MOTHER'S DAY WITH OUR THRILLS MUMS

For Mother's Day this year, we wanted to feature some of the most incredible women we know: Our Thrills mums. We're forever thankful for who they are and the strength they show, especially through current times. They've inspired us greatly, so what better time to introduce them and find out a little more of how they're maintaining a good work-life balance during COVID-19.

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MEET TAB

My name is Tabitha McGregor and I am a co-founder and creative director for Thrills. My husband, Brooke and I started Thrills 10 years ago when our second child was born. We have two boys: Ace and Bowie. Growing a business with two young babies was definitely challenging, but now as our kids grow bigger and our team grows stronger, we are so unbelievably lucky. The juggle is real, having kids and a business, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

Tab wears the Impala Sunglasses.

Life before COVID-19 was a bit of a zoo... so much overseas travel, kids school performances, meetings, domestic flights, juggle juggle juggle….We were all existing in a frantic, busy, jam-packed lifestyle. Life is quite different now, during COVID. We made a conscious choice to self-isolate in a small fishing village where the beaches are mostly empty. We are finally slowing down, cooking our meals, beach walks, snorkelling and surfing. Homeschooling has its challenges, but we are deciding to focus on our little family, knowing we’ll never get this special, slow time back. Because Brooke and I are both working from home, the kids are becoming more involved in learning the creative process of designing collections, concepting creative for marketing and doing fun ‘home’ photoshoots. It's not always smooth sailing, but we’re making it work!

I can’t imagine a world without my children. They have opened my heart in ways I could never imagine. Being a mum makes me want to be a better person. It makes me feel humbled. It makes me feel strong and truly loved.

Tab wears the Classic Rib Tank.

MEET OLIVIA

I’m pretty fresh to this Mum thing, our daughter Aemilia is just 5 months now and I’ve taken some time out from work to be with her. I work in design and production, which is how I met Emi’s incredible Dad, Ryan...who is a Co-Founder and the Managing Director of Thrills.

 

Life during COVID-19 has been bittersweet, and I think that’s the case for everyone. Life has slowed right down, which is a huge change for me but was inevitable with a newborn. Watching the different approaches taken by business, individuals and greater society to navigate such unchartered waters have been interesting, to say the least, and I am confident that we will come out the other side stronger. For a lot of people, these big life events have a way of putting things into perspective, but I hope that we can all maintain our appreciation for simplicity in the future, and use this as a reminder of the importance of social connection. Perhaps we will spend some more time away from our devices and enjoying the great outdoors with the people we love.

Olivia wears the Painter Coverall.

For me, being a mum has been a natural progression, born out of the incredible love for my partner. Seeing this smiling, laughing little human just reminds me of the incredible gift we were given to expand our family and collectively love more deeply than ever before, and that goes for all of us... even our dog (she just doesn’t know it yet!).

MEET SAM

I landed in this beautiful part of the world almost 5 years ago after travelling around Australia with the kids and hubby in a caravan – escaping Sydney’s rat race. I joined the Thrills family as their accountant and have loved being part of their journey. It is a pretty great crew to work for and with.

Life has slowed down a little during amidst COVID-19. My husband and I are well versed at the home-schooling thing after almost a year in the caravan and the kids are coping pretty well. I am enjoying spending my commuting time in the garden. Having lunch together around the kitchen table every day is something I will miss. It is all back to basics. Knock off time involves table tennis, bike rides, baking, gardening and good old-fashioned climbing trees.

When my youngest was only little he once asked me to do something for him when I had my hands full. I yelled – “I can’t, I’m not an octopus, I only have two hands”.

A few months later we were talking about what superpowers we would have if we could only pick one (a common conversation with a house full of boys). I said I would pick flying. He replied that he thought I would pick “being an octopus”, which totally confused me – “Why”? To which he replied, “so you could do everything for me”.

Being a mum to me means focusing on people other than yourself. Making sure my 2 little humans are happy and healthy. There are a lot of balls to keep in the air with working full time and being a mum but we have some crazy times together and a lot of laughs.

 

MEET CARLY

I have been a part of the Thrills family for 3 and a half years as the International Wholesale Sales Coordinator. I’m also a Mum of 2 beautiful girls, Sadie & Daisy, and have another one on the way. I put my tribe first. Family is everything and I love sticking by old school principles. Those who know me know I’m fearless and adventurous - if I feel fear, I do it anyway. I don’t shrink back from challenges. On a less serious note, I LOVE to party!

When COVID-19 first hit, we all had to adapt to life at home while trying to complete work and schooling but we have now found a good balance & routine while appreciating one another during this time we have all together. My motto is to take one day as it comes and try and see this as Mother Nature telling us to slow life down. I’m now moving at a much healthier pace which is feeding off to the rest of my family.

 

Most think being a mum/parent is all about teaching the child, the lesson I have learnt is to also learn from them. I have made this journey also about myself growing. Being a Mum gives me the strength to bear the load of life and have the ability to carry on and do what needs to be done. I love giving my girls what my Mum gave me, unconditional LOVE and a life full of fun experiences.

 

MEET BIANCA

My name is Bianca. I grew up near Bells Beach in Victoria. Now living on the Gold Coast and working as a Design Assistant at Thrills for the last 3 years. I am a Taurus, an animal lover and, like many of our team, I loveee a good coffee! I’m currently working from my home on the Gold Coast along with my partner Chris, our 1-year-old son Alfie and our two lazy bulldogs!

Lately, we've been getting up before work and riding our bikes up to the beach. Grabbing a coffee to support our local cafe. Chris has been doing daddy daycare while I work during the day then we usually try to go for another walk or ride once I finish work. I feel so much better after getting some fresh air!

The biggest lesson I've learnt as a mum is not to sweat the small stuff. As long as Alfie is happy and healthy that’s all that matters to me. Also, I appreciate my own Mum even more now since becoming a mother myself. Being a mum is more than I could have ever imagined.. I know it sounds very cliché but it's honestly been the best time of my life and I feel so lucky to wake up to Alfie’s cheeky grin every morning.

MEET NAT

My name is Natalie and my hubby to be is the Men's designer at Thrills. Our life is pretty busy at the best of times, with a combined family with our four kids, Chance, Kaiya, Chloe and Mila, but like most, we make the most of the craziness.

Right now I am juggling working from home as a brand manager of a women's label and homeschooling. It has been a pretty surreal experience, we were in LA in March and returned to Australia to quarantine at home. To think that five weeks ago we were sitting in an airport with no social distancing measures in place just feels so foreign now. The situation escalated so quickly! I suppose we kind of just adapt... we are so lucky to live where we live, with daily beach swims and bike rides, it has actually been really nice to slow down and appreciate these special moments. 

 

If there's one thing I've learnt about being a mum, it's having patience, with yourself, with others, although without a doubt I haven't mastered this one yet. I couldn't imagine life any differently than being a mum. It means the world to me to be surrounded by such a loving family, our children, our nieces and nephew's and watching them all grow, I love the laughter, the craziness and their funny little personalities!

MEET MEGAN

I'm a mum, amongst other things... but mostly a mum to three sensational girls and one very rolly polly puppy. I'm also the new Creative Director at Eye of Horus, a beauty brand here in Byron Bay. Nourishing, plant-based food is a genuine passion of mine. So is reading. And I'm married to Mike - your Design Manager, we've been together since I was 20 (!!). We met when I travelled from my California home many, many moons ago.

 

Life is rad right now. I love the unconventional living and working arrangements, sitting side-by-side with Mike in our make-shift home office is awesome, he makes me coffee. And being with the girls is just fun - I love the togetherness of it all. Sometimes the walls start to cave but that's when I head to the beach for a new perspective, it doesn't take much.

Being a mum presents the unknown on the reg anyway so when we hit that feeling of calm or 'balance', it's usually fleeting. So I guess we go with the flow, make sure everyone is fed properly, have plenty of books and activities to play and our pup - Rexy helps a lot, he's the ideal pseudo-mum on my workdays when I need big blocks of time to be productive.

The best lesson I've learnt as a mum is to be in the moment, stay present - it's best for everyone. As soon as you have expectations and start thinking "oh - I have to do that" or "I really want to do this" that's when things get tricky plus time goes in a flash and you really don't want to look back and feel you've missed out. But ultimately, the girls have taught me that love is infinite and children come to you with nothing but pure, genuine zest and I have learnt to relish in that, to take a few lessons from them. Being a mum is the greatest honour and gift. Also - that I have a part in raising the next-gen, so we aim to practice kindness, empathy and making a positive impact on our environment. We have a saying - "Be kind, but take no shit." 

From all of us here at Thrills, we hope you have an incredible Mother's Day.

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