Get on the same page

Brady and I met as freshmen at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and became close friends through our accounting classes. One night during our senior year, after a few glasses of wine, he asked if I wanted to watch personal finance videos with him, ha! It was not exactly the romantic move I expected, but it worked, because two months later, we were officially dating.

When we graduated, I had about $40,000 in student loans and was learning how to budget, pay down debt, and invest in my 401(k). Brady was focused on growing his investments, and we were both learning how to talk about money and make decisions together.

One of our earliest financial decisions made that especially clear. I wanted to pay off my student loans as quickly as possible because the debt weighed heavily on me. Brady saw the low interest rates and believed investing the extra money made more sense mathematically. We talked it through and chose to pay off the debt. Looking back, I might make a different decision today, but it taught us that the best choice is not always the one that looks perfect on paper. It also has to work for the people making it.

Around the same time, I was building my career as a CPA. I began at a Big 4 accounting firm, then spent seven years building and leading the finance department of a growing startup. I loved turning complicated financial information into something people could actually use. In 2018, Brady and I started Financially Engaged as a side project to share what we were learning about debt, budgeting, investing, and managing money as a couple.

That same year, I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis just four months before our wedding. The experience changed the way I thought about work, health, time, and money. It reminded me that preparing for the future matters, but so does creating a life you can enjoy now.

In 2024, I left my full-time job to lead Financially Engaged full-time. Today, I am raising three young kids, working around naps and bedtimes, and building resources for couples and parents who are juggling careers, family life, financial goals, and everything in between. That is why everything I create is designed to be clear, practical, and realistic enough to use in the middle of a busy life. My goal is to make managing your money feel clearer and easier, so you can spend less time feeling behind and more time enjoying the life you are building.