Working and being a full time mum whilst growing another baby really takes it toll! I have so much admiration and respect for all the single mums and dads out there working hard and looking after their children. I don’t think I could do it without my friends and family around me. My biggest rock is my amazing husband, Alex, I really lucked out with this one! I know we live in a world where the women are expected to clean and cook for their husbands but not Alex. He works harder than anyone I know, running his restaurant (shout out to Genesis in Shoreditch) then will come home and clean the house, cook us dinner and bath Zeke like it is his job as much as mine to do so. Thank you Alex for being the best husband and making my life so much easier :)
My next life support is my brother Alex! He is my positive lucky charm. Growing up with Alex was far different from how he is now. I always knew from a young age that he was gay but naturally for him he didn’t come out until he left school for fear of what may happen. So ‘straight’ Alex was not the fun, positive, excitable Alex that we all love, but rather a quiet, shy boy with dreams so big but a voice so small. When he was 19 he finally came out and truly embraced his real self and that was when our relationship went from him being my annoying little brother to absolute best friend, who I talk to every day 1000 times a day. I am so proud of what he has achieved and created and am so honoured and excited to be able to experience this green beauty journey together. I cannot wait to see where NINI goes and to watch you blossom into the beautiful flower you are.
So back to my point lol…. Being a full time mummy and running my own business can be very stressful and tiring, especially when your little one is going through the ‘terrible twos’ and your pregnant! But that’s a whole other story. So how do I take time to relax and re centre myself? Well, it starts with dinner time, I will make mine and Zeke’s dinner and we will eat together at 6 pm, so I then don’t have to make anything when he has gone to bed giving me more of my evening to myself. I will then tidy whilst he plays, watches Youtube or eats some pudding. Then he has a bath, book & bed. Ahhhhhh, breathe and relax! Now it is my time, I may have work to do but first I will run myself a NINI bath, my fave bath soak is the Coco Mylk, especially now my belly is big as it keeps it nice a moisturised, and soothes the itching. Then I will give myself a mini NINI facial starting with the Halo Cleansing Elixir to remove any make up I may be wearing (if I was lucky enough and had a minute to apply some in the morning) I will then apply the Natura Miracle Mask, lay back, close my eyes and relax. I will leave my phone and laptop in another room so it’s just my thoughts and me. I like to have at least 45 minutes to myself in the bath. Now not every night goes as smoothly as this, there will be many days where the house looks like a tornado has rolled through every room and demolished everything and other nights where Zeke will refuse to go to bed and the battle will be epic! But regardless I will still run my NINI bath and close my eyes with no distractions, as this is what keeps me sane.
There will be moments when I want to give up and just crawl under my duvet and sleep forever, but then one of the Alex’s will call me and remind me of why I am doing this and I am back.
I also lost my best friend to Cancer a couple of years ago and her death is one of my biggest pushes in life. We take life for granted without meaning too but knowing that she will never get to experience another moment in this world drives me forward as I don’t want to waste any of my time for the both of us. She is my inspiration and gives me strength.
So if you have a dream, go for it. Simple. We didn’t have any money when we first started NINI, we both worked fulltime jobs, I was pregnant with Zeke and we would stand in the rain, snow & sunshine at markets and slowly built a small foundation which has just gotten bigger and bigger. We couldn’t have done it without all of our customer’s support and love so we are forever grateful to all of you.
Love Nicole
xxx