I grew up in San Francisco with three older brothers. My mom is a purist, so my first introduction to food was breast milk for the first 12 months, followed by homemade baby food, and then nothing but home cooking. I was actually disappointed not to have a house full of soda and sugary cereal growing up, so once I left for college, I rebelled!

I ate poorly throughout my early twenties while living in NYC—coffee, artificial sweeteners, sporadic meals, lots of eating out … I wasn’t into cooking or nutrition and my body began to suffer the consequences. I felt pretty foggy and lethargic. I needed to make a change. I went to an acupuncturist and I adjusted my diet, and as cliché as it sounds, I was a changed woman. I realized the incredible power of food and nutrients. You can survive or you can THRIVE!

When my husband and I moved back to San Francisco, I enrolled at Bauman College for Holistic Nutrition and graduated in 2007 with an NC (nutrition consultant) degree. My first son was born one month later.

Fast forward eight years and I am living two blocks away from where I grew up … in a house void of soda and sugary cereal. And instead of three big brothers, I now have three hungry boys of my own to feed. My life has come full circle. But one thing I’ve learned is how to nurture my family with delicious, clean food.

From this, Trail Bites was born!