Meet @homeoftheharveys

Meet Dana, wife, mother to two girls (Pia and Penelope), and the creator behind @homeoftheharveys. Though she’s a self-proclaimed “nerdy” numbers gal, after dabbling in a personal blog she discovered a love for expressing herself creatively on Instagram. Now she leverages her Instagram account to earn a living for her family, all while creating a sense of community for the other mothers who stumble upon her feed. For Dana, it’s obvious that @homeoftheharveys is about more than content creation…it’s about making friends, supporting other mothers, and sharing moments that are important to her. Dana’s love for her family shines through her beautifully curated, but still authentic feed. In her posts you can get a glimpse of her husband’s sense of humor, Pia’s curiosity and sass, and Penelope’s sweet nature. If you ask us, this transparency and honesty is beyond refreshing.

Below, this mama talks about all things family, Florida, Instagram, and of course, we’d be remiss if we didn’t ask her to tell us what she loves so much about Orbit Baby.

What do you like most about raising your kids in Florida?

This is where my husband's entire family lives. We live 3 minutes from my oldest daughter’s best friend/cousin and 20 minutes from Grandma. I never grew up near a beach so I love to take them there as often as possible for free, fun playtime any day of the year. 

We love your photography style. Tell us how you got into photography and Instagram marketing?

To be honest, we fell into it. I've always loved writing and sharing so Matthew bought me a web domain to start blogging for fun (best Valentine’s day present). When we had our first baby, Pia, I started snapping pictures of her to share with my family who lives 3000 miles away. I just loved curating the perfect shots, and editing them became my favorite pastime. It was easier for my parents and aunties to join Instagram versus sending the same picture to every one of my family members. People eventually found us on our little space on the big web and fell in love with Pia as much as we did and boom... paid offers started plopping into our laps.  

How has parenthood informed your current professional work?

I feel empowered to work harder to give my children more than just a good life, but a great mindset. I want them to see that we are not limited to just one profession, We can do anything we desire as long as the work is put in. 

Where do you find your creative inspiration? 

It's funny because I never thought of myself as a creative. I don't understand art, I was never musically inclined, and I wasn't into performing anything... I thought those people were the only true creatives. I'm just a nerdy accountant who’s really good at excel and just happened to own a Canon camera. But I found that I have an eye for pretty and interesting things, so I pull stuff I like from Instagram, Pinterest, magazines, old family photos, my kids’ free spirits and my husband’s humor. 

Tell us a little bit about your background?

Background.. whew, that's a loaded question... I'm half Filipino, half German. I was born and raised in Idaho after my Dad took a job there. I hated it then, but love it now that I have kids and realized I had a really, really great upbringing. I was seriously an angel for my parents- straight A's, followed ALL the rules, headgear and overalls in high school, debate nerd.... but then I brought home a dreaded, tatted Jamaican football player from college and married him. It was probably the most "rebellious" thing I did, but look at us now! Haha. 

How would you describe your parenting style? How does your husband’s parenting style differ from yours?

I'm the involved, fun mom that gives you The Look when you're in trouble. But if I have to discipline you, I'm hugging and apologizing after. My husband describes this parenting style as "soft," haha. He's WAY more disciplinary than I am, but he's also fun and incredibly loving. 

What are some of your parenting resources?

Theeverymom.com, Pinterest, my coworkers who are all older than I am, and of course, my own mom. 

Did you always know that you wanted to have two kids?

I actually never even thought I'd get married so to answer your question honestly, no! We never talked about how many but after Pia, we thought, okay, we could do this again. Then had Penelope and thought... ok maybe one more. So whatever God has planned for us, we will be happy.

What do you love most about having two little girls?

I laugh at myself for thinking I only wanted boys but instead got two little girls. I love how sweet and gentle they are. I love that they are my little mini dolls that I get to dress up and play with. And I love most of all that they will be my forever best friends, like I am with my mom. 

Where did you get the inspiration for their names?

I originally wanted Penelope to be the name of our first born... I loved that it wasn't too popular, but it was still an older name. My husband’s mom told me that she HATED our name choice, so Matthew combined his top name choice (Nia) with mine and came up with Pia. For the second baby I basically said screw what my mother in law thinks and named her Penelope anyways. Hahaha, rebel. So, no sweet story behind the names besides that I loved them.  

We’ve loved working with you this year and would love to know what you love most about Orbit Baby.

I've never LOVED a stroller before. There were always features I had to compromise to accommodate others I needed. So, when we first received our Orbit, I could not believe how innovative this stroller was designed, and how many features I was missing out on all my life. I love how when bringing in our second baby, Orbit was there to give us another exceptional feature, the Helix+, to add onto our existing stroller to accommodate two kids, versus buying a whole new double stroller. I also love that Orbit thought about our strong-willed toddlers who suddenly decide they do not want to be in the stroller, but also do not want to walk either ,and created the sideboard. So yes, I never loved a stroller until I met Orbit. Our lives have truly been forever changed with the innovation, luxury, comfort, style, and ease-of-use; parenting on outings has never been easier. Our friends and family are so impressed, and there's never been an outing where someone doesn't say "Wow, that's a cool stroller".