About Us

Hi, I’m Maria.  I’m a writer, real estate investor and homeschool mom of three.  My husband John is a trader and the founder of  Simpler Trading, an online trading education site.   We work together to manage our herds and businesses – both human and animal.   We shuttle between life on a ranch in the Texas Hill Country where I host along with my family, our retreat-style AIRBNBs and short term rental spaces, and our biz/school life in my hometown of Austin, Texas.

Juggling an entrepreneurial life, marriage, motherhood and staying present to what matters is my daily adventure.

And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I’m a lifelong learning junkie, raised by an entrepreuerial mama and a family of teachers.

Alongside my husband, I love designing a life that is uniquely ours.  This means seeking out resources and friends that help make a full life, simpler.  And learning from the failures and successes along the way!

Thank you for reading This One Life!  I hope you share your own experiences through your comments.  This mom and entrepreurship gig takes a village, and thank you for spending some time here!

You can connect with me at maria@thisonelife.com.

About this Blog

Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?

This is the question that made me start this blog.

Turning 40, stuck in the limbo of what came next, I didn’t know the right question to ask anymore.

Up to then, I had asked the questions:

What are my goals? 

What is success?

What do I have to show for myself?

I’d been an A student in high school asking those questions.  I went to college asking those questions.  I became a successful marketing executive for 10 years asking those questions.  I parented our 3 children asking those questions.  My husband and I built an Inc. 500 company asking those questions.

Then, someone asked me the question,

What would you love? What would you love to experience in your life?

It struck me between the eyes.  This idea, simply, “What would I love?”

For the past years, I’ve been answering that question and creating the second half of my life based on that question.

What would I love:

-In health

-In relationships

-In creative expression and personal evolution

-In freedom of time and money

What would I love, in THIS ONE LIFE?

This blog is dedicated to figuring that out, for myself first. It’s about taking the journey to deeply connect to that answer – to explore, experience and engage in life.  Not just from my head, but from my heart.    And to share with other families some of the most meaningful moments and learnings along the way.

Whether you are an entrepreneur, a creative spirit, a mom, or simply a girl or a boy with a dream, I hope this blog brings you closer and more courageous to living what you’d love.

Published Work

For more about our trading life, mindset and strategy, you can find my husband’s book in the link image below:

To read a little more about what it’s like living with a trader, you can find my exerpt in John’s book here: Mastering the Trade, Third Edition: Proven Techniques for Profiting from Intraday and Swing Trading Setups,   “Living with A Trader.”  pp.21-25

Photo by Michele Anderson @PinkleToesPhotography