About The Founders
Hi . . . and welcome to Little Holiday!
Avery, a small town country girl, hails from the Pacific Northwest! I grew up building forts in the woods, picking berries off the vines, taking care of animals and playing a bunch of sports.
Always a deep thinker and sensitive soul, I followed the sunshine to California where I studied psychology, joined my college volleyball and track teams, and spent every spare moment at the beach. The ocean has always drawn me, so my husband and I now live by the foggy central coast of California with our two young and vibrant kids, two goats, a cattle dog and one cat.
Pre-mom work: College Admissions Counselor and Clinical Psychotherapist.
Favorite season: Summer! Am happiest barefoot by water.
Favorite holiday: Halloween—because fall is pretty great too.
Favorite childhood holiday memory: Celebrating Christmas near Puget Sound at my great-grandparents’ house with tons of cousins. (My great-grandma ALWAYS had gum drops in a bowl, electric blankets, and fantastic breakfasts of fresh grapefruit and pancakes).
Kids’ names: Gwyneth Olivia and Beau George. I’ve loved classic old names forever.
Hardest part of new mommy life: Baby girl waking up ALL NIGHT LONG, refusing binkie and bottle. You get the picture.
Favorite things about kids: Gwyneth: Her heart, freckles and focus. Beau: His laugh, friendship and imagination.
Kids’ favorite holidays: Gwyneth? Easter (She LOVES looking for treasures!) Beau? Halloween—since he prefers inhabiting his alter egos: Hulk, Spiderman, Buzz Lightyear and dinosaurs, whenever possible.
A favorite afternoon with my kids: Pack a picnic, invite friends. Find a big patch of grass in the sun, sip rosé, and play.
Favorite Parenting Advice: Connect and empathize. The stronger our relationships, the more we work together to solve problems. See your kids as little people with their own thoughts and feelings. Try to see situations through their eyes and have empathy for their experiences.
What I want to remember about my kids: The feel of holding their little hands. The sound of their new voices. Their expressions as they looked at me. The warmth of them crawling into my lap. How they melted into me as I settled them into the carrier on my chest and packed them around for hours. Their scent as we snuggled after naps, after play, after baths, as we read.
And I want to remember the other stuff, too: when I left smoothies and breakfast burritos on top of my car as I strapped babies into car seats and drove away—too tired to notice. The hundred questions in five minutes. The uplifted arms, asking to be carried when I had a million things to do. How sleep only found them when they lay next to me. How I made it through that haze of fatigue with moments of gold I know I’ll miss one day.
Michelle, born and raised in Michigan with proud Midwestern roots! Like a good Michigan girl, my favorite childhood days happened every summer on the lake, tubing and water skiing with friends—after all those swim, tennis, and horseback riding lessons. I went to Miami University (of Ohio) for college, where I majored in business.
Since I always dreamed of owning my own company, Little Holiday is my dream come true. I met my husband on the east coast before life took us west—where we had our two girls, and where this lake girl turned beach girl!
Pre-mom work: Marketing & Sales Manager, Associate Director of Account Management & Customer Success.
Favorite season: Summer, hands down—especially any and every Michigan summer.
Favorite holiday: Fourth of July. Why? Summer. Sunshine. Michigan lake days. BBQ. Fireworks. Need I say more?
Favorite childhood holiday memory: Have I mentioned that I’m from Michigan and that there is nothing better than a summer holiday on the lake? But seriously, my Fourth of July celebrations in Michigan were something special. Since I was little, on that holiday my whole extended family gathered and spent practically every waking moment with each other on or around the lake. Fourth of July on the lake, with friends and family, will ALWAYS be home to me.
Kids’ names: Chloe Jane (after my mom) and Sadie Mariko (also a family name!).
Hardest part of new mommy life: Everything. I WAS CLUELESS.
Favorite things about kids: Chloe: Her laugh and joy, her memory and thoughtfulness, her sensitivity and love. Sadie: Her crinkle-nosed smile and expressions, her “fight” and independence, her adaptability and humor.
Kids’ favorite holidays: Honestly, at their ages, they love any holiday. Right now, it’s all about creating those moments where they know that “today is a special day”!
A favorite thing to do with my kids: Pack up the car and take a mini road trip adventure. Always complete with a stop to the beach for a picnic stowed in the back of my trunk.
Favorite parenting advice: Always listen first. Even when they are so little and you feel like they can’t fully communicate everything accurately. Even then, listen. And remember to listen when they’re not talking, too.
What I want to remember about my kids: EVERYTHING. Literally. I wish I could remember every word they said incorrectly when they first started talking (“daaper” = diaper, “peaaas” = please, “yaya” = water); every little sound they made when they were excited (high-pitched “eeeee,” “woooooow”); and the little ways they would ask for me (wrapping their arms around my legs when I’m trying to walk around the house, asking to be “uppie,” reaching their hands out to grab mine when we are walking in town). Most of all, I hope I remember the pure and innocent childhood joy that they feel so easily and freely. I know I won’t remember every detail of each holiday or special moment we share together, but in those moments, I want to remember their childhood joy. Always. There is nothing like it on this earth.
About our friendship: We (Avery and Michelle) moved to our California town around the same time—as two relatively new moms who were looking for our “people.” We instantly connected through our Mommy and Me play groups and baby classes, and since then, we haven’t looked back!
Early on, we bonded over the fact that our littles are the reason in our days, and they make our hearts whole. We wake up each day thinking about them and how we can make the moments in their lives, whether large or small, more special. We take great delight in enhancing every holiday and infusing each one with the joy, magic, and love we remember from our own childhoods.
