My ancestors were farmers, bakers, and artists - I was born of the black soil of Iowa. In our home food was tradition, love, celebration, a way of life. I trailed my dad in the garden, and my mom in the kitchen. In their early twenties my parents met and opened the first natural foods store in the state - a little shop called the Bowery General in Iowa City. When they moved to the countryside they poured their love into raising 5 children with these roots. All summer long we sat in the front yard snapping peas and ate sweet corn and thick slices of what are still the best tomatoes I’ve ever tasted. We’d pick buckets and buckets of tart cherries from a friend’s tree and be red with cherry juice for days after spending all night pitting them to preserve. This was our little home. 

Through my 20s, I spent much of my time with my mama in her kitchen, absorbing as much as I could. I remember how proud I was when I mastered her Moroccan chicken & couscous recipe at 13 and made the meal for our family, filling the house with spices & getting to use a cherished sprinkle of saffron. My mother saw every holiday, far and wide across the globe, as a chance to gather us around the table and cook traditional foods from that region. A good meal excited her in the absolute cutest way. She left this earth many years ago now - but I feel her wisdom flowing through my hands, especially in the kitchen. I’ve come to understand that this is how I honor her, my ancestors, and all of the divine grandmothers that have come before me - by sharing this way of life through nourishment. 

I’ve found my way to the work of supporting birthing people in this most sacred time of their lives through many seasons of my own life spent exploring massage therapy, reiki, herbalism, and more recently, Ayurvedic Medicine & wombwork. I am so grateful to be able to offer my love and food to help in supporting your vitality as you enter the birth portal.