Hotmilk Lingerie is led by women for women, we constantly seek inspiration and motivation from the success of other accomplished mother entrepreneurs. As the leading global Maternity and Nursing Lingerie experts for over 18 years, we have been fortunate to work with a range of talented women.
During International Women's Week, we wanted to highlight a few of those women. Natalie Brady, a passionate Nutritionist, Simone Anderson, Influencer and Embrace Active founder, Natalie Norman founder of GrowBright, Leila Armour from Village for Mama and Lia, founder of the Portier Baby Carriers.
Balancing Life as a Working Mother
These 5 women are leaders in their industry and I asked them about their inspirations and survival tactics in this delicate balancing act between business and motherhood.
Natalie Brady @natliebradynutrition
Mama to a 3 year old, 19 month old and 1 due any day/week now
The Inspiration behind my business
I am so passionate about health and wellness. I've had many health struggles/challenges from hormonal imbalances (PCOS/endometriosis), to gut issues (IBS/leaky gut), to skin issues (eczema) and many more. I wanted to get myself well and feel my best, so I went to study Holistic Nutrition to understand how the body works, to learn the science and look at the research to understand how nutrition and food impacts our bodies, and how lifestyle choices impact our overall wellness. I healed myself and I wanted to help others who also have health issues and struggles as I know how much it can impact your life. I wanted to share my experiences and knowledge through my studies with others, so I could help others get well and live a healthy thriving life. learn more here
My 3 Top Tips for Pregnancy and Motherhood
- Protein in Pregnancy - Make sure your breakfast meal contains a minimum of 30 grams of protein. Eating sufficient protein is essential to keep blood sugar levels in check, especially at breakfast time! Having stable blood sugar levels helps to keep energy levels balanced, supports more stable moods, reduces cravings, supports better metabolic health and reduces chances of getting gestational diabetes.
- Sleep - Aim for 7-9 hours sleep per night. Easier said than done with kids waking in the night (mine still do) but sleep is our charging station, it helps us to feel more restored, less reactive, increases energy levels, helps to reduce our main stress hormones.
- Stay hydrated - Being dehydrated increases feelings of fatigue, increases cravings, and can contribute to constipation. It's especially important for pregnant mama's to support amniotic fluid, aim for 2-3L daily.
Balancing Womanhood / Career / Motherhood
Commit to a regular mindfulness practice. Looking after your mental health is everything. It's about finding something you enjoy, whether that be meditation, journaling, walking in nature, yoga, or speaking with a counsellor. Stress manifests in our bodies in so many unhealthy ways. We need to put ourselves first so we feel good, then we can take better care of others. Also so we can use our time more wisely, be more focused at work, be more present and less reactive with our kids, and feel more content, grounded and happy in our lives.
Simone Anderson @simone_anderson
Mama to Asher 2.5 and Ryder 1
The Inspiration behind my business
9 years ago, I weighed 169kg and faced a challenge: finding activewear that fit and performed. It saddened me that being plus-sized meant feeling excluded from activewear. Determined to make a change, I set out to create a range, Embrace Activewear, that embraced women of all shapes and sizes. My mission? To ensure every woman feels seen, heard, and empowered in the activewear market. Here’s to confidence and inclusivity!
My 3 Top Tips for Pregnancy and Motherhood
- Advice Trust Your Instincts - Amidst the cacophony of advice, trust your inner wisdom. Recognise that you know yourself and your baby best, allowing decisions to flow more naturally.
- Stay Active - Embrace daily movement during pregnancy for physical and mental well-being. It keeps your body feeling great and uplifts your spirits, fostering a positive pregnancy experience.
- Embrace the Seasons: Understand that motherhood is a series of fleeting moments. Embrace each phase, knowing that you are capable and resilient. Be proud of yourself, mama—you’ve got this!
Balancing Womanhood / Career / Motherhood
I’ve come to realise that the concept of “balance” is elusive. Instead of striving for an unattainable equilibrium, I’ve learned to embrace the chaos of motherhood. We’re all doing our best for our little ones, and that’s what truly matters. It’s okay if things slip sometimes—we’re only human. The key is to prioritise what’s important in each moment and trust that we’re giving our all every day.
Natalie Norman @growbright
Mama to Liam, 8 and Amelia, 5
The Inspiration behind my business
When setting up our nursery, I became aware that many of the product standards were not mandatory and that many of the cot mattresses available also came with risks that parents are not aware of. Growbright was launched as I wanted other parents to know this too and to give them better, smarter options when it came to setting up the safest and best possible sleep environment for their child.
My 3 Top Tips for Pregnancy and Motherhood
- Trust your gut, mumma knows best.
- Have a nap whenever you can (I still need this now!)
- This too will pass - for both the tricky and good times. A reminder to try and be more mindful and present between all the chaos - I’m not there but getting better!
Balancing Womanhood / Career / Motherhood
Don't worry too much about the balance - I could never get right and it started to stress me out. The best you can do is to be planned and if the plan doesn't work that's okay. For better time management - be really clear on what is important to you and what keeps you feeling energetic and motivated. Manifestation helps as long as you put it into action! I have found the manifestation principles extremely helpful for me to work out how to reach my goals career wise as well as show up for my kids. My personal goals for my family hindered my career goals and vice versa I have. So I re-aligned these and it's working well for me.
Leila Armour @villageformama
Mama to Billie, 4.5 and Twins Noah & Joey 11 months
The Inspiration behind my business
The greatest gift for a new mother is to take something off their already overladen plate. During the first few weeks of my own journey as a new mum, something I appreciated the most was a homecooked meal delivered to my door. They say it takes a village to raise a child, but I believe it takes a village to support a mother. The foundation for postpartum wellness is support and enabling support for new mothers requires education and rewriting our cultural narrative about what it means to be postpartum. And so, Village for Mama was born. Food is a love language. There is something special about eating a meal someone else has prepared for you, regardless of how simple. It makes you feel loved and cared for when you need it most. This is why I created a recipe book containing 30 recipe gift cards with a pre-written letter on each kindly explaining the importance of the postpartum period and the essential role loved ones play in shaping a new mother’s experience. I am deeply passionate about normalising the gathering of a village to support new mums. Village for Mama is a tool to help educate friends and family about the importance of support and nourishment during the early weeks of motherhood and the impact this has on recovery, breastfeeding, maternal well being and mental health.
My 3 Top Tips for Pregnancy and Motherhood
- Gather your Village: From pregnancy through motherhood, we aren’t meant to do it all alone. It can be an isolating time for women and mothers. Gather a support network of friends, family and professionals. People you can call on and sometimes fall on, especially during the early weeks of motherhood when you are in uncharted territory and rest is essential for your recovery.
- Prioritise Nourishing Food: Cold coffee and old toast or leftovers is the universal meal of mums. When you are sleep deprived and busy it is so hard to feed yourself. When you aren’t eating well you don’t feel well and it makes motherhood so much harder. Getting in the habit of prioritising nourishing food helps you have the energy you need to be a mama and can help you avoid postnatal depletion which can have a long lasting impact on your health and wellbeing.
- Be Kind to yourself: It sounds cliche but we can be so hard on ourselves as women and mothers. We can have such high expectations of ourselves and it’s only because we care. But being a mama is hard. So be kind to yourself, you are doing an incredible job.
Balancing Womanhood / Career / Motherhood
I think you have to surrender to the seasons of womanhood and motherhood. I didn’t realise it the first time round but now with the twins, I know how fleeting it all is. You will get yourself back, get longer moments to breathe and do the things you love in time. Surrendering to each season helps you enjoy that moment without feeling like you’re missing out. As your babies grow your windows of time grow too. For me, my baby boys are my number one priority and I sprinkle work around them when I can. This is the season I am in and I just have to lower my expectations about how much I can achieve at the moment.
Lia @portier.australia
Mama to Xander 4 years and Maxim 20 months
The Inspiration behind my business
Portier was born out of a personal need – a desire to create a product that made me feel good and granted the freedom to get out and about effortlessly with my babies. As a lover of all things design from interiors, architecture and most of all fashion, I found it challenging to find products that resonated with my style. Over a dedicated 2-year journey, even amidst a pandemic, I created our hero product, the Limitless Carrier. My goal is to grant the same freedom to parents. In those moments when getting out of the house seems impossible, the carrier becomes a game changer.
My 3 Top Tips for Pregnancy and Motherhood
- Trust your intuition
- Navigate parenthood on your terms
- Embrace imperfection. It's ok to make mistakes, there is no right or wrong, just do you!
Motherhood has reinforced one thing for me and that is to always, always trust your intuition. It has been and will always be my advice. There is so much noise out in the world and it can leave you feeling lost and overwhelmed. Often mothers just need a sounding board. They intuitively know what to do but can lose their confidence amongst the noise. My advice is to always go with your gut. There is no right or wrong, just do you!
Balancing Womanhood / Career / Motherhood
It’s an ongoing challenge that I certainly haven’t mastered. I’m still navigating my way through finding what works for me and my family.
The Team @hotmilklingerie
Currently raising 27 children combined with another on the way
Our shared experiences as mothers fuel our commitment to creating lingerie that goes beyond functionality – it's about enhancing and changing the way you experience motherhood. We understand the nuances, challenges, and joys of being a mother, and that understanding is woven into every aspect of our lingerie. We're here to support you, celebrate you, and empower you through every step of your unique motherhood journey. Hotmilk Lingerie is designed by mothers, for mothers.
