Lifestyle
Spicy Blueberry Margarita
Looking for a fun new drink this New Year? This Spicy Blackberry Margarita made with 21Seeds Cucumber Jalapeño tequila is the perfect batch cocktail to make ahead for your next festive fête!
2024 Health and Wellness Guide!
IT’S HERE! Your 2024 Health & Wellness Guide! If you are looking to kick off the New Year right, check out some of these amazing local businesses offering great meal delivery services, fitness offerings, reset options and more! Wishing everyone a Happy & Healthy new year!
When is the best time to Install a New Roof?
When is the best time to install a new roof? This is a question commonly asked among homeowners. Brown Roofing shared their thoughts with us! Many think their roof is “fine” or in “good condition” and replacement can be pushed off until another week, month, or year, but this is not always the case. Due to inflation and material shortages, it is almost guaranteed that prices will rise no matter where you go (roughly 5% a year). So when it comes to “when should I replace my roof”?, the truth is It is typically a few years before you even knew you needed it.
New Year’s Eve at Home!
New Year’s Eve at home this year? If so, we’re sharing a round up of fun and family-friendly ideas from our local Moms to make your low-key celebrations extra special. The best part? You can all be in bed well before midnight to start 2024 ready to go!
Pomegranate Cosmo Recipe!
We’re loving this Pomegranate Cosmopolitan, created by the moms of Habitual Hostess! It’s the perfect thing to cheers to while watching the new Sex & the City sequel series, as well as to serve at any holiday gathering. Check out the recipe below–including directions for making it into batches for a holiday or New Year’s Eve soiree!
3 Ways to Transform your New Year’s resolution into Healthy Habits
Tired of making New Year’s resolutions that quickly fizzle out? You’re not alone — 80% of people abandon them by February. But this year, we have good news! Hartford HealthCare Medical Group has the inside scoop on beating those odds and turning your health goals into sustainable habits. Our latest blog post features Dr. Muhammad Bhutta, a family medicine provider in Stamford, who spills the beans on 3 game-changing ways to transform your resolutions into healthy lifestyle changes.
Meet Melissa Bernstein
Meet Melissa Bernstein, the co-founder of inimitable toy brand Melissa & Doug, and now Lifelines, a collection of physical tools designed for stress relief using a revolutionary wellness technique called Sensory Immersion™: using your senses to send calming signals to your brain. In addition to becoming an incredibly successful entrepreneur, Melissa built a beautiful family; she is mom to six children ranging in ages from 30 to 15. Underneath all the success, though, was an undercurrent of depression. After facing her mental health struggles and sharing them in her memoir to help others, Lifelines was born. Already, the brand is receiving praise for being as innovative for the wellness space as Melissa & Doug was for the toy industry. Learn more about Lifelines and Melissa at the link in our bio.
Meet Amanda, Founder of Rebel & Rose
Mom to a little baby boy, Amanda is the Founder and Owner of Rebel & Rose Tattoo Studio in Downtown Westport, which opened in 2022. After over a decade tattooing in Long Island, and more recently in Connecticut, Amanda found the industry to be very male dominated, and decided to create a space for herself – and other like-minded female artists. Rebel & Rose is the first female founded and operated Tattoo Studio in Fairfield County! An artist at heart, Amanda thought she would work in Art Therapy prior to finding tattooing, and resurfaced her love for painting during COVID. Amanda loves the mountains (she dreams of visiting Montana one day), swears by her Apple pencil for all of her designs, is a morning person, and she owns a 1932 Ford Coupe which her grandfather built for her and gave to her before passing away. Amanda’s love for her work is evidenced by her amazing studio and clientele, and she loves nothing more than sharing her passion with others.
Ear Molding with Dr. Jandali
Dr. Shareef Jandali is a board-certified plastic surgeon with offices in Trumbull, Connecticut and Manhattan, NY. He specializes in non-surgical ear molding for newborn ear deformities such as prominent ears, ear lidding, pointed ears, Stahl’s ear, constricted ear, and cup ear. Ear molding is a painless procedure performed in his office that gently corrects the misshapen ear cartilage. It is best to start in the first few weeks after birth for full correction, but improvements in shape can still be obtained up to 4 months of age. Ear molding does not affect hearing development, breastfeeding, or sleeping. Ear molding is usually covered by insurance. Visit www.ear-molding.com for more information.
Calling all Moms! Join us for a Sip ‘n Shop Event at Trumpet Thursday, 11/30!
Join us THIS Thursday for a fun Sip ‘n Shop event at Southport’s Trumpet Boutique from 6PM-9PM. There will be food, drinks and a special gift with purchase, and 20% off all night, as well as all day 11/30 and 12/1! See you there!
Meet a Founder – Lydia Thibodeau of Sommet Nannies
Finding reliable and top-notch childcare is at the top of every new mom’s list—but can often feel next to impossible, akin to finding a unicorn. Lydia Thibodeau founded Sommet Nannies, which currently has offices in Boston, Chicago, Washington, Connecticut and soon, New York City, after working as a nanny through high school and college, and has been helping families find their own childcare unicorn since 2015. Want to try SommetNannies? Mention LOCALMOMS or put it in the notes section to waive the $500 registration fee!
Nanny Holiday Bonus – All Your Questions Answered!
Holiday bonuses are common in many industries, and household employees should be included. The big question is, “What should you give for a holiday bonus?” Boston Baby Nurse & Nanny’s team of experts will share the different options you can provide your professional nanny.
Portion Sizes for Kids: How Much Food Is Healthy for My Child’s Age?
Do you struggle with meal planning (and creative lunch packing!) as much as we do? Some days, figuring out WHAT to feed your child is hard enough. Figuring out HOW MUCH can seem downright impossible. The recommended portions for a child depend on their age and even gender – and unfortunately, the serving size listed on grocery store labels doesn’t have much to do with It. Connecticut Children’s is here to help. Here’s a guide to understanding healthy food portions for kids, including some time-saving tips.
Tree Farms for Cutting and Buying Christmas Trees this Holiday Season!
If you are looking to get the Holiday Season started, check out some of these local tree farms with pre-cut and cut your own options!
9 Things to Say No to this Month
No-vember: This new term is all over social media, and moms everywhere are embracing it in real life, with good reason. It describes the act of saying no to protect your physical, emotional and spiritual energy this month—a reserve all parents will need once the holidays hit. Saying no to things that don’t serve you, or your family, can be the most powerful thing in the world, because it frees you to say yes to things that do. From 7 meetings with Santa for the kids, to helming every event at school, not everything has to get the go-ahead. Here are 20 things to consider turning down—but you’ll know your own No-vember boundaries best.
3 Sheet Pan Dinners for Busy Weeknights
Sheet pan dinners are one of the easiest ways to get dinner on the table, fast. Plus, if you line your baking pans with foil or parchment paper, there’s virtually no clean-up! We love the collection of Sheet Pan Dinners Maegan Brown of The BakerMama shard, which include recipes for pizza, shrimp pad thai and even chicken fried rice. Indeed, you might think these fuss-free meals are limited to a protein and vegetable, but you can easily incorporate carbs like pasta and rice, making sheet pan dinners as versatile as other easy cooking techniques. See some family faves!
Mom Spotlight – Meet Ailsa Emmel, Certified Nurse Midwife
Ailsa Emmel is a mom to 25-year-old twins who currently lives in eastern North Carolina with her husband, a U.S. Marine on active duty. Born in NYC, she moved to FL as a teenager, and she herself is also a Veteran, who served in the U.S. Navy. She has built a career as a nurse practitioner with a specialty in Midwifery, but her side gig—as a “lifestyle influencer who loves clothes”—is how she’s quickly gaining a following on social media. “I love to share what I am wearing and what I am loving. I use fashion to express and represent myself. I believe getting dressed even in a baggy pair of sweats makes the biggest difference in my overall mental state,” says Ailsa. We asked Ailsa about growing her social media presence through her Instagram handle @_happygocurly, how her military background has contributed to her career and motherhood, and more.
Meet Diana
If you are looking for a fresh start health wise, some help recovering from childbirth or a surgery, or just looking for some lifestyle changes, Diana may be just who you are looking for! A family nurse practitioner at many leading hospitals (including NYU, Columbia and Mt. Sinai) before kids and COVID, Diana decided to enroll in a Nurse Health Coaching program, and is excited to assist clients recovering from surgery, guiding them through post-partum recovery, medication management or a broad-based program to achieve a healthier lifestyle. As a mom to a little boy, 3 dogs and 7 chickens, she is busy, but loves family time eating Mexican food, playing tennis, and swears by putting lemon on all things, including chips and popcorn! Her Columbian grandparents have always been her inspiration and she believes she was always destined to help others, and is so grateful to be in this community doing what she loves!
Meet Jessie Shaw, Co-Founder of FETCH!
If you are a dog lover like many of us, Jessie Shaw is a local mom of four you will want to know! After moving to Westport just before Covid in March 2020, she got involved with Little Black Dog Rescue, which ultimately led to Jessie and three colleagues co-founding Fetch Dog Rescue, a foster-based dog rescue company, earlier this year. Fetch is dedicated to helping to save shelter and stray dogs from the southern states and finding loving forever homes for them in the CT area. Jessie has always been passionate about dogs and loves what she is doing! In her spare time, she loves watching Ted Lasso, listening to Smartless and spending time with her kids and rescue pup. Fetch is looking for Fosters, so if you are interested, don’t hesitate to reach out!
Laurel Rock shares some Do’s and Don’ts of Holiday Decor!
The Holiday Season is here, and with Halloween officially behind us, the urge to pull out the holiday décor is stronger than ever. If you’re thinking of decking your halls this year, check out LaurelRocks “Do’s & Don’ts” on creating a Holiday design that is aesthetically pleasing, eco-friendly and safe for the family.