Blogger of The Month is Lacie From Brains, Bibs and Biz!

Wow, what can we say about Lacie from Brains, Bibs and Biz? Lacie is a blogger who cares about her readers. She keeps it real. We love her passion for the environment. She cares about other people. Lacie is genuine, honest, passionate and full of love. Make sure this blog is in your regular blog reading reel as she is a force in the blogging world!

Follow Lacie here

Lacie, Brains, Bibs and Biz is a blog full of purpose, praise and pizazz. We love it! Please share with our audience how you got started with this fantastic blog.

I’m so happy you’re loving my blog! I’m loving creating and sharing my knowledge to help others.

Technically, I started my blog in July 2019, a few weeks after my son was firstborn. I was suffering from postpartum anxiety and needed a way to express my feelings. Journaling has always been therapeutic for me so blogging wasn’t a huge stretch.

My husband suggested that I start a blog as a way to more openly release my feelings. He suggested maybe I can help someone else by sharing what I’ve learned. When I started, I had no idea what blogging was and I didn’t know what I was doing. In truth, I still have a lot to learn about the blogging world.

So my blog really began as an emotional outlet for me. For the past two months, I’ve been putting all my spare time into my blog by sharing more about my lifestyle and information to help others. It’s been great!

You have broken your blog into three main parts. Brains, Bibs and Biz. Tell us about that!

Brains, Bibs, and Biz! I thought long and hard about what I wanted to call my blog. I tried to dig deep to think about what words embodied who I was and what messages I wanted to communicate. When you create a website choosing the name seems so final! I probably put way too much thought into it, but I love the uniqueness of the name.

Brains represents my love for education, reading, and writing. I love knowledge. I soak it in like a sponge! Learning is such a powerful tool. Growing up, my mom always taught me and my brother that money and material items can always be taken away, but no one can ever take away your education. That has stuck with me my whole life.

Bibs represents mom life! I chose bibs because of its immediate association with babies! I knew that mom and family life would be a key pillar of my blog.

Biz represents working mom life. As a working mom with a baby, I constantly struggle between wanting to be a 9-5 #momboss and wanting to be a stay at home #momtrepreneur. It’s a battle that I know many women face. I knew I wanted to share personal stories about the 9-5 life as a working millennial mom and also share valuable tips about ways to succeed in a traditional job setting.

Tell us how your passion for environmental science began. Do you remember it being a sudden realization or was it gradual?

During my senior year in high school, I took an AP Environmental Science class. Our summer assignment was to read “Silent Spring” by Rachel Carson. In the book, Carson talks about how the decisions we were making at the time were killing our environment. She emphasized how interconnected we are to nature and how important it is for us to make better decisions for the survival of nature – to avoid a silent spring. The book was so good. It’s a bit technical, but there are some important takeaways.

After reading this book I had a sudden realization! I realized my everyday actions had an impact on the environment we lived in! Before that moment I NEVER considered how my lifestyle played a role in the sustainability of our planet. I remember my parents thought I had gone crazy because I started recycling at home and calling them out on their excess water usage!

The funny thing is, I didn’t know people could have a career in Environmental Science. It wasn’t until I got to college and took an environmental science course I realized people had REAL JOBS where they learned about the environment every day! I knew I had found my major and career path.

What was your most proud moment after graduating from UVA in Environmental Thought and Practice?

My proudest moment after graduating from UVA in Environmental Thought and Practice was securing my first internship. That’s the dream, right? Getting a job after you graduate. I got a paid internship in my field in my hometown. I hit the jackpot! My first job was as an intern for a local environmental educator. I went to schools, fairs, festivals, and city events teaching about stormwater and the impact of pollution on our waterways. My career has continued to take off from this point.

Tell us about your family.

I’m so grateful for my family. My husband and I met in middle school! I met him at a football game through my best friend. I was cold, he let me borrow his jacket, and the rest is history! We dated throughout high school. After high school, I went to college and he went into the military. We did long distance for a while! It was miserable, but we survived.

We got married in 2016 in our hometown.

My husband is my best friend! He’s so down to Earth and encouraging! He is loving, dedicated and he makes sure I peek my head up out of a book every once in a while to have some fun!

In 2019, I gave birth to my sweet baby boy, Elias Jonathan. I heard that being a mom would change your life, but to experience it yourself is amazing!

I’m extremely close to my immediate family and my in-laws. We’ve all been in each other’s lives for so long because my husband and I started dating so young I feel like we’re one big, blended family. We even all went on a family vacation together in 2019 to the Dominican Republic! It was epic.

What is it like being a Mom?

Being a mom is the most amazing feeling in the world. Don’t get me wrong there are days when it can be exhausting and overwhelming, but overall it’s incredible. Sometimes I still look at my son and think “wow! I created you.”

When you become a mom you become a protector, an advocate, a role model, a teacher, a disciplinarian, a comforter, and a provider. In the beginning, your baby solely depends on you for survival. That kind of responsibility gives you this superhuman feeling – like you can do anything. Your heart swells larger than you could ever think possible and your only goal is to provide for your baby the best you can.

What is your advice for parents who want to be more environmentally conscious but say they don’t have a lot of time to commit to measures that can help their communities?

My biggest advice for parents who want to be more environmentally conscious, but don’t have a lot of time to commit is to start small! You don’t have to take extreme measures to be environmentally conscious!

The idea of being environmentally conscious is to show concern for the environment and be aware of how the decisions you make can impact the environment. In other words, do what you can, when you can, and be conscious about how your decisions can impact the environment.

Just like small negative decisions can harm our environment, the opposite is true! Small positive decisions do benefit our environment.

One of our favorite posts on your blog is “What is a Flexitarian?” Can you tell our audience what a flexitarian is, why they should consider this lifestyle, and how it is environmentally friendly?

I loved writing this blog post! Flexitarian diets are becoming more mainstream and I love it! A flexitarian is a person who occasionally eats meat. A flexitarian diet consists of mostly plant-based, vegetarian foods.

I was born in Louisiana where I developed an appetite for all foods fried, glazed, and comforting. As I began my journey through environmental awareness, I realized those foods on occasion was fine, but having a diet which consisted of mostly plant-based foods was much better for the environment and my health.

There are a few reasons why I would encourage people to consider a flexitarian diet. First, reducing your consumption of animal products is the single biggest way to make an impact on the environment! Second, the consumption of processed meat is associated with increased health risks. Third, being a flexitarian is exactly what it sounds like FLEXIBLE! You don’t have to cut animal products completely, but you do have to make a conscious effort to reduce your consumption.

The best way to start is by choosing one animal product to eliminate or eat less of. That’s how I got started. After you get used to that, add in another product and so on. Make sure you’re eating lots of veggies and plant-based protein to keep your body healthy and strong.

What is your favorite recipe on your blog that EVERYONE should try?

I’ve only dabbled in writing recipes for my blog so I don’t have very many to share. I love cooking and I love finding healthy recipes that are quick and suitable for the whole family. My husband is gluten-free and I’m a flexitarian so I have to get creative in the kitchen.

My favorite recipe on my blog to share would be my Spicy Black Bean Burgers! These burgers are so good and so hardy you don’t even miss the meat! I’ve made these burgers for several family members and friends who do not eat a plant-based diet and they loved it! There’s something about having a meat-eater enjoy your vegetarian meal that gives you extra validation.

Your blog talks a lot about self-care. This is a beautiful message to your audience. Why is self-care so important for parents?

I’m an avid believer in self-care. This blog all started because of my postpartum anxiety. I needed a way to help myself mentally heal and cope. In a way, Brains, Bibs, and Biz is self-care for me. Taking care of yourself spiritually, mentally, physically, and socially is all part of self-care.

If I’m not my best self, I can’t be the best mom and wife to my family. That is imperative.

Self-care is important to families because our kids are always watching. They notice when we’re unhappy. Our kids also notice when we’re tired, frustrated, or overworked.

It’s our job to raise healthy and happy children to go out into the world and make a positive difference, how can we do that if we’re not healthy and happy. Taking time to take care of yourself – in whatever way that you need – is not selfish, it’s necessary.

Can you give our audience some advice on how to slow down and self-care?

I’m a wife and a mom first. For me, to slow down and self-care, I have to make sure the family is taken care of first. This is because if the family isn’t taken care of, I won’t be able to relax and take care of myself because I’ll be worried about what’s going on with everyone else.

This means I usually practice self-care after we put Elias down for sleep at night. After he goes to bed, I dedicate the rest of the night to relaxation and self-care. If I have an appointment during the day for my nails or a massage, I usually pre-plan/schedule in this kind of self-care when I know my husband is available to be with Elias.

How has the journey of cloth diapering been? What would be your advice to a hesitant parent who is considering to start cloth diapering?

I’ve had such a positive experience with cloth diapering! I want to shout it from the rooftop how manageable cloth diapering can be.

My biggest advice is to test it out! Buy a few cloth diapers from a second-hand store and try them on your baby. In my opinion, the easiest time to cloth diaper is in the beginning, especially if your baby is breastfed. Their poopy diapers can go straight into the washer. The second easiest time to cloth diaper is after your baby is mostly eating solids (10-12+ months). The poop is more firm and easy to dispose of.

Cloth diapering is cheaper, better for your baby’s skin, and of course, better for the environment.

Can you give our audience 5 easy environmentally friendly practices that they can do as busy parents?

Here are five easy environmentally friendly practices busy parents can do:

1. Choose reusable – reusable straws, reusable bags, reusable utensils/plates
2. Pick up litter around your home and neighborhood
3. Eat less meat, eat more plants
4. Recycle
5. Buy second-hand instead of brand new

Brains, Bibs and Biz