Creative Mums'
Angela van Boxtel
Angela van Boxtel, proud mum of four and local manly resident is the producer of a web portal named ‘Creative Mums’ that encourage and empower women to do their most important job of being a mum, while realising their own dreams and passions.
Mandala Belly Painting
More info: www.creativemums.com.au
Angela’s boys are obviously her number one passion, but she hasn’t lost sight of her own creative ideas and future aspirations. She believes in the importance of mums being there for their children in their formative years and still being able to achieve their own goals. She is interviewed by Janine Brown.
Janine Brown: You have an accent. Tell me where you are from and how long you have been here?
Angela van Boxtel: I am from the Netherlands and have been in Australia for about 7 years.
J B: You seem very community minded and proud to be a Manly resident?
A v B: Absolutely. When I first arrived in Australia we were staying in a hotel in the city. It wasn’t at all what I had expected. Someone recommended I take a look at Manly and I fell in love with it and have been living here ever since. It is such a beautiful place to bring up children. I love to start the day with a coffee on the waterfront of the wharf as the boys play happily on the sand.
J B: Tell me what motivated you to become passionate about encouraging mums to celebrate their achievements?
A v B:When I had my first child 12 years ago computers and internet was just emerging as a tool to connect us with the rest of the world. It opened up so many opportunities for people to run successful businesses from home. When I came to Australia it was an exciting time for mums who wanted to create a job they could do from home and be with their children. There are so many opportunities now for mums. I also want mums to realise that being a mum is such an important job and children grow up so quickly so there will be more time in the future so they should not lose sight of what they want to achieve but at the same time not wish the children’s younger years away, but enjoy every moment of every stage.
J B: You talked about how we can make excuses about having to do certain things rather than prioritising. What do you mean by this?
A v B: I believe we all have choices. We can say we need to do a certain job to pay a mortgage or we can choose to sacrifice the big mortgage and the plasma T.V. for a modest unit and the closeness and beauty of being able to walk to Manly and enjoy as a family.
Angela is an incredibly talented and creative artist. You can tell her proudest achievement is her children. Creative Mums previously ran an Art & Writing competition ‘Mum= Mum 2’ in collaboration with Our Manly exploring women's connection with their mothers and grandmothers. For more information on Angela go to www.creativemums.com.au
