessness. Children are a flippin’ mystery. What has helped me the most in my first year of the “hood” is reading other moms’ personal stories rather than the how-to articles. While I know the experts are well intended, I only feel worse after reading and failing to implement their plan the right way. I don’t know about y’all, but I’d rather spend my time reading someone I relate to. I know I can’t be that for everyone, but hopefully, I can help you feel like you’re not the only one who doesn’t have it all together.

Coffee

My philosophy: Coffee = happiness. I believe everyone deserves the best quality of coffee and should aim to support local coffee shops. I’m not an anti-Starbucks kind of gal – I’m all for coffee in a pinch – however, I hope to convince you to try more local coffee for your daily cup. Most of these folks do better at supporting world coffee farms and provide better quality coffee, (in my opinion). One of my favorite pastimes is checking out different coffee shops in whatever city I’m in, so I’ll share more about my favorite finds and stories on good coffee. I love learning more about this drink that brings me daily joy, and I want to share it all with you.

Books

My philosophy: Reading stories, whether real or fictional, help us all gain meaning, empathy and understanding in our lives. Stories help connect us and get us out of our own noisy heads. My intent is to share the books that have helped me the most, whether on a specific focus area or just brought me significant joy or entertainment. I love talking books with people, sharing my favorite titles and getting recommendations from others, so please contribute your own recommendations as well! Whether you want to comment on a post or respond to an email, I’d love to hear what books you’re loving.

Writing

My Philopsophy: If it makes you happy, you should pursue it without any other rationale. When I was 9 years old and first read a Babysitter’s Club book, I declared that I wanted to be an author. Writing is my lifelong pursuit, but with a full-time job and a family, it’s something I have to be diligent about making time for. I notice when I go a few days without writing something, Mama Bear is cranky and not her best self. I believe we should all live into our passion projects and pursue what lights us up.

This post goes into more detail about how I came to be a writer.

Confidence

My Philosophy: Focus on feeling good. I’ve struggled with confidence since I was a teenager, and along with writing, I’m on a lifelong pursuit to feel more confident. You’ll see this theme weave through many of my posts here, and it’s the topic of my memoir-in-essays I’m currently working on.