Writer. Speaker. Business owner.

Hi, I’m Kelly. Welcome to this place where I write about all the stuff that I feel too self-conscious to talk about on my personal insta or doesn’t sit quite right in my newsletter for languages teachers.

If you are someone that has a lot on your plate as a mum or a business owner then you might find some pieces of yourself on this page. I am someone that has a lot of jobs, three kids (who currently go through a minimum 21 litres of full cream milk per week) and my husband and I both run our own businesses. It’s a lot, but I love it. And I love doing it from regional Australia.

I’m a former high school teacher turned business owner / marketer / a few other things but before I was any of these things I was a writer, and I still am.

Here I write about carving out a big, creative life in the country, the push / pull of motherhood and ambition, business and raising kids and what it’s like career-wise for me post life as a Japanese teacher.

I went on maternity leave from my teaching job in 2017 and never went back. These days, I work in educational publishing, I run professional development for teachers, I write textbooks, host a podcast and also happen to be the ‘office lady’ for my husband’s construction business. Thanks to a Starlink connection and a stellar team of help with our kids, I do all of this from a river-locked pocket of regional New South Wales. I love the creative expansiveness that regional life has both allowed and necessitated for us as a family.

My three wild paddock kids are seven, four and one - two boys and a girl. My eldest son has a lot of additional needs. He’s mainly non-verbal and has autism and ADHD. This amazing kid has sent me on a path as a mum I didn’t expect and I can’t imagine my life any other way. I write this here on my opening page of my blog because a) if you are in a similar boat I want you to know you are not alone and b) because raising this amazing kid is a defining feature of my life.

Sometimes my husband and I wonder if our lives might be a lot less chaotic if we got 9-5 jobs instead of running our own businesses and wanting to take on all sorts of creative and athletic pursuits, but it’s not our style and we are happy with that. (Doesn’t everyone want to cycle the Grafton to Inverell in their free time or train for half marathons?)

I’ve learnt since becoming a parent that creating and achieving outside of and alongside motherhood is very important to me and a huge part of my identity.

If you want to find out more, you can also check out Languages Roadshow or my LinkedIn.

You can contact me at kelly@languagesroadshow.com.au