Mom-fluencer: Tessa Huff

This May, we’re honouring motherhood by chatting with some of our favourite mom bloggers, influencers and content creators about the highs, the lows and the many moments in-between. —Vita Daily

Hi Tessa! Tell us a little bit about you and what do you do!?

I am a trained baker turned blogger, food photographer and cookbook author. My second cookbook, Icing on the Cake, was just released in April where I share hundreds of recipes and photos of my favourite decorative desserts and cakes. First and foremost, I’m a full-time mom to two little ones. When I am not chasing after my four-year-old or snuggling my baby girl, I am a freelance recipe developer and photographer for websites like Food Network Canada, The Cake Blog, The Kitchn and more.

How do you use your platform to impact other moms—and parents—who follow you?

I use my platform to both educate and inspire home bakers. I share all of my tips and tricks from years working in professional kitchens and how to translate those experiences into real-life settings (i.e., our home kitchens while trying to raise children). Beyond the baking, I’ve used my platform to connect with a community of other moms and parents. I post a lot of pretty pictures of cakes and pies, but I try to be transparent about what it’s really like to work from home with two small children. Knowing that we are not alone trying to figure out that work-life balance definitely helps.

What’s your personal style/beauty mantra?

Since I work from home, I make it a point to still get dressed and throw on a fresh face most mornings. Even if I don’t get anything else accomplished that day (and let’s face it, taking cake of an eight-month old and four-year-old means sometimes that happens), at least I can feel like myself. I have a preppy, classic style and I’m not afraid of a bold lip colour.

What would the Mother’s Day of your fantasies be? And what, in reality, does Mother’s Day usually look like at your house?

It’s no surprise that I love spending time in the kitchen. In addition to baking, I love to cook savoury dishes, too. The ideal Mother’s Day would be to take a cooking class with my mom and spend the afternoon with my kids. Realistically, I’d be happy to go grocery shopping by myself and then cook us all a tasty meal. Plus new plants for the patio.

Did motherhood come easy to you, or were there challenges (if so, any in particular you’d like to share)?

Motherhood came fairly natural to me, but I would never say being a mom is easy. Thankfully, I was blessed with two beautiful, perfectly healthy babies and a strong support system, so there haven’t been any unexpected challenges so far beyond the lack of sleep and loads of laundry. Learning that what worked for my son doesn’t necessarily apply to my daughter and accepting that they have two separate personalities and needs helped get over some of the hurdles the second time around.

The hardest thing about being a mom? The best thing?

Time! Trying to balance it all has definitely been the hardest part about being a mom. You’d think that since you are waking up earlier and getting way less sleep that you might be able to squeeze in more time, but no. I’m so grateful for a job that allows me to stay home full-time with my kids, but that means I work a lot of nights and weekends. Even after they’ve exhausted me all week, it’s still hard to miss out on weekend activities here and there when I have deadlines to meet. The best thing is seeing how much my daughter adores her big brother and how my son thinks of her as his baby. They are treew years apart, and their love for each other brings me so much joy.

Follow Tessa on Instagram and her blog. Photo by Crystal Sing.