Where are you from originally and how long have you lived in Houston?
I’m originally from Houston (grew up in Memorial / Hunter’s Creek area), but left for my Plastic Surgery residency at Yale, came back to Houston to do a fellowship at MD Anderson and stayed on as faculty. I then married a man that I met in residency, so I moved back to CT, had two kids, and worked at Yale in their plastic surgery section. We recently decided to move back to Houston to raise our family and open our business here, so I’m officially a Houston resident again.
Child(ren) and Age(s)?
I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old (boys!)
One thing people would be surprised to know about you…
I lived in Argentina in college for a year. And have studied with plastic surgeons in Paris, Belgium, and Taiwan! I LOVE to meet and understand new cultures!
Favorite local activities to do in Houston?
Any and all activities outside at various parks and outdoor areas: Hermann Park, the reflection pond, Memorial park, Allen parkway
Do you have a favorite family-friendly restaurant in the area?
Bebidas
What local places do you go to for pampering and/or mom’s night out?
Kata robata, Uchi
Are you involved in a business venture, a local organization, a creative endeavor, or in the corporate world? Please share!
I am a female small business owner. I have been a plastic surgeon in academics (Faculty at MD Anderson) giving talks around the U.S. to now having my own practice, Fusi & Craig Plastic Surgery, where I see a lot of moms like myself who want to regain their confidence by restoring their body to what it looked like (head to toe) before kids 🙂
How has the Houston community been instrumental in getting you to where you are now?
The network or friends and family in this town is unparalleled. everyone is so helpful, generous and interested in helping each other out. I think we really saw this during the recent hurricane rebuild and the COVID shut down.
What is the best advice for juggling mommyhood and running a business (or volunteering, working, etc)?
I think we are always trying to find the right balance – perhaps my whole life will be like that. My husband still works in CT, so I am juggling running a business and being a single parent. My youngest son had some medical issues that taught me that patience is a virtue. By design, I am a surgeon and not a patient person, but with kids things are different. We don’t have control over everything and you have to learn to ‘roll with the punches’ and understand that everything will just find a way of working out for the best. I try to find a few tenets to instill in them every day: love and understanding being the main ones.
What would you tell the old “You” before you had kids?
You cannot control anything or everything anymore, but that is what makes life more fun than having total control and being able to predict years in the future. Life is precious, and we learn to appreciate that from our patients and our kids.
Funniest shortcut/routine for helping you through parenthood?
Shortcuts: multi-tasking! Also, Favor and Raising Cane’s chicken!
