M+A Edit

You’ve got your hospital bag packed with baby clothes, the nursery is set-up and car-seat is installed. You’ve complete the checklist of things you’ve been told to do before baby arrives, but there are quite a few things that happen postpartum that friends and family may not have told you about. We enlisted the help of you(!)— our customers and community of moms — to provide us with the top things you wish you would have known before having a baby. You’ll get (really) frustrated… and that’s ok! “Don't get...

Lindsay Pinchuk did something most expectant mothers would never do. At eight weeks pregnant, she started a business. After realizing that moms and moms-to-be needed a place to meet and connect with one another, she decided to create the community herself.Eight years later, The Bump Club and Beyond has sold out more than 1,000 events in over thirty cities and has a community of more than 300,000 parents and parents-to-be across the country.Today, Lindsay and Monica discuss how to best launch an event and work with national partners, how she...

Alison Jordan is due any day now, but she’s had her hospital bag packed for weeks. Jordan, a regular TV host for E! And Extra based in Santa Monica is expecting her first baby with husband Michael Jordan (no, not that one!) and plan to name their new little guy Oliver. Jordan who is anxiously awaiting the big day, said she had several friends who all recommended the same few products to bring along to the hospital. “I had several girlfriends recommend I bring my Belly Bandit along with me...

Meet new mom Breianna Hawkins. And then just try not to oooh and ahhh over her adorable newborn babies. (That’s right, she’s got two of them!) Breianna opened up to us about her journey to pregnancy and some unexpected complications during her C-section. Spoiler/happy ending alert: she and the babies are doing great! What was the best baby-related advice you received before your baby was born?To sleep when they sleep….which I have followed all of about 2 times. But it is great advice I just wish I could follow it...

You’ve finished decorating your nursery, the car seat is installed, but that dooming hospital bag checklist has yet to be conquered. If you're one month from your due date, it's time to put yourself back on the to-do list. You’ll have plenty of other things on your mind when your contractions start and packing your bag shouldn't be one of them. We enlisted the help of you(!)—our customers—to provide us with the essential items you packed (and wished you would have!) for your hospital stay. For the little one: Kimono...

With a tagline of “Fewer, Better Things,” Cuyana might be one of the only fashion brands that encourages their customers to actually purchase less. The cutting edge brand offers high quality leather products at an accessible price point by sourcing different materials from around the world.Along with her co-founder Shilpa Shah, Karla Gallardo spent two years building their companies supply chain before launching Cuyana in 2013. At the time, consumers had not yet grasped the idea of affordable luxury with a direct-to-consumer model.Listen in as Karla and Monica discuss how...

Even before your little one starts crawling, you’ll need to start babyproofing. Most babies begin crawling between 6-9 months, which means you should start thinking about babyproofing before then. We turned to Dr. Payal Adhikari, a board-certified pediatrician at Child and Adolescent Health Associates and expectant parents teacher at Prentice Women’s Hospital in Chicago, to give us the 411 on everything you need to know to keep your little one safe. Her advice for the first step? Start by getting on their level. Actually lower yourself onto all fours and...

At Monica + Andy, we celebrate strong, fearless women every single day. So in honor of International Women’s Month, we set out to look for moms who are making waves in their communities. Women like Lindsay Avner, of Bright Pink, who has made a serious impact on women’s health right here in Chicago. We asked you to think of your teachers, neighbors, friends, or colleagues. Women who are fostering progress and inclusiveness. Women who are making a real difference in the lives of others. We were overwhelmed with all of...

Mr. & Mrs. Smith co-founders, Tamara and James Lohan first came up with the idea for a carefully curated collection of hotels after their first international trip as a couple turned out to be quite disastrous. The experience led them to write down every single thing they would want from a hotel. Those notes quickly became their business plan. What originally started as a guidebook has now become Mr. & Mrs. Smith, a carefully curated collection of 1,000+ boutique and luxury hotels across the globe.Mr. & Mrs. Smith quickly gained...

Dear Nathaniel and Willa,I'll make this quick. Not because I don’t have tons to say, but because one of the biggest changes that's come with motherhood is a wildly different way of experiencing time. My days (and my brain) are never expansive or meandering anymore. Everything has a more staccato rhythm — thoughts and conversations have to tumble out in bursts whenever they can grab some air.Please don't think I'm complaining. I read somewhere that parenthood makes one feel like a house that's undergone a gut renovation. Your facade and...