ORDER Gift Certificates
My Cart
Welcome to Mom Bliss, my little feature here on the blog about inspiring mothers. Today, I’m featuring not one but two moms, who have created a business that let’s them focus on what they love the most: creativity and their children! Get to know Kathleen Lamata and Tatiana Pena, the mom duo behind the Look, It’s About Me! customized story books.
So, what have you ladies been up to lately as mompreneurs?
Tatiana: Both
Kathleen and I have been very
very busy lately. But I think
this is a common modern
syndrome to all women. We tend
to do so many things
would’t you agree? Work,
kids, doctor appointments,
homework, the house, the
husband…back to the
kids… It’s no
different in Kathleen’s
and my case. We are both
working moms with kids in
school, so you can imagine how
busy we are.
When it comes to work, our main focus has been making our brand Look It’s About Me and our personalized storybooks more known to the public. We are also in the midst of the creative process right now as we are developing new personalized products and we are working on new titles for the storybooks.
Kathleen
Tatiana
Tell us a bit about yourselves as moms.
Tatiana: As mentioned, both Kathleen and I are mothers. Kathleen has two lovely daughters, Chloe aged 6 and Rocio aged 2, and I have another “little angel” Ainhoa, aged 9. As mothers we know how important it is to spend quality time with the kids and we like setting time apart just for them. Unfortunately it is hard to do so during the week with so many activities planned, work commitments, school homework and tests… So of course the weekend is when we get to really enjoy the time we spend with our children, when we are all feeling more relaxed! That is the time to go on family dinners, take the kids to the park or to the movies, and in our case, one of our favourite activities is taking them to bookstores to choose books!
What is “Look, It’s About Me” and why did you begin this business?
Our company is called Look It’s About Me and we make personalized children’s books and other personalized gifts such as coloring books, placemats, wall art prints and wrapping paper. The hero of the day is the personalized storybook. A few years ago, Chloe drew a story about herself and her mom, Kathleen, put those papers together and created a book. Chloe brought it to school to show her friends her new book, a book that was about her, that is how excited she was!
Tatiana: Last year Kathleen found it while doing some cleaning-up and that is how the business idea came about. We thought it would be amazing to create a real hardcover book that is professionally bound where the child is the protagonist of the story. It is amazing to see the reaction of children when they read about themselves…Our storybooks are meant for kids up to age 10. Because it makes learning fun and it is about themselves it encourages children to read and helps increase their self-esteem. It is also a great bonding activity between parent and child.
We all love to know how busy moms manage their schedules and days. What do your days look like?
A typical day for us would start with taking the kids to school and then going to the office or to meetings. We grab a quick lunch and then pick up our kids from school again. We try spending the afternoon with the children to make sure that the homework is done, that they know their lessons for the upcoming tests and to take them them to their planned activities.
This routine is interrupted when we have to schedule meetings in the afternoon. Then it’s time for bath and dinner, and the dreaded Time to go to bed… yes, we have to fight with our girls when it is bed time, they don’t want to go to bed, they are so full of energy! Finally, after they are asleep we go back to working for a little while, or we spend time with the hubby, and we also need a social life so sometimes, not often enough, we get to go out and “play” with our friends too.
What, for you, is “mom bliss”?
For us a mom bliss is when you find that delicate balance between all the different aspects of your life.
What are some tips you could give to moms out there who’d like to begin their own businesses?
Our first advice would be: Relax, you are not alone, we all feel the same way you do! When you feel you are handling too many things at a time write them down. Then you will clearly see which ones need your urgent attention and which ones can be settled tomorrow…or the day after tomorrow…When you do this you will immediately feel less stressed and like you have everything under control.
Connect with Kathleen and Tatiana
Website: www.lookitsab outme.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/
facebook: https://www.
