The Mum Diaries: Alex Etherington
This week we are paying extra appreciation to all the super mums in the world! Today we are shining a world deserved spotlight on mother of two and business owner, Alex Etherington.
Alex is a busy woman with two important jobs. One is being the owner of the absolutely beautiful bridal boutique Hope X Page. Her second job is being mum to two incredible little girls. Alex proudly describes her children as "incredibly mature, caring and confident". Her eldest Elliot, will "walk straight up to kids double her age and say 'Do you want to play with me?', and most of the time the kids are so dumbfounded by this tiny little confident person they just say yes, and then before you know it she's got all these 10 year olds kids running away from baddies at the park or playing hide and seek".
"She is also the best big sister for Olive, she patiently helps her find whatever it is she needs and cuddles her to sleep".
"Olive, 2, is just happy if someone is laughing at her she will have the whole family in stitches with strange voices and 'cool tricks'. Olive is also my cuddly child, Elliot is busy to say the least, but Olive is happy to have a big old cuddle with her mum. Olive is a born mother too, she's obsessed with babies and just loves them so very much."
With full hands and a full heart, we asked Alex how she found balancing motherhood and her career?
"Bloody exhausting. I’m lucky to have such an amazing support crew around me, a wonderful husband and extended family that help love my girls while I’m at work. You more often than not feel like you’re doing everything half-assed though, you beat yourself up for not being fully present at home with the kids and also feel like you’re not putting 100% into your business. It’s a balancing act that never quite seems balanced."
Despite how exhausting the balancing act may be Alex stills displays a great deal of gratitude and appreciation for her children as she describes her favourite part of motherhood.
"Just getting to hang out with two little legends all day. Kids are so incredibly surprising with the things they pick up, little insights they come up with about the world and just the immense amount of love they have for you. They’re so cool and I’m so lucky to be along for the ride with the little ferals."
We asked Alex what she finds challenging about motherhood.
"The complete and utter lack of control you have over 99% of situations. I have come to terms with the fact I won’t have a tidy house for another 15-20 years. Becoming a mother has made me much more flexible and patient, if you don’t bend you’ll break!"
After talking to a few mums, it would seem flexibility and patience are definitely two important qualities that all super mums have! We asked if she had any other advice for new or expecting mothers?
"Everyone will have their two cents to sling at you when you’re pregnant or have kids, but just go with the flow as much as possible. If you want to hold your baby 24/7 then do it, listen to your instincts."
We asked for a sneak peek into what 24 hours in the life of Alex Etherington looked like...
"Wake up at 6/6.30 make everyone breakfast, get everyone dressed, if I’m working I head off around 9am to get into the shop at 10am. Then it’s a day of seeing beautiful brides, managing orders, having catch ups with designers and replying emails. I’m so lucky to have such a rewarding job that allows me to be a part of such a happy, fun time in brides lives. I also love dealing with designers talking about new styles, trends and being a fabric nerd. The admin side…not so much.
If I’m at home with the girls we get out of the house pretty early and head to the park or beach, I try not to take my phone with me when I’m with the girls and to be present as much as possible. We’re so lucky to live in a beautiful little pocket of the south coast just out of Sydney, so we’re spoilt for choice with ocean pools and bushwalking tracks."
As a Mothers Day gift we sent Alex Coffee from the New Classics range as we thought it would be perfect for her and we asked her what she thought about the scent.
"Coffee is honestly the first thing I think of in the morning. I am truly addicted. I have toyed with the idea of kicking the caffeine habit, but I’m not a big alcohol drinker so think if I stopped drinking coffee I’d just be the worlds most boring person!"
If Alex could have any scent captured in a candle she would like "the smell of salty skin after a swim is pretty unbeatable, but maybe that’s a gross smell to some people?"
Check out the most beautiful bridal Instagram account.
