Mom Talk with Jillian of UNLOCKE YOUR GLOW + RISE WELLNESS COLLECTIVE

In a few sentences (we know you don’t have much time!) tell us about yourself and your little one…
I am a proud twin mom to 16-month-old girls, Eleanor and Chantal, Creator of Unlocke Your Glow and Co-Creator of Rise Wellness Collective. I moved out of the city a few years ago with my husband Rory to a Toronto suburb to get a little more space to grow. I guess our timing was perfect because we didn't realize how quickly we would need the elbow room getting pregnant with twins! 

I am a 500 hour Registered Yoga Teacher (teaching a wide variety of classes, with specialties in Pre/Post-natal yoga/barre, Beginner yoga, and Kids yoga). My background is in Professional Communications; I am also obsessed with dance, love a great new restaurant (married to a chef), and am passionate about travel and wellness. I want nothing more than to create a better future for my girls. My goal is to help families unlock easy ways to a brighter future through yoga, oils and wellness. 

faves

What is one thing you couldn’t live without as a mom?

When my girls were super little, I would say our Baby Brezza One Step Baby Bottle Sterilizer Dryer because pumping and feeding for two is a circus, so quick and easy sterilization was essential. Now that Eleanor and Chantal are a bit older, we can't live without books. They love books of all kinds, and I make sure that we always have books with us when we are out and about. I like small books for travel like touch and feel books, or soft books that hook into the stroller: something compact that they can easily hold in their hands.

What is one purchase that has been the biggest waste of money?

I hate to say it, but for us, it's been the ezpz mats. I was SO sold on them before my girls arrived. I love the look and concept, but my kiddos instantly figured out how to get those things off their high chair trays, so they are rendered useless for us (at least for now), unfortunately. 

You’ve been there, done that… so what would you say… save or splurge?

Sleepers? Save (aside from a few awesome ones). Babies grow out of sleepers so fast, especially at the beginning, that they are definitely something you can save on. However, we did invest in a handful of amazing sleepers by ZippyJamz (they have a crotch zipper!), and those made middle-of-the-night diaper changes super easy. 

Swaddles/blankets? Splurge. Our girls loved to be swaddled, so the Little Unicorn swaddles were some of our favourites because they are adorable, big, and breathable, but warm. We also have no regrets on splurging on sleep sacks. We started with the Love to Dream Swaddle Up, transitioned to the Love to Dream Swaddle Up 50/50 where you could slowly release one arm, then the other. Now we use the Little Unicorn sleep sacks in the summer and the Grobag in the winter. None of these are cheap, but the quality is worth it. The zippers are great, the designs are smart, the temperatures are perfect. Can you tell I'm a fan? 

Stroller? Splurge. We were lucky enough to buy our City Select Baby Jogger twin stroller in great condition second hand, and even at that, it was a splurge. Making sure we were getting higher quality items for something like a stroller was important to us. We knew how much we'd be using our stroller with twins (it's impossible to go anywhere alone without it), so we were set on the specific brand and wouldn't compromise there.

High chair? Save. Ikea all the way. The second I see the gross food mess all over the simple, white plastic Ikea chairs for $25 (that can literally be hosed down outside if need be), I'm happy with the choice. 

Diapers and wipes? I would say this one really depends on your child. If your baby is prone to lots of sensitivity and rashes, I would splurge and start to determine where the sensitivities are stemming from. We were lucky and didn't run into any skin issues with our babies, so diapers and wipes were something we would just load up on when we found good sales.

Three things that are always in your diaper bag (besides diapers)?

doTERRA hand sanitizer
Snacks (Puffs for the babies, granola bars for me)!
Two sets of clothes for the girls

Book Club

What is your favourite children’s book?

Jillian Jiggs, of course!

Which book could you recite from memory (aka. your child’s fave)?

I think that is a three way tie between: The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Feminist Baby Finds Her Voice, and Each Peach, Pear, Plum.

Mini Style

What are your favourite places to shop for your babe?

Having to dress twins has been no small task, so thankfully we have been lucky getting hand me downs from many friends. However, when I do get to shop, I love H&M, Roots, and the Gap.

Mom Talk

What advice would you tell your pregnant self?

Tune out the worrying as much as you can. When I found out I was pregnant with twins, so many people were worried for me; worried because they cared, because they knew how hard parenting is, because the pregnancy was automatically considered higher risk. At the end of the day, yes I was scared (like any person about to become a parent), but I was overjoyed. I felt great through most of the pregnancy, and I knew everything was going to be fine because I was meant to be a twin mom. Worrying doesn't help you throughout your own personal journey. It doesn't change what is or what will be, and it actually takes the sheen off the beauty of the whole thing, so as hard as it is (and I struggled too), I would try to worry less and tell those that care about me to worry less too!

What was one thing you thought about motherhood that proved to be untrue?

 That is gets easier! When my girls were really small I kept thinking, "It will just get easier when." Now that I have a bit more experience, I've come to realize that it doesn't necessarily get any easier, it just changes. Things that were once challenges become easeful, but new challenges (and joys) arise with each stage. The good news is that the older they get, you ge tto know your kids better, so the more I can anticipate what challenges might arise and how to cater my parenting to their specific needs.

As a working mom, how do you find balance between work and motherhood?

It's an ongoing learning that I don't think ever ends, however, I try to be present in whatever I am doing. When I am teaching my yoga classes, I am 100% there energetically. When I am with my girls, I am the same way. The thing I find most difficult is nurturing my own goals and passions while not wanting to miss a thing that happens with my kids. It's a tough feeling that I'm still learning how to manage!

Who is your momspiration?

All moms are seriously warriors, and now that I am a mom, I am in awe of moms everywhere, however, my own mom is my momspiration. She and my dad taught me what it means to treat parenthood as the most important job you'll ever have, and I hope I can be half as great a parent as they have been.

Find Jillian on Instagram: Unlocke Your Glow and Rise Wellness Collective

#TMLmomtalk