Hawks, Highlands, & Hiring Sprees

This month brought me racing back to the mountains from a quick trip to NYC just in time for one of the crowning achievements of mountain mom life – witnessing Elizabeth conquer her first Highlands Bowl hike! Nothing like watching your kid power up a mountain to put your own fitness level in perspective. Photos were taken – both of her triumph and my "I'm totally fine" face (let ya guess which one you won’t see).

MOUNTAIN MAMA TRUTH: These "emergency ski pocket snacks" (soooo good) I claimed were for the kids were actually consumed entirely by me, standing alone in the lodge bathroom. No regrets.

Partytrick’s new product has LAUNCHED! After months of late nights, endless iterations, and maybe a few boxes of Kleenex, we've finally pushed this baby out into the world, and I'm equal parts exhausted and elated (you can read more about that here). We've also welcomed three new brilliant minds to the team – because nothing says "we're growing" quite like frantically ordering more office chairs.

I've also been thinking constantly about my dad, who was the best sounding board for me when I first started building Partytrick. I wish more than anything he could see this journey unfold – though maybe he does. The hawks who have been circling overhead a lot lately suggest he's watching after all. (For those new here: yes, we believe Dad is now a hawk. Just trust me on this.)

WORTH ALL THE LATE NIGHTS: Watching our first users interact with the new platform – it's like sending your kid to kindergarten and getting a glowing report from the teacher.

Presidents’ Day weekend brought a founder friend to Aspen, which started as a much-needed grown-up break and ended with me nursing a surprise illness when I got the kiddos back. In true entrepreneur fashion, I countered with aggressive breathwork sessions to shift energy and manage what can only be described as "insane stress levels."

The word of the month was officially "surrender" – to the chaos, to the process, to the unpredictable nature of early-stage everything. 

MY NEW CULINARY IDENTITY: Reluctant air fryer virtuoso – turns out when you haven't had a working oven for months, you either adapt or starve. My plant-based chicken game is now legendary.

"The art of life is not controlling what happens to us, but using what happens to us." 

- Gloria Steinem