All Good Things Must Come To An End

This is me 2018. It’s been a year of extreme highs and inevitable lows; growing and birthing a beautiful baby boy has been magical, momentous and equally terrifying!

Motherhood has connected me to a love so profound it scares me how fiercely one can love another human; but parenthood has also brought me to my knees, literally. I’ve been floored both physically and emotionally and some days I’ve barely recognised the woman staring back at me in the mirror.

I’ve been pushed to all of my edges and limits and there have been days when I’ve cracked and broken into a gazillion pieces. Feeling vulnerable is an understatement. Parenting has a way of unearthing all of your unhealed wounds and past traumas. (I highly recommend it, it’s great therapy!)

Yet even in my darkest hours a silent voice has reminded me that I’m also resilient AF, and this woman is by no means shattered beyond repair. In fact, quite the opposite. I’ve earnt my strong Mumma wings and I am spreading them far and wide in 2019 with nothing but love and gratitude for this transformational journey I’m on. I welcome the continuing growth and expansion that’s to come for both myself and my little family.

I gave up on New Years resolutions years ago, but I do like to set a theme for the year and I’m making 2019 my year of TRUST.

I am trusting in myself, I am trusting in my intuition, I am trusting in my worth as a woman, I trust in my capacity to continue to give as a mother, I trust in the goodness of others, I trust that the Universe has our back and is supporting my family regardless of what life throws our way.

And on that note I’m shaking my booty into 2019 with a twinkle in my eye and a heart full of love, compassion, acceptance, forgiveness, faith and gratitude for all I have learnt and all I am willing to let go of.

2018, thank you for the lessons. 2019, I am ready!

I will be taking a break for blogging on WordPress but you can find me on Instagram and Facebook by following the links in the sidebar 👉🏻

Dear Dad has been my home for 5 years of writing, but I’ll admit I’ve struggled to maintain my blog since becoming a mother. It doesn’t feel right blogging here when I simply don’t have the time to reciprocate by reading all of your magical blogs.

And so I am taking a break from this platform but will continue to post on my Instagram feed!

I will reserve this space for its original intent, which was, and still is, a place for me to simply say: Dear Dad…

Thank you for being so supportive over the years and for the loving connections I have gained from this sacred space, I love each and every one of you 💖

Love always

Peace out ✌🏻

Hayley xx

Dear Dad

Dear Dad, as I sit here on the Eve of Christmas watching our baby boy play, I can’t help but wish you were here; yet…something in the twinkle of his eye and the curve of his smile tells me you are 💙

I will always love you, I will never forget you… Thank you for being my Dad, my hero, our guiding star 💫

Here’s to those special souls who cannot be with us this Christmas; whose presence, though deeply missed, will be always be felt,

Love always,

Hayley xx

Faith Over Fear

As I journey through this lifetime, an ancient teaching becomes clearer with each passing day; we really only ever have two choices – love, or fear.

All of our choosing, all of our doing, our thinking, our responses, our actions, our REactions and our beliefs are born out of these two choices; love, or fear.

Whenever I’m feeling misaligned from my true self, I can guarantee there’s an underlying fear present; fear of failure, fear of abandonment, fear of loss, fear of not being ’enough’… fear of being ‘too much’, fear of offending, fear of rocking the boat and yes, even fear of succeeding. We can be fearful of our own greatness and our unique gifts and talents too.

Today, notice any fears bubbling beneath the surface. How do they inform your words, thoughts, deeds and actions? See if you can choose again. What happens when you greet your fears with faith and love?

In my experience, the simple choice to choose love over fear has the power to change the entire trajectory of our experience.

So what will you choose?

Love always,

Hayley xx

Timeless

3 months… 12 weeks… 84 days… 288 hours… 17280 minutes… 1036800 seconds… However this precious time spent with you is to be counted, I choose to see it as eternal and forever imprinted in our hearts… 👣❤️

Here’s to sleepless nights and poonami explosions, milky voms and ‘stinky ear’ cuddles, cherished memories and forgotten dishes, endless rocking and dribbly kisses, tantrums, tears and toothless grins and a whole bunch of love, weirdness and belly laughter in between 💝

I’d do it all again for you in a heartbeat baby Kole 💙

Love always xx

Be Bold

Any full time Mummy will agree it can be challenging sneaking a moment to yourself, especially when your family live overseas and your hardworking man works long hours. There’s barely time to eat, poop and shower, let alone build a business.

Whilst time for inspired action and ‘doing’ is somewhat limited, there is plenty of time for dreaming; especially when trapped beneath a tiny Prince for his third nap of the day.

‘Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.’

– Gloria Steinem

I have surrendered to less DOING and more BEING during these precious early months of caring for our son, Kole. As a once immaculate neat freak, this transition hasn’t been easy. But I can now safely say ‘Fuck it!’ if the dishes aren’t done, the house is a shambles and my hair looks like a birds nest.

Being present to Kole’s needs first and foremost feels so much better than striving frantically to live up to Superwoman standards in order to get it all done.

As I dream myself into alignment with my desires, I feel the magic of the unknown rising up in my chest. It feels warm. It feels bold and it feels ALIVE.

This Mummy is not going backwards into the security of her old life, but forward with courage and commitment.

What dreams of yours are stirring within you? Let them brew long enough that they absorb the richness and fullness of Divine flavour, but not so long that they become cold and forgotten…

Today, dream a little longer and trust that your time will come.

Love always,

Hayley xx

Trust Yourself

I think every parent needs to be reminded of this… When I was first flung into the lions den of parenting, I felt like a fish out of water wearing learner plates and training wheels. Sometimes I still do. This was further exasperated by all of the ‘noise’ out there.

My advice? Try not to google everything. Tune out to the world and tune into yourself. Listen only to that which resonates with you and leave all the rest behind.

There is no wrong or right way. Only the right way for you and your family.

‘The more people have studied different methods of bringing up children, the more they have come to the conclusion that what good mothers and fathers instinctively feel like doing for their babies is the best after all.’

– Benjamin Spock

Trust yourself. You know more then you think.

Love always,

Hayley xx

Learning To Walk

Our subconscious mind can be our worst enemy, yet it can also be our greatest teacher and ally.

Most of our habits and automatic reactions stem from our subconscious mind. These auto responses are usually triggered when we’re caught off guard.

For this reason, most of us have a negative relationship with our subconscious mind because it seems to keep us stuck in the past, binding us to old worn out beliefs.

But without our subconscious mind we’d be f*cked.

We need auto responses. It’s what enables us to drive a car without too much thought and allows us to walk without thinking.

We couldn’t always walk and drive this way. It took a lot of falling over, stopping and starting and stalling before it became easy. But we got there in the end through practice, patience, perseverance, sheer grit and determination. Why? Because we believed we could.

Our subconscious mind is trained to act out our beliefs.

What beliefs are holding you back and keeping you stuck on replay? Is everyone out to get you? Is money hard to come by? Trust no-one. Nothing comes for free! Life is hard…

Today, make peace with your subconscious. Consider which old, worn out beliefs are standing between you and the life you deserve.

What new beliefs and behaviours can you make part of your present day reality? Now, just like this little girl, ☝🏻 put one foot in front of the other and don’t give up.

Dare to take that first step towards your dreams.

Love always,

Hayley xx

Good Times Hard Times

Nobody wants a fair weathered friend who only shows up when your life is flowing with ease and grace.

We can’t all ride the limo of success and happiness all of the time, but if you have a handful of loyal souls who walk beside you through thick or thin, then consider yourself blessed, for those are the truest of connections worth treasuring.

Be grateful for those willing to ride with you aboard that rickety broken down bus; even when it’s hitting all the pot holes, coming up against roadblock after roadblock and struggling to get over the hill.

Today, express your love and gratitude for the people in your life who remind you that you’re not alone.

Who rides with you through the good times and the bad..?

Love always,

Hayley xx

Laugh And Let Live

I couldn’t agree more; parenting without a sense of humour is like a hamburger without the burger… Thankfully, my man and I have enough weirdness between us to rival the entire cast of Spongebob Squarepants 🤪

Humour makes even the toughest of days lighter, and if you aren’t already, I encourage you to add a hefty dose of belly laughter to your daily parenting rounds.

As cliché as it sounds, laughter really is the best medicine. You’re going to need it when your little one poops what resembles butter chicken all down your front for the third time that week💩💩💩 …and spews milky voms into your hair on a daily basis 🥛🤮🙈

What gets you through those tough days? Who’s your banter buddy that makes it all worthwhile?

Love always,

Hayley xx

Perfect Parenting (No Such Thing)

One thing I am learning on this crazy parenting ride is that motherhood is a huge lesson in trust, acceptance and surrender; because there really is no such thing as perfect parenting.

Each day I’m turning new corners as I slowly embrace and accept all that is perfectly imperfect about mumming…

…From having to change and bath my baby boy twice within half an hour of waking (the poop explosions are real 💩💩😳) to having to turn back home just minutes from leaving my doorstep due to hysterical crying two days in a row (my little darling has suddenly decided he prefers being rocked to sleep in my arms during his afternoon nap over being walked to sleep in his stroller…) Bye bye nature walks, Mummy!! 👋🏻🌳😫

As defeating as these moments can feel, it’s impossible to remain frustrated for long… especially when I look at Kole’s tiny little face.

I am so very blessed.

A perfect Mum, I am not – but a good one? Yes I am. I love this tiny soul with every ounce of my being 💙🌈 And if that means giving up my afternoon walks for cuddles, then I surrender… 🤗

What else makes me a good Mum? Laughing after my son spits up milk all down my chest – only to see him chuckling (for the first time ever) right back at me with a mouth full of milk 🙌🏻🥛🤣

What is one of the million ways you are a good Mum? It’s time to acknowledge your superpowers!

Love always,

Hayley xx