About us
- Top Chicago spots to eat, shop, and play for you and your family to enjoy
- Exclusive deals and coupons for our Chicagonista readers
- The latest family friendly events all across the city
- Chicago moms sharing their views about Chicago’s Art, Style, Fashion, Lifestyle, and Culture
- A free forum for all to share anything Chicago
Chicagonista is owned and operated by City Connect Media, Inc - “Linking Communities Everywhere”
MJ Tam
MJ is the Editor of Chicagonista and the Creator of City Connect Media, Inc. that owns and operates Chicagonista.com and the soon to be launching NYMetropolista.com and SanFranista.com. MJ is a true Social Media Diva that hosts citywide events for small start-up businesses to big corporate consumer brands.
MJ also writes in her personal blog; SugarMyBowl.com, that started when her first child was born in 2000 and now documenting her life with husband and 3 beautiful children. Her love of upstarting blogs, writing for sites and other blogs has multiplied in time. She also runs MomViews.net and can also be found writing in ChicagoMomsBlog.com and Centerd.com
Follow MJ on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mjtam
Jolan Rosenthal – Co Editor
Jolan is a wife and mother of 2 wonderful boys (and a third baby is on the way—3 kids under 3 years old, yikes!) who loves everything Chicago. She has been an associate director, writer, and editor for a medical education company for the past several years. She is currently pursuing other exciting opportunities in medicine. When not working full-time in the healthcare industry, she can be found playing in parks and shops with her hubby and kids, as well as hitting all the hot spots in her Lincoln Square neighborhood!
Kristen Holub – Chicago Neighborhoods
Kristen has always had a lot to say, and is finally getting her chance to share! A nationally exhibited metalsmith who has run her own jewelry business for the past decade, Kristen has recently closed up shop to be a full time mom. After the birth of her son in 2007 and extensive research on environmental issues, Kristen chose to green her lifestyle but it didn’t stop there. Her passion for conservation and all things green has led to her involvement in organizations like Women’s Voices for the Earth and EcoMom Alliance. Kristen loves to cook, bake, travel with her husband and socialize in her Bucktown neighborhood while jotting down and sharing great finds in Chicago.
MollyKatholi - Chicago Neighborhoods
Molly subscribes to the Red Queen principal that, “In this place it takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place.” As a mother to two adorable children (born 2006 and2007) and another baby on the way in February 2009, she is never one to do things in half measures. A former criminal prosecutor, Molly brings the same zeal and enthusiasm to her job as a Mom with way more entertaining results. With what is left of her spare time, she manages to scour and write about her fabulous Chicago finds.
Teresa J. Parker – Art & Style
Teresa is a person you could describe as the ‘renaissance woman’. She has been involved in many aspects of the Chicago arts scene for over two decades: as a practicing artist, college art professor, grant-writer and curator of art exhibitions at galleries and museums. Teresa, or rather Tere (pronounced Terry), is new to blogging and is keen on developing her new art blog called Mana Art Blog. In addition to Tere’s artistic activities, she is the Director for Coral Rose Foundation, a not-for-profit that helps women and children in the South Pacific. She lives with her family in the culturally diverse and political limelight neighborhood of Hyde Park.
Eulalio Fabie de Silva – Art & Style
Eulalio is a Chicago artist-painter and photographer with a mouthful name will feature his weekly photographs in “A Dad’s View thru his Camera”. A L’hommage to his favorite city of Chicago from the skylines to the pedestrian scenes.
Keeping up with his digital Joneses’ neighbors, he is armed irreverently with his digital camera with passion and humor. With a transcending visual expression/exploration mission, he is compelled to exhibit urban landscapes, human interests and even the mundane still life.
Eulalio (pronounced Yoo-Lah-Lee-Oh) has been exhibiting for more than 10 years as a painter with over 40 group shows up to date, and working on his major solo exhibition for 2009 at the Riverside Art Center just within the outskirts of Chicago. He resides with his family in the North side of Chicago with his wonderful wife and a budding artist son, Michael (11 yr old). Go and visit his website at www.fabiedesilva.com.
Elizabeth Shapiro – Chicago Neighborhoods
Elizabeth is originally from outside of New York City, but is firmly on the Chicago side of the city rivalry in all things but pizza. Formerly a teacher in a Catholic school, she encouraged eighth graders to use Hemingway and Kerouac to find their own writing voices and made her fifth graders watch all thirteen hours of Ken Burns’ Civil War series. She now organizes the 600 member Chicago Stay at Home Moms meetup group, writes with the free hand that isn’t making play-doh animals, and sings in public to her son in a volume that’s entirely too loud. Elizabeth shares her Lakeview place with her husband, two year old, and dueling Wheaten Terriers.
Cathy McNulty – Suburban Neighborhoods
Cathy is a part-time teacher, a full-time mom, and a Creative Memories Consultant. Cathy is an avid planner and somehow manages to keep up with nap schedules and still get the boys out of the house to try new places or revisit some old favorites! Cathy’s family enjoys many outdoor activities – from biking and swimming in the summer to sledding and ice skating in the winter! When she’s not writing lesson plans, to do lists for her husband, grocery lists, or crop night schedules Cathy enjoys writing over at McCathy’s Tub and Our Disney Daze.
Shannon Capanna – Suburban Neighborhoods
Shannon was born and raised in Southern California and moved to Chicago in 2004. She is proud to call Chicago home, although technically she lives outside city limits in the south suburban town of Homewood.Joining her in Home Sweet Homewood are her professor husband, toddler son, and giant cat. Career-wise, Shannon worked as an elementary school teacher for three years before becoming an editor for math textbooks. She quit that job to try to achieve that elusive work-life balance, and she is now trying to cobble together some kind of career as a writer, editor, and mom. Shannon enjoys swimming, watching quality television, and cat-watching.She also blogs at Chicago Moms Blog, and at her personal site, Boringtown’s Closed.
Lindsay Maldonado – Lifestyle & Culture
Lindsay grew up in Chicago’s Lakeview Neighborhood and as a kid in the city was lucky enough to find her own nature sanctuary in her grandparent’s backyard. Her family was the first to teach her to appreciate nature and now, with a Masters in child development and a growing career in Environmental Education, she can share her love and appreciation for all things green. As the Coordinator of Family and Children’s Programs at the Peggy Noteabart Museum, Lindsay has the opportunity to connect some of the youngest minds to nature. She prides herself in being an educator, a lover of nature, and most of all is proud to be a life long learner. Lindsay currently resides in the West Town neighborhood with her boyfriend of 5 years and her babies, Chocobo, Pumpkin, and Leo (her two cats and leopard gecko).
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Dawn Williams Bertuca
Born and raised in the Chicago area, Dawn Williams Bertuca is a professional writer and former magazine editor who has written about everything from banking to baseball. In 2005, she co-founded GirlfriendCelebrations.com, the premier website providing fun and meaningful ideas for girls night gatherings and girlfriend getaways. She is thrilled to have an opportunity to combine her love of Chicago with her passion for finding “girl-friendly” locations! She lives in the western suburbs with her husband and two awesome kids.
Follow Dawn on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/GirlfriendCeleb
Tina Van Zant Bishop
Tina was born and raised in southern Indiana. In 1999, she became a Chicago transplant and now resides in the western suburbs with her husband and two sons. When she is not busy chauffeuring her socially active nine-year-old or playing sidekick to her four-year-old cowboy, she can be found working as a cardiac nurse at a local hospital. Known for throwing thoughtful theme parties for family and friends, she co-founded GirlfriendCelebrations.com in 2005 to combine her creative party planning ideas with her love of “girlfriend time”. Today, GirlfriendCelebrations.com is the premier website providing women with fun, affordable and meaningful ideas for girls night out and girlfriend getaways.
Follow Tina on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/GirlsNightOut
Farrah Brown
Farrah is a military kid that actually considers Florida to be home. And although she misses the beach and sweet tea, Chicago is starting to grow on her too. She works part time as a cardiac interventional nurse at a local hospital in the western suburbs to keep her nursing skills current and give her at least one day a week with adult conversation. She also started her own small work-at-homebusiness, BabyLove Slings, making and selling ring-sling baby carriers. But the job she truly cherishes is the one of mommy to her two boys and beagle pup. Life certainly keeps her on her toes! Besides her husband and sons and puppy, her other passions include babywearing, attachment parenting, the beach, and most recently Bravo TV.
When not sewing, napping or catching up on Project Runway, Farrah spends her “spare time” writing about the joys and pains of motherhood and babywearing at BabyLove Slings. Farrah also writes for ChicagoMomsBlog and her newest project, Dupage Mamas.
Cindy La Greca
Cindy is a newly-minted children’s librarian in the northwest suburbs and a lifelong nerd. She comes to you from the waaaayyyy northwest side, in historic Norwood Park, though she is originally from the much-maligned state of NJ. She has had a variety of careers, ranging from teaching English in Mexico and Croatia, to non-profit work to working at a travel bookstore. Her favorite jobs, however, are ‘mommying’ her three year old daughter, being married to her attorney husband, and being the guardian of two rambunctious pound mutts. In her free time, Cindy enjoys eating out, rooting for the Yankees (though both the Cubs and the Sox will do in a pinch) and organizing closets. Her goals in life are to travel to every baseball stadium, marry Johnny Depp and potty-train her daughter, in any order. She is thrilled to be a contributor to Chicagonista.com and looks forward to introducing you to life in the 41st Ward.
Karyn Watkins – Fashion Scene
Karyn is a native Chicagoan with a passion for all things charitable, fashionable, and related to marketing. She is the Editor of The Fabulous Giver, a blog spotlighting fun and stylish products, events and initiatives with a charitable focus. She is also the Chicago Philanthropy Examiner for Examiner.com, and recently launched The Red Pump Project, an HIV/AIDS awareness initiative for women and girls.
Even though Karyn appears to be glued to her MacBook, she actually does find time to enjoy everything that the city and her Hyde Park neighborhood has to offer. She’s always looking for the next great event or sale, but definitely finds time to enjoy the simple things like the lakefront, late-night desserts, and rooting for all things orange and blue (Whitney Young HS, “Da Bears,” and the ILLINI).
Erin Kelly
Erin realized her passion for all things organized at a very early age. Even as a young child, Erin constantly rearranged her parent’s house, occasionally to their dismay, but more often to their delight.
Throughout the years, Erin has honed her skills as an organizing wizard in everything she did. From Erin’s former career in sales with such companies as Fedex and Consolidated Freightways, to the extensive volunteer work for which she has a passion; Erin always finds ways of making everything she touches run more smoothly.
After a successful sales career, Erin decided to follow her true calling and started Arranged By Erin in 2004. Since then, Erin has been busy helping individuals, families, and businesses with their many organizational needs.
Arranged By Erin specializes in residential, business, and time organization. Erin also helps her clients with space planning, relocation, and home staging. Arranged By Erin also works with those that have ADD/ADHD, severe hoarding, and chronic disorganization.
Jennifer Dunham Luby
After many years of planning events for corporations, associations, charities, and private clients, Jen has officially hung up her event logistics hat and now focuses on the type of event planning she loves best – home entertaining. She believes hostessing is a fine art and that with a little help, anyone can be a hostess extraordinaire.
When she’s not trying a new recipe, staying active with numerous organizations, or exploring her Wicker Park neighborhood, Jen and her husband love to play with their dachshunds, travel the US and internationally, or just spend the night on the couch with a good Chicago pizza and episode of Family Guy.
A travel and fashion blogger since 2005, in 2008 Jen launched SecondCitySoiree.com, which features advice, ideas, and inspiration for home entertaining. Follow her on Twitter @SecndCitySoiree
Are you interested in contributing to Chicagonista?
You must be living in Chicago or near suburban area. We are looking for contributors that enjoy family living, talking, and sharing great info on Chicago. You must have strong English writing skills and can submit 1 article every 2 weeks. We will support you with ideas and ways on finding topics or info. This is a great way to get involved in knowing more on your community and getting more involved in community projects.
Please contact:
chicagonista(at)gmail.com – Use Subject:Writing Contributor
Submit the following:
- Name:
- Email:
- Phone:
- Best time to talk on the phone:
- Location:
- Chicago Neighborhood/Suburban
- Age(s) of your child/children? Our goal is for a diverse group writers who
represent moms of younger to older children - Attach a writing sample, preferably one with similar content as Chicagonista no lesser than 250 words.
Thank You! We look forward to hearing from all of you Chicagonistas!
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