We start the rubric ‘Mom vs. Work’ to share stories of the moms who deal with the unfathomable combination of motherhood and personal goals and dreams. We believe that these stories will help the moms who need a little help to make the first steps and follow their dreams.
She will introduce herself later in the post, but let me tell you how we see her. We, being creators and artists ourselves, have seen various styles and creative approaches in areas such as kids’ interior, games, books, illustrations and toys… But we’ve never seen such original ideas! They turn the world of the Kinderlist blog into a magic fairy tale such as you can only see in your dreams. The transformation of natural materials (not only paper) into characters from childrens’ books and imagination is something never seen before. It is as personal as the story of Tzvetana’s motherhood and her way of following her dreams. We met through the toys and we liked each other. Then we let her in our world and now she lets us in hers.
My name is Tzvetana Nedeva and I am an artist. I have a blog - Kinderlist where I create decors and paper toys and I organize art activities for children. I am also a mother of two: Kai and Pirina.
It all started with the blog, Kinderlist. I started it just after I gave birth to my son Kai. The concept was to share my interaction with my kids, my family and the children’s books in my library through pictures and short stories. Through the years the activities that were inspired by the books became more and more interesting. I started creating art projects for children at home - paper decorations, games and photo shoots of the books. Then somebody called me from a publishing house with a proposal to help with the presentation of a new children’s book. They believed I was the one who could come up with an interesting idea. We started collaborating. Step by step, other brands contacted me as well. Suddenly, I found myself ready to get involved in bigger projects and I jumped at the opportunity to make a paper set for the video of the song ‘Bad habit’ by Preya. That is how I started to create sets for video productions, events and to decorate store fronts.
I feel so happy thinking that I do something I really want. Every new project is a dream come true. Every time I grab the scissors with so much delight because I want to, not because I have to. A couple of years ago I would say that I wanted to be anything, to try whatever new opportunities I came across just because they were interesting. Today I think to myself that I want to be the best I can be and believe that I’ve now found my thing.
I am a mother of two: Kai is 5 years old and Pirina is almost 3. We decided together with my husband that I would look after both of them at home during the first three years and then they weren’t admitted to kindergarten.
The first thing that came to my mind was that I love to work as much as I need to be a parent. As long as I have ideas I will for sure find the time and the way to make them happen.
The most difficult part is to enjoy motherhood. Everybody says that kids are growing fast and that we have to enjoy each and every moment with them and I completely agree. But It is difficult to seize the moment and enjoy instead of thinking about what I am missing, whether my kids are happy and whether I have done enough. I am often torn between the feeling that my life is wonderful and the thought that I should not only enjoy it, but also put more effort into keeping it that way.
Putting the children to sleep and not having the energy for my work afterwards.
I don’t think there is a way to take some time off from motherhood because normally it is always in your mind. But I believe that when you have somebody to share your emotions with, everything is easier. Then motherhood is not something that you have to handle and that you need to take rest of. It becomes the key element of a happy life.
I strongly believe in female power and I know that I can handle most things by myself. But I feel most powerful when I think that I have a partner by my side who has the same understanding of the word family. He doesn’t measure who does more chores than the other, and wants my happiness as much as his own. I can rely on him in tough moments and I know that in hard times I can share anything with him and I will receive understanding.
I don’t have time for many things but I realize that I couldn’t handle all the things I was interested in even before the kids were born. I even think that now I am more organized and determined. Kids can be great drivers of change when we realize they don’t only need to be served but they need communication as well. Also, their needs are as important as the parents' needs. I want to have experiences that I can share with my kids. I want them to see me happy. I want to enjoy the fact that they take after me.
My hack for an easy day with the kids is that I don’t isolate them from my activities, I try to include them. Of course, I often find myself as part of their activities and this brings me joy. Of course I need a little privacy in the mornings and I find it right after breakfast. That is the time when the children play for 30-40 min by themselves and I get my alone time. But don’t think that everything is peaceful and perfect in my family. Sometimes we are completely at odds about our day activities, me and the children, especially when I am pressed for deadlines. My day often starts in a rush which makes me even more anxious. Sometimes the atmosphere is tense but whatever the emotions are I always remind myself about the love we have for each other. This always leads me in the right direction.
I can’t imagine my life without having hobbies, interests, goals and dreams. I believe they can change but every person has to have them to have a meaningful life. I won the battle the moment I realized that nothing stops me from having them. Before that I would set my own boundaries for a while.
I dream of not being pressed for time and by the material side of life. I dream of being and creating what I feel with my heart. I believe that this is the only way to be the best version of yourself. I dream of traveling and of experiencing new feelings, and of gaining knowledge with all my senses. I dream of being carefree.
