It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. And we are so darn tootin' excited. We love Christmas. And we love to support small business. So here are just a few favourites for the festive season we have found so far.
At the moment. If you asked me what the most annoying sound in the world is. As horrible as it may seem. I would have to say. My children. I just can not seem to catch a break. Or have a moment of happy. The girls are too busy fighting crying arguing and just messing with my head. I am exhausted. Defeated. And a tad deflated.
We love a good party. We love good party decor even more. So when we found the AMAZING Hello Kit Co. It was love at first sight. Plus. They ladies behind the brand are all sorts of AWESOME too. Great brand. Great product. Great service. Great people. Uh huh.
I am a house proud Mama. I like things to be neat. For everything to have a place. Be in its place. Tidy. As clean as possible with two small children. A white fluffy dog. And a husband in the wool trade who is always dropping off little bits of wool about the house. But there are two things I really don’t love doing. Housework wise. Actually. I loathe them. Ironing. Ugh. And vacuuming. Double Ugh. So. Why do I not love vacuuming? Besides the fact I really struggle to spell the word ‘vacuum’. Read on to find my top reasons why I loathe vacuuming. Until now.
We love to be outdoors. But in Tasmania. Most of the year is a little fresh. Which is why we need quality stylish outdoor wear to keep us toasty warm on our adventures. So when we found Norte. It was love at first sight. Toasty warm super stylin love.
If I told you one of my babies was breastfed. And the other wasn't. Could you tell the difference? Would it make a difference? I share my breastfeeding story. My journey. The good. The bad. And the bottle.
We have been lucky enough to work with some great brands. Businesses. And people over the last year or so. And although we would not say we are an 'influencer'. That is exactly what we have been doing. We have been paid to do sponsored posts. We have been gifted. Recently. We almost said YES to a paid gig that we didn't really feel right about. It was a great brand. A great product. But it didn't align with our style. Our feed. And we realised. Were we just saying yes for the product and the cash. Uh huh. Shame on us. So of course. We gave ourselves a little slap upside the head. Had a cup of 'what-the-feck-were-you-thinking'. And we said 'No thank you'.
Lately I have been struggling to juggle work life, mum life and wife life. I honestly haven’t been very good at anything. A little bit tired. A little bit cranky. A little bit over it. Sigh.
So when Marks & Spencer Australia invited me to get onboard their newest initiative encouraging people to cherish every moment and life life to the fullest. I thought. Heck yes.
My weight varies. I have a goal weight. It is in the 60 kilo range. But realistically. I'm always going to be in the 70 kilo range. Sometimes low 70's. Sometimes high 70's. Sigh. I know a lot of mums struggle with their 'mum bod' after babies. But I've always had a mum bod. Even before babies. Not much has changed for me after babies. Maybe a little bit wider. A little bit wobblier. But really. The same same.
Mum Blogging. Holy-heck-balls. It can be tough. In oh-so many ways. It can be mean. In oh-so many ways. Sheesh. We are all mums. Same same but different. We all want the best for our children. For ourselves. For each other. Don't we? Well. I do.
So I say. Feck that. Support each other. Lift each other up. Respect. Be respected. And shine. Heck yes.
Heck. Balls. Lately we have noticed people in general. And in real life. Have forgotten how to use two simple words. ‘Thank’ and ‘you’. The whole world has gone a little whack.
Bugger trying to beat the algorithm. Shake off shadow banning. Grow your reach. Followers. Likes. Engagement. Let’s all dial it back a bit. And remember how to be nice. Let’s nail the niceties first.
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.
Business and Babes. Working from home with kids. Wow-sers. I honestly did not think it would be this tough. Heck no. I thought it would be a little like a dream. Easy. Work when I want. No interruptions. Long lunches. Business meetings with lattes. Um. No. The juggle is real. The struggle is real. Uh huh.
I've been trying to work out ways to help find the ever elusive 'happy medium'. To juggle like a boss. Like a mama-with-two-kids-working-from-home boss. Sigh. Here are just a few things I have tried. And failed at.
We have been lucky to collaborate with some super amazing people. But it's not always sunshine, smiles and rainbows. Some have left us feeling a little 'hmmm-meh'. Some have never actually happened. And some we've just politely said 'no thank you'.
We have already shared a few tips on our Risky Business post on how to keep it kind. We have shared our thoughts on how to deal with Copycats Part One. Two. And Three.
And to be honest, when we first wrote this… we thought we had started to toughen up. And knew how to survive the whole social-media-online-business-mama-maker-a-little-cut-throat-a-little-fun world. Dang.
Do you know a new Mama and want to give her a gift that is a little different, super stylish and full of goodness that every new mum needs? Heading to a Baby Shower and need the best gift in town? Far away but still want to send a gift full of love? Well then. Hello Mama has just what you are after. No boring baby gifts. Nothing old school. Just beautifully packaged, super fun gift boxes.
@allartisan
allartisan.com.au
We love a good shopping session. And we were recently invited to experience a Boutique Shopping Tour in Launceston. We loved it! We share our experience. And have a chat to Madeline about All Artisan. And all things shopping.
@technobird
www.technobird.com.au
We are definitely no experts in the world of web. SEO. Or even internets. Yes. We said internets. So we asked one of our favourites Karlie from Techno Bird a few questions. She is an internet-website-digital-marketing-SEO superstar. Uh huh. She explains what SEO is. Her top five tips. The number one myth. How she manages the mum-life-work-life juggle. And more.
@helloharperandriley
www.helloharperandriley.com.au
We love a little sparkle in our lives. And we love fabulous people making fabulous pieces. So when we discovered Hello Harper + Riley. It really was love at first sight. They make rocking. Edgy. Stylish. Personalised Denim Jackets for your little loves. We had a chat to the lady behind the brand, and Mama to twins Harper and Riley. She really is a super star. One of those genuinely fabulous women who sparkle and shine.
@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.
@playpouch_kids
www.playpouch.com.au
We first fell in love with Pouch Australia when we visited Life In Style. Not only are the ladies behind the brand all sorts of awesome. So are the products. We try to be house proud. We try to dodge all the little ouchy-bits of lego left lying around the house. That is why we love our PlayPouches. The most stylish. Sensible. Durable. Ideal way to help us be clean. And clutter free.
OUR FAVOURITES FOR YOUR LITTLE LADIES
We adore a good frock. Heck yes. Dip hem. Swing. Skater. Patterns. Colours. Pastels. Stripes. Spots. You name it. We love it. Thankfully there are oh-so many beautiful dresses for your little ladies this season. We share just a few of our favourites.
@kwithheart
www.kwithheart.com
Karrie-Anne is definately one of our favourites to follow. She is rocking the small business world. And has such a happy positive vibe. You can't help but smile whenever you see her. Or her work. Her Hopes + Dreams organic hand brushed Swaddles and Blankets are some of our favourites. We had a chat to her about mum life. Business life. Her why. Her hopes. And her dreams.
www.luciademello.com
PND. Post Natal Depression. It happens to the best of us. It happens to those around you. It could even happen to you. And it happened to me. Sigh. I have shared parts of my struggle before. Not everything. Not out of shame. Nope. But because I like sort-of-kind-like to keep some things private. I like to be a positive person. I like to give out positive vibes. Now that I have fought the funk. And won. I can look back and realise with clarity. That I was not ok. That I needed help. And that it is totally ok not to be ok.
Humbled and honoured to be featured with other Real Mama's sharing their Real Stories. Struggling with PND and Anxiety. Thanks Lucia for sharing. And thank you for all that you do for all the Mums. Nationwide. Big love. Always x
