As a nurse for the Galena (Ill.) Unit School District, Emily Rigopoulos is used to being surrounded by and working with youth.
However, this month will mark a new chapter for the 27-year-old.
Rigopoulos and husband Sam will welcome a new edition to their family on March 16. It will be the couple’s first child, welcomed into the home the two recently had built.
“I definitely have done a lot of nesting,” Rigopoulos said, smiling and cradling her belly. “It’s a rollercoaster, but it also has been a fun process and a good lesson in taking each new day as it comes.”
A native of Stockton, Ill., Rigopoulos graduated from Stockton High School in 2014, attending Northeast Iowa Community College for nursing.
She met Sam in 2017 at the Log Cabin Steakhouse, where she was employed while she was pursuing her nursing studies. Sam’s family has owned and operated the well-known Galena establishment since 1974.
In addition to her work as a nurse, Rigopoulos also is the venue manager and day-of coordinator at Ashton Hill Farm in Galena, which specializes in weddings and events.
She credits a thriving family dynamic as the inspiration behind the eagerness to begin a family.
“We both come from big, close-knit families,” Rigopoulos said. “I have three sisters and a brother. He has one brother, but lots of cousins, aunts and uncles. It’s your typical big Greek family.”
The couple became engaged in August 2019, wed in September 2021 and dreams of carrying on the tradition of having a large family.
“I am looking forward to starting our own family unit so much because I always dreamed of being a mom,” Rigopoulos said. “We’d like to have four or five kids. We both come from a strong family dynamic, with strong traditions and strong role models. Sam and I joke and say that we’re always in the honeymoon phase of our life together. We always create as much time to spend with one another as possible, which can be challenging because we both can become very busy with work. But I’m excited for this next chapter for Sam and me. And it has been fun seeing this new side to him, reading to my belly and coming with me to every single doctor appointment. He’s going to be a great dad.”
Rigopoulos said that in addition to Sam, she also has found encouragement within her friend group.
“The advice tends to flood in, so you have to take everything with a grain of salt,” she said. “But it’s also about being surrounded by positive energy and having friends that remind you to take care of yourself and your home first. I’m a bit of a ‘yes’ person, so that has been very helpful for me to hear because family will come first in our lives.”
Additionally, Rigopoulos and Sam have taken advantage of local pregnancy, pre-natal and parenting classes through Statera Integrated Health and Wellness Solutions in Dubuque.
And as a yoga teacher, Rigopoulos also has continued to regularly find exercise, and a mental and emotional release on her mat.
“Yoga has been my life-saver and is my safe space,” Rigopoulos said. “It definitely has helped me stay active and calm my mind and my anxiety. It also has been interesting to see the changes in my body from that perspective.”
She said if she had one piece of advice for new and expectant moms, it would be to soak it all in and enjoy the process.
“I keep a positivity journal, where I write down everything — the first kick, the changes in my body,” Rigopoulos said. “Even though I’m a nurse, I still think it’s incredible that we can create life. It’s a beautiful gift and a beautiful time. I try to take note of every little thing because when I look back, I will never be pregnant for the first time again. I’m allowing myself to enjoy that.”
Megan Gloss writes for the Telegraph Herald.
