Hi, I’m Mandee!
I’m a wife and a mom who values finding happiness and humor in everyday life and who loves my family with all my heart. I live in suburban central Massachusetts with my remarkable husband Matthew and our three beautiful children. Clara will be seven in November, her sister Eloise turned four in April and their little brother, Harrison, turned two in December of 2023. We recently lost the two furry loves of our lives, our fun-loving yet lazy black lab Chesie and one of the world’s most obese cats, Penelope. After their passing, we adopted a black lab puppy from Louisiana, Walter!
Outside of family life, I work as the Director of Human Resources in a great school district with a talented faculty of educators. Prior to landing this phenomenal gig, I was an elementary school Principal, a middle school Assistant Principal, and taught seventh and eighth grade French and Spanish for ten years before moving into administration. I love working with children (and their parents) and helping them navigate the challenges and successes of education.
I love to travel, laugh at my children’s antics, learn, read, experiment with new recipes, wander aimlessly through Target, and write. I hate to fold laundry, see my kids struggle, wake up early, and listen to my cat beg for food. Clara, my favorite blog topic, loves to practice reading and writing, hold and feed her baby brother, pretend play with her sister, color, help mom cook, and ride her bike. She hates to be reminded not to be bossy. Eloise loves to follow her sister everywhere she goes, read, climb on the coffee table, steal her mom’s iPhone, and eat snacks. She hates not being the center of attention. Harrison, so far, loves to sleep. We’re totally okay with that.
I’m fortunate enough to have the world’s best support system to help guide me through this crazy thing called motherhood. Although the main focus of my writing is my kids, I would be remiss not to mention my behind-the-scenes heroes: My husband Matthew is my polar opposite and my perfect partner in crime. He keeps me stable, laughs at (most of) my jokes, and essentially runs the technical side of this website. My mom watches (and arguably helps raise) Clara, Eloise and Harrison. She gives great advice and regularly saves the day in many different ways. My three best friends are my sounding board, my children’s “Aunties,” and my biggest cheerleaders. It warms my heart that after years of living a world apart, we have all finally settled in New England so I can pester them in person instead of via group text and snapchat.
