About Me

My name is Mary. I’m a small-town girl from Weatherford, Oklahoma, who lived in the same house her whole childhood. Pursuing my interests, I’ve had opportunities to explore other countries and make friends – living a year in General Roca, Argentina; studying in Puebla, Mexico and in Seville, Spain; and helping with a study abroad program in Santander, Spain. After graduating from Oklahoma State University, I tried my hand at teaching high school and web developing, but my interest in early modern Spain (15th-16th centuries) brought me to graduate school at the University of California in Davis where I’m working on my doctorate. A Fulbright scholarship made it possible for me to spend a year in Spain doing research, and I’m currently writing my dissertation.

I’ve been lucky in love too. My husband Puck is my closest friend, and I enjoy sharing our adventures together. Shakti, our sweet-tempered Great Dane, was a treasured member of our family for 11 years, and she lived long enough to meet and love on our newest additions – our identical twin sons Dominic and Alexander who were born August 1, 2010.

I started this blog when I was heading to Spain to do research, but since the beginning of 2010, it has transformed into our twin blog – at least until we move the twin blog to its own address.