SuperMom

SuperMom STEPHANIE RUIZ

Story by Liesel Schmidt

“I went back to work five days a week when both of my girls were two weeks old; so for me, being home during those six weeks of quarantine is a time that I will cherish for the rest of my life!”

Before Stephanie Ruiz opened Eden Salon in 2015, she’d built a hairdressing career out of her guestroom at home, using it as a salon room to work on clients. It was an ideal set-up for her—especially when she was pregnant with her first child. All throughout her pregnancy, Ruiz kept working; and when her son was seven months old, she decided that she was going to take a leap and open her own full-service salon, outside of her home.

Over the next five years, Ruiz worked tirelessly at the salon—and then COVID forced her to temporarily close her doors. The next few months gave her something she’d never had: time off and a chance to shift her priorities. “Being a working mom has definitely changed for me in the last year. I had a chance to re-examine what was most important; and in the midst of it, I told my husband often that my time home was like the maternity leave I’d never had,” says Ruiz, who has been married to her husband, Donovan, for eight years this October. Together, the couple has three children between the ages of six and twoand-a-half. “I went back to work five days a week when both of my girls were two weeks old; so for me, being home during those six weeks of quarantine is a time that I will cherish for the rest of my life!”

Now back at work, Ruiz only works two to three days a week rather than five, and she is always there to pick them up from school. The balance she now has may have been hard-won, but she knows that she’s showing her children something essential. “I feel that being a working mom enriches my kids’ lives by showing them that working hard is important, but it’s not more important than time with your family,” says Ruiz, 31. “Something that took me a long time to learn in my work is that it’s okay to say no. I missed a lot of Van’s games because I would be doing weddings on Saturdays. I missed my cousin’s wedding in California and a family reunion because of work. Now I set healthy boundaries with my schedule so that I have a good balance of both my work and my personal life.”

As a business owner, she has a great deal to be proud of, having launched a successful salon. But more than that, she takes pride in the fact that she never let fear stand in the way of her path in life—and that’s an example she hopes her children will follow. “I’m proud of myself for not being afraid to dream big and follow my dreams!” she says. “I never have a plan B because I know that plan A is the only plan. I think it makes me a better mother, businesswoman, and even friend by hopefully inspiring other people—most especially my kids— to do the same.”

As her children get older, Ruiz hopes that there are certain things that they never forget. “I want them to remember me as their biggest cheerleader,” she says. “I’m truly so grateful to be more present with them in this season of their lives so that they remember me being there with them and not working so much!” From school pick-ups to time out on the boat they bought last summer to watch the sunsets together as a family, Ruiz has learned to stop and take a breath, to be fully present for her kids, and to set work aside to make time for her family. While it may not have been anyone’s ideal way to find a priority shift, she used the time when the world stopped to refocus and become the kind of mom she could truly be proud of.

COMING OCTOBER 2021 ALL ABOUT Women THE PINK ISSUE

1/2 PAGE AD