The Executive Team
Meghan Meabon
Meghan is the Founder and Owner of Pittsburgh City Moms Blog. Born and raised in Pittsburgh also known as “The City of Neighborhoods.” She studied Education at Edinboro University where she also obtained her Masters in Educational Leadership.
She’s been married to her best friend and husband, Jeromie, for 15 years. Together they have been blessed with three beautiful children, son, Dylan 12 years old, daughter, Madison 9 years old and son, Jordan, 5 years old.
She enjoys watching the creative minds of her children as they participate in their extra activities. Favorite pastimes are cheering on the Pittsburgh Sports, relaxing on a beach and laughing with friends and family over a glass of red. Meghan is excited about meeting Pittsburgh Moms and connecting them to resources that will make their lives easier and more fun!
To contact Meghan, email her at Meghan (at) pittsburghmomsblog (dot) com
Carri Finkbeiner
Carri, a Native of Pittsburgh, is a Mom of three, and Aunt to many and Wife to one very special guy. She began writing as a child, but only pursued it as a career when she realized she was good at it.
For the past twenty-three years, Carri has been a working mom. Her past 13 years have been in the stay-at-home capacity, during which she earned her college degree and built her own social media production business while working independently contracted projects among various industries.
When she isn’t busy creating something new, she babysits her nieces and takes lots of pictures, mostly as an effort to gather writing subject material, but ultimately to subliminally keep her from wanting more children of her own. She enjoys live music, art and entertainment, and living vicariously by connecting with new people and sharing experiences.
Liz Hawkins
Liz, who grew up in New Castle, PA, is the only female that resides in her family’s Cranberry Township home. This boy mom actually enjoys being severely outnumbered by her husband Adam, their four year old Miles, and even her male dog and cat. She frequently claims that there are definite perks to being the “lady of the house”.
Liz studied Secondary Education/English at Clarion University where she also earned her Masters of Curriculum and Instruction. She puts her degrees to good use as a high school English teacher. Though it’s sometimes difficult to juggle her career and motherhood, she can’t imagine her life without either role.
When Liz isn’t teaching or relaxing with her guys at home, she can typically be found reading, working out, putting her Amazon Prime membership to good use, listening to 90’s hip hop, cooking, or planning her family’s next vacation.
Brittany Allen
Brittany is a Wellness Coach with specialties in Holistic Weightloss and Yoga. When she is not playing with her daughter or creating short YouTube videos for Busy Moms, she is empowering and educating others about wellness. Brittany is a 250 Hour Yoga Instructor and enjoys helping people feel better about themselves inside and out with her Online Yoga Studio: 9 to 5 Yogi.
The Pittsburgh Mom Collective Authors
Amanda Mihailoff
Amanda is a 32-year-old Pittsburgh native who ventured from living along the Allegheny River as a child to crossing the rivers and now living along the Monongahela River with her husband (Tom) and two boys (T.J. age 5 & Joey age 1). She is a Journalism graduate of Point Park University (2008) and has been working as a Marketing/Business Development professional in the Engineering Industry since.
“Family First” is the Mihailoff motto so Amanda likes to focus on providing fun experiences and (too many) toys for the kids all while supporting her husband’s dream of coaching high school football. Between a full-time career, kids’ and their activities and homework, and Tom’s full plate, Amanda is always on the go but with a smile and laughter. Life gets crazy but it’s the journey through it that matters!
Free time does eventually roll around for Amanda. That’s when you will find her trying new recipes, using a new home workout, golfing, going for coffee with a friend, watching movies, or scrolling Facebook (and not afraid to admit it).
Amanda Piacquadio
Amanda is a new Washington County resident. She and her husband just bought their first home together in the North Strabane area. They are parents to a handsome little man named Lorenzo who will be 6 in August. His smile and energy lights up a room. He just may be the next Pittsburgh Penguin star! She graduated from Point Park University in 2010 with a Bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations. Even though her full-time job does not relate to her degree, she is still able to get her creativity out by contributing to Pittsburgh Moms Blog. It has always been her dream to share her own experiences with the world. Amanda is a working mom who is always struggling to balance life. Marriage, motherhood, friendship, and work all very important to her. Trying to maintain a work-life balance is key to her happiness. She hopes to one day inspire women to believe in themselves, stand up for one another, and never take life too seriously.
Chelsea Cross
Chelsea was born and raised in Pittsburgh. She currently lives in Hampton with her 2 sons, and three animals. As a Greek woman, she’s constantly questioned as to whether her blonde haired, blue eyed son is really hers (he is!). She spends her weekdays as a recruiter of nurses. She loves being able to talk to caring, passionate nurses on a daily basis.
A fan of all creative pursuits, she spends her free time crocheting, writing, and dreaming up home improvement projects that never turn out quite the way she planned. She and her husband hate to sit at home, and spend all weekends out and about, even if it’s just a trip around the mall.
Danya Hefferan
My name is Danya. I’m a wife to my high school sweetheart and a mom to two little boys. I’ve been working in the beauty Industry for over 12 years and have made the shift to work from home as I add mama bear to my list of credentials. I love going from working mom to stay at home mom in literally 10 steps! My previous hobbies included wine tasting, dancing, karaoke and finding new places to explore, but my current hobbies are trying to see how fast I can restart Trolls before the littles realize the movie ended. My biggest strength is my ability to multitask, however, it can also be my biggest weakness as well…. luckily I’m always optimistic! I’ve fueled almost entirely by my faith and coffee, but a glass of wine never hurts either.
Elizabeth Hough
Jesse De Hartwich
Jessie Wagner
Julia Furgiuele
Bio Coming Soon!
Julia Germeyer
Kailee Venzin
Kailee is a mover, a creative, and an entrepreneur.
She and her husband, Nick, live in Greenfield with their fur child, Rory. They will be welcoming their first human child in January 2020 and couldn’t be more excited. Kailee is a Physical Therapist who owns and operates a practice dedicated to helping active moms have drama free deliveries and move confidently and pain free during and after pregnancy. She is dedicated reminding women how powerful they are as they navigate life’s changes and helping families stay active and healthy.
Kailee is a writer and poet, and spends her alone time reading, writing, and creating. She is actively involved in Pittsburgh’s writing community and has had her poetry published in several literary magazines. She enjoys exploring the outdoors with her dog and husband, trying out new restaurants in the city, and dancing instead of doing cardio.
Katie Casey
Katie is currently a resident of Shaler Township, Katie works as an artist for the company Yaymaker, spreading creative joy around the Pittsburgh Area. Katie is married to her best friend Kevin (10 years and going strong) and together they have 2 amazing girls. Mackenzie 10, and Penelope 4. Katie takes pride in her family being Pittsburgh Penguin fans, and enjoys going to games with her husband and children. During her free time, you can catch Katie in her garden, or at the park with her girls. As a new blogger, Katie hopes to show some of the realism of mom life, offer some candid advice, and maybe a laugh or two, to brighten your day.
Katie Stern
Katie is a wife and mom of three boys, Lucas, Zeke and Toby. She is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, with a degree in Marketing & Communications. Their second son, Toby, was born in May of 2016 and died suddenly in August from SIDS, at 12 weeks and 5 days old. Through this loss, they have founded The Little Fox | Toby’s Foundation with the hopes of bringing joy, laughter, and lots of smiles to families within the Pittsburgh community, while working to spread awareness about child-loss and the lives of grieving parents.
Kylie Kelly
- Married with two daughters Emma (4), Mia (almost 2) and an energetic Goldendoodle puppy named Belle
- Originally from New Castle, PA
- Lived in Pittsburgh for almost 10 years; located in North Hills
- Graduated from Slippery Rock with a B.S. in Health Services Administration
- Worked for Highmark until deciding to stay at home when having my second child; worked in marketing as well
- Member of the board for MOMS Club of Ross/McCandless
- Recently started personal blog; IG @thestayathomemomblog (my experiences, parenting tips, recipes, fashion ideas for moms and kids, Target finds, and anything else that us moms like to talk about!)
- Enjoys yoga, running, reading, shopping, cooking, and being around family and friends
- Loves Starbucks and wine
Lanae Lumsden
Maggie Poole
Maggie is a Texas native that ended up in Pittsburgh after meeting her husband while working in Disney. They became college sweethearts and got married directly after college where they both worked on the road in the oil and gas industry. She is now a mom of three, two boys and a girl and co-owns a personalized children clothing and gifts boutique.
Maggie’s kiddos keep her extremely busy and feels that she lives in a state of blessed chaos. Her journey in motherhood has exposed her to not only pregnancy but she also got to experience the blessing of adopting a true miracle. She is active member of her church and a local philanthropy women’s group that keeps her busy.
Her family loves to travel and she’s not afraid to pack up her kids for spare of the moment adventures!
Marie Chir
Marie, a native of Pittsburgh, is a career Nanny with over 10 years of experience. She is currently working for a wonderful family in Fox Chapel. She is a 2007 Graduate of the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in Writing. She is 34 and currently resides in the South Hills. Marie spends her days creating various activities for her “nanny kids” that range from messy crafts to educational games. She feels very passionately that children learn best through play. She loves being silly with her nanny kids and appreciates every day knowing she has the greatest job in the world! She makes a point to explore the city of Pittsburgh with her nanny kids and utilize its wonderful resources, Throughout the year, she will travel to museums, landmarks, playgrounds, and tourist attractions. She feels the kids should know and appreciate where they live. Plus, Pittsburgh is an amazing city with a complex history and continual metamorphosis. Marie is currently working on her first children’s book, a fictional collection of short stories, and a curriculum for other nannies and stay at home moms. She’s also a quarterly contributor for Nanny Magazine. Marie is Dog Mom to her corgi, Butters. She loves coffee, The Simpsons, and jamming to early 2000’s pop music. She is a proud aunt to her adorable 3-year-old niece. She may not have any children of her own, however, she has many “nieces and nephews” now that her friends are having children.
Mary Yohannan
Megan Edwards
Megan is mom to two little ones, Finnian and Greer, and their fur brother Teddy. Originally from New Castle, PA, she’s lived in the North Hills of Pittsburgh for more than a decade. She and her husband Dan met at IUP where she earned her journalism/public relations degree, which has served her well during her career in a variety of communications roles for the nonprofit and education sector. She currently works at the University of Pittsburgh in fundraising communications. In her spare time, Megan enjoys the outdoors, reading, writing, traveling, and fitness. She’s a pescatarian who loves to eat, enjoy a good a cup of coffee, and a glass of red wine.
Mel McMahon
Nicole Tanner Ging
Nicole is a Pittsburgh girl at heart and loves everything black and gold, she’s been married to her husband for 8 years and they have 2 children: a sassy and strong-willed 4-year-old and a super energetic 2-year-old.
Nicole spent most of her life (29 years) living north of the city, but moved south of the city just 10 days before the birth her daughter, Reagan. A lot has changed in the past few years…Nicole left her full-time job as a virtual English teacher after Reagan was born to become a stay-at-home-mom, worked part-time as an independent contractor, welcomed her son, Tyler into the world, and made it back to the full-time work force in 2018. Nicole now works as full-time virtual Social Studies teacher. As full-time work-at-home/stay-at-home mom, she describes her life as organized chaos.
To add to the chaos, Nicole’s husband of 8 years is a Police Officer; Nicole and her husband can’t seem to settle without big changes in recent years and will be moving back north of the city in 2019 (due to a department change for her husband). Nicole is excited to move closer to family and old friends and settle into a new home. She looks forward to sharing her insight on life with two little ones, while still maintaining her own identity with the readers of Pittsburgh Moms Collective; she also hopes to remind all moms that we are in this crazy journey together.
Pamela Anticole
Pamela doesn’t mind her laugh lines.
After 15 years in professional photography, 4 interesting kids, and a very supportive partner, she has recently rediscovered international travel and cannot wait to share this rekindled passion with her children.
She uses her camera as a way to process the world- a tool to read and share stories. She also experiments with watercolors and, of course, words.
Currently living in McCandless, Pamela is a strong advocate for bathroom privacy and enjoys long, slow walks through the grocery store by herself.
Priya Amin
Priya, mother of Ronin and Kirin, the inspiration behind the name ROKI, has made many leaps in her life. She moved across the country, away from her support system, to go back to school. She left her job at IBM and moved sight unseen to take her dream job at Nestle in a city she had never been to before. She then left her career 5 years later to be a stay at home mom with her then two-year-old son. She created her freelance consulting business on her own to keep her skills sharp. She also decided to go back to work after being home with her kids and freelancing for 3 years. In the past, she has been called an Ever Evolving Optimist.
Priya has an MBA and over 10 years of product/brand management, business development, consulting and entrepreneurial experience. She founded ROKI in 2014 as a one-on-one business consulting company helping small businesses and startups strategically grow. It has since evolved to become an inclusive, supportive community aimed at empowering moms to achieve the balance they are seeking in life.
Rachel Moody
A Pittsburgh native, Rachel has spent just enough time living in other places to know that her heart is in the Steel City. She is mom to three young kids, including a set of twins. Rounding out the Moody household is her husband and their senior dog (and first “baby”).
Rachel works full time in corporate communications, balancing her career with a family life that includes Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, dance, swimming, riding lessons and, of course, soccer. She looks forward to one day finding time to read more, cook things that aren’t frozen and learn how to use her DSLR camera in manual mode. Right now, though, she’ll settle for catching a non-kids’ TV show, take-out pizza and an IPA.
Ryan Mahoney LaRocco
Samantha Westerlund
A resident of Penn Township, Pa, Sam is a public educator, writer, coach and entrepreneur who co-founded Pace Success Coaching, a training and mentoring company based in the Pittsburgh area. She is also a wife and mother of two young boys, age 4 and 3, with one more on the way due in July, and stepmother to boys in their twenties. Her work commitments and “modern family” keep her very busy, but in her spare time, she is an avid reader of both fiction and non-fiction, with an affinity for personal development books, a recreational golfer and traveler. Her passion is sharing authentically and openly with others about the joys and struggles of motherhood and helping people find freedom through realization of their personal and professional goals.
Stefanie Settlemire
Stefanie S. is a wife and SAHM to 4 children, living in Mars. Stefanie and her husband refer to their children as Phase One (Dylan-Age 11 and Alexandria-Age 9) and Phase Two (Liliana-Age 4 and Liam-Age 2). Phase Three is out of the question!
Stefanie’s family became a family blessed with Down syndrome when her youngest child had a surprise diagnosis after his birth. Although the family’s initial reaction was shock and fear, they quickly learned to embrace this beautiful journey and they now realize what the term “The Lucky Few” really means.
Stefanie spends her days wrangling chaos, but in her spare time she loves to embarrass her children by singing show tunes from her musical theater days, come up with messy projects to keep her children busy, chase her children around with her camera, visit her horse, do online volunteer work for the Down Syndrome Diagnosis Network and blog at Lexie Loo, Lily, Liam & Dylan Too. Sleep is just a distant memory!
Stefanie’s family can usually be found out and about in the Pittsburgh area with an extra kid (or 2 or 3) in tow. Stefanie embraces the chaos and feels blessed to be able to spend her days with her children!
Stephanie Feals
Bio Coming Soon!
Tara Work
Tara is a native Pittsburgher. She currently lives in the South Hills with her husband, their 3 year old daughter and 5 month old son. Tara is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh with a degree in Nursing. She have worked in pediatrics her entire career and there is no other nursing she would rather do! Tara graduated with a Masters of Nursing from Waynesburg University which lead her to her current role as a Clinical Nurse Educator.
In her free time Tara enjoys girls night outs with her best girlfriends, and spending time making memories with her family!
Teresa Glasgow
Teresa G is a work at home mom of three boys, ages 3, 4, and 2 months. She has been happily married to her husband Gus for 7 years. She and her family currently reside in the Slippery Rock area, where she has been a longtime resident.
Teresa has bachelor’s degrees in both Dance and Professional writing from Slippery Rock University. She has worked in many different fields over the years – dance teacher, aerobics instructor, swim teacher, and most recently, documentation specialist and content manager for a local software company. Currently, she works for The Hillman Center for Performing Arts at Shady Side Academy, and as a freelance writing professional and content manager for a variety of clients in several different industries.
Teresa and her family spend much of their time outdoors, being active, and you can often find them in their “Little Boat” on Lake Arthur, or in the “Big Bass Boat” at Lake Erie. In her spare time, Teresa loves to practice yoga, run, and read anything she can get her hands on.