Melody Akhavan Abbey
Melody Akhavan Abbey is an attorney and writer, wife to Ashkan, and mama to Theo (August 2016) and Elliott (February 2020)! She moved to Dallas with her husband in September 2015 after spending most of her life on the East Coast. After attending law school at UVA, Melody practiced litigation at a large corporate law firm in New York City for several years until she moved to Dallas. Since coming to Texas, she has loved embracing her role as a mother to her boys, who are as sweet and wild as they come! In her free time, Melody enjoys investigating the Dallas food and workout scenes, reading, discovering new music, connecting with fellow moms, and writing about her experiences as a mother and a professional on her blog, From City to Suburbia. You can follow her adventures on Instagram at @fromcitytosuburbia and @melodyellie!
The Little Things Getting Me Through the Pandemic Summer
Nothing screams summer in Texas during a pandemic like blazing temps and nowhere to go. To say that we're all over this would be the understatement of the millennium. And honestly, sometimes it feels like...
A Letter to My Pre-Pandemic Self: Here’s What I Want You to Know
Dear Pre-Pandemic Self,
I know you think that 2020 is going to be your year, especially after the nightmare of a year you just had. You have dreams of sending your older son happily off...
The Case for Hope in 2020
As some of you reading may know, my 2019 was less than ideal. I came up with some ways to care for myself, with the full expectation that 2020 would be drastically better. At...
How to Do “Self-Care” When Your World is on Fire
Have you ever found yourself in times so tough that you feel like everything around you is on fire and all you have to combat the blaze is a thimble of water? I have....
I Survived the North Dallas Tornado and Here’s What I Want You to Know
On October 20th, life dramatically changed for me, my family, and many other families and businesses in North Dallas. Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that a violent EF-3 tornado ripped through densely-populated...
Choosing the Right Preschool for Your Child :: Why We Love the Reggio Approach
Choosing the right preschool for your child can seem daunting with so many amazing philosophies and schools available here in Dallas. And there may be as many "right" options as there are different types of children,...
How Your Second Pregnancy Will Be Different From Your First
Check out our Pregnancy and Postpartum Support Guide!
Have any of you first-time moms wondered how your second pregnancy will be different from your first? Well, friends, I'm finally finding out! I'm pregnant with baby...
Trying to Become a “YES!” Mom
Fellow moms, I'm trying to change my ways. These days, I'm more Grinch than great, and I want to reform. I want to become a "YES!" mom, and I need to be held accountable....
In Defense of the Lazy Summer
Ladies, you may have heard of the Instagrammable summer. In fact, you may even be living it as we speak. But allow me to present the case for its less advertised and criminally under-appreciated cousin: the lazy summer. Certainly...
The {Mom Mantra} That’s Keeping Me Sane
I recently saw something striking shared by a fellow lawyer mom. Somebody wrote: "Anything worth doing is worth doing badly." Yes, you read that right. After I got over my initial reaction of "HUH?!",...
What It Took for Me to Feel Ready to Have Another Baby
Since my son turned one almost two years ago, the most common question I've been asked is when I plan to "give him a sibling". I assume that everyone asking me means well. But...
How to Raise Helpers
In this age of competitive parenting, wouldn't it be nice to shift our focus from traditional measures of success to something that's less talked about, but fundamental to raising the next generation of humans?...