@swaggies_au
www.daycareswaggies.com

Roll on Nap Time. Heck yes. When we first fell in love with these little beauties from Swaggies. Our little loves didn't do daycare. But they did do holidays + nap time not at home. So we did take our Swaggies with us. The perfect little mobile bed-sheet-blanket-pillow set. Totally ideal for daycare. Rachel shares how it all began. Her business journey. And more.

@littleraeprints
www.littleraeprints.com

Not only is the lady behind the brand a true beauty inside + out. She is also amazingly talented. Summer creates the most magical watercolour paintings + prints for your little ones rooms. We have loved her girls range for such a long time. And now. She also has the perfect prints for your little boys. Summer chats all things mum. Art. And small business.

@huddlesyd
www.huddlesyd.com.au

Like most of Mums. Ali was inspired to start Huddle for so many reasons. The main one being her family. So she left her job in finance. And started her own small business. With Heart. And passion. 

For us. We are big on quality. Big on fit. Big on feel. Big on style. And big fans of wool. The Huddle collections are all of those things. And more.

Ali shares the why. The how. The brand. And how a little crowdfunding kickstarter campaign. Went a long way.

Lately we have been feeling a little disheartened. Discouraged. Confused. Our reach. Our engagement. Our likes. Our clicks. Have all dropped. Significantly.

Is it Shadow Banning? Is it a flooded market? Is our content dull? Are our images boring? Are we? Sigh. Or. Is it Instagram throwing us all out of whack. Dang. We share what's been happening. What we've seen. And how we've been affected.

There has been a little broo-ha-ha about collaborations. Small Businesses working with Bloggers + Influencers. We've had a little experience on both sides. As a Small Business. And as a Blogger. Sometimes everything works well. For everyone. Sometimes. Not so much. Although we do not claim to be experts. We share a few tips we have learnt along the way.

Lately. We have lost a little Instagram Mojo. Maybe the algorithm. Maybe the increase of people loving the squares. Maybe the pressure to post. Perfectly. Maybe the people. Maybe we have lost our confidence. And maybe. We miss the sense of community.

Perhaps it's a little of all of the above. And more. So. We thought we would share a few things that we have learnt living, loving and sometimes loathing the squares over the last few years.

We love Instagram. Yes we do. Heck yes. So much awesome. So many fabulous people. Businesses. Babies. Homes. Inspiration. Hilarity. But we have had to dial it back a little. Perhaps a little addicted. Ok. Yes. Addicted. And it can totally mess with our ‘real life’. Whoops.

So how do you know if you are Ga Ga for the ‘Gram. In love with Insta. Stuck on the Squares. Fanatical about the Feed. Well, these might be a few tell tale signs.

In case you missed it... Instagram introduced us all to Stories. Video. Photo. Write. Draw. Only for 24 hours. And you can choose who you share your Story with. It all sounds a little snap-familiar. I popped my 'Instagram Stories' cherry earlier today. Postpartum Wings. Pedro the Pimple. Annoying voice. And double chin video for the win. Do I love it? Do I loathe it? Or does it feel like I am cheating on an old trusty friend? Honestly. It feels like a combo of all three. And more. 

That is the question. And lately, I’ve seen and read a few posts about it being ok to go back to work after having a baby. I totally agree. There should be no be set rules. It should be whatever people choose to do. Whatever they feel is right. Whatever works for them. Whenever works for them. No one should judge. Nope. But what about the people choosing to NOT go back to work? Like me.