Poetic Delights: Coffee, Cake, and the Art of Words with Abi Hayes

Speaker 1: Work at your own timeline, because I think that's the thing as well. We put these expectations on ourselves and actually just enjoy the creative process and carve it out. whenever you get those moments, carry a pen and notepad with you. That's my tip. 

Speaker 2: Welcome to the Moms Who Create podcast. I'm your host, Kelli Heil, and I am thrilled to share a podcast that celebrates the incredible moms who are pursuing their creative passions. Are you a mom who feels like you just can't balance your creative pursuits with the demands of motherhood? Each week, I'm bringing you interviews with accomplished and talented moms who have made their creative dreams a reality. I talk to writers, artists, musicians and entrepreneurs who have successfully found a way to do what they love while raising the ones they love. Some of the writers I talk to are New York Times bestselling authors, while some are self-published first-time authors. I also share my own insights and resources to help you navigate the unique challenges of being a mom who creates. So, whether you're an early bird or a night owl, a seasoned pro or just starting out, I want you to know that you can pursue your creative passions and be an amazing mom at the same time. Grab a cup of coffee, a notebook and get ready to join our community of like-minded moms who are on a mission to live intentionally and create with purpose. This is the Moms Who Create podcast, and I can't wait to share this journey with you. Hi everyone, and welcome back to this week's episode of the Moms Who Create podcast. 

Speaker 2: I have a really fun episode today with Abby Hayes. Abby is a poet, cake maker and coffee drinker living on the east side of Scotland. I love cake, I love coffee, I love poetry. I love the fact that I'm in Scotland on my bucket list. I knew when I got connected with Abby that it was going to be a good time. Her book, Coffee and Wildflowers is a collection of poetic remedies and delicious cake recipes which has been described as a comfort for the soul. Alongside her writing, Abby founded Storyteller Creative Club last year to nurture the next generation of young artists. She's passionate about supporting children with their mental health and well-being through creativity and the expressive arts. You're going to love Abby. I love Abby. We're best friends now. 

Speaker 2: Enjoy today's episode. Abby, it's so nice to meet you. Thank you so much for being here and talking all the way from Scotland. You're in Scotland right now. Thank you, Yes, Thank you so much for having me. It's lovely joining you. Absolutely, This is so much fun. It's so nice to meet you. I just ordered your book yesterday and it will come tomorrow. I wish it was here today, but it's going to be one day late, But you know what? 

Speaker 1: You'll hear a bit about it today, and then you'll get to read it tomorrow. 

Speaker 2: It'll be even better when I read it, because I'll know the next Sorry. Go ahead and just start off by telling everybody about you. Go ahead and introduce yourself to everybody. 

Speaker 1: Okay, i am a poet, a coffee drinker and a cake maker. By day I work at an elementary school and then by night I am a creative writer, which is my passion. So I've always been creative in some way, whether it's the cake making, which I had a cupcake business for a little while, and then when I moved to Scotland, i joined a creative writing class and that's kind of how the poetry started, and now I just can't imagine not writing. It's just one of those natural habits that I love and makes me feel like the best version of myself. So that's my writing intro Nice. 

Speaker 2: I love how you said that. It just kind of makes you feel like you and it makes you just kind of feel complete as a person. I hear that from so many writers. If they weren't writing, they wouldn't feel like themselves. They wouldn't feel complete or whole. So I love when people find their thing that makes you feel you and fills your cup. I think it's great. It's great. 

Speaker 1: Well, I just feel I can be the best version of myself for the people around me as well. You know when I'm doing what kind of sparks my passion. I can then be the best version of myself for them. I also love seeing my kids find their passions. I think that's really special as well, when you see them find the thing that they love. 

Speaker 2: So you do a couple things You have the Storyteller Creative Club, and then you have your book Coffee and Wildflowers. So can you just tell us about all that? 

Speaker 1: Yeah, and they both kind of grew at the same time just naturally, which was so lovely. I never set out to write a book. I joined a creative writing class when I moved to Scotland to kind of meet people and actually just have that time for myself. So every Tuesday would be my writing evening and that's the evening I would put aside for myself. And after a while at these classes I realised I was forming a collection of poetry. So it all just happened quite naturally. And then, because I love cake, the recipes that I create also found their way into the book. So it's poetry and recipes that follow the journey from the perspective of Hattie Cartwright, the main character, and she is leaving behind a life that wasn't right for her and she is on this journey to find a sense of belonging and connection, which I think is important to a lot of people, to find that community. And she starts a little cake shop which is where the recipes come in. So that's her, it's kind of her recipes. I could read a poem for you now. 

Speaker 2: Oh, I would absolutely love that Yes. 

Speaker 1: so this is one of the poems quite near the start of the book and it's all about Hattie leaving her life behind. and a recipe ties into this poem as well. So this is called Accept Nothing Less. I spent too long gathering up the crumbs of love he left for me, unwanted, on his plate. So I teach myself to bake, and soon my kitchen table is lined with cake after cake, the kind with buttercream frosting and rainbow sprinkles and a cherry on top. And he can see I'm not starving anymore. He tells me I'll regret it, too much sugar will make me sick, but the crumbs should be enough for me. but I deserve the whole damn cake. And the next recipe in the book is that whole damn cake, and it's a very indulgent chocolate cupcake recipe. So that's how the story kind of blows. 

Speaker 2: Abby, that's so unique I've never I've like this is so cool. I've never heard of a mixture of like like. It's like a poetry cookbook, it's yeah, i mean it's unique, yeah. 

Speaker 1: So it's just my passions and I decided to combine them and this, this is what happened. So I've really enjoyed writing that. You know, i just I got so much joy in it. And then, because of the magic that I feel comes from my creativity, i then started a children's creative club so that they could feel that magic as well. So I do it in my local community and it's called Storyteller Creative Club, and because I work in an elementary school, there there is so much research between creativity and children's mental health, and so a lot of the creative club I do and it's a mindful approach and we do journal prompts to start, and they have their own personal life journals, and then we'll do collaborative poetry or we'll do collage art canvases, just for the complete joy of it. You know, i just want them to completely feel like they are creating, just to create. 

Speaker 2: That is so cool. So what would you? I don't think you said it. What did you start that? 

Speaker 1: I think because I'd written the book and I went into a school and I was doing an author talk with them and they were asking such brilliant questions. You know, kids ask the best questions. 

Speaker 1: Oh and it was so entertaining and they were asking me about how they could do writing and things and I thought, do you know what I can work with these children to help them on their creative journeys? and I feel like that's how I can help. you know the next artist? So it's just in my local community. I do it at my local library. I was doing it at the school as an afterschool club And it's just the magic that comes out of it is really special. The next kind of step, which is what I'm working on at the moment, is a children's poetry collection and journal and prompts and affirmations. 

Speaker 2: I love that. 

Speaker 1: Yeah, because I just think kids are just magic, you know, and I just think to work with them and if they're creative, creativity also improves mental health, then it's just such a special thing to do. 

Speaker 2: Oh it is. That's like it's the best of both worlds, you're doing something fun and creative and my favorite part of life, and it also just enhances their life and their mental health. I mean, you couldn't get any better than that, because you found that out and you tied those two together and you've created this amazing things, this amazing thing for children. That's just incredible, like thank you for doing that for all the children. 

Speaker 1: Well, i just, i just love it And hopefully I honestly I think they do as well. So it's really special. 

Speaker 2: So special And I'm still just mind blown from your poetry cookbook. 

Speaker 1: You know you have to try and make one of the recipes when your coffee arrives. 

Speaker 2: I've never seen that Like, maybe I haven't, maybe something like that's out there, like, or was it a completely new concept that you came up with? 

Speaker 1: I haven't seen it before? No, i don't think I have It. Just it just kind of all came together. 

Speaker 2: How many children do you have? 

Speaker 1: So I have two. I have Lucy is seven and then Cameron is nine. So do you know? what has been so lovely is the way that they support my creativity. I think because you know that transition to parenthood, when they become your priority, you know they. You know their gymnastics classes, their piano classes, their football, all of these things. They see me prioritize those things And the lovely thing is they then know that my creative writing class is my, is the thing that's for me. You know that's my passion. They are at my poetry events cheering me on. They're my biggest fans. So I think as a family, you kind of support each other through those things. 

Speaker 2: And that's such an inspiration to your children to see them. You know you're following your passions and it helps them to know I can have this too. This could be my thing. This is mom's thing. I can put everything into it. Look what I can look, what can spawn from it when I do. 

Speaker 1: And actually I think becoming a mom is probably what empowered me to do it. You know you tell your children to follow follow their dreams, so I need to listen to my own advice. You know I actually have a poem that I've written recently about this. Can I read it to you? This isn't in the book. This is one that I actually wrote a couple of weeks ago when I was talking to a friend about. you know how empowering motherhood can be. 

Speaker 2: I love it, thank you. 

Speaker 1: It doesn't even have a title yet, it's just, you know, work in progress. 

Speaker 2: I love it. We're getting a special like insider listen Preview. 

Speaker 1: They say you lose your identity when you become a mother. But after you I found mine. Me before you feels like a million lifetimes ago. You are my first thought in the morning, my final thought at night. You are the dark times, you are the light. The way you love me empowers me. I tell you every day believe in yourself, love yourself, cherish yourself. And I think I've been listening to my own words. They say you lose your identity when you become a mother. But after you I found mine. 

Speaker 2: That is so powerful. Oh, that's so sweet. I love that, i do. 

Speaker 1: I do think that's the same for a lot of parents. You know, it really is. 

Speaker 2: I've talked about it so many times that everything that I feel like I do in my life now, whether it's creative or something I want to just start or like a goal, i feel like I didn't have that perseverance and that go get a attitude that I did before I had children For some reason all the chaos and messiness of having children and I literally have no idea what it is. but it's helped me and my journey of just becoming a better me. And then it helps them. you know, like I said earlier, it helps them to want to go after their goals and go oh, mommy's doing this, i can do this too. 

Speaker 2: And motherhood is such it's so empowering, it's just so I don't it's such a journey. It is. 

Speaker 1: Isn't it? I think our time is so precious, because you know the time we set aside for ourselves. now you have to make the most of that time, because there's so much going on, isn't there? But actually, the time you carve out for yourself, you like you need to do what you want to do in that time. 

Speaker 2: Right, I love that poem. That was so beautiful. Are you coming out with like another poetry book? Do you have one in the works? You know? 

Speaker 1: I don't. I think probably I am. I write all the time, so it'll just. I'm not putting any pressure on myself. That is one thing. I just want to enjoy it. I don't ever want to put pressure on. You know I get my own pace, i'm on my own time scale And because you know we have a lot going on with with our children and with outside work and things, so I want to enjoy the process. But I have a lot of poems in my notes app. I will say that You know those moments that you catch when you drop your children at a club or you you're dropping them at daycare or whatever, and you maybe have like 45 minutes. That's. that's when I seem to do my best work, like you know, sitting with my pen and notepad or in the notes app on my phone. I'm like this this time is precious. 

Speaker 2: Right. And that kind of leads me to my next question is how do you find that balance as a mom with, i mean, your kids? your kids are still under 10. I still consider that you know you have to help them with everything and they're small. So finding those pockets of time is that kind of like go to on how you balance your creative life in motherhood. 

Speaker 1: Yeah, I think when I wrote coffee and wildflowers, when I was getting to a point when I knew that I wanted to publish collection, it would be first thing in the morning, which is, i mean, it's hard because my kids are also early risers, but you know, an hour in the morning, half an hour in the morning, make myself a cup of tea, sit down at my desk in the quiet and just do a bit of writing then. 

Speaker 1: And then I think, having my Tuesday evenings that I carved out for myself and having the commitment of going to a writing class, because it would be very easy to say, oh, i can't tonight, you know there's other things going on, but actually because I've committed to that class and there's, you know, there's other people that go to it and I want to spend that time with the writing community it's really made me carve out that time. So actually, if you know, for anyone who is wanting to make that time to be creative or to do writing, i think joining some kind of group is such a special thing, even an online group. I'm also part of an online poetry group called The Poetry Club with poet Shelby Lee, and that was great during lockdown because obviously we couldn't go to a physical group. So we joined online And just having that commitment and other people who were doing the same as you when have the same passions as you, it's so encouraging and it really makes me want to carve out that time as well. 

Speaker 2: It's so true, surrounding yourself with people who do what you do, or think. 

Speaker 1: Absolutely. 

Speaker 2: And if you can find some other moms in who do or like who are writers, or something that also helps, because they're also on the same boat. So any group I've heard, I've heard so many people talk about, you know, find a writing group, your people, whatever community it is or a group, and you can find so many things online now, you know. Like if you don't have, if you just don't have that time to go to an in-person group. there's so many things you could find online, so many resources, So excellent. 

Speaker 1: Absolutely, yeah, especially, you know, when you've got children and maybe you can't leave to physically go to a group, just being able to do it when they go to bed, or you know, it's really, really special to have that community. They've been so supported with me and you know we encourage each other in the whole process, which is really lovely. But you know, another thing is just don't put pressure on work at your own timeline, because I think that's the thing as well. We put these expectations on ourselves and actually just enjoy the creative process and carve it out. Whenever you get those moments, carry a pen and notepad with you. That's my tip. 

Speaker 1: Ooh that's good All times. 

Speaker 2: And, for example, you're not putting pressure on yourself. You have a lot of poems that you do, but you're not like oh, this winter I'm going to put out a poetry book, so I need to pop it out. You're letting it naturally come to you, which, in turn, is probably going to make it an even better book. If you do make another book, yeah, i think I will. 

Speaker 1: I think I will because I've enjoyed this so much with this one, you know, and it's still a process. I'm still doing events and things like that for this book, which I just love doing, and I love connecting with people and I love how people say this book helps them and heals them and like that's why I put it into the world, you know, and I think when I get those messages it's really special. 

Speaker 2: Oh, that makes it even worth it right there, not even just doing it for yourself, but seeing that it has an impact on other people, that has to do with it Just the best feeling. 

Speaker 1: Oh, it's really lovely. 

Speaker 2: Where are you from originally? Originally. 

Speaker 1: Well, I live in Scotland now, but I'm from England. Do you notice that I don't have a Scottish accent? Yeah, or do you know the same? 

Speaker 2: I've talked to somebody from Scotland before and honestly, i had a really hard time understanding that. 

Speaker 1: So I was like I hope I can understand Abby if she's from Scotland. 

Speaker 2: I was in. I've only been to England once, but I was there once and I had this taxi driver that was just. It was just an accent Like yours, but it was so thick And I was like, what are you saying? I don't know, but usually, like, your accent's just beautiful. 

Speaker 1: Were you in London. 

Speaker 2: Or about a city in the world. 

Speaker 1: I mean, i, yeah, i love London. That's where we lived before My husband's Scottish, so Okay, okay, so you moved up there, oh yes, so we moved up here And so my book is actually Hattie Cartwright Leaves London for Scotland. So it does mirror in that way. So I know that feeling of leaving the big city and going to live by the sea, and I do. You know, i wouldn't change it. I love living by the sea And Scotland is so lovely, so beautiful. 

Speaker 2: I went to New York this year, though, so and I love New York, my kids but we let them pick where they wanted to go on fall break for school. Last year, and my daughter was like New York, I want to go to New York City, cause she'd been like once She's never, tried before that. 

Speaker 2: So we went and then for spring break we're like, where do you want to go for spring break? And they were like New York And I'm like I love New York but I don't know if I want to go back again for spring break. You know, i have so many people that say, oh, they're not going to remember this, they're not going to remember that. I'm like I mean, they might, they might not, but seeing them experience, i'm going to remember it. Yeah, it's yeah. 

Speaker 1: Oh, definitely, i think we remember these things. We do You know, even if they do. 

Speaker 2: And seeing, like re-seeing places through your children's eyes is like they'll notice things that I had never noticed, or just everything. 

Speaker 1: Also, maybe you do things that you wouldn't have done before. you had children as well, because that's what I'm looking forward to going to New York with my children and seeing it through their eyes. I think that would be amazing. 

Speaker 2: I'm excited for you to come to New York. That'll be fun. 

Speaker 1: I know Well, we're also going on a cruise down to the Bahamas, So it's quite exciting Yeah. 

Speaker 2: That's going to be really fun. It's like a trip. So, yeah, there you go. Yeah, that's so cool. You're coming here and I'm like, get me over there. I'm going to go to Scotland. There was this Netflix movie that I watched. It was like last Christmas, i think it came out. No, it's going to come out again. The. 

Speaker 1: Christmas one with Brooke Peel? Yes. 

Speaker 2: I watched it with my mom. 

Speaker 1: We were like you know, Love that movie. 

Speaker 2: I want to go to a castle. I want to like. 

Speaker 1: You know that is film not far from where I live. So if you come and visit we will go and visit that castle. 

Speaker 2: Oh my goodness, that's how I'm all after this Castle one. I was such a terrible but amazing movie, You know I know right, as most of the Homeark movies are, i'm getting away from you. Ok, let's see. 

Speaker 1: I know, sorry, i could honestly just talk all day. 

Speaker 2: Yeah, so we're going to be friends now. Ok, so I'm going to message you. We're going to talk about. 

Speaker 1: Oh, absolutely. 

Speaker 2: Scotland, New York, Brookshild. You're the best. Thank you for talking to me. I love your accent. I just love your book. I love your. I can't wait to do your recipes. Just everything about you is just the best. Abby, thank you so much for talking with me today. Where can people go online to connect with you in social media and also find your book to buy? 

Speaker 1: Well, thank you so much for having me, first of all, because it's just been lovely chatting to you about everything creative. I could talk to you all day, but so you can find me on Instagram, abbeybi underscore storyteller, and from there you can link through to my website, find coffee and wildflowers on Amazon And that's where. That's where you can find me, and I just hope you enjoy the book and you do some delicious baking And let me know how the recipes go. 

Speaker 2: So how are you doing on your reading journey this year? Did you do my 2023 reading challenge? I, personally, am trying to read 24 books this year. I am at 16, i think almost 17, which is amazing. I'm not putting pressure on myself, but I'm giving myself that time to read And it's really paying off. 

Speaker 2: Well, i invite you to join the Moms Who Create Book Club. Go to Facebook, search, literally Moms Who Create Book Club. It'll come up, join And every month, we read one book And we meet on Zoom once a month and talk about it. So it's not something that takes over your life or you have to find childcare for your kids. It's one day a month we talk about a book. So if you just joined that, there's 12 books in one year. So if you're used to reading like three, there's 12. If you're reading like 52, then there's 12 of your 52, i guess. Anyway, join the book club. We would love to have you. Don't forget to connect with the podcast on social media on Instagram at Moms Who Create Podcast, and on Facebook at Moms Who Create Podcast. Thank you so, so, so, so, so much for listening. I hope you're having a great summer. I'll see you next week.