Enjoy!
Hi girls and thank you for taking time out of planning
events (and being general super Mum’s) to talk to me at Bad Mum.
I was very impressed to see that you have already managed
to tie down the mighty Scummy Mummies for an event! How did you manage that and
how was the event?
NATALIE:
'Mighty' indeed, the Scummy Mummies were AMAZING. We cannot recommend
them highly enough, if you ever get the chance to go and see the lycra-clad
ladies then you must go go go. From start to finish they had the audience
rolling about laughing with their sketches, songs and dance routines - it was
comedy gold. We were big fans of the Scummy Mummies podcasts and we knew
they would go down a storm, so we dropped them an email and they were keen to
bring their show to Tunbridge Wells - it was as simple as that!
All your events look amazing! How did you start up in the
event business and what made you think of the concept behind Mum’s the Word?
LAURA: Thank you so much, we work really hard to
ensure our events stand out and are memorable! We’re both from events’
backgrounds – Natalie has spent over 12 years working in events and my
background is in PR (17 years arghhhh) which also involves lots of event
organising! The concept for Mum’s the Word came about last January – Natalie
and I are sisters and have always wanted to combine our skills to work together
– when Natalie moved back to Tunbridge Wells from London she missed some of the
Mama events she had attended in the Capital. We chatted about bringing
something similar to the Mamas of Kent and then decided to go for it and Mum’s
the Word was born!
I am from an event planning background myself and I know
how super organised you need to be for the job! How do you find the time to fit
it all in and be busy Mum’s also?
NATALIE: It's not always easy that's for sure!
We both have 'day jobs' (Laura runs her own PR Agency and I work as an
Event Manager at the Roundhouse) and have four little ones between us aged from
1 up to 7 so life is always pretty busy! Once the kids are in bed, the
laptops come out and that is when we hatch our plans for the events, write up
blogs and update the website. It is a big juggling act but we love what
we do and it's really exciting to see a strong community of Mum's coming
together and supporting one another.
At Bad Mum I love honesty and representing the real bare
face of parenting, how important to you is being honest when it comes to
parenting and sharing on social media?
LAURA: We absolutely love social media and the
INSTAMum community - it is so strong and we couldn’t have launched Mum’s the
Word without the support we have received via social media. In fact I really
wish it had been around when I had my son 7 years ago. However sometimes when
you’re having a bad day, have had no sleep, have been binging on cake, the children
are driving you mad, the house is a tip and you have work deadlines to achieve
– social media can make you feel even more inadequate and you have to remind
yourself that most of what you see on instagram isn’t real – pictures are
posed, edited and filtered. We loved the ‘imperfect moment’ campaign a little
while back championed by the amazing Mother Pukka for Pandas Foundation
(supporting families coping with pre and postnatal mental illnesses) and try to
show all elements of our lives – the good, the bad and the UGLY!
We all have bad parenting days, the kind of days you just
want to cry or walk out of the house and keep going! How do you deal with them;
to make us all feel better and show we all do it?
NATALIE: Oh yes, we know those days very well!
Being a Mum can feel incredibly overwhelming at times, most days I feel
like I have a million jobs to do and zero time to do any them. I think
the rise of honesty in the mum-community has shattered the myth of the 'perfect
mother' who 'has it all' - that just doesn't exist. I feel incredibly
lucky to be a Mum to my two little boys but there is no shame in admitting that
it can be bloody hard work. The Selfish Mother 'Winging It' sweatshirts
sum it up perfectly, we are all doing the best we can & we have to remember
that is enough. A glass of wine and a big slab of chocolate always helps
too.
Instagram Mum’s are smashing the internet at the moment!
What is next on your To Do list for Mum’s the Word?
LAURA: We’re really excited for 2017 and have
lots of ideas and activities in the pipeline for our #MamasMeetUps and #Wild_Child
events. We’d really like to start doing some podcasts next year with our
fantastic guest speakers and also have plans to organise a mini #Wild_Child
festival this summer so watch this space. We’d also be keen to take Mum’s the
Word to some other areas of the country too – so if any mums are keen to attend
similar events in their hometown – they should get in touch!
If you had any budget in the world what would your dream
event to plan be and why?
NATALIE: Oooh
good question. I've seen some amazing events over the years, but I think
my dream no-expense-spared event would be to organise a family boutique
festival and retreat in Sri Lanka. Me & my husband went to a wedding there
just before our son was born and we completely fell in love with it. The
event would be set on one of the beautiful beaches in the South with a mix of
international music, Sri Lankan food to feast on, lots of activities for the
children and relaxation & spa treatments for the parents. It would be
a beach version of our #Wild_Child family raves on a much bigger scale!
Lastly, everyone has to leave us with a parenting
confession that they have never told anyone else before! Go and do a shot then
write it down!
LAURA: Oh gosh well I am partial to a shot (but
always regret it the next day!!) so here goes. When my son was tiny and I was
doing A LOT of breast feeding (I felt a lot like a milking machine) I spent
quite a lot of time with my boobs out either feeding or pumping…you get quite
used to having them out, so when the postman knocked on the door – a sleep
deprived me opened the door to take in a parcel and didn’t think to check
whether my boobs were safely inside my bra... well you guessed it, they weren’t
and that poor postman probably got quite an eyeful – luckily I was too tired to
care!!! But honestly how embarrassing!
Thank you once again for your time and I look forward to
seeing you at an event very soon! Oh and how amazing was that confession!! HA HA brilliant! And, I know the feeling when you are so tired, you simply don't give a shit! Best one yet.
Thanks for having us Laura & Natalie x
Any time girls x
If you want more information about the girls go to the Bloody Truthful Mama section at the top!
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