Congrats to Rocio, our May Mom of the Month!
Rocio is very involved in Our Village! She has taken mom only classes, Body Well sessions, participated in Run Club+ and stroller classes. Her smile and friendliness along with her energy helps fuel Our Village and we are so thankful that she and her daughters are a part of our community.
Get to know Rocio
Hometown: Naperville
Tell us who is in your family: My husband, Charlie, and I have been together for 10 years and we have two daughters, Franny (4) and Mattea (1.5). Franny loves all things involving dancing, music and princesses and is so witty and funny. Mattea is equally as funny but way more of a risk taker, constantly running and always trying to keep up with her big sister.
Current/Previous Career: I'm currently a stay-at-home mom, but prior to take a break from the corporate world, I was a technical accounting manager at Groupon.
What was your childhood ambition? I wanted to be a lawyer.
What does motherhood mean to you? Motherhood to me is always showing up for my children. Not just physically, but in any way they need. Now having 2 daughters, I'm also learning that showing up for each of them may look different at times because they're different people with different needs.
What is the farthest you have been away from home? London
How did you find FIT4MOM DuPage County? When I first stopped working and Franny was 16 months or so I was looking for ways to fill our days. We would go to Seven Gables Park in Wheaton and go on long walks to stay busy. I kept seeing some moms with strollers doing workouts and thought "I'm already coming here, maybe I should check it out." So I tried a class and never really stopped since then!
How has FIT4MOM DuPage County changed your life? It started as a way to build a routine as a stay-at-home mom and that gave us a lot of great structure, socialization and ways to fill our days. But now I notice that my daughters get to see me exercising, having fun and committing to something and they want to do all those things too. It definitely made me feel proud, and also laugh, the first time I saw my daughter setting up cones at our house for a "workout" class.
Favorite exercise: Squats
Proudest Moment: My proudest moment was choosing to take a break from my accounting career. I had a really promising career path and mentors so it was really scary at first to make the leap not knowing if I'd feel lost or just really hate being a stay-at-home mom. But I'm so incredibly proud I made that choice for myself and my family. I'm so fortunate to be able to spend this time with my girls and would have always wondered "what-if" had I not taken the leap.
What is one thing you have learned so far from this year? I'm capable of more than I think. We had a busy year after Mattea was born, including moving while she was only 2 weeks old. The last year has felt like a lot of catching up to an endless to do list, but I've realized even if it all feels impossible at times, I'll find a way and make it work for my family.
Tell us something about yourself that would surprise us!: I did a couple small pageants in the Chicagoland area for some Panamanian and Latin American organizations when I was 17-19 years old. I won a few as "Miss Panama" and got to do some random things like be on a float at the Chicago Puerto Rican Day Parade and be a "special guest" with other country winners at a Chicago Fire Game for Hispanic Heritage night.