How many kids do you have and what are their ages?
Ryan is 10 and Jake is 7.
What do you love about living in Stamford?
I love the small town feel with the city amenities. I love living 10 minutes from everything – great hiking trails in Mianus and parks for kids at Chestnut Hill or Scalzi to amazing restaurants downtown like Fish on Bedford Street or Taco Daddy in Harbor Point. Stamford offers the best of both worlds to growing families.
What’s your favorite restaurant and/or place to shop in Stamford?
I love Coalhouse as an all-around great family restaurant. Their menu has changed over the years but the food is consistently good. Whenever we have friends here from out of town, that is our go-to. I am really loving the new Whim store on Bedford street. It offers a lot of great, quality pieces at a very reasonable price point. Lots of on-trend pieces like tie dye and graphic tees as well as shoes and accessories. Plus. the owner, Viviane, is so sweet!
Tell us about mommin_in_style20.
@mommin_in_style20 is a glimpse into my personal style as a busy, working mom who has always loved fashion. I love sharing outfit ideas, affordable finds and new products. I also share about my home life and my teaching life in hopes of connecting with other moms in similar situations.
Why did you start it?
I started @mommin_in_style20 in February after my coworkers convinced me I needed my own Instagram page about style! I get asked often about the clothes and accessories I am wearing and I love to share style tips and deals with my friends, so I figured, why not! I am a middle school teacher full time with two busy boys, but @mommin_in_style20 feeds into my creative side and has been a great outlet, especially since quarantine began and we’ve been home so much. I love putting together outfit ideas and finding new stores and products that I think other moms will enjoy too.
What do you hope it does for other moms?
My main goal for the page is to connect with other moms in our area and also to expand to women around the world and share my love for fashion and style. I hope other moms come to my page and can relate to my style and my life and get ideas of ways to incorporate affordable pieces into their wardrobe. It doesn’t take much to elevate an outfit and I want to share that with other moms and my followers.
What’s your favorite mom style tip?
My favorite mom style tip is to invest in a few high price staple closet pieces like a good pair of jeans from AG and a beautiful blazer from Veronica Beard. These pieces will never go out of style and can be worn so many ways. You can pair each with a Target t-shirt and cute, colorful bracelets from Evereve and you have a stylish outfit for work or drinks with friends. I also love to invest in a good pair of stylish sneakers because I feel like they can elevate any outfit- a flowy dress, jean shorts or even work pants, can look cute with the right pair of sneakers from Golden Goose or P448.
With the blog and your full time job as a teacher, how do you juggle everything?
This is the number one question I get asked a lot and the truth is, my Instagram page is a passion for me right now. After having my two sons and working full time for almost 19 years I realized that I didn’t take a lot of time for myself. Putting together outfit ideas, looking for great sales, connecting with local small businesses and meeting women from around the country has helped me find my passion again. It gets me excited and I can’t wait to start my blog and see @mommin_in_style20 grow!
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve gotten from another mom?
I remember when my first born was little, I posted on Facebook about how he finally slept through the night. One of my mom friends said I should never repeat that out loud – especially on the internet! She was right, because he didn’t sleep through the night again for weeks. So now I tell any new moms to just keep that news to themselves and their husbands and wait to tell the universe because for some reason, it always backfires! Also, the best advice I could give any mom is to just do what feels right. That mom instinct is real. You always know what’s best for your child and you will always be the best advocate for your child.
Photos by Julia Dags