Photo courtesy of the talented Lauren Allen Photography
Meet Our Team of Portland Writers
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Amanda is a 31-year-old wife and mom, occasional secretary, on-pause knitter, sparse writer, and postpartum doula. Amanda neglects her dishes and laundry to play with her kids. She stays up too late and wakes too early. She loves volunteering at her sons’ school. One of her goals is to get a macaroni and cheese tattoo because she loves pasta that much. She enjoys learning about nature and early childhood education psychology. She’s a strong enneagram 4 which brings all the feelings. She hopes to grow into the hardcore, cool boy mom of her dreams. She mostly grew up in the Portland metro area but has also lived in AZ, VA, ND, and CA. She has been married to her sorta high-school sweetheart for almost 9 years. She and her husband have two sons - Oliver(4) and Osten(1). She currently lives in Unincorporated Hillsboro renting an old farmhouse there.Brittni is a mom determined to share the possibility of living a life of light, wisdom, and joyfulness with every mom. Her desire is that every woman knows she is worthy of ease and joy and finds the encouragement and motivation to pursue her best life possible. Brittni is the host of I Get To: the podcast, author of the Happy Mom-Brain and creator of The Everyday Joy Planner. Brittni lives in Colton with her husband and 3 sons. She never dreamed of being a boy-mom, but now can’t imagine life not surrounded by toy dinosaurs, race cars, and fart noises. You can follow her motherhood journey sprinkled with laughter and helpful tips at www.Instagram.com/britclarkson. And always find more at www.BrittniClarkson.com.Cheryl is a nearly 20 year Oregonian who grew up in a suburb of Philadelphia. She learned to turn down the sarcasm dial, hike in the rain, and keep an IV drip of coffee at all times, making the PNW deeply home. She obtained her Bachelor's degree in Pastoral Counseling and, in her pre-kid years, worked in substance abuse prevention, special needs tutoring, and as administrative support for the psychiatric care of at risk children. She and her husband, BJ, are two-time adoptive parents to Nora (8) and Evan (5). Together, they love discovering nature, mountains of library books, and endless hours of legos, art, and YouTube. A potent cocktail of pandemic school closure and a growing understanding of neurodivergent needs led Cheryl to educate their kids at home. She spends much of her time geeking out over resources for Child-Led Learning (Unschool, Self-Directed, Natural Learning -whatever your flavor!). Through NEST she has obtained certification in supporting individuals with the Pathological Demand Avoidance profile of the Autism Spectrum. She enjoys encouraging families in their journey as they seek to understand and love their children well. You can find her at WhatHelps.me, where she educates and supports in areas of OCD, PDA, Unschooling, and Open Adoption.Emily Corak has spent the last three decades in the Pacific Northwest and prefers to live in Vancouver because parking in Portland terrifies her. A mom to two kids, ages 3 and 7, Emily has been an educator for the past decade and she currently works with middle school English language learners. She wasn't planning on becoming a mother, but she's glad she was so careless because it turns out she really likes being a mom. Most days. Emily is now going back to school for her MFA in creative writing after deciding she had more to offer the world than breast milk and unsolicited grammar advice. When the world allows, she spends any spare cash on plane tickets, and she lives for books, tea, and all things Top Chef. She occasionally writes about anything and everything that comes to mind, and you can find her work here: https://offbrandmusings.blogspot.com/Jenelle is a single mama to two boys, ages 6 and 2.5, who owns her own business and does all the things, for everyone, all the time, just like you. Through her divorce, she embraced radical self-care and gratitude habits, which paved the way for a business supporting all the moms who put everyone else first. Empowered Massage Technique is an innovative bodywork modality that empowers moms to be strong and balanced in their bodies. As a licensed massage therapist (OR license #19101), Jenelle offers a unique experience that will leave you feeling rejuvenated, energized, relaxed, and in less pain and discomfort. Plus, she will leave you with tools for caring for your body at home. Find her at www.jenellewoodlief.com, on IG at @jenelle.woodlief, or on Facebook for more information.Jessica is a pediatric occupational therapist and owner of The Wiggle Room, an indoor play space for all abilities in the Hollywood neighborhood. Jessica’s greatest passion is helping children and their families live a great life no matter what their abilities. She loves spending time with her husband and two boys walking in their NE Portland neighborhood, at the beach, or on their sailboat. Day dates, DIY projects that actually get completed, naps, and consignment shops also make her smile.Julia hails from the great Northeast, where she grew up in a picture postcard New Hampshire town complete with a giant community Christmas tree. (Think Rockefeller Center without the lights, cameras or action.) She exchanged snow for rain and has happily waded through the puddles of Portland for the past thirty years. Daughters are Julia’s favorite animals. Hers, aged 20 (Grey) and 23 (Archer), have theoretically left the nest but return regularly, either to live or just do their laundry. Despite a desire to downsize, Julia is secretly thrilled whenever a kid moves home for ‘a while’. They all laughed when she majored in English, but throughout a varied career (artist, volunteer coordinator, middle manager, decluttering maven) the written word has been the key to her success and the balm for every setback. Find her at unburdenedlife.com where she’ll give you tips on how to live a less stressful more peaceful life.Karen Liu is a Portland artist, statistician, and mom of two. She spent her youth in China. Since then she has lived in BC, Seattle, and eventually settled in Portland. She spends her days juggling between her two opinionated young girls and her job. Karen started selling her drawings when she was 7 for the cost of half a popsicle, but her teacher called her parents and put an end to that venture. These days, she works on portrait commissions for more art supplies. Aside from doodling, Karen, like many others, likes to talk about herself, which mostly means that she can’t help but getting into arguments on the topics of the immigration experience, science, and childrearing. Even though her parents and aunties have always told her to be less contrarian, at this point, she is only hoping she will learn it by the time her kids get into their teen years.Katie is an East Coast transplant, now fully embracing the Pacific Northwest lifestyle. She grew up and attended university in North Carolina, where she met her future husband while pursuing her Biology degree. Her husband was attempting to finish a PhDin Materials Science, truly a Romeo and Juliet story if there ever was one. She spent her pre-children years working in a variety of genetics laboratories (her favorite subject) and is a self-proclaimed biology nerd. Seeing as she didn’t already have enough bodily fluid in her life, Katie is now a stay-at-home(ish) mom to a strong-willed toddler, a velcro baby, and a little dog named Mendel. Katie started writing after she sustained a rather traumatic injury before the birth of her second child. She now enjoys using her scientific background, experience with parenting, and stellar sense of humor to write pieces that inform, relate and entertain others. Her writing style is remarkably similar to her parenting style: If you take yourself too seriously, you’re going to have a bad time. Her personal blog is Raised on Love and Science. Come for the articles, but stay for the silly parenting memes. Katie also writes content for a variety of websites and businesses.Katie & her husband Brad moved to Portland from Chicago four years ago. After nights dreaming about how they would simplify their lives juggling jobs, commutes, and nannies, Brad got a call about an opportunity in Portland. Neither had ever been to the PNW, but one visit and they were sold. Now they spend their nights scheming how to get their family and friends to come west. Katie has a 10-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son as well as a 20-year-old stepdaughter who has celebrity status with the other two when she is home from college. She is a freelance advertising producer, blogger, and avid school volunteer constantly adjusting to find balance. When she isn’t shuttling kids to sports or navigating the college system, she can be found at one of Portland’s amazing coffee shops working, reading some YA fiction or out for a run up Mt. Tabor. You can follow Katie on Twitter and Instagram @iportlanded and read her occasional musings on her personal blog at Portlanded.net.Katie is a recent East Coast transplant from Maine, where she was born and raised. While trying to figure out how to create the life they wanted to live, Katie’s husband, David, was presented with a job opportunity in Portland. They decided to go for it and moved across the country with their two young children. Katie has previously worked as an occupational therapist in an early childhood setting, but with the move was presented with the opportunity to stay home with her kids and she took it! It has been an adventure switching to life as a full time stay-at-home mom to her five-year-old daughter and three-year-old son. She spends her days exploring Portland’s playgrounds and coffee shops, looking for new vegetarian restaurants to check out, and trying to remember that slowing down is a good thing. Since arriving in Portland, she has begun making time for all of the things that have caught her interest over the years: yoga, cooking with local foods, experimenting with sustainable lifestyle choices, writing and getting outside in the always beautiful PNW.Energetic Nutritionist and Yoga/Meditation Teacher, Katrina McGiffin, brings the philosophy of yoga and energy healing together with the science of nutrition to to help people find freedom in their relationship with food. She focuses largely on creating healthy digestive and energetic flow, while also integrating the innate rhythm of nature. She uses movement, meditation, hypnotherapy, and sound bowl healing to help people reconnect with their center, heal their relationship with their body, and find a deeper experience of health that is full of joy and reflective of the life they desire. Katrina has been practicing yoga and meditation since 1995 and teaching since 2005. She has a master's degree in Human Nutrition from Bastyr University, a premiere school for Naturopathic sciences, is a Heart-Centered Hypnotherapy practitioner through the Wellness Institute, is a Certified Sound Bath Healer, and has completed several yoga teacher trainings. Katrina has been serving people through private nutrition sessions, group workshops and retreats, as well as several virtual offerings through her business, Nourish and Be, for well over a decade. She currently lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and two boys and spends as much time as possible in her garden, the mountains, or a good book.Kendra moved to Portland from the East Coast with her husband, Steve, and five-year-old daughter Karys in the summer of 2014. A middle school teacher for the last decade, Kendra now spends her days writing, training as a doula, making jewelry, and exploring Portland with Karys. You can find her blog at kendrakarysma.wordpress.com and her Etsy store at etsy.com/shop/kendrakarysma.Kristin Ratten is passionate about seeing moms and entrepreneurs succeed. As the mom of four teenagers, she understands the ups and downs of parenthood in all its stages and the unique challenges that come with running a business while running a family. And as the owner of Little Lambs Christian Montessori School, Kristin has 30+ years of teaching and parent coaching experience. Kristin also owns Kristin Ratten Content Services, where she spends time creating high-performing content and strategy for small business owners. She is a vocal advocate for small businesses and supporting local economies. When she’s not teaching/writing/parenting, Kristin is an avid reader, making her uniquely suited to the rainy days of her native Pacific Northwest. She and her husband are embracing this stage of parenting that involves being called “Bruh” on a regular basis.Kyira Wackett is a licensed mental health therapist, facilitator and creator who has been working in the field of mental health for over 10 years. She lives in Portland, OR with her husband, Jordan and her daughter, Everly. She is the owner of Adversity Rising where she equips people with the skills and tools to live a life on purpose. Her areas of expertise lie in communication, boundary setting, distress tolerance, forgiveness (self and others) and cognitive reframe and empowerment. As a therapist, she specializes in treating people with eating disorders, anxiety disorders and trauma. She believes that all of us have the capacity to author our own stories and relinquish the holds of shame, fear and anxiety if we can learn to do the hard work, sit in the discomfort to face our true selves, and trust the process.Nadia loves people. Like most moms, Nadia has worn many hats personally and professionally: mom, recruiter, teacher, sales professional, daughter, sister and maid to name a fewHer true passion involves helping people by developing their personal and professional skills (or brand) so they can be successful in their career. To do this, she works as a full-time high school teacher striving to educate productive citizens in society while working summers supporting people of all ages with career development. She started writing to deal with the insecurities she felt as a mom navigating colicky diapers, poopy babies, constipated kids, messy houses and kids who won’t eat their vegetables. Now, she realizes everyone is figuring it out and it’s not so bad. She is most thankful for her parents who live five minutes away as free on-call babysitters (which comes with tons of unsolicited advice from grandma). In her free time (which barely exists), she loves to go to the park with her kids and loves Zumba.New to the area as of March of 2021, Samantha is originally from a small town in the Colorado Mountains. Her husband took on a job in Troutdale, giving her the opportunity to be a SAHM to their two young children. Stryder is almost 2 and as wild as they come, and Aspen, who has only been earthside 2 months, but fills the world with bright smiles every day. Outdoor exploration is her number one goal, whether it be hiking, camping, snowboarding, snowshoeing or kayaking… as long as its outside, she’s happy! Watching her son blossom into an outdoor enthusiast just like her is something that life never prepared her for, in the best way possible. They are often out on a trail, at the park, or finding a unique local spot that has fun offerings for the littles. However, being a SAHM wasn’t cutting it, so she took it upon herself to explore as much as she could with this time at home with her kids. She started a virtual assisting business, is diving into the world of e-commerce and is taking her love of art to newer and bigger levels while experimenting with different mediums. Eventually she might end back up at a 9-5, but until then, she’ll be trying out life’s other opportunities!Samuel Broaden has been working in the Early Childhood Education field for over 15 years. In this time, he has worked in center-based child care as a teacher and a Center Director. He most recently was working for the Resource and Referral agency in Sacramento County supporting providers in both center-based and family child care homes in enhancing the quality of their programs. Samuel is very passionate about working with and supporting young children and their families. He believes in the importance of nature, play and child-directed learning to the development of each child. He works hard to help support everyone who works with young children to help create more supportive and trusting early learning environments. His work is centered around the idea that we should be the person we needed when we were younger for the children that we work with and that children deserve to be heard and trusted and given the space to discover who they truly are in relation to themselves and the world around them-without judgement.Tara is a mom to two kiddos, ages 5 and 9, and has been married to her best friend for twelve years. Raised in the Air Force, she’s from everywhere and nowhere. If asked today, she claims the Midwest, having lived in Illinois for eight years during graduate school and the birth of her first child. Five years ago, Tara and her husband took a trip to Portland and instantly fell in love. As they drove to the Oregon coast in the rain and saw the bright green moss and towering trees, it felt as if they were transported to another world. In that moment, Tara knew it was the place to raise their kids. They packed their belongings and made the cross-country move while Tara was eight months pregnant with their second. Tara homeschools her older kiddo, hosts a monthly mom’s book club, works as a freelance proofreader and a part-time bookseller, and co-leads her daughters’ Girl Scout troop. As an introvert, Tara is the first to admit she’s horrible at small talk, but if asked about the deep stuff, she’s all in. She’s a serious plant enthusiast, and she recently found that exercising and playing piano calm her soul.