mom crush ~ lisa fergus

Name:  Lisa Fergus

Stats:  Wife, mother, fashion blogger and co-founder of a thriving online fashion site.

Why she's crush worthy:  Right off the bat, Lisa is a person that makes you have closet envy.  Just catch a peek at her blog Stilettos and Diaper Bags and you'll see what I mean.  However, she's more than just a fashionista, wife and mother.  She is a "momtrepreneur" who turned her love for fashion into a business...all because she proclaims that she shops too much.  Her online service called Because I Shop Too Much (BISTM) gives fashionistas an opportunity to buy, sell and swap clothes with other like minded women.  In between blogging full-time and starting her own business, she whips up some tasty looking gluten-free meals and makes time to enjoy date nights with her hubby.  Lisa is a great example for moms who aspire to turn their passion into careers and motivation for us moms to live in more than those black yoga pants!

Here are Lisa's views on:

On Marriage

• Having children has made my husband and I…realize the importance of patience, and appreciate the little things in life.
• We agree to always make time for…date nights! We go on dates two times a month; more if you count the ones we try to have at home, after the kids go to bed.

• Our favorite date nights are the ones…where we go out at lunch! We like to have bloody mary's and chat over a late lunch. We then head over to see a movie and by the time we get home we tuck the kids in and then have more time! It's a win-win. And you are not tired the next day, as you did not stay up late having fun. We have so much fun together so on date days/nights, I like to make the most of them.
• We always find ourselves laughing about…our kids personalities. They are polar opposites in the most amazing way possible.
• We always talk about…life, home improvements, our kids, news (local, global, and pop culture), music, and fitness.
• Marriage is a constant….give and take. We are good about giving each other breaks and taking them when we need them. No one wants to be around a grumpy person and everyone needs personal time. It's also about compromise. A lot of people say "happy wife, happy life". But I think it's more of "happy husband, happy wife, happy life"! ;)

On Being a Mom

• The moms I relate to the most are ones who…also have special needs or delayed children too. Also, ones who work from home. We just have more in common and "get" each other.
• I’m the type of mom that…keeps raising the bar. I can always do better. My kids always deserve better.
• Having children has changed my views on…EVERYTHING! Life, love, priorities, friends, economics, family, you name it. I feel different about it now then I did prior to having children. Who knew!
• Now that I’m a mom, I have a greater appreciation for…the little things. You know, like a shower with the door closed or saying a bad word and now turning it into a "cheese and rice" type rebound ;)
• My favorite mom moments are the ones where...I just play with them and indulge them on whatever they want to do. Needless to say, we have puppet shows, board game days, and daily dancing & musical instrument parties. My kids are awesome. They are funny and I love the random things they say! I am never bored.
• I’m always learning that parenting is...the hardest job I've ever had. It's 24/7 and for the rest of my life. There are days I want to hide and take a break, but that's just me being human. It is the most fun job I've ever had too so I can't complain.

On Being a Business Owner

• I started my business because...myself and my sister-in-law saw a market and decided to go for it! We filed for our LLC, designed and created our own site (page by page by ourselves to keep cost down), hired a designer to mock up a few pages, hired a web team, and the rest is history!
• People don’t understand that being a working business owner requires…taking a personal finical loss upfront and a lot of time and hard work for years without seeing any profit. It's an uphill race, but we are two girls who like a challenge and we have a passion for what we do.
• The biggest challenge with balancing work and life is…when to do what. I want to be an involved mom who is not on the computer all day but I also don't want to leave costumers and brands waiting for responses to emails. I am beginning to schedule in exact times for blogging and working on my new 2014 calendar. The hard part will be to stick to it. Meaning not being on the computer unless it's my "work time". This will leave more wife and mom time and set days/hours for working and blogging.
• I encourage other mothers who have an idea to…go for it! No guts, no glory ladies!
• I am most productive with work when…my kids are at school and after they go to bed.

On Blogging

• I love that blogging has given me….so many free pairs of shoes! lol No but seriously, have you seen my shoe collection?
• The greatest things I’ve gained from being a blogger are..new girlfriends! Blogger girls are mostly girls girls. Those are hard to find in the real world. I have made some great friends by doing my blog and I love how genuine they all are.
• People assume that since I’m a blogger I…am out at events every night and it's all glamorous. The reality is I do go to 1-4 events per month, but blogging is mostly photo editing and sitting on the computer. For every post you see (and I post 5-7 days per week for the past four years) I spend about an hour or 90 mins on the backend. That doesn't even include the time I spend taking photos, uploading and resizing them, and styling all my outfits for the posts.
• The blogging community…is amazing. The Chicago Blogger Network is amazing and I love 411 Voices and Glam Media.
• I blog because…I love photography, fashion, styling, and needed an outlet that was just something for me to do that didn't deal with dirty diapers.

On Herself

• I need to be better about…exercising. I want to be physically stronger.
• If I had an extra hour in the day I would use it to…do yoga or meditation. I need to de-stress more often.
• I will always indulge in…massages and facials. I feel like it's just normal maintenance and keeps me sane. ;)
• The things in my life I value most are…Family, love, and loyalty.
• I’m motivated by…excitement. I get excited about an idea or post and there's no stopping me. I'm very "type A".
• This year, I’m looking forward to...Growing the business, being more organized with my time, working smarter, not harder (thanks Kaitlyn for that mantra), and spending lots of down time with my family.

So many mothers I meet have a ideas for businesses and Lisa's story proves that they can be achieved even when you're balancing a marriage, kids and all other chaos that comes with having a family.  Just because you have children, never lose sight of your own dreams and always aspire to be a great role model for those little ones that are looking up to you.