About

Howdy! I’m Simone. Thank you for stopping by to learn more about this blog and me. I started blogging 6 years ago, when my younger brother had the audacity to get married before me.

I was STRESSED about going to my brother’s wedding and facing all my “concerned” relatives wondering why I was still single.

So, I started writing about my adventures as a single girl and counting down the days to his wedding. It turns out that a lot of women could relate!

But the truth is: I was still single for a good reason.

I needed to heal from the past relationships that didn’t honor God. So, that I wouldn’t sabotage the relationship with my future husband. I’ve been happily married for four years now.

And my goal is to help single, Christian, women:

• heal from past relationships wounds
• navigate the world of dating and waiting, and
• prepare to meet the man of their dreams.

The world will be a better place when there are more strong, Christian, families.

So I research, write, and speak about what makes relationships, marriages and families thrive or die.

I typically post every other week. If you’d like to hear what 10 Christian Black Men have to say about relationships and marriage, subscribe via email here. I’ll also send you my bi-weekly updates and other goodies when available.

My Top Posts

If you are new to my blog, you might want to start with the most popular posts. Here are my top three in each category.

Countdown to My Brother’s Wedding

• 28 Days and Counting
• The Intervention
• Conversation A; Conversation B 

Waiting

• The Odds Are Against Us, But It Don’t Even Matter
• Birthday Blues: 25, 35, and the Time in Between
• What a BMW Taught Me About Dating & Waiting

Dating

• Dating Someone from a Different Denomination?
• Who Else Wants To Avoid Getting Hurt?
• The Making of a Marriage: DeVon Franklin and Meagan Good

Marriage

• 8 Reasons Why Wanting Marriage Does Not Equate to Being Thirsty
• The Problem with Being Unequally Yoked
• The Secret of Introvert Relationships

Family

• Hiding Mistakes, Can Cost Your Family
• Why Fathers Matter
• My Parents Don’t Agree with New Jersey 

Uncategorized-Randomness

• A $1000 Lesson on Identity 
• The Problem with Ignoring the Still Small Voice
• How I Embarrassed My Husband 

 

My Biography

I already told you a bit about me and Morris, my husband. But I think the most interesting tidbit of our relationship is how we met.

Initially, we met in a Human Resource class while we were both studying to get our MBAs in El Paso, Texas. Morris stopped talking to me, however, when he found out I was dating someone.

A year and a half later, I finished school and moved to Washington, D.C. to intern at the Smithsonian. I was leaving work one day… trying to catch my subway train home. And ran into Morris at the train station.

Nothing short of a miracle!

We’d both relocated to D.C. from El Paso, and four years later we got hitched.

Professionally, I’ve worked as an energy analyst for 6 and 1/2 years, a non-profit administrator for 2 and 1/2 years, and a sales person at a jewelry store for 7 years. The common thread between each of those careers was my zeal to meet, connect, and serve people.

I think my zeal for families comes from the fact that I’m the eldest of eight children. And the fact that my parents run a non-profit to mentor boys from fatherless homes.

You see, I believe that all societal ills can be traced to the breakdown of the familial unit. So in September of 2014, I left my job as energy analyst to write full-time and focus on the mission of helping to build fantastic relationships.

The life of an artist is a mixed bag, but I’m very grateful to have this opportunity to pursue my dream. We’ll see where all this takes us. I’ve finished writing a novel with my dad and am trying like the dickens to get as many freelance projects as possible. [By the way, God bless You, if you are considering hiring me! You can view my LinkedIn Profile here.]

I’ve lead workshops at:

• The Smithsonian Institution
• Kipp DC

My writing has appeared at:

• The Praying Woman
• Black and Married With Kids
• Bold and Fearless
• Urbaanite
• The Tennessee Tribune 
• Black Family Preservation Group
• Love Anne Joy
• Yes Marriage Rocks! 

Various and sundry other appearances :

• Nashville Entrepreneur Center: PERISCOPE , Passion and the Pursuit of Art
• Sun Sentinel: Hispanicize Highlights Growing Buying Power of Latinos
•  A Different Spirit (WEBR Radio Fairfax)
• Barnes and Noble Vanderbilt (public reading of my novel in progress)
•  Tennessee State University’s – Financial Empowerment Conference (exhibitor)

Me and my husband have been married for 4 years. And are HUGE fans of Dave Ramsey. So we set our sights on kicking massive amounts of debt early in our marriage.

We lived in a 300 sq ft studio apartment (about the size of a cozy classroom that holds 40 people), paid off 58,000 dollars of student loan debt, saved $50,000 toward a down payment for a home, and got to travel the world (Montreal, Japan, and Benin (West Africa).

But most importantly, saving and getting control of our finances made our marriage better.

We now give generously to missionaries and ministries we care about. And we’ve served faithfully in three ministries in our local church, Watson Grove Bapist Church in Nashville, TN.

My Contact Info

If you’d like to connect with me shoot me an email at simone@myfamilyfantastic.com or follow me on Twitter!

Again, thank you SO much for taking the time to learn more about me.

Love, Simone