This weeks Meet a Mom; Eliza came to us with something this town needs. As she is speaking for the people who are new to Fairfield, her being one of them, and a lot of them new moms she wanted to find a place to bring them together. A place where they can ask questions to the seasoned Fairfielders and get to know our beautiful town. After meeting with Eliza we came up with some great plans and events for the future. First up this week is a zoom call, answering some important questions to our Newcomers such as best sushi, walking areas, and when to start looking into pre schools just to name a few. We want this zoom call to be informative and helpful and if you can’t make it Eliza will be putting it together as a blog post for our site. We also have started New to Fairfield Facebook group. Anyone can join and anyone can ask and answer questions. A lot might be on preference as we might not all agree on the same favorite sushi place but will be a place for people to make play dates and get to know each other. Eliza will be also helping with some blog posts on our site to be helpful for all our newcomers! We welcome Eliza and enjoy getting to know her and her beautiful family below!
Where are you originally from and how long have you been in the area?
I grew up in Southport and was thrilled to move back to town this fall!
Children / Age(s)
Paddy, 9 months
One thing people would be surprised to know about you?
Anyone who knows me, knows that I absolutely love this town. But I think they’d be surprised to learn that my husband and I actually never thought we’d end up living here. With both of our careers based in NYC, we always figured we’d end up raising our family in New York to avoid the long commute. So for me, the silver lining of Covid is the new work from home environment, which made moving out here doable for my family!
One thing you wish someone would have told you about motherhood?
It is HARD work. Definitely the hardest job I’ve ever had – and the most fulfilling. My mom made it all look so easy. So going into this, I didn’t have a clue what I was in for! I read a lot to help prepare, but still…in this job, you learn by doing.
Favorite local things to do in Fairfield?
- Picnicking at Perry Green or the Lower Wharf in Southport
- Shopping local–we have so many great independent stores in town! Barbara Barbara, Fairfield Women’s Exchange & Lattice House in Southport are my go-tos.
- Cheese is my guilty pleasure. I love checking out the latest selection at Fairfield Cheese Shop. No visit is complete without picking up their pimento cheese (it’s the best) or a bottle of wine from Harry’s next door.
What’s your favorite thing about raising a family in the area?
Fairfield is such a strong and supportive community. It’s really one-of-a-kind in that way. I love bumping into neighbors when I’m out-and-about and having relationships with local business owners. That aspect is really unique to Fairfield and not something you get in other towns or the big city. Some of my best friends are the people I grew up with here, and I’m excited for my kids to make life-long friendships in this town, as well.
Do you have a favorite family friendly restaurant? Date night?
My favorite restaurant for date night is Bonda, hands down. I could eat their chicken laksa every day of the week. With a young baby, our family meals out tend to be grab-and-go. Our go-tos are the bento boxes at Gruel Britannia or breakfast sandwiches on the picnic benches outside Spic & Span.
What is your go-to activity for your family? For yourself?
We are so lucky in this town to have access to the incredible beaches and outdoor spaces. My family tries to take advantage of it as much as possible–long walks around Southport Harbor and beach days are at the top of our list. We also can’t wait for Pequot Library to open up again. For me, I’m happy taking a spin class, playing tennis, or grabbing a glass of wine on Artisan’s patio.
Best mom hack that makes your life easier?
Music! Singing songs to Paddy or playing them on Spotify is a fool-proof way to calm him down when he’s fussy. We started taking music classes when he was just 2 months old, and it was great to have an activity to do together, as well.
Name one thing you regret when learning the ropes of parenthood and what you learned from it?
Spending more time looking things up on Google at first, instead of just trusting my own intuition.
How did you decide to reach out to Fairfield Moms instead of doing this on your own?
The idea was inspired by several conversations with other new moms in town. With Covid, it’s been hard to meet people in the traditional ways, and to learn the town landscape if you’re new to the area. This got me thinking about other ways that people could connect during this time.
In order to connect people at a meaningful level, I knew it needed the right platform, and immediately thought of Fairfield Moms. After a call with Jessica and Amber, the idea grew to include multiple resources for new moms in town to connect virtually. I’m excited to see what comes of this!
|
What do you want to see from the New to Fairfield facebook group, blog posts and zoom calls? Moving to a new town is hard. Being a new mom is hard. Doing it in Covid makes it even harder. My hope is that these resources from Fairfield Moms help new women in town to feel more connected and supported during this unprecedented time.
How do you plan to connect with New people for this group and how can they get a hold of you? Getting as many people as possible involved is what’s going to make this a helpful resource, so I plan to spread the word far and wide! And I encourage others to do the same. Anyone should feel free to find me on the “New to Fairfield” Facebook group and reach out directly!
Tell us about your career and how this influenced the New to Fairfield idea? I am currently a marketing director at CNBC and have worked in media/marketing for over ten years. In a few weeks, I’ll be leaving to focus full-time on my own writing and content marketing business. I’ve been doing this on the side for a while, and so I spend a lot of time thinking about content ideas. I like to write about what I know, which was another reason the “New to Fairfield” idea came about! |