I’m originally from California, but I was raised in Indiana. Being a military spouse, I have loved traveling around the United States, creating a community and family wherever we were stationed. I always found a great tribe of women I could bond with over a cup of tea, or people I could take a “mommy time out” with, that may have involved wine. This group of angels became especially important when my husband was deployed. 

I’m a foodie, and I love to cook. My grandparents owned a restaurant, and I worked there during summers growing up. I learned how to prepare dishes, mix spices, combine textures, and I learned the value of hard work and the discipline of working in a kitchen. In a large way, this has helped prepare me to be a mother to kids who have sensory sensitivities – I’ve had to get creative in the kitchen. 

Also, the kitchen is where I am able to get inventive and really play with the senses to curate the LYJ Pamper Products. Inhaling the freshly peeled oranges, rolling the oils and flower petals between my fingers, watching the steam float off the sugar as it cools… it’s a time for me to slow down and practice mindfulness.  

Being mindful and doing gratitude practices are important to me because I am a trauma survivor. I have worked with other women to create a supportive and uplifting community, and I believe in the power of education. As a Virgo sun, I love my facts and putting those facts into practice. I am a certified Labor, Postpartum & Infant Care Doula, which has enabled me to empower women to get to know their bodies better, and to make informed decisions about their pregnancy. I had difficult pregnancies with all my children, and I never wanted another woman to go through that alone or uninformed. 

I am an activist, ally, and coach. Being a Black woman in an interracial marriage raising babies in America today is hard (can I get an amen?). Along my journey, it has been important to me to center, support, and raise up those who are often not represented.