27/08/2025
Ten years ago today, I drove up the winding hill to a retreat centre in Red Hill with my 11-month-old son in the backseat, and my beautiful friend (with her own baby) by my side. My heart was pounding, my stomach knotted with nerves. I kept asking myself “Who am I to be doing this?”
I was about to welcome a group of new mums and their babies to the very first Motherground Retreat- a space I had been dreaming up for months, because I knew it was so needed. A gentle place where mums could arrive, put their bags down, feel seen, valued, be nurtured and completely cared for, while keeping their babies close.
I had everything planned down to the minute… until I didn’t.
As we gathered around the table for our first meal, I looked around at the crying babies, the mamas juggling feeding, nappy changes, sleeping schedules and I paused and realised~ ahh yes, this is exactly what motherhood can look like, an unpredictable, beautiful hot mess.
So I scrapped the schedule.
Instead, I invited us all to take off the masks we wore 🎭 let go of the concept of perfection, and simply ‘be’- messy, tired, teary, joyful, and everything in between (& there’s so much in between).
That moment set the tone for Motherground from then on. It would become a place where all parts of motherhood would be welcome. A place of connection, honesty, and care.
Since then, I had the privilege of supporting over 100 women and families through retreats across Australia, and even took Motherground all the way to England 💛
Now, ten years on, as my little boy is about to turn 11, I look back with so much appreciation. The lessons and challenges of motherhood keep changing, but the need for spaces of true connection remains.
And as for what comes next… it is ever evolving.
I now offer counselling sessions for mums navigating all stages of the motherhood journey. If you’d like to reach out you can share your expression of interest through the link in the bio.
If you’d have a memory of a Motherground retreat you were part of, drop me a note here, I’d love to hear from you.
Here’s to the next chapter ✨
