Today’s Vancouver Mom: Maria Kritikos
Maria Kritikos is a lifelong entrepreneur with a strong penchant for educating, connecting and empowering women. In just a few short years since launching the Ladies Who Lunch Network, Maria has seen her passion project expand across the globe, with members from Vancouver to New York to the UK! A certified Law of Attraction Facilitator, she is the host of HangoutWithMaria.com, and mentor at her popular CoachWithMaria.com online program. All of her initiatives are designed to inspire women to be fearless and fabulous by helping them realize and live out their dreams.
Maria began her career as a high school teacher and went on to start her own international school at the age of 28. She later launched a Teacher Training Centre and became a successful real estate agent on Vancouver’s highly competitive West Side. Life then threw her a curveball. After struggling to overcome a difficult personal setback – and with a young son in tow – Maria came to realize that her true calling lies in connecting and inspiring women to realize that anything is possible for themselves. Maria & her son Andrew live in Kits.
Fave dinners out with her son
Little man’s favourite spots to dine are Hy’s Steak House for his 10th birthday and La Pentola in the Opus Hotel for his favourite dish – Spaghetti Bolognese. He’s an adult in a little person’s body.
Solo date night
My version of a date night is a date with myself! As a single mommy, realtor at MoveWithMaria.ca and founder of the Ladies WHO Lunch Network , my ME time is very precious and crucial to my success at being the best mommy I can be. My best date night with myself is curling up in bed with my laptop and a good book. I go to bed very early (as early as 8pm), so I don’t do “girl’s night out”. I replace this with powerful and inspirational business lunches as host of the Ladies WHO Lunch Network, and one of our favourite restaurants is Bauhaus in Gastown!
Cultural activities
My son is Eurasian, so we try to preserve both cultures. We’ll be attending the Greek Food Festival this year for some souvlaki and our favourite, Loukoumades (deep fried honey balls!). The festival this year is September 9, 10, 11 and 16, 17, 18.
Dim sum and other faves
For Chinese food, we love dim sum at Sea Harbour in Richmond. We also love his Dad’s restaurant, The Amercian Cheesteak Co.. Andrew’s favourite there is called the Cowboy and it’s a must try!
Pedalheads bike camps
We love bike riding lessons with Pedalheads Jericho Hill. They are awesome!
Hikes and Slides!
We do an annual Grouse Grind on Labour Day and have lunch at the top. This summer we loved the slides at Watermania in Richmond – the blue one was the scariest!
The Aquabus and the Seawall
We love taking the Aquabus to Granville Island and grabbing an ice cream. We also love biking the Seawall.
Ice Skating in Winter
In the winter, we love skating at Robson Square and always take out-of-town guests there!
Connect with Maria!:
Twitter @LunchWithMaria & @Maria_Kritikos, Facebook
Instagram @LunchWithMaria & @TheRealEstateSisters
Sites: HangoutWithMaria.com, Ladies Who Lunch Network, CoachWithMaria.com & MovewithMaria.ca
To join the LWL Network, visit InviteFromMaria.com
