Meet Our Writing Team

- FAMILY/KIDS: Husband Joe; Ava, Nora & Jacob
- ABODE: Middleton
- HOMETOWN: Eldridge, IA (outside of Quad Cities)
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: Phoenix, AZ; Chicago, IL; Columbus, GA; Naples, FL; Des Moines, IA
- ALMA MATER: Arizona State University
- CAREER: Owner, Madison Mom
- HOBBIES: Tennis, Running, Traveling, Baking, Volunteering
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Red Sushi
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Memorial Terrace; Botanical Gardens; Farmers’ Market; Wisconsin Brewing Company
Alisa Sleep

Owner, Madison Mom
- FAMILY/KIDS: Husband CJ and kids: Nola & Jonas
- ABODE: Waunakee
- HOMETOWN: Randolph, WI
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: Milwaukee; Chicago; Norfolk, VA; & San Francisco, CA
- ALMA MATER: UW Milwaukee
- CAREER: Architecture prior to kids, now part-time work at home mom doing shop drawings for workspace studio.
- HOBBIES: Eating, traveling, crafts, watching netflix
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Sujeo
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Union Terrace - we love finding a new place to eat downtown and walking around!
Melissa Gammon

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Daughters Bianca & Iyla
- ABODE: Middleton
- HOMETOWN: Madison
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: NYC
- CAREER: Owner or Yummy Sprout - www.yummysprout.com, Director of Creative Soul Camp - www.creativesoulcamp.com
- HOBBIES: Drawing, Painting, Running, Reading, Yoga and Travel
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Bar Taco and Forage Kitchen
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Concerts on the Square
Tara Verma

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: I married my college sweetheart Ben, and we have 4 kids: Harrison, Jack, Cooper, and Dorothy
- ABODE: Verona
- HOMETOWN: Pekin, IL
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: Oxford, Ohio, which is home to Bagel and Deli, a restaurant so good I wear their t-shirt on the regular.
- ALMA MATER: BS: Bradley University; MA: Miami of Ohio; PhD: UW Madison
- CAREER: I am an associate faculty associate in Communication Arts at UW-Madison
- HOBBIES: I love to read and read about 200 books a year. I am also writing my first novel.
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Mickie's Dairy Bar-- best grilled cheese, fries, and chocolate milkshake in the world, and I have tried them all (mostly)
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: We love diving into Hawks Landing Pool in the summer, hanging out on the Memorial Union Terrace, visiting the Vilas Zoo, relaxing on Friday nights at Wisconsin Brewing Company, bowling and eating Babcock ice cream at Union South, and playing bar trivia together at Babe's.
Sarah Jedd

Writer
- Family: Jason (husband) Calvin, Grant, Christian, Henry, Max and Stella (kids)
- Abode: Madison
- Hometown: Waukesha
- Other Cities I've Lived in: Chicago and Oshkosh
- Alma Mater: UW Oshkosh
- Career: SAHM, yoga instructor/owner of Red Ox Yoga and sales associate at Fleet Feet Madison
- Hobbies: Running, yoga, doing anything outdoors, reading, solving the world's problems over a glass of wine or a run in the woods (but not at the same time)
- Favorite Madison Restaurant: Eldorado Grill, Muramoto at Hilldale, Mickies Dairy Bar and Longtable in Middleton (hey, I like to eat)
- Family Favorites in Madison: Overture Center, High Point Pool, Henry Vilas Zoo
Julie Jensen

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Andy, Cameron, and Carson (and two lady cats)
- ABODE: Verona
- HOMETOWN: Winona, MN
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: Duluth, Minneapolis, Madison
- ALMA MATER: University of MN - Duluth
- CAREER: Appraisal coordinator
- HOBBIES: Reading, traveling when possible, puzzling (both with puzzles and over life questions), coffee, watching movies and TV, spending time with family and close friends, occasional swimming, walking, and yoga.
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Johnny Delmonico's for adult-only meals, Cafe Hollander for family meals
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: The Henry Vilas Zoo, the Terrace at Memorial Union, Olbrich Garden, Allen Centennial Garden, splash parks, parks with playgrounds, the Capitol Square, the Westside Community Market
Jenny Skrenes

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Husband Joe; kids...Zoey, Finley, Beckett, Aven, Grace, Hannah.
- ABODE: Madison
- CAREER: Owner/Trainer at Gym 608 in Verona: Www.gym608.com; Life Coach at Alecia Jacobson Coaching: Www.aleciajacobson.com; Public Speaker
- HOBBIES: Reading, Running, Listening to podcasts
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: lol I haven’t been out in years! The only place I do go is Sushi Murimoto in Hilldale! Love their sushi!
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Monroe Street, lakes, Farmers Market, State Street.
Alecia Jacobson

Writer
Dineo Dowd

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Husband Steven. Children Lydia and Leo.
- ABODE: Driftless region 25 minutes west of Madison.
- HOMETOWN: Dodgeville/Verona
- HOBBIES: Photography, Writing & the Outdoors!
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: State Street Shopping, Memorial Union, Brittingham Boats and too many others to mention!
Alexis Phillips

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Husband: Eric; Son: Ellis
- ABODE: Monona
- HOMETOWN: Racine, WI
- ALMA MATER: University of Wisconsin-Madison
- CAREER: Director of Career & Leadership Development at UW-Madison; Owner of Madtown Momma (madtownmomma.com)
- HOBBIES: Reading, writing, playing softball and bingo
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: This is such a tough question! I have different favorites for different meals/cuisines. 🙂 Favorite food cart lunch: Banzo; Favorite sit-down lunch: Forage; Favorite burger: Cranberry Creek; Favorite Pizza: Angelo's; the list goes on an on...
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream; Bridge Road Park in Monona; Dane County Farmers Market; Flix Brewhouse for dinner and a movie; free summer concerts at Winnequah Park
Alicia Hazen

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Will, kids: Kaylen, Tiffany, Shane
- ABODE: Verona
- HOMETOWN: Black Earth
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Redondo Beach, Torrance, (all in CA)
- CAREER: Executive Assistant as well as a SAHM, creator of Move Your Roots (www.moveyourroots.com)
- HOBBIES: meditation, exercise, reading, listening to podcasts, baking
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: don’t have a favorite!
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: the zoo, the lakes, splash pads, Wisconsin Brewing Company (in the summertime)
Regina Thompson

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Married to my wonderful husband Valon for almost 3 years now! I have a son named Adam who is 17 months 🙂
- ABODE: Madison, WI... Apt Living
- HOMETOWN: Madison, WI (Left to east coast and came back!)
- ALMA MATER: UW-Madison (I studied Interior Design)
- CAREER: Assistant Property Manager
- HOBBIES: Eating (cupcakes and donuts are my weakness), reading (epic bookworm), playing Sims 4 and baking 🙂
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Thai Noodles or Curry in the Box
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Playing outdoors, or taking walks along the lake (John Nolen drive), swimming etc.
Heba Saeed

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Dawn - spouse; Joe and Nora - kids
- ABODE: Madison, WI
- HOMETOWN: New Berlin, WI
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: La Crosse, WI; Orlando, WI; Nashville, TN; Seattle, WA; Minneapolis, MN; Galway, Ireland; Valladolid, Spain
- ALMA MATER: UW - La Crosse (Psychology); UW - Oshkosh (Nursing)
- CAREER: SAHD
- HOBBIES: Cooking, Anything coffee related, DIY projects, working out, following college basketball
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Estrellón
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Music Together at Monroe Street Arts Center, The Children's Museum (both Black Earth and Madison), Elver Park playground and splash pad, Concerts on the Square
Dan Sage

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Georgia (Spouse), Alayah and Emma
- ABODE: Edgerton, WI
- HOMETOWN: Madison, WI
- CAREER: I run the Administrative End of Madison Melted, Taco Local, and International Catering Co, I also currently own a bookstore in Edgerton called The Library Cafe.
- HOBBIES: Every Crafty thing I can get my hands on! Hiking, Traveling, Writing, Reading, Gardening, Cooking, Singing, Running, and this year will be unveiling my new travel blog!
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Morris Ramen, Heritage Tavern, Sardine
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Nights at the Union (even better in a boat!), Downtown Library, PBS Kids open house, All the Wilmar Neighborhood Festivals, Biking around the Lake, and Farmer's Market
Diana Greene

Writer
Jackie Thurnau-Anderson

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Matt (husband), Madden + Kate (daughters)
- ABODE: Madison, WI
- HOMETOWN: Bloomington, IN
- ALMA MATER: Indiana University
- CAREER: Operations Manager, Freelance Social Media Strategist
- HOBBIES: Running, road trips, all things Bravo on TV, cocktail-making
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Quivey's Grove
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Dane County Farmer's Market, Madison Public Library, Madison Children's Museum, Madison Parks
David Clark-Sally

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Husband: Rob; Kids: Frankie and Luisa
- ABODE: Madison
- HOMETOWN: Appleton, WI
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: Savannah, GA | Minneapolis, MN | La Venta, Honduras
- ALMA MATER: University of Minnesota (BA) and University of New Orleans (MFA)
- CAREER: Writer, Teacher and Owner of Green Table Media (greentablemedia.com).
- HOBBIES: I love to travel (near and far!), eat amazing food, and have a beer with friends.
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Ah, so many! Red Sushi and Lombardino's are two of my faves.
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: My family loves the Olbrich Biergarten (especially its sandbox), area splash pads, Olbrich Gardens, and are super-excited for Garver Feed Mill to open!
Amelia Fontella

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Husband Joe, daughter Kennedy, son Croix
- ABODE: Verona
- HOMETOWN: Stavanger, Norway
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: I’ve lived in multiple states including Colorado, Virginia, Texas, and New York and also went to middle school in Argentina
- ALMA MATER: University of Texas at Austin and Columbia University in NYC
- CAREER: SAHM and Social Worker
- HOBBIES: running, international travel, hiking, cooking and baking, finding cute puppies to pet
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Red Sushi
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Downtown Farmers Market, local splash pads and pools, Apple picking at Sutter’s Ridge Farm, canoeing on Lake Monona
Kathryn Kuehn

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Carson (spouse), Hank & Ike
- ABODE: Madison
- HOMETOWN: Oak Park, Illinois
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: Chicago, San Francisco
- ALMA MATER: UW-Madison (undergrad), National Louis University (graduate)
- CAREER: Curriculum & Programming Director at The Well Preschool
- HOBBIES: Pilates, bingo, writing (of course!)
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Banzo
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Elver Park, Bernie's Beach, Lake Wingra, Aldo Leopold Nature Center
Kim Hinkley

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Jason (husband) Noah (son)
- ABODE: Waunakee
- HOMETOWN: Portage
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: Eau Claire and Madison
- ALMA MATER: UW-Eau Claire
- CAREER: Former stay-at-home mom, but now a campaign assistant for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
- HOBBIES: Singing, Bingo, watching Badger and Packer football and Brewers baseball
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Lone Girl Brewing in Waunakee
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: The zoo, Madison Mallards games. State Street and the Capitol Square
Shari Lau

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Alex (husband), Cora and Autumn
- HOMETOWN: West Bend, WI
- OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: Rapid City, SD
- ALMA MATER: UW-Madison
- CAREER: SAHM
- HOBBIES: reading, personal blog (www.planningforkeeps.com), and camping
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: The Old Fashioned
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Vilas Zoo, Eugster's Farm, Olbrich Botanical Gardens, and the Farmers' Market
Mehgan DeSmidt

Writer
Kirsten Adshead

Writer
FAMILY/KIDS: Husband: Adam, Kids: Cassia and Kairos

ABODE: Middleton, WI

HOMETOWN: Evansville, WI

OTHER CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN: West Allis, WI

ALMA MATER: Milwaukee Area Technical College, Pastry Arts

CAREER: health-challenged mom

HOBBIES: Sewing, home renovation, and all things crafty!

FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Anywhere that serves me a celiac free pastry chef, gluten-free bread at the table. Right now... that's Biaggi's!

FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Discovering new parks and libraries.
Rachel Patterson

Writer
Jill Rinzel

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: My husband Nick and I are raising three energetic, snuggly, loving kids; Boston , Elliana & Grace.
- ABODE: Lodi, Wisconsin
- HOMETOWN: Adams-Friendship, Wisconsin
- ALMA MATER: UW Madison
- CAREER: I was a teacher, now I am a stay at home mom. I blog (www.snugglesandsnacks.com) and also support and help positively influence and encourage moms on instagram (tessa.karls).
- HOBBIES: cooking, baking, spending time outdoors
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: I’m a Wisconsin girl, so I’d have to say... The Old Fashioned
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Any farmers market, The Madison Children’s Museum, splash pads and parks, and a good Costco hotdog run.
Tessa Karls

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: husband Max and kids Miriam and Miles
- ABODE: Madison, WI
- HOMETOWN: Wauwatosa, WI
- ALMA MATER: UW Madison
- CAREER: Pediatric Clinical Dietitian
- HOBBIES: reading, walking while listening to podcasts and looking at cool houses, swimming, drinking sleepy time tea.
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Banzo for takeout, Sardine for ambiance, Crema for brunch with kids.
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: Olbrich Biergarden, Arboretum, walking to playgrounds
Nicoletta

Writer
- FAMILY/KIDS: Husband, Colin. Son, Declan, 5 & Daughter, Maeve, 4
- ABODE: Verona
- HOMETOWN: Arlington Hts, IL
- ALMA MATER: Columbia College Chicago; Roosevelt University, MA in EL ED
- CAREER: Teacher, stay-at-home parent, part-time blogger at Project B3
- HOBBIES: Spending time with family and friends, live music, and reading!
- FAVORITE MADISON RESTAURANT: Lucille and Graze
- FAMILY FAVORITES IN MADISON: The Overture Center, farmer's markets and local libraries.
Tricia Connors

Writer