Nat Millar’s 25,000-strong community
Beginning with a call-out for fellow parents to spend some time with at the park, and ending with a supportive and vibrant community of 25,000 Logan mums – Nat Millar’s Mums n’ Bubs Logan group has had quite the evolution.
Nat’s two to three weekly playgroups and enormously active Facebook group – which has dozens of posts a day, along with regular Facebook lives by parenting experts, community service providers, and more – are a lifeline to many women seeking connection with others grappling with motherhood.
And despite the growing numbers and high volume of posts, Nat still runs the group single-handedly, even after 12 years. She’s the trusted face to all it’s members, keeping confidences, ensuring the group remains supportive, and arranging for an array of in-demand experts and professionals to connect with the group.
It’s not what she originally had planned.
“When one of my sons was a baby, I wanted to hang out with some other mums and didn’t know how – so I put a call out on a parenting forum to meet in the park; a few of us met andI made a Facebook group, and it just grew from there,” says Nat.
“Now it’s a real community. The mums in the group offer real support to each other and rally around group members going through challenging times.
“There is also plenty of joking around and fun in there as well.”
“I love this community of mums and seeing that they are looking out for each other is so rewarding”
— Nat Millar
The group recently hit 25,000 members. Many have been there for years, and no longer need advice around babies and toddlers – but they stay for the connection.
While there’s mostly nothing off the table within the group, there are certain emotive topics – such as immunisation/vaccination, circumcision, religion and politics – which are not up for chat. It’s to stop divisiveness, says Nat, and to keep the group a positive place for parents. But she does refer members with questions about these topics to places that can offer impartial advice.
The women-only group consists mostly of Logan mums, but does have members from across the region, and even from other countries.
The support offered by the group online and during the playgroups – which are held at daycare centres, parks, swimming pools, community centres and more across the city – has expanded even more in the past year.
Upon request, Nat provides Mums n’ Bubs members with a car sticker, to display as a signal to other mums that they are in the group. So far, more than 500 have been given out.
“It has been a great thing. We get people saying that they have deliberately parked next to a car with the sticker because they know it’s a friendly person. It has started up conversations between people in the group while they are out in the community,” says Nat.
“It’s great to see. I love this community of mums and seeing that they are looking out for each other is so rewarding.”
If you’re a Logan mum yet to join the community – you can find the group here. There’s also Mums n’ Bubs selling groups, What’s On groups and an information hub.
