When my two boys were very young, I decided I would create a company that truly worked for families. Eletta, an advertising agency that specialises in marketing to mothers, is based in Sydney and is staffed by an amazing collection of parents who wanted a workplace that understood the ins & outs of sick kids, school carnivals, tuckshop, school holidays and being tired from night upon night of control crying or tummy bugs! We embrace flexibility and celebrate the fact that all the very best talent eventually drops out of big corporates and big agencies to look for something better.

I’ve been married to my husband for just over 17 years, I love him to bits and he drives me crazy. While his hair has started its migration south, I do still remember the first time I saw him and why I liked it. We are enjoying (well most of the time) a new stage in our relationship where he has traded in a senior management role in big corporates in favour of working as a leadership consultant, helping me launch a product I’ve always wanted to get to market and being around a lot more for our kids. It’s interesting to say the least and I have to laugh when he now gets upset about the mess around the house (which he never noticed before!)

We have been blessed with four beautiful children – 2 boys and 2 girls. Toby is 9, Emma 6 and Abby has just blown out 4 candles on her cake. Just over 6 years ago, our second son Noah died during the night at 17 months. He was perfectly healthy and they have never found a reason for his death. He was the most beautiful child and should be 7 now. I continue to be involved with Sids’n’KidsNSW – especially when we have a new family that has lost a child as there is nothing more a grieving wants than to talk to someone who truly understands.

My children are my reason for being and I want to crush them to me and thank them for loving me so unconditionally. They are also incredibly trying – they fight, they cry, they won’t get in the bath, they won’t get out. But they are them, they are mine and they all still want me to crawl into bed beside them each & every night.

I spend my life thinking about using that gym membership and losing 12 kilos but jumping on a treadmill after the kids are put the bed, the washing up is done, a load of washing is in the machine, the work I didn’t finish during the day is ticked off … (phew) is the last thing I feel like doing.

I have grand plans for Mouths of Mums – I’d like it to be the destination every product marketer or manufacturer comes to when they want to know what real mums think about their brands, their products or their plans for the future. I’d love to see your voices and your opinions really start to direct some of the choices and decisions big companies are making, so that the tomorrows of our children look as rosy as they should.

I’m an open book and I love a good discussion. I believe the way to a great friendship is honesty and a willingness to share yourself. I don’t drink enough water and I don’t wash off my makeup nearly as much as I should – I’m a million miles from perfect but I’ll continue to try! X

 

As much as I love routine unfortunately this cannot exist in my life as each day is different. My husband works as Firefighter and I work as an Ambulance Paramedic and so we are often like ships in the night passing each other with barely time for a hello. The disadvantage of shift work is that sometimes one of us has to miss out on a special occasion such as Christmas or a Birthday. On the flip side we are often home more during the week which makes going places such as the zoo much easier and certainly my son enjoys the many opportunities to ‘play’ inside an ambulance and fire truck.

Like so many other mums I find it hard to sit idle at home and enjoy a slower pace, and so whilst on maternity leave for my second child I launched my own business called Child Revive First Aid. So often when I am dealing with a child in an emergency my heart goes out to the parents who have been paralysed by their own anxiety and fear of the situation and have been unable to help their child. To alleviate this stress I am committed to helping parents and carers develop the confidence to act in emergencies involving children which of course goes a long way in creating a positive outcome for the child who is sick.

When I do take a moment to stop and think about the things I would like to do for myself I am often drawn to the simple pleasures in life such as going for a walk alone. I do not think there are too many out there who enjoy pushing a pram whilst holding the lead of an overexcited dog and pushing a three year old along on his bike, who has decided that 50 metres down the road his legs are too sore to ride any further. I am my own worst enemy sometimes as I often take on too much and then feel guilty for having any time for me. Thank goodness for my ever supportive husband who is more than capable of looking after the children whilst I enjoy a relaxing dinner out with friends with no threats of timeout or angry looks from other diners have no tolerance for overtired children.

As a parent my job is to love, protect and care for my children and I hope that my contribution to the MOM site will help other parents confidently do the same when their child is ill or injured. I look forward to sharing my experiences as a parent and paramedic with you and learning from you all. Wishing you and your family health and happiness.

Amanda

I can see a time when my daughters will have left home and I’ll still be looking for something that will stop visitors in their tracks as they acknowledge grudgingly under their breath “Now that’s unexpected shoe storage! This woman’s got TASTE, she’s UNPREDICTABLE, CREATIVE and WITTY.” Uh, where was I? My bio….okay well, I’m married to a man who (according to his father, taking me aside to let me know) is “perfect.” This is terrific as I can only disappoint, flapping around losing this month’s credit card statement (again). I co-own the company Fertile Mind, but in past lives have been a newspaper journalist, had my own daytime TV show and was with Sky News and the ABC for many years (the latter on The New Inventors). I love reading and open spaces (Sydney families take note – Hidden Valley farm is a sanity-saver). Used to like cooking but got sick of it, have a golden Lab with arthritis…um what else? Credit, greying hair, unexciting vegie patch, thrilling moments of business satisfaction, old mobile phone. That’s me! Nice to meet you……

I’m married to the most amazing and gracious man you could ever imagine who just happens to be spell checking my bio as we speak. He’s into details and I see the big picture – we’re a great team. We have two beautiful children who have captured us with their magic, as children do. My daughter is 3 and my son came along quickly after and is 18 months.Life is busy, sometimes chaotic but always full of wholesome, yummy and sometimes naughty food! I feel, however, despite the sometimes impossible balancing act that comes with a busy family life; exercise, eating well and feeling good about yourself is possible after having kids and there’s no reason why you can’t be a smokin’ hot woman picking the kids up from soccer.

My weight loss and healthy eating philosophy is all about balance and creating healthy habits. It’s learning to feed your body well so it can function at it’s best but also participate in the culture and society in which we live.

I’m not a professional cook but I like to pretend that I am, I ran a half-marathon this year for the first time ever and I’m becoming an expect at American car racing NASCAR so I can have intelligent (?!) conversations with my husband!

I am now based back in Sydney with my cheeky 8 year old, Jack, and living in a situation that I can only describe to all my friends as the Asian version of “Packed to the Rafters”. We have just rebuilt and moved into my dad’s place where we are now an unconventional family of five; my 84 year old dad with a penchant for cementing and gaffer taping who makes the best Chinese dumplings in the world, my younger brother whose claim to fame is being able to eat more ribs than anyone else at Hurricanes, his girlfriend who is a cleaning freak and cooks like someone on Master Chef, Jack and I.

My parents were originally from HK and moved out here in the 60s (I still have photos of dad looking very dapper on Bondi Beach). My older brother was born in HK and my younger brother and I were both born in Sydney (not that long after mum arrived…hmmmm). I confused the heck out of my colleagues in Thailand as I look Thai but sound as Aussie as they come with an Aussie last name to completely confuse them.

My son has an interesting background; he is a “luk krung” as the Thais would say (half Asian/half Caucasian), born in Bangkok to an Australian father, and ABC (Australian Born Chinese) mother. He spent the first 8 years of his life in South East Asia which is a great base for travelling anywhere in the world cost effectively. He has walked the Great Wall of China, trekked Annapurna in Nepal, snorkeled in Thailand and been on a camel in Egypt. My dad often says “Jack has been to more places in 8 years than I have in 80 years” (dad pretty much left HK and never looked back). Despite his “worldliness”, Jack’s favourite activity is boogie-boarding on Sydney beaches and going camping so he can eat his fill of marshmallows. Camping is hands down our favourite activity in the world and now that we are back in Sydney, we are going to be doing more of this. I challenge anyone to think of anything more perfect than sitting next to a campfire with a good bottle of wine looking up at the stars.

Whilst living in South East Asia, I started writing parenting and then travel articles for expat magazines including; BAMBI in Thailand and ANZA in Singapore. I also set up two groups in Thailand; SPOT (Single Parents group) and WOMBLES (Working Mothers Group) under the BAMBI umbrella. I mentioned to my good friend, Nikki, that I would like to start contributing to this site and write articles about places useful for parents with kids. I hope you enjoy them!

Don’t get me wrong, I am still career focussed (I have my own business now!), but now, I am more than a business woman. I am a mother to Charlotte and Skye, a wife, a sister, a daughter, a friend, and someone who now truly knows the meaning of my life. My travel has been a little different, trading in the small trendy briefcase for two large pink fairy bags filled with enough DVDs and music CDs, colouring books and pencils, snacks and drinks to last hours when only going 15 minutes to the park! The latest restaurants have to be kid-friendly and my hours and hours of work now take place in-between playtime with my girls.

My priorities have switched immensely since having my beautiful daughters and I wouldn’t have it any other way! I still have boundless energy, drive and ambition, but now, it’s better directed, better balanced and I know I am making a real difference. I live my life around having audacious goals for the future and use energy, strength and a flexible plan to achieve them.

To quote a famous female icon… “Energy is the essence of life. Every day you decide how you’re going to use it by knowing what you want and what it takes to reach that goal, and by maintaining focus.” Oprah Winfrey (1954 – ), O Magazine, July 2003

I still think I’m a little crazy, (my parents agree…) how could I possibly consider creating my own business when I have a 4 and 2 year old? However, the answer rests in wanting to have it all and not willing to give up on any of it. I truly want to share what I have learnt and what I know, in order to make a difference in their lives ….fast forward to Magenta Wealth.

Magenta Wealth is a financial advice business, providing smart and individual solutions for our clients. It tends to be that women make the majority of significant and financially important decisions within a household. My experience was that, in general, the advice available was typically from men (usually in their 50’s), who weren’t always on the same wavelength as I was. So, true to form, I decided to do it my way.

My goal is to provide financial advice with the right blend of expertise, genuine commitment and mutual connection to Create Your Vibrant Future. I am still learning to balance my energy in the right way every day and still look for the inspirational quote or story to get me through the more difficult days but I now know who I am as well as, who and what is important in my life.

And one last thought…

My passions: my family, power yoga, the beach, travel, and of course… great wine.

My dream destination: Nepal for the soul, Italy for the passion and Paris for the love.

My perfect day: sleep in late (uninterrupted by kids), coffee and paper in bed, walk along the beach, a long lunch with good friends and good wine…

So here we are in beautiful Sydney, enjoying all that life has to offer, though frequently wondering what that actually means? The pace at which we live this life is brisk, to say the least. Combining the family package and all that it entails, with running a business, doesn’t leave a great deal of time to smell the flowers, enjoy the view or just sit back and appreciate what we have. I remind myself of this daily when skidding up to the back gate at school (occasionally just a smidge late), checking my emails with one eye on the swimming lessons, overseeing the projects, spelling tests and homework not to mention the music practice, lessons and concerts. And did I mention the sport?

What happened to those heady childhood days spent in the garden making mud pies? Or conjuring perfume from the flowers we ‘borrowed’ from Mrs Beaumont’s garden? We sped off on our bikes for whole days of adventure to return at dusk (without the local authorities commencing an immediate manhunt). It seems blissful now, a time passed, the kind of freedom that many of our kids will never know.

And so, to business. I’ve worked with my Dad for 15 years (ouch, that seems long) helping companies large and small to make their mark with first class customer service. With that, a passion for customer service is inevitable and drives every single customer experience I have. I have many stories to tell, you can see shopkeepers literally wincing as I enter the store. However, I realised earlier this year that the world of gift giving could use a little kick in the pants. So, I launched one for you/ one for me, an online boutique offering stylish treats to busy people who appreciate lovely things and great customer service. Let’s hope we’re getting that bit right!

So, that’s me. I’m looking forward to sharing tips and hints with this fabulous network of connected Mums, joining the conversation and perhaps helping you to add a touch of style to these very busy lives.

*note: I say fantastic but it’s obviously still very annoying when I send him out for parsley and he comes home with coriander.