I’ve been playing poker as a profession since I was 21 years old. In 2006 I gave birth to our daughter Isabella Rose, and took a small break from poker. After a while I was able to return in 2007, playing only on weekends, which was fine since that’s when the game I play is available at the Borgata Casino in Atlantic City, NJ. In late March of 2008 I became pregnant with our 2^nd child, Johnny. He was born in December of that same year. After getting settled in with the new baby and trying to adjust to having 2 young children, I returned to playing poker in the earlier months of 2009 on Saturday evenings. I was doing very well, but then things changed, as they sometimes do in poker.

I found that I was finding it more difficult to either win a ton or recover losses, because my sessions were being cut short due to the fact that I’d have to leave at a somewhat reasonable hour so that I could get home to sleep, as I had to wake up the next morning early with my children. This made it more difficult for me to concentrate solely on playing, because there was always something in the back of my mind telling me I had to go (whether I was winning or losing). This was not the way to play, and I knew it.

My last few sessions were losing sessions, so I decided it was time to take a break altogether. I needed to focus my efforts on taking care of my family and getting myself in a healthy frame of mind. Also, from a business standpoint it’s much more important that John plays poker, as he makes a lot more money than I do, and without me playing he was able to play both Friday and Saturday nights live at the Borgata. His game also only goes on the weekend, and is very profitable.

Taking care of two children is a lot more difficult than taking care of one. The difference is astounding, and I still had both of them in diapers at the same time, which made things even harder. I started to discover that the longer the break that I took the more I enjoyed being away from the table, and the more time I had to actually do things for myself. For so many years my life has revolved around poker and its schedules. It has afforded me the type of carefree lifestyle I have always lived, and for that I am grateful. Now in recent years life has changed. Poker is no longer a priority for me; my family has taken its place.

We did things ass backward. We had two kids, and then decided to get married. On August 1, 2009 John and I were married on the beach in Ocean City, NJ. We had a wonderful wedding that was mostly family, and a few of our closest friends. We would have loved to invite all of our friends, but honestly it just wasn’t feasible, and for that I am truly sorry. I have always tired to make people happy whenever they were in my life. In some cases I was successful, and in some I have failed miserably. But, I stand by the decisions that I have made as I believe whole-heartedly that I have always tried to do the right thing, although it didn’t always seem that way.

Because of the timing of the wedding and our daughter’s birthday (mid-August) we waited to go away. In between the wedding and the time we went away things got a little busy at home and I wasn’t finding the time to do what I wanted or needed to do for myself. I still had leftover weight from Johnny that I desperately wanted to get rid of. In October, John and I went to St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point, CA. It was an amazing place and so very relaxing. While on that trip I explained that there were things I needed to do for myself and that we would need to find some compromise of time to allow me this opportunity. Graciously he made some sacrifices with his time (as did I with my sleep schedule), and complied. When we returned home I went to 4 different gyms to find a personal trainer that was qualified, and that I thought would be the kind of person I needed to get me back into the shape that I was in pre-babies. This has been so fulfilling for me. I am on my 10^th week of training and dieting and I have lost 28 lbs. I have 14 lbs. to go before I change my diet and exercise program to a maintenance program, and work on body sculpting. The life change has been so positive for me in so many areas. My general outlook on everything has changed, and my energy levels are through the roof.

Will I still play poker? Yes. I enjoy playing and I enjoy winning even more. But, there won’t be any pressure for me to stick to a certain schedule or make a certain amount of money. I have found other (legal!) ways to make money that are working out for me; therefore I don’t have to depend on poker income to buy myself the things that I want. I plan to return to poker sometime midyear with a new body, and new frame of mind.

We will be spending the entire WSOP at “X”’s house with his Wife and their own new addition, baby Spencer, as well as some other friends. I look forward to seeing West coast friends again, and this time for a much longer period, as last year my trip out West was very brief.

There will be parties, and I will cook. Be prepared to eat. <3

PS: I will be posting a few of the old blogs that were poker related and on NWP. There were a fair number of people that seemed to like them, and in the event that we have any new members here I think it would be good content. I hope there aren’t any objections.

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