If you’ve been following The North Shore Moms since it began in 2019, you may remember my earlier partnerships with A Mom’s Village and their first owners, Cindy & Steph. A little more than a year ago, a new North Shore mom bought the business and I am thrilled to introduce her to you today. Aliza Ciccio is a Village member turned owner and she and I were members at the same time during the early pandemic…shout out to the AMV Virtual Book Club! Keep reading to learn why she loved this business so much she decided to make it her own, as well as all her North Shore favorites.
Where are you from originally and what town do you live in now?
I’m a North Shore girl through and through. I grew up in Boxford and went to Masco, and spent many weekends at my Dad’s house in Beverly. I currently live in North Andover with my husband and kids, so I didn’t go very far.
How many children do you have and what are their age(s)?
I have two boys, Jack (6) and Sam (3).
What’s your favorite family activity on the North Shore?
We spend a lot of time watching the kids play Flag Football at their games in the NFL Flag League. We also love playing at our local parks with friends, going to the library, or finding new ice cream spots and keeping notes of all the flavors we’ve tried. With two active boys we like to find anything that gets them running around.
Where’s your favorite place to eat and/or shop on the North Shore?
My boys love the 99 (LOL). If dinner out were up to me, I would probably prefer to hit up Soall Viet Kitchen in Beverly for a gigantic bowl of Pho and a spring roll, though. Or maybe somewhere that can make me the perfect steak. I love spending summers window shopping around Newburyport in all the little boutiques. I’m particularly fond of stores with quirky little items, like coasters or potholders with funny sayings on them. If you’ve been to Shubie’s in Marblehead, that store was pretty much made for me. It has specialty cheeses, amazing prepared foods, a curated wine selection, and some great home gifts.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you came to own A Mom’s Village.
As mentioned before, I grew up on the North Shore, and then went to Clark University in Worcester. I worked in the business world for a bit, and then left to work in elementary schools in Salem and Middleton while I earned my Masters in Elementary Ed. I was a teacher’s aid and long term substitute in both towns, and while I never ended up with my own classroom, I loved my time in the schools and learned a ton! I left when I had Jack and was a stay-at-home mom for a while!
When Jack was about 18 months old, a friend of mine recommended this little place called A Mom’s Village. She told me about how she thought it would be a great place for me to exercise and find some new friends. I fell in love with it the second I walked in the door. Fast forward four years later, and we were approached with the opportunity to become the new owners of the place I considered my second home! It’s been a little over a year now, and I hope that everyone who walks out my door leaves loving it as much as I did on my first day.
Where is A Moms Village located?
We are located in Peabody, right on Lowell Street in the Big Y Plaza. We’re on the corner by the bank facing the lake.
What types of classes does A Moms Village offer?
The Village offers group-based fitness for women. If you need childcare, we have it! Our fitness offerings include Bootcamp, Sculpt, Yoga, Pilates, Barre, Cardio, Kickboxing and more! We also offer Mixed Age Music Classes for younger children. We have a staff of incredibly talented musicians who have developed a program where kids can explore instruments, movement activities and more with a live pianist and singer. In the spring and summer we also offer this at MarketStreet in Lynnfield!
In addition to childcare do you offer any special programs for kids?
We sure do! Besides the music program, we have a special program we call PlaySchool. This is essentially a preschool prep program designed for 2 and 3 year olds. During the school year, your child can be dropped off with our teachers for three hours once per week in our classrooms. They’ll learn important skills like socializing with peers, being with people other than family, how to participate in some structured activities, practice fine motor skills, and of course have fun playing. We provide a snack, and we also handle diapering if needed! This is a year-round thing we offer, and in the summer you can sign up for multiple days!
We also have a little mini-theatre camp we call Summer Stock. Similar to PlaySchool, it’s a drop off program for 3 hours during the day. This is for slightly older kids, 4-7 year olds. During this camp, they come during different themed weeks, Monday through Friday, and learn a few different songs, create props, work on crafts, play, etc and then at the end of the week, they showcase their work with a performance for family and friends. It’s adorable!
What about the moms? We know you’re a Mommy Clubhouse, but what can moms expect to find just for them at AMV?
Our members can take advantage of MommyTime…this is the best. It’s an extra hour per day where we watch your kids. It’s an hour where you can just be you. Shower with no kids around. Sit and have coffee. Talk to an adult. Get your nails done. Take a walk with friends, or alone. You can do this in conjunction with a workout class, or just come for an hour and skip the workout. We also offer our members three hours of drop and go babysitting per week! Those mid-morning/day appointments don’t have to be stressful anymore finding a sitter or lugging your kid around. We’ve got you.
What’s your favorite part about A Mom’s Village?
That’s pretty easy. The people. There’s no one like them. My clients and staff and simply the best. You can come to a fitness class as a complete stranger and know that you’re entering into a room of the most welcoming group of women. There’s no judgement, everyone says hello and invites you to stand next to them. We crack up and have fun, even when we’re sweating and holding a plank. The same thing with my staff. Your kids will be greeted by name with a huge smile. It’s just a happy place to be.
What’s one thing people would be surprised to know about you?
It was actually me dressed up as KettleBella during Christmas! Just kidding. Maybe that I listen to Linkin Park? Sort of embarrassing.
Any tips for balancing work & motherhood?
Both are a full time job. I’m not sure that I’m always killing it here, but I’m doing my best! I think that might be my tip. Just do your best! My kids know that they come first, even if Mom just needs one minute to finish an email, and I think that’s the most important thing to me.
What is the best piece of mom advice you ever received?
I think maybe that you don’t have to pretend everything is perfect all the time. Parenting is hard. It’s OK to be overwhelmed, you’re not the only one who’s cracked once or twice, or who has laundry all over the place. If you’ve given your kid a nugget in the car while you were out, you’re still a good mom.
What’s your favorite thing to do when you need some “me” time?
I tend to plug in my headphones, turn on an audio book and make something in my kitchen that takes an obscene amount of time. Think, like, an all day bolognese with homemade pasta. Everyone stays out of the kitchen and I get to “cook with wine”. Heck, sometimes I even put some of it in the food.
Learn more about A Mom’s Village at www.amomsvillage.com and follow along with Aliza and crew at @amomsvillage on Instagram and @amomsvillage on Facebook.
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This post is sponsored by A Mom’s Village but all opinions present are my own.