My Personal Life

 

Crystal and Jacob (2003)

I am originally from California. I was born in Kerman, CA and moved to Sacramento when I was about 7-years-old. My parents still live in Sacramento. I have one sister, Nancy, and two brothers, David and Kenneth.

I moved to Tennessee in 1994 with my daughter, Crystal. We lived in Knoxville the first year and then moved to Maryville, where we live near Maryville College.

East Tennessee is a wonderful place to raise a family! I met my husband, Jeff, in 1995 and we were married in 1996. We adopted our son, Jacob, in December 1999 from Da Nang, Viet Nam. We have one dog, Rosie, and two cats, Mystie and Sammie. Crystal graduated with a BA from Beloit College (class of 2006). She majored in East Asian Studies. She is currently an Americorps Member working with Knoxville Habitat for Humanity.

I love to read (my favorite libraries are Lamar Memorial Library and Blount County Public Library, garden (my favorite garden is Cheekwood Botanical Gardens and Museum of Art in Nashville), relax, cook and eat (Cooking Light and Vegetarian Times), listen to music, play, watch baseball (Go Smokies and Dodgers!), and hike in the Smoky Mountains.