The lovely Melissa Carr from thethirtiesgrind . featured this mom on her blog. Her blog is all sorts of awesome sauce, you really should check it out. And tell her I sent you! But before you do that, here’s the post featured over thar.
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Lee-Anne Ekland is a stay-at-home mom of one, who’s on a mission to rediscover love, wellness, and neighbourhood happenings and to have a ton of fun. She’s also a lover of wine and yoga and believes that sharing her experiences at www.MomParadigm.com brings her closer to living her best life. Having started the parenting experience much later than most, she offers a unique perspective on the challenges and all that is amazing about being a mom over 40.
You can find Lee-Anne on Facebook and Twitter.
(there was a photo of me plunked here but you’ve seen enough already, no? If not, the same photo is on the right hand side. Seen enough yet? uh huh, thought so.)
What characteristics define the Vancouver Housewife?
That’s a good question. I never saw myself ever being a housewife and really don’t know that many. Most women who have kids in this city need to work to support the lifestyle to which they’ve become accustomed. But if I were to define her, me, it would be a woman who is savvy, smart and ambitious, wants her house in order but is too busy to do it all herself. She accepts her limitations and doesn’t get caught up in impractical ways to spend her time but struggles to find time to take care of herself. She craves downtime to spend time with her family doing simple things, and finding ways to live simply, while enjoying the beauty around her. She likes to window shop, a lot.
Are you a good representation of a Vancouver Housewife? Why?
The characteristics I defined in the previous question answer this. No time to waste here ladies! Just kidding…sort of.
Do you feel that living in Vancouver in some way defines who you are? Please explain.
I’ve lived in the lower mainland most of my life. I was born and raised in Richmond, way back when it was mostly farmland, and was always surrounded by nature. It was a happy and peaceful existence for the most part, I spent a lot of time outside as a kid. I was a tomboy and you’d often find me climbing trees and fishing for tadpoles and chasing snakes.
Now that I’m grown up (in body not in mind) I think my experiences as a kid prepared me for living in Vancouver. I still love to escape outside, but you won’t find me hunting for snakes and such but I don’t mind getting my hands dirty, as long as I can clean up fast.
I might have an event to run off to but what I love about it here is that people are a bit more relaxed and less uptight than in bigger cities. This translates to how we dress, and although I have several pairs of yoga pants in my wardrobe, you won’t catch me wearing them to a business meeting!
We are more health conscious than a lot of other cities as well, and that suits me perfectly. I’m not sure if growing up here had anything to do with that or not, probably. We are products of our environments, right?
Have you ever had cosmetic surgery, Botox, Restalyne injections, etc.? If so, please provide details. If you haven’t had any of the above procedures performed, would you consider it?
I have not had any alterations done.
But, working in the spa industry for as many years as I had up until a few years ago, I’ve had plenty of opportunities. In fact, I had scheduled a Botox appt, but it got cancelled by the doctor at the last minute. Probably a good thing.
I’ve worked on clients who have had a lot of surgical work that looked good and natural, and I’ve seen a lot go wrong, like Joan Rivers wrong. So, that keeps me focused on optimizing what nature gave me and focusing on the basics, getting enough sleep, good nutrition and living in the moment more. That keeps the wrinkles at bay longer, and allows wine to be a part of equation too. Oh and sunscreen every day of the year is my not so secret, secret.
Other than your children (if applicable), what is the accomplishment of which you are most proud?
I never thought I wanted children, in fact, when I was eight years old, I told my mom I wouldn’t. But when I was 43, I had my son.
I could list off a few things of which I am proud, but really, watching my son grow into the amazing little guy he is, and knowing that I have done a pretty good job considering that I thought I would be a complete failure at raising a child is a pretty awesome thing.
These days, the moments with him and the simple things matter more than a slick career move or buying a big house. I think I will have more to talk about on this later, once I come out of the foggy mom brain thing. But will that ever happen? We’ll see.
Has the desire for affluence/power/money been a motivator in the choices you’ve made for your life?
Yes and no. I don’t have a dream to be a bazillionaire, just to be able to support my family into the lifestyle to which we’ve become accustomed and to be able to shop and go on vacation whenever the mood strikes me. Hmmm.. I guess that might mean I need to be a bazillionaire. I’m working on it. These days, enjoying the moments is more my focus though.
Tell us about your stuff. What do you like to buy, collect, etc.?
I am not a collector, in fact, I really like to keep my life and the things around me simple. We are not minimalist by any stretch of the imagination but clutter drives me a bit bonkers. I see no reason to collect horse figurines any longer. I’ve never really been sentimental but lately I find myself holding on to special things like my sons first baby blanket and a few trinkets. The cutting from his first haircut, but nothing weird or strange.
I also love to take photos, so I guess you could say that I collect memories that way.
Do you have “staff” in your home? (E.g. nanny, driver, chef, etc.)
I hope to one day have a full time cleaner, driver and chef. Oh wait, I already do.
Do you belong to any clubs, teams, groups or social organizations?
I played softball for many years and am thinking about going back to it. I love team sports and thrive on competition. Is that bad?
I recently acquired the license for ModernMama.com/vancouver-west . Modern Mama is a locally-focused social and educational community for moms. It is your modern mom’s club. It is perfect for me because my goal as a mom is to build a community of people around me to raise my child. Not for me, that would be wrong, but I can’t do it alone. It really takes a village, not just to raise your kids, but to raise ourselves. We need to surround ourselves with people who love and care for all of us.
Finish this sentence: “My life’s motto is ….”
Just start.
Just put on your shoes and get out the door.
The rest will come.
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