This is me

Hi! I’m Mara and I am so thrilled to have you here! I love sharing my creativity and the little details of life that make living enjoyable. The little giggles of my students and the smiles that beam from the people in front of my camera, the cuddles from my puppy and the nose kisses, the moments I spend with my family and the time I’m with my church family; all these things are just glimpses of where my joy comes.

I am a teacher, a daughter, a sister, a mentor, a worshiper, and a lover of Jesus! I spend most of my time in my classroom with my special education kiddos. I love them with my whole heart and I love spending time with their little minds and learning all their unique characteristics that give them the biggest personalities. When I hear them giggling while playing or getting excited when they get an answer correct, I feel from the depths of me a love that I never understood before them. They bring out a side of me that I had never seen before, a love for little humans that aren’t even my own children.

I knew I wanted to be a teacher when I was a little girl. I was 5 and teaching my little stuffed animals their ABC’s. As I grew up I started to think I wanted to do something different with my career. Maybe nursing or a counselor. But when I remembered I can’t handle blood nursing went out the window. So my major in college was psychology focusing on childhood development. After I graduated I did not want to be in the public school system due the decay in home-life and the environment that schools house. So instead I took a position at my church as the Internship Director.

I spent hours and hours at the church, praying, worshipping, coordinating events, mentoring my interns and developing a space for our youth in the community to come and feel safe and loved. God had me there for nine months and it was a sweet and challenging time in my life. I learned so many lessons that I didn’t even realize I needed to become the person I am today. After a bittersweet transition from full-time ministry to teaching, I landed in such a sweet spot in my life.

I have 7 wonderful SPED students with a full-time photography business, all while getting to spend my free time and breaks with my sweet family.

I am the youngest of two siblings, with my big brother being one of my best friends and my mama being my closest and best friend. My dad and I are pretty much the spitting image of each other’s personalities so I make sure to let my mama’s blood in me balance out my easily excitable and crazy personality. So this 23 year old has everything she has ever dreamed of, a family that supports her dreams, a career that is more than she asked for, and a life that could only be given from Jesus.