Meet Jessica Lyon:
Hi everyone! My name is Jessica Lyon and I’m a Cedar Rapids newbie! Well, actually, I’m a newbie to the entire Midwest. I grew up in Utah and lived there up until earlier this year when my husband, daughter, and I moved for my husband’s job. We have enjoyed our time here, but with the cold weather upon us, we are thinking we might not have what it takes to be true Iowans. Hopefully in a few months we will have passed the freezing weather test and will have lived to tell the tale.
Before becoming a stay at home mom, I was an elementary school teacher. I loved being with the kids every day and learning with them and from them. When I became pregnant with my daughter, I decided that it was time to trade in my classroom for dirty diapers, laundry, and all things mom. I grew up in a family-centered religion and my mom was a stay at home mom. For me, the choice was a no-brainer. I wanted to be home if at all possible. After making the transition, a woman asked me what my hobbies were. After thinking, I realized that my hobbies were being a mom. She laughed and said that she was talking about what I like to do for fun. I smiled back and said, “Be a mom.” As weird as it may seem, I really do enjoy the stay at home mom life! I love the dishes, laundry, dirty diapers, and getting to spend every day with my daughter. This truly is my dream job and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
When I get free time to myself, I like to spend my time in the kitchen. I’m love cooking and baking, but even more, I love eating it! I’m lucky enough to have a husband and daughter that eat everything I give them—regardless of if it tastes good or not. While I have a massive sweet tooth, I love to make clean and healthy meals whenever possible. My dream is to have a pantry free of processed products and that we make everything we eat ourselves (within reason). However, when I can’t summon the energy to make something myself, I enjoy watching cooking shows, especially The Great British Baking Show. I’m also looking forward to spending some of my free time writing posts for Cedar Rapids Moms Blog and learning from all the moms in the community!
Meet Courtney Dayton:
Howdy! I’m Courtney (but typically go by Court), and I currently reside and work in Marion. I’m originally from the Southside of Des Moines (and several other places like California, Nevada, and Florida), and moved up to Storm Lake, Iowa after graduating high school to attend Buena Vista University. It was there that I met my husband, Jon, who is a Belle Plaine native. I ended up leaving BVU and transferring to and graduating from Penn State with a BA in Law and Society. I lived in Chicago for two years, but moved to the Cedar Rapids area to finally walk down the aisle with Jon in March 2012, 7 ½ years after we started dating.
Shortly after getting married, we turned our attention to starting our family, and we welcomed our rainbow baby, Everett, in December 2013. Despite an intense induction, a crazy long labor, and a difficult recovery, we decided that we wanted to expand our family. We welcomed our second son (and also a rainbow baby), Hendrix, in March 2016. Now my boys are 3 and nearly 1, and we are officially closing down the baby factory (though we are open to possibly adopting someday).
I have worked the last seven years in the Autism community in both public and private settings. I recently made the switch to working as a junior preschool teacher so that I can have a stable 8-5 schedule and have more time with my kiddos. Despite taking a step back from working within special education and ABA therapy, I am hoping to start a Master’s program soon that will allow me to become a Board Certified Behavior Analyst, and allow me to make my way back to the community that I love so much!
It was during wedding planning that I discovered my love of blogging, and I did a two year stint with Weddingbee.com under the moniker, Mrs. Doily. I’ve been looking for a way to bridge that love of blogging again and it’s why I am so, so excited to be joining Cedar Rapids Moms Blog! When I’m not busy chasing my two kiddos, attempting to be domestic, or trying my hand at all things on Pinterest, I tend to be binge watching British TV shows (any Whovians in the house?), reading, or daydreaming about the day where I will once again get to sleep a solid eight hours in a night.
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