A not-so-little, long-overdue update…
For those of you that have been following Mila’s Meals for a while, may have noticed that I have rarely posted to social media (or this blog) over the past year. This didn’t happen intentionally – I was (as usual) just following my gut. And my gut told me (by way of a gut-wrenching ‘ugh’ feeling) to just step away.
Why?
Well, Mila’s Meals is turning 10 this year! TEN!
Which means that I started this blog and my social media pages when social media and the internet were a very different beast.
How It All Began (and How It Changed)
Back in 2015, things were so different.
On Facebook, I quickly grew to 6,000 real, engaged followers without a cent of ad spend.
Instagram was easy, innocent, real, and raw — just post pictures (unfiltered!) of what you were cooking that day.
God – so much has changed and required me to pivot and adapt and learn new stuff…
- the numerous algorithm changes (you HAVE to show your face and post multiple times per day),
- app developments (hello reels and by the way you HAVE to make reels – I hate being on camera),
- software changes (bye-bye laboured gigabyte layered photoshop files that I spent hours creating – hello designer-job-stealing Canva
(FYI – I have a 3-year diploma in graphic design and 25 years’ experience but am now being asked by clients to fix what they attempted to create in Canva… 🙄).
And the trolls – oh my god – don’t forget the trolls and spam I had to wade through daily.
And then of course watching the Like count (or no-like count) after I spent days researching and writing an educational post.
Now – there’s ChatGPT — which, while clever, feels wrong for me as a writer, researcher and experimenter. This platform was always about my story, my experience, my hard-found knowledge. Outsourcing it to a bot or a social media manager just isn’t my way.
But to keep up with the algorithm and not make Instagram my full-time job, I guess that’s what I would have to do.
But I don’t want to.
Also – I hate being on camera.
(No – it’s not a challenge I should face and overcome – I see no reason why I should have to come to like or do something I really don’t enjoy. It’s not the dentist. That’s a dislike I must face.)
I also don’t want Mila’s face and life all over social media (which is why I didn’t put a photo of her on the cover of my book). I don’t want our personal lives available for public consumption.
The Joy That Got Lost
And then there’s the Joy of Cooking. Because that is what Mila’s Meals was always about. But, constantly showing up on Instagram with photos of what I was cooking stole the joy right out of my kitchen time…
I found myself:
- Rushing to finish dinner before the light faded so I could get a good photo.
- Eating cold meals because I spent too long styling photos.
- Stressing before school runs because I had to get a lunchbox shot.
- Planning meals around what I felt I “needed” to post.
- Obsessively cleaning my kitchen so it looked good on camera.
No man. That’s not joyful. That’s not why I started this.
And then the overwhelm of the 75 000 photos I have on my camera roll – most of which have not made it onto social media or this website – because they need to be cropped or edited or I needed to think of what to write in the post and which hashtags to use.
Oh God the hashtags.
And I’m still sulking about Canva and how many weeks of my life I wasted in layered photoshop files.
And all the time and effort spent – well, it doesn’t seem to be impacting anyone in a meaningful way because I get 2 likes on an Instagram post I spent a week creating.
Stepping Away
So I stepped away — for what I thought would be a month.
It’s been much longer than that.
And you know what? It’s been wonderful.
My kitchen is my happy place again!
I cook meals that Mila and I want to eat. And we eat them hot – after sunset!
My meal prep time is once again a gentle moving meditation – just me peeling and chopping veggies in the fading sunlight, then unhurriedly cooking them in a messy kitchen, and serving them without thinking about what the plating looks like. An uninterrupted intuitive slow dance of method and fragrance and flavour – and CONVERSATION with Mila.
Most importantly — it’s about connection again. With the food, with the act of cooking, and with Mila. No photos. No performance. Just presence.
What bliss!
Counting the Costs — and Choosing Differently
What does this mean for my little business and brand that in these days requires a presence on social media?
What about the other aspects of this venture that are not bringing me joy?
- The cost of it all (I spent A LOT of money just on the printing of two editions my book – then there’s all the costs of keeping the online business eco system running)
- The “Maybe Money” nature of being an entrepreneur. “If I do this, maybe it will generate some income.”
- The time-consuming nature of this business I created.
- Reconciling the financial and time expenditure with being a mom to my only child – who, in 5 short years will be going off to university to live her independent life. I only have 5 years left of this full-time parenting gig!! I don’t want to spend it working 7 days a week and stressing about how to pay the bills.
My Promise to God
So, with all these mixed feelings towards what has essentially been my second child, I had to also look at what fueled me all these years. Yes, I was passionate about nutrition for kids and the power of food to be medicine. But it was more than that.
It was a promise I had made to God.
Back in 2008 I was the victim of an armed home invasion. While tied up at gun point for 3 hours I made a few promises to God. One of them was:
“If you get me out of this, I will live a life of meaning – in service.”
So, when, as a new mom in 2012 I faced the challenge of feeding my daughter intolerant-friendly food I saw this as my opportunity to be of service – to live a life of meaning by helping other new moms and their children.
Obviously, I don’t want to break my promise.
But – I can only do 1 of 2 things properly.
I can either nurture my child, or I can nurture my brand.
Right now, I need to be of service to myself and my daughter.
What This Means for Mila’s Meals
Which brings me here.
Mila’s Meals turns 10 on 9 December 2025. I’m amazed at the reach it has had and that my book has stayed relevant for a decade. But now, Mila is a teenager. My memories of feeding a baby and toddler are fading, and so is my passion for teaching people about that stage of life (more on that in another post).
It feels like the right time to close this chapter.
Ending the Decade Strong
But first – I have 75 000 photos, a collection of recipes and recorded masterclasses all clogging up my hard drive gathering virtual dust. If unused these would all be wasted time and if used could potentially help to people (I do still love to help people).
So, my intention is to finish the decade of Mila’s Meals strong.
This is not an ending so much as the beginning of the last chapter.
Over the next few months, I’ll be sharing the photos, recipes, and lessons that never made it online — the parts of Mila’s Meals that have been quietly waiting in the wings. My hope is that they’ll still nourish and inspire, even as I close this decade-long chapter.
Thank You
If you’ve read this far — thank you.
If you’ve followed my journey and been impacted by Mila’s Meals — thank you.
Your presence has mattered more than you know.
Please feel free to leave a comment — my mojo needs motivation as I share this final season of Mila’s Meals.
With love,
Catherine
