e027 – Mommin’ Off Grid – with Jaimie Jolly

Sticking with the theme of inspiring women for the month of March, Sabrina interviews You've Got This, Boss Mama contributor, and serial entrepreneur Jaimie Jolly. They talk about all things living off-grid, raising children in the bush and building a successful business while living in the country. Jaimie knows a thing or two about beauty: as a professional make-up artist, permanent make-up artist and educator, elite micro-blading technician, health and wellness consultant and certified aesthetician, she brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to her craft, making her one of the most sought after beauty professionals across Canada. Jaimie has worked out of boutique salons throughout the country, continuously staying on top of the newest trends and techniques. A natural-born entrepreneur, Jaimie has founded 3 enterprises, including owning and operating her own spa, all before the age of 30. She currently coaches other women in business, networking, and skills development. Jaimie's got a mighty impressive bio, but don't be intimidated. She's as down to earth as they come. Quick with a laugh, and low maintenance, this beauty professional lives east of the Muskokas in the off-grid cordwood home she and her husband built in the bush. Here, you'll find them raising their 3 kids, tending to their animals, and mucking around outdoors. You might say Jaimie leads a double life: homesteader and jet-setter. Sabrina shares her obsession with off-grid living and her now, not-so-secret desire to be that family. She shares her favorite homesteaders, YouTube sensations Wild Wonderful Off-Grid or you can follow them on Instagram too! Jaimie shares that she grew up in suburban Toronto, she loved going to the cottage growing up and moved to that small town when she was 19. She talks about her “dirty hippie husband” who was the one that introduced her to off-grid living and a greener way of life. She was the girl that was used to having really hot showers and blowdrying her hair daily and dove into a massive change when she became a woman living off-grid, in a yurt and being a little bit different. The mamas dive into what it looks like and takes to raise children with free thinking rather than over scheduling and over stimulating. Living in the bush means playing with dirt and animals, without the common distractions so many of us have in our lives today. She shares how off-grid living has provided perspective in a sense. Things that we so often take for granted, like clean abundant water, are things you learn how to respect. She talks about how it is really all her children know, as they have never experienced a different lifestyle. Her children do go to school, although she dabbled in home-schooling for a while. The mamas talk about the infamous mom guilt and how we stress ourselves out about the smallest things. Sabrina shares that kids will not remember the little things and these will not traumatize them for life. We need to learn to stop helicopter parenting and let them be wild. Children need a certain level of autonomy and freedom to explore their own surroundings. They talk about what a yurt is and the structure of what it really means to be "off-grid"  from a government perspective. Jaimie and her family lived in the yurt for two years before they built the rest of their house, now the yurt remains their master bedroom. She shares some funny #yurtlife stories, like finding a snake trapped in the wall. Jaimie explains the intricacies of her "double life" and what it really means to be a successful business owner and also live in the bush.  She has a feminist point of view when it comes to the beauty industry and about how women should feel. The beauty industry often gets a bad reputation for encouraging women to butcher themselves. Jaimie stands strong in her advocacy to support women feeling beautiful, whatever that means to them. She is very passionate about her work and loves wh...