Mother's Day

Mother's Day Q&A with Karoline Maria

This year we celebrate Mother's Day by focusing on one of the many inspiring women we work with. We’ve visited Karoline Maria in her family home in Aarhus, for a chat about Mother's Day and her new role as a mother.

What does Mother’s Day mean to you? Both as a daughter and as a mother?

I haven't yet tried to celebrate Mother's Day in my new role as a mother, but I'm looking forward to it. Now that she's so small, it's mostly on my boyfriend’s shoulders, so I’m excited to see what's going to happen. Fortunately, it is on the calendar as an anniversary, without me having to write it or throw hints at my boyfriend. It is of course nice to be recognized in the role as a mother, but I think my boyfriend is very good at doing it in everyday life.

I come from a large nuclear family with a mother, father and 4 children. Me and my two sisters especially always celebrated Mother's Day. It hasn't necessarily been anything big, but we always remembered and celebrated the day. For the past several years, I have given my mother a lunch or an experience to do together.

I feel that Mother's Day is a day to be extra grateful for having your mother, as well as for having the opportunity to be a mother yourself - not everyone has that opportunity. It's also something I think about a lot in my work with Instagram, especially on a day like Mother's Day, not to bombard my followers with posts, as it could easily be that there is someone who has lost their mother, or someone who is struggling with pregnancy.

You became a mother in the end of 2022, what is the best thing about your new role as a mother?

The feeling of happiness that comes from the smallest things. All the milestones are very big and just bring a feeling of total joy. Especially now that she has started to smile and laugh, it's so amazing knowing that you make another person so happy.

Has anything surprised you about your new role as a mother?

I felt that I was very well prepared for motherhood, because I have older siblings who have been through a lot on that front, both good and bad.

We are very lucky that Molly is an easygoing and really happy baby, and therefore we have not yet experienced the wildly hard periods that many describe. I'm sure we'll probably run into some hard times, but right now we're all having a really good time, and of course we're just enjoying that Molly is doing well and is happy and content.

What have you learned from your own mother that you would like to pass on to your child?

My mother is very honest and blunt, which is something I got from her, which I think is a strength. Openness and honesty have always been very important, and I have always felt that I could come to her with anything. It's really something I hope I can carry on with me, so that Molly feels she can always come to me no matter what happens.

What is important for you to preserve in your everyday life?

I try to hold on to the fact that there is more to me than being a mother. I am a relatively young mother and before we had Molly I went out with friends, drank a beer and was spontaneous - it is important for me, as far as possible, to stick to that.

I also think it's important to be able to speak about things other than children when I'm with my friends. It's important to me to preserve my identity, and some of the small things in everyday life that I have always appreciated. For example, my skin care routine, which I have luckily stuck to - and reaching out to my friends, remembering small and big things that happens in their lives.