Fort Worth Moms

Originally from North Carolina, Dominique is the proudest member of the Fightin’ Texas Aggie class of ’04 (Whoop!) who married a fellow Aggie. Dominique has worked on multiple political campaigns, as a project manager for a global medical publishing company and most recently also works in a local elementary school as a K-5 reading and math tutor. Dominique has two incredible and busy boys. In her free time (hah!) she enjoys baking, being outdoors in the sun, and visiting Aggieland any chance she gets.

Emily M grew up in Katy, Texas. She came to Fort Worth to attend TCU, where she met her husband. They married in 2009 and have a daughter, Ellie (2012) and son, Brody (2015). Emily has experience in many administrative roles, and currently assists several small businesses with various needs, ranging from bookkeeping to social media oversight and many things in between. Emily loves to read, cook, be outdoors, and listen to music.

Since 1999, Emily has worked in various aspects of the publishing industry: curriculum, magazines, books, and newspapers. She first became involved with Fort Worth Moms in 2013 as a contributing writer. She became the managing editor in 2014. Twelve months later, she became the sole owner of Fort Worth Moms. She is also a co-host for the Momfessions Podcast. In 2014, she co-authored and released Legendary Locals of Fort Worth. She has also co-written a Bible study, Grace in the Empty Spaces. She also enjoys gardening, yard sales, and drinking Dr. Pepper.

August is a transplant to McKinney from Asheville, North Carolina. She is a mother to four fearless, outspoken children. She and her husband, Matt, have been foster parents for the last seven years. Previously a high school teacher, August homeschools her children. Her passions are reading and traveling. She leads the Collin County Moms Book Club and recently spent three weeks camping throughout New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado with her kids. August is also a member of the Junior League of Collin County and a volunteer driver of Meals on Wheels of Collin County.

Katie has been and editor and journalist since 2010. She’s worked for various national publications, including EQUUS and Western Horseman, and freelanced for titles such as Horse Illustrated and The Reiner. In addition to her role as managing editor at Beal Media, Katie is a content writer for The National Council of Mental Wellbeing and secretary for the Ranch Horse Association of America. In all her work, she’s drawn to projects that serve a purpose and help others. She lives in Willow Park, Texas, with her husband, two kiddos, horses, dogs, chickens, and cat.

Lauren is a gardener, amateur chicken rancher, and semi-pro Pinterest recipe tester who has mastered the art of reheating her morning coffee and evading the endless requests for snacks. Whether it’s solo traveling across the country or a picnic lunch in her front yard, she ensures her life each day is an adventure. With a professional background in sales, social media management, marketing, and business administration, Lauren is the embodiment of the organized creativity that’s reflected through her writing and work as sponsorship and social media director for Fort Worth Moms. Lauren resides in Fort Worth, Texas, with her husband, Sam, and three children.

Erica landed in the DFW area after growing up in Austin and spending her “pre-kids life” traveling and living around the world. She attended the University of Michigan and has worked in design, marketing, and photography since 2011. Now living in Frisco, Texas with her husband and three young boys, Erica loves working with our community as both a graphic designer and family photographer. Erica launched her full-time family and newborn photography business in 2020 and works with moms all over the DFW area through Erica Grandin Photography.

Suzy was born and raised in Arlington. She comes from a big family. As the oldest of six, Suzy has always been the mama bear to friends and family alike. She is happily married to her best friend of 10 years, and they have two young children, Aurora (2016) and Benjamin (2019). Suzy has been a youth services librarian for 10 years, at the moment she is taking a break from libraries to stay home and raise her two littles. Her husband, who is her hero, is a firefighter/paramedic. Suzy is always up for a new adventure when not busy juggling work life and wife/mom life. She is a lover of good coffee, curling up in a comfy spot with a good book, watching re-runs of Friends, lifting weights, baking, and trying new food around the metroplex.

After almost 20 years in other parts of Texas (Austin and Fort Worth!), Katie now lives in Richardson with her husband and two kids. She's horrible at social media but secretly likes Twitter best. Favorite uses for her phone: reading library books and listening to comedy podcasts. Least favorite uses: making and receiving calls. If you've seen Death Becomes Her or Big Business more than once, you'll be best friends.

Missy lives in Frisco with her concert-crazy husband, Adam, and two “couldn’t be more different” daughters, Raegan (6) and Maddie (4). She met Adam while living in Australia, and often jokes she brought him home as a souvenir. A graduate of Oklahoma State University, she will proudly yell, “Go Pokes” across a store or restaurant when she sees a fellow fan! When she isn’t busy taking her girls to dance or gymnastics, you can find Missy crafting, talking to her three kitties, or wandering Target while sipping an iced coffee.

Chelsea grew up in Grand Prairie, Texas. She now lives in McKinney with her husband and four children . Before becoming a stay-at-home mom, Chelsea managed multiple health and wellness/salon franchises. As a journalism and mass communications major, she has always enjoyed all things media and writing. In her free time, Chelsea and her family love traveling to support the sports teams of her husbands alma mater, Grambling State University.

Kristen Gardiner moved to the Dallas area (Allen) in 2018 with her husband and three boys (born in 2010, 2012, and 2015). She has a marketing degree from Texas A&M (class of '06) and an M.B.A. from Texas A&M --Corpus Christi. Kristen met her husband while working at Whataburger in College Station ,and they have been inseparable ever since. She has spent the past few years as a freelance writer and marketing consultant. Kristen is passionate about storytelling and sharing about struggles with mental health in motherhood on her blog Driving Mom Crazy. drivingmomcrazy.com

Ashley is from Hurst, and though she’s flown the nest a few times now, she always seems to boomerang right back to her hometown. Her latest stint took her family to Chicago for the last four years. While Ashley, her husband of almost 16 years, her son and daughter loved life as honorary Midwesterners, Texas called, and it was time to answer. Though her children are in upper elementary school, Ashley found her groove as a stay-at-home mom and is not eager to give up the title quite yet. You can find her putting in the miles all over town with her “doggy clients” as a Rover walker and caregiver. (Dogs talk back less than children.) Ashley is often the loudest mom at the ball fields but comes in peace with the best snacks. She recharges with a run around Hurst, a ride on that stationary bike everyone’s talking about, or on a patio with a margarita and her very funny husband. Ashley has written for local mom groups and church and is a returning writer for Fort Worth Moms. Her husband hopes she will stick to more pieces on motherhood and less on disappointing stays at grimy motels.

Melissa was born and raised in New Jersey, and graduated from Centenary University. She spent 10 years working for Crate & Barrel in NYC. During thattime, she met her future husband Scott, who works in professional sports. His career moved them all over the country until they ended up landing and settling with their family in McKinney in 2015. Since moving to Texas, Melissa started her own personal shopping and athleisure retail shop. As an entrepreneur and sales veteran, she began working in business development for Collin County Moms in 2021.