The Balacing Act: Chatting With The Founders Of Project Nursery

I’m excited to kick off a new series featuring hard working mamas who share with us how they do it all — or try to! Today we have the co-founders of the insanely popular site Project Nursery, Melisa Fluhr & Pam Ginocchino. Chances are if you’ve designed a nursery you’ve spent some time gathering inspiration from the thousands upon thousands of baby rooms on Project Nursery. They ladies recently launched a carefully curated shop full of their favorite kid & baby items and have exciting things on the horizon! 

Describe your “typical” day. You don’t work in an office together — can that be tough?
We’ve been working in separate spaces since day 1 of Project Nursery so we guess it’s fair to say we don’t know any different! The three hour time zone difference does put a wrench into things every now and then but it has also made us much more efficient. We cram multiple meetings and video-conferences into 4 hours (if not more!) in the middle of each and every day so we both can be together when needed by our team and clients. We also have a “divide and conquer” mentality as co-founders. Melisa kicks off operations early in the morning on the East Coast while Pam closes up shop late night Pacific.

How do you stay organized?
A little interior designer OCD goes a long way in the business world. The same way we like to style our homes, we style our home offices—clutter-free! This allows us to keep our work space and virtual life organized on the iMac, Macbook, iPad and iPhone. Thank goodness for modern technology and in our case, every Apple product on the planet.

What calendar and to-do list system(s) do you use to organize your business and household?
Everything and we mean EVERYTHING is loaded into our Google Calendar. We exchange both personal and professional appointments on our shared calendars so we know where one another can be found at all times. We know when our husbands are traveling to who has a carpool pick up that day. This allows us to book meeting for one another without having to send three emails and receive confirmation. It’s a true time-saver.

Are there apps or websites you rely on to help keep you on track?
Our tasks are managed using our favorite workflow app, Asana. It enables our virtual team of twelve to stay connected on various projects and it keeps everyone on track. There’s also a little check box next to each task which makes us want to scream, YES! every time we complete a task. A serious feel good given the amount of hours we spend online.

How do you find balance in your day?
We’re just gonna admit it right here and now. With three kids each, ranging from ages 1 to 11, there is no longer such a thing. We prefer to say, there are some days that are better than others. For us, it’s making a conscience decision to say, I am out of the office today or I am unable to check email in the morning, to truly achieve a balance. The fact we are in a partnership, makes it all possible. We trust that we have eachother’s back which gives us the flexibility we desire and balance we require. And we wouldn’t have it anyother way

What’s changed with your career goals now that you’re a mother?
Um, Everything! We ultimately strive to have successful, fulfilling careers all while being available and accessible to our families. Our family and happiness is a top priority above all else these days. If a project doesn’t make us happy, we simply won’t do it. That’s the beauty of running our own business.

How do you treat yourself and relax?
Pam needs a good boot camp or soul cycle class to relieve stress. Melisa can’t relate and dreams of a giant bubble bath. A big glass of red wine of course is appreciated by the both of us!

What’s the best piece of advice you can think of for a new mother who wants to keep her career but also be present for her children ?
It’s not easy at times but 110% possible. There’s no reason to give up your career or passion for what you do. If you can’t make it work in a traditional sense, make working work for you as a new mom. That’s what being a “mompreneur” is all about these days. It’s seriously empowering.

What websites, blogs, books or apps do you like to read/use about motherhood or kid/baby?

Stroller Traffic for the latest and greatest on baby product news.

Mother Mag for a little motherhood inspo

Betches.com for a good ole’ laugh

Scary Mommy for keeping it real

You have 10 minutes to yourself — how do you spend it?

Pam: Curled up in my cozy bed with either a great magazine or my phone. I love uninterrupted Instagram

browsing time! I’m obsessed and could get lost in my personal feed for hours but I’ll take 10 minutes!

Melisa: I’d skim the latest issue of House Beautiful or Elle Decor and dog ear all the pages of design

inspiration over a cup of strong coffee with a splash of vanilla almond milk. It’s the little things.

What’s next for Project Nursery?
We’ve launched this little thing called a Baby Monitor! We’ve partnered with the best of the best in consumer electronics, Voxx International, and have created a killer 5-inch, high definition baby monitor with an attractive pan, tilt and zoom camera along with the world’s first 1.5-inch LCD mini-monitor. We basically took all the pain points from a traditional monitor, made them not only better but more attractive—a monitor you’d be proud to feature in your nursery. The Project Nursery Baby Monitor can be found in major retailers in June.

Interesting in reading about more inspiring mothers? Right this way!