What Moms are Cooking, Spending & Building

• Herby Chicken Meatball Pitas with Jalapeño Tzatziki - I love a meatball and tzatziki situation. I usually end up doing a rice bowl but a pita wrap sounds like a nice change.

• Smashed Cucumber, Avocado and Shrimp Salad - I’ve been seeing the smashed cucumber trend everywhere and this recipe got me excited. You could swap shrimp with chicken or salmon and I think it’d be fab!

• Sheet Pan Gnocchi with Sausage and Green Beans - Gnocchi and sausage is such a good combo that I seems to always forget about. But when I don’t, I’m always telling myself I need to remember to make this more often!

• Juicy Honey Mustard Chicken- You probably have all of these ingredients already. Classic weeknight meal that would be great over a salad, in a wrap, or with rice.

• Charred Corn and Edamame Salad - I’m in my edamame era right now and always have a bag in my freezer. This is such a great fiber-filled meal that would be a great dinner side or lunch!

• Mom Hack: At each big baby milestone- 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, 2 years, etc.- take 30 minutes to clear out toys your kid has outgrown. Store favorites, donate the rest, and rotate in age-appropriate toys that match their new skills. It keeps playtime fresh and clutter in check. Bonus: make it a birthday tradition so you don’t forget!

• Mom Product: I love our toy storage system that has easy-to-access bins that also helps put away the mess. It’s mom-tested, kid-approved, and turns chaos into calm in an instant. If you want to simplify your space and your sanity, grab yours here. I’ve also linked some of my fave 1 year old toys!

What do you offer, and who is it for?

Elliston House offers artful, approachable textiles and wallpapers that are designed to bring joy into everyday life. We work with interior designers, stylists, and home lovers who aren’t afraid to play with pattern and make bold, personal design choices. Our customers are often women creating layered, meaningful homes for their growing families.

What tools or apps make your life easier as a mompreneur?

We work in Canva and ChatGPT almost every day! We both use the Skylight calendar - and that is a game changer!

What does a “typical” morning look like for you (anything that happens between 5am-11am)?

We both are up with our kids around 6:30—breakfast chaos, packing lunches, hair brushing, etc. Once drop-off is done around 8, we try to take a quick walk or do a 10-minute stretch or make ourselves breakfast before diving into work around 9:30. We usually check emails, complete any outstanding sample orders, and touch base with our printers first thing.

Simple rec for moms?

We both love Megan Roup’s Sculpt Society for a quickie workout! It’s nearly impossible to exercise these days, and Megan’s app makes it so easy with 15-20 minute workouts that can be done in your own home at your own pace! It always makes us feel better getting in just a little bit of exercise.

How can moms in our community support your business?

Follow us @elliston_house, share us with a friend, or just drop a kind comment on a post—it truly means the world. And if you’re a designer or home lover, browse our latest collection at ellistonhouse.com—we’d be honored to be a part of your space.

👉 Read the full interview here

• Age: 39

• Kids: 2- 3 year old and 4 month old

• Job: Licensed insolvency trustee

• Household Income: $500K CAD ($364,260 USD)

• Own or rent: Own- $7600 CAD ($5,536 USD)

• Childcare or daycare expense: $420 CAD ($305 USD)

• Recent purchase you regret: I regret getting my balayage hair done for $550, including tips

• Splurge and don’t regret: I bought my kids a play couch for rainy days, $200

• Best “mom sanity” splurge: Coffee almost every week ($5), takeout once a week ($100), massage once a month ($200)

• Weekly “kid stuff” spend: Food ($150), activities ($50-100), clothes ($30 average a week)

• Weekly spend on groceries: $250

• Most spent on a kid party: $1500 including food. Maybe $2000 was the most I’ve spent.

• Purchase that you don’t tell your partner about: We tell each other everything because we have a joint account, but I buy myself brand name clothes and pretend I told him about it earlier.

• Saving for your kids college tuitions: We are saving $210 monthly x 2 for our boys in a registered education savings plan. We are also saving $100 x 2 in a tax free savings account for higher education so $620 monthly.

• Something financial you wish your parents had taught you: Euh like everything! They have taught me nothing about being frugal, how to save, how to pay debts, pitfalls of debts. There is a serious lack of education in this in Canada. It’s ironic that I’m a bankruptcy trustee- I do people’s budgets all day and put them into bankruptcy.

• Managing family budget: We have one account and I do all the bill payments. At the end of the month, it’s sad, but we have no money left over- even if we make 500K. In fact, we feel that money is tight every month. It must be the housing cost of Toronto, which is almost $8500 monthly with property taxes.

• Great ways to save money on kid-related expenses: Look for free things to do. My 3 year old has fun no matter what we’re doing. Buying a pass to the zoo instead of one time admission helps. Planning play days!

• Money advice for other moms: Don’t spend on your credit cards if you don’t have the funds readily available in your bank account.

• Finish the sentence: “In this economy, I still somehow ____.” take my kids out