People always ask me what my ethnicity is and the truth of the matter is this: My mother is Hispanic with Spanish and Mexican heritage and my father is a blend of German, English, French and Irish. To say I ate well as a child would be an understatement! And I can't take credit for my beautiful last name—that was all my husband's doing.

I was born and raised in beautiful San Diego, CA. where I rode the waves and built sand castles at the beach, but I always dreamed of living on a horse farm in Connecticut. As a young girl, I read anything I could get my hands on. That's when I fell in love with books. I have so many favorites but one I read over and over and over was Little Witch by Anna Bennett. I still read a lot!

Even though I didn't end up in Connecticut, I did end up in a beautiful, quiet, and serene place called the Land of Enchantment, otherwise known as New Mexico. I live with my husband, three daughters, two dogs, and two turtles. Our house is filled (and I mean filled) with books, lots of teen girls, and love. I can read and write backwards (strange but true); when I get writer's block I like to jump on the trampoline with my youngest daughter, but sometimes we just lie on our backs and watch the clouds inch by; I love, love, love Mexican food especially red chile enchiladas.

If I wasn't a storyteller, sports writing for the NFL would have been my game, (or some other job where I got paid to watch football games). Maybe someday I'll write a book about football.

I am inspired by my daughters Alex, Bella, and Jules, their silly friends, amazing stories, and real issues concerning kids who need hope and a place to call home.

Because my daughters wanted to give their two cents, I told them they could each write one sentence. Can you tell who likes to follow rules?

In Alex's words: I love that my mom watches football with me on Sundays and thinks it is so much fun going to book stores.

In Bella's words: I don't think anyone else's mom gets as excited checking spelling homework as mine does. She has a blast writing for hours, and ghost hunting in our haunted house late at night.

In Jules's words: I like that my mom is so funny and goofy and still a kid at heart. I love hanging out with her playing Monopoly, jumping on my trampoline, and eating her amazing pancakes!!!!! And we like reading the same books.

Note: Yes, we have a ghost named Gus in our house. I think he wants to be in a future book. And maybe he will!