Our first impression of Sophie was that this mama loves a project (which is something we can 100 percent relate to). From scoring their dream house, renovating it and renting it as a popular holiday-let to planning adventures and keeping us all updated via their travel blog… When she’s not sharing super cute videos of her daughter Poppy, she’ll be filming husband Nick whip up a storm in their kitchen (their pumpkin pasta is a huge win in our household) And breathe! But not for long… There’s a podcast in the pipeline, not to mention baby number 2.
We couldn’t wait to catch up with Sophie to chat motherhood, travel hacks, and living the good life with her crew…
TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOU AND YOUR FAMILY…
My family consists of my husband, my 18 months old daughter Poppy and our currently brewing daughter or son (due in January 2020) and myself!! My husband and I both grew up in Melbourne and are now raising our family in Cabarita Beach, in Northern NSW. We are both extremely family orientated, and being able to spend time all together as a clan is the most important thing for us. We all love travelling, food and getting outdoors!
WHAT IS THE STORY BEHIND YOUR DAUGHTER’S NAME?
There’s not too much of a story!! We didn’t find out what gender Poppy was when we were pregnant but Poppy was always our girl name. We loved the alliteration with Pearce! “Poppy Pearce”.
FAVOURITE THING ABOUT MOTHERHOOD?
Oh gosh, there are way too many good things to pick one. But I think it is so bloody cool that you get to make a human that is half you and half your best friend and then they just become another little best mate who you get to spend time with and watch them grow and learn!
…AND HARDEST THING?
There’s definitely no denying that there are lots of hard things about being a mother! When Poppy was a baby I found the conundrum between feeling lonely but never having time to yourself a really challenging one at times! Now that Poppy is older, it would just be the constant nature of it (especially while being pregnant). She’s non stop and energetic which is so so fun, but it can be tiresome too haha.
HOW DO YOU TAKE YOUR COFFEE?
Well thankfully I am able to stomach coffee again after the first trimester! Hallelujah!!
My husband owns a coffee roastery so I feel like Blackboard Coffee deserves a plug here!!
I like an almond flat white or a filter coffee… but has to be Blackboard!
WE LOVE YOUR PEARCE OF PARADISE BLOG – PARTICULARLY THE TRIPS YOU’VE TAKEN AS A FAMILY OF THREE. FROM TASMANIA TO JAPAN, TELL US YOUR TOP ‘TRAVELLING WITH A BABY HACKS’…
I think the biggest hack is to just have realistic expectations!! Don’t try to travel like you did pre-children!
You will miss out on seeing things, you will have to have a slower paced itinerary than before but we have enjoyed that. We go with the flow more, we wake up in the morning and say to ourselves “what can we realistically be bothered doing today”. And if Poppy is tired or off in some way we tweak our plans. Just be adaptable and don’t try to jam too much into a holiday!!
CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR PREGNANCY WITH BABY NUMBER 2! HOW ARE YOU FEELING ABOUT THE TRANSITION FROM BEING A MAMA OF ONE TO A MAMA OF TWO?
I am so so excited about being a mother of two!! Sometimes I look at Poppy and I am overwhelmed with how lucky I am that soon I will get to love another human being as much as I love her!!
I know that it will be a beautiful chaos at times but I am realistic about it. My husband’s work is very flexible so I am lucky that he is very hands on and will be able to take Poppy under his wing a lot while we find our new normal! It will definitely be very different to when Poppy was a newborn. We acted as a complete team then. Often both waking up throughout the night etc. but this time I think we will have to take more of a “divide and conquer” type approach!
DESCRIBE YOUR IDEA OF THE PERFECT SUNDAY IN YOUR HOMETOWN ON THE PRETTY EAST COAST OF AUSTRALIA…
Poppy would sleep in till 7 or so in the morning. She’d come into bed with us and we’d all have a play/cuddle. Get up and Nick would make me a coffee at home.
We’d wander over to Nick’s cafe Tucker and have breakfast, probably run into quite a lot of people we know there!!
Head down to the beach as a family or with some other families too and all swim together.
Come home for Poppy to have a nap, and Nick and I will probably fall asleep too haha.
Go to a friends house for a play in the afternoon or to the park.
Then cook dinner at home (maybe film it for our cooking instagram @recipearce to share with everyone). Then bath and some books with Poppy before she goes to bed, and we follow shortly thereafter!
WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU – BUSINESS OR PERSONAL – FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR?
To be honest we want to wind down rather than wind up for the rest of the year! I am hoping to enjoy the next 5 or so months of being pregnant and make the most of our time with Poppy as an only child!
We’d like to take a trip together within Australia, we are thinking a road trip in WA!
We are finalising plans for our new build! But we don’t think the actual building will be underway till the start of next year.
Our Airbnb, @groundsofcabarita, is really busy for the rest of the year, so just keep guests happy and ensure they see the best of our area!!
GO TO: pearceofparadise.com
INSTAGRAM: @svpearce
DISCLAIMER: We endeavour to always credit the correct original source of every image we use. If you think a credit may be incorrect, please contact us at [email protected]
Inspiration/Image Credits: pearceofparadise.com, instagram.com/svpearce
