Hosted by Kidspot writer and mum-of-two Melissa Wilson, and businesswoman and mum-of-one Jules Robinson, The Juggling Act covers the latest opinions, challenges, expert advice, celebrity interviews, real-life stories plus much more for busy parents. This supportive, informative and totally relatable podcast aims to offer insight and advice for mums and dads to help them navigate their professional and parenting lives, plus the mess in between.
I don’t feel like I’ve been putting that much more food in my mouth since isolation started and I’ve actually been exercising more, but somehow those nasty Covid kilos have crept up on me - specifically around the booty area. So I put in a desperate call to nutritionist, exercise scientist and mother-of-two Brooke Turner to find out where I’m going wrong. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
I feel like those angry parenting ads are constantly popping up in my Facebook feed. Like is Zuckerberg actually listening to me lose my mind at my kids? I know we all do it. They push and push and push until we yell, then we feel bad and vow to try and find a way to keep our cool. But this parenting gig is damn hard. They push buttons we never thought we had. As they get older I think I’m getting a little bit better at it, but I really wish I could be super chill all the time. Work, life, money...
Look I’m not a gym person, I only started going a year ago after I had knee surgery. So it was really only out of necessity. But I know they’re a sanctuary for a lot of working parents who need a break and to do something for themselves. I’ve also really felt for all the gyms going under during Covid, I’ve heard so many stories of businesses that just couldn’t afford to ride things out and it's just crushing. One that managed to stay afloat by pivoting VERY quickly, is Flow Athletic in Sydney. I...
We’ve had a great break from all the extra-curricula activities that kids do, and it’s been nice not to spend weekends rushing from one thing to the next. But things are starting to kick off again (pun intended) and while I’m dreading standing out in the cold at 9.30 on Saturday morning as my daughter TRIES to play netball, she’s super excited. Mostly about wearing the uniform which I get, it is cute. I grew up in a sporting household and it taught me so many things - Resilience, teamwork, confi...
Sharing children's pictures on social is something everyone has an opinion on, and before I had my first child, my husband was pretty vocal about us not showing pictures once the baby arrived. I’ll be honest, I didn’t get it. But I decided that if he was that passionate about it, then, of course, I wouldn’t do it, but I wasn’t quite sure why it meant so much. In time my husband changed his mind and now we both put up photos but I didn’t get his initial issue… Recently I posted a pic with my youn...
We all know that women generally take on the lion's share of domestic duties within the household. Sure, we may have come a long way since the days of Suzie homemaker having the house spotless to greet her breadwinner husband at the door with a martini in hand, but many will argue that not enough has progressed in terms of gender equality over the last few decades. Well turns out we may now have the global pandemic to thank for changing all that. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informati...
When I was growing up I always wanted to be a presenter on Play School. True story. I used to make my siblings act out stories with me and all our stuffed toys, while my parents taped us on the old Sony camcorder. Then I’d watch them over and over, thinking of ways I could improve my 'performance'. From there my dream moved onto acting, before my dad in no uncertain terms told me that I’d starve if I chose that as a profession because I would never make any money. Not sure if he was being practi...
Confession time. I’m panicking about the email we just got saying we have to return to the office. Yup, I never thought I’d say this, but I’m actually anxious about going back to the workplace - I'm kind of liking it now. It was difficult in the beginning when we didn’t know how long we were going to be working from home (I love how that even has an acronym now – you WFH? – yeah, few months…). Now I’m struggling to process actually being back around people and in proper work clothes. And getting...
Babysitting is an interesting job because I think most of us have done it and were probably very young the first time. I mean, I remember looking after a family friend’s kids at night… and they would have been about 2 and 5. I was 16. At the time I thought nothing of it… We have had a few babysitters since the boys were born, and from around the 6-week mark with each, because I was back to work quite quickly. They’ve all been lovely but a serious mix in age and experience. Funnily enough though,...
Like a lot of people, I’ve spent the past three months wearing nothing but uggs and trainers, so the idea of putting heels back on is just painful - in so many ways. I have a couple of pairs of flats that I wear but I really struggle to find shoes that are comfortable and don’t rub at the back. The struggle is real people. Then I came across an amazing Melbourne based mum, Katrina Verso, who the same issue and decided to do something about it. When she was on mat leave with her first child she q...
I want to talk to you about school and daycare, and when you should get involved if you see some bad behavior from other children. My eldest has been in daycare for about 18 months now, and absolutely loves going. That was until about a month ago when I noticed a mouth shaped bruise on his arm. It was definitely a bite mark. No doubt about it. I asked him and he calmly revealed that one of the kids had bitten him. He didn’t seem worried so I let it go, and in all honestly I thought biting was ju...
Tax time is fast approaching and I don’t envy people working at the ATO right now! July 1 also means that the government can start the process of balancing family assistance payments. What that means is that they take a look at our Family Tax Benefit (FTB) and now Child Care Subsidy (CCS) payments to make sure families got paid the right amount during the year. Yeah, hurts my head too. So I put in a call (and didn’t wait on hold for an hour) to Services Australia General Manager, Hank Jongen to ...
I’ve been seriously lacking in energy since working from home. Every day I put on my activewear in the hope that it might trick my brain and body into being you know, active. But most of the time it doesn’t work. I keep telling myself I’m going to go for a run. Okay, a walk. Or do an online workout. But something else always (conveniently) pops up that’s more urgent. I’m also eating more of the kid’s snacks that I wouldn’t normally touch when I’m in the office. So the Covid kilos are slowly cree...
My 8 year-old daughter hacked my Instagram. She got into my phone and shared a delightful video of herself and her friend, welcoming everyone to ‘her’ Instagram page. Honestly, this generation are so digitally savvy and it feels like they’ve become even more so during Covid when we’ve been on screens more using technology to stay in touch with family and friends. While I thought I could stay on top of this quickly changing landscape and know the difference between Tik Tok and Musical.ly, I feel ...
Today I wanted to talk about second children (and thirds and fourths and fifths – if you’re really game). I’m keen to know if we really are more chilled with each kid, or if we are just being lazy? Like most parents, I am bloody knackered. It’s nothing unique, but since the kids arrived my husband and I have pretty much slept terribly and aged dramatically. I use this as a justification for most of my parenting and life fails… leaving the hand-break on when driving, letting my kids wear clothes ...
Working from home in my track pants and slippers, eating and drinking more than I should and letting the exercise routine slip has left me feeling pretty meh. Kidding, I never had an exercise routine. Anyway. I think iso has left us all feeling a bit squishy around the edges and not our best selves. Or maybe that’s just me?! I tried out a new burlesque workout at home recently and while it was actually really fun, I was about as far from JLO in Hustlers as it’s possible to be. It was not sexy. S...
Many of us have now got the taste for working from home. And while I personally struggled in the beginning, now, I kinda like it. Obviously there’s the slippers and trackies element, but removing the commute time has also meant I can walk my kids to school and daycare each day AND sleep later (if they let me), hang out a load of washing, prep dinner so the kids don’t tear my face off when they walk in the door, and juggle life admin much easier (come on, I’m not the only one who has ducked out f...
Over the past couple of months on this daily Corona pod, I’ve spoken about feeling like I’m having panic attacks that I’ve never experienced before, and generally heightened levels of stress and anxiety. I know it’s something a lot of working parents have been feeling and are still feeling to varying degrees. So I’m officially declaring today ‘stress-free Friday’. Yup, today, you are not allowed to stress. Stress be gone. You have my permission to tell stress to eff right off. No space for you i...
We all know how tough the isolation period has been, and look, screen time rules have well and truly slipped in most households. Homeschooling combined with parents trying to work from home, has meant a LOT more Minecraft and endless episodes of My Little Pony. I know I’m not the only one… But now that restrictions are lifting, it’s time to take back control and swap all that screen time for some green time. There’s no doubting the benefits of kids getting outside in nature. It can enhance their...
Thinking back to the first week we went into isolation and I thought I’d never get used to working from home, having the kids around, and just generally adjusting to the new normal we found ourselves in, with little warning. I was stressing about hand sanitiser, children’s Panadol and yup, the great toilet paper shortage. Now, nearly three months later, and I’m feeling anxious about the kids being back in school full time, using public transport again and heading back to the office. Turns out th...
We are slowing starting to come out of isolation after two months, so you’ve probably well and truly run out of things to do with the kids! We all know that sometimes playing with kids can be boring and sometimes we’re just too damn tired to glue another paddle pop stick or race cars. Do kids care? Hell, no! Kids want to play, regardless of how their parents feel. All. The. Time. I know my idea of a good time right now is locking myself in a room on my own with a glass of wine and a book, but if...
It was was daughter’s 8th birthday on Friday and now I’m preparing for my son’s tomorrow. Four days. That wasn’t smart planning. I am far from a Martha homemaker, craft, cooking, entertaining, just not my jam. So I dread the double birthday panic each year. This year however, I have an excellent excuse to dial things back. Like right back! I’ve loved hearing how families have been getting created with their kid’s birthdays over the past couple of months. Drive-by birthday wishes, zoom parties, p...
I don’t know about you but I’m totally guilty of trying to be superwoman. The best teacher, colleague, boss, partner, chef, cleaner, the list goes on and on (and we’re the only ones crossing things off it). Why are so many working mums obsessed with proving that we can do it all? We know it’s not really achievable but we still seem to hold ourselves, and others – to these incredibly high expectations. I’m pretty sure if I served the kids vegemite on toast or weetbix for dinner, they’d be okay. I...
I feel like I’ve been doing an awful lot of sitting since I’ve been working from home. I get the kids to school and daycare then sit. All day. In the one spot. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a lovely spot in the winter sun, but my thighs are not thanking me for it and I’m struggling to get motivated now that it’s getting colder outside. So I put in a call to fitness goddess and founder of 12-week body transformation Michelle Bridges to find out how she’s been handling iso and to get some tips to try a...
Financially, times are tough for a lot of people right now. To try and help ease the burden, the government announced quicker turnaround and less stringent conditions for people wanting to access their superannuation. As soon as that was announced, 600,000 people registered their intent to apply. As of the end of April, the Australian Tax Office had approved over 450,000 applications worth a total of $3.8 billion dollars. That cash hits peoples accounts within five days. You might be thinking ab...
How divine is Emma Watkins, otherwise known as Emma Wiggle? I mean she’s bubbly, talented, keeps our kids entertained, wears a bow in her hair ten times better than Jo Jo Siwa, and somehow manages to look fabulous in yellow. That’s a gift. But it turns out she has a weakness, she can’t cook! I think she’s basically my spirit animal. You know, except for the singing and dancing part. And the yellow. Blondes can't wear yellow. I caught up with Emma about how The Wiggles have managed to pivot durin...
Right across the country, we’ve seen small businesses pivoting just to stay afloat. Gin producers making hand sanitiser, pubs doing takeaway meals and even a plant nursery offering drive-through purchases. It’s a tough time across the board with revenue heavily impacted and unimaginable pressures put on businesses that they didn’t see coming. If you’re a small-business owner, you’ve probably been trying to work out how to keep staff, hold onto your customers and trying the best you can to future...
So it’s Friday, we made it to the end of the week jugglers, whoop! And cause things have been pretty grim, I thought we could all do with a laugh. Parenting sometimes feels like a repetitive cycle of gradually morphing into your own mother, realising what's happening, trying to fight it and eventually giving in. So, I had to laugh when I read about a moment a mum on Twitter shared, in which her kid imitated her to perfection. It set off an avalanche of similar hilarious stories, which I had to s...
At the end of June, parents are facing the prospect of paying childcare fees again. As we all know, in April, the government put an emergency plan in place to save centres as parents starting pulling their kids in droves because of the pandemic. Hallelujah, working parents finally felt seen and valued. Education minister Dan Tehan recently said the plan had “done its job” with 99% of services remaining open, and most providers saying the emergency response has helped with financial viability. Bu...
There is one demographic who has been hit hardest by the global pandemic shutdown, and that’s women. According to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures, more than 235,000 women became unemployed in April, which equates to 55 percent of jobs lost. Nearly a million Australians have now been impacted. It feels almost daily that I hear of another friend or colleague who has been made redundant, and as a working parent, the stakes are even higher when you’ve got little mouths to feed. But if you ha...
