That person was me. Two young kids, aging parents, a demanding career
— and a growing awareness that even with an engaged partner who's a
great cook and a hands-on dad, the invisible coordination still lived
mostly in my head. The birthday gifts, the school forms, the holiday
planning, the trip logistics, the kids' outgrown clothes, the summer
camp research, the friend's party present, the medical appointments.
Not because nobody else cared — but because that's how the work
quietly distributes itself in most families.
Every mom I know recognizes this. Your partner can be wonderful and
involved, and you're still the one who knows the pediatrician's number
by heart, remembers which kid doesn't like mustard, and carries the
running mental list of everything that needs to happen this week. The
list that never ends and never gets acknowledged.
The hardest part wasn't the work itself — it was the tradeoffs. I always
prioritized the special things for my kids. Epic Easter egg hunts. Fun
Christmas traditions. The moments that make childhood magical. But keeping
those traditions alive and running year after year, while managing everything
else, meant something always had to fall to the bottom of the list. There
was simply too much to hold.
And I kept thinking: all of this lives in my head. If I had a brutal
week at work or was traveling when planning needed to start, could
someone else pick up right where I left off? Or would the traditions,
the details, the things that make it special just... not happen that year?
The aha moment came two nights before Easter. I was lying in bed next
to my five-year-old, willing him to fall asleep so I could get up and
start preparing. And in that quiet moment I caught myself wishing the
bedtime routine would just
hurry up —
and realized what I was doing. Wishing away a moment with my child so I
could go manage logistics. These kids grow up so fast. This was exactly
what I didn't want my life to look like.
"I knew how to build complex global systems and run programs
at scale. Why couldn't I apply that same thinking — with AI —
to the invisible work that was consuming my life?"
That night, lying next to my sleeping son, I decided to build what I
needed: an intelligent platform that could carry the mental load
and
help curate the joyful moments. Something that would handle
the coordination so that when I finally had a break from work, I
could be fully present with my kids. Not just present — but prepared.
With fun activities planned, traditions preserved, and the kind of
experiences that become family memories.
I tried every app I could find first. Shared calendars don't plan.
Group chats lose information the minute you scroll up. Trip apps don't
know about meal preferences. Task managers don't understand that someone
needs to remember Grandma's walker. And none of them help you see that
you've been doing 80% of the planning for the last five years.
So I built something different. My brother Tim — a dad and computer scientist
who co-founded one of the leading AI/ML companies — signed on as
technical advisor. Together we're building the tool I needed.
And it turns out it's not just for parents — though we feel
the pain most acutely. Friends planning group trips, couples who
want to share the load more fairly, families coordinating across
generations — anyone who wants to spend less time on logistics
and more time actually enjoying life. That's what So Free is for.
