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Akeye | Immigrant Mum of 4 in Calgary

@aakeye

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For the mum who wants a full life, without the guilt.
🇳🇬→🇨🇦 Mum of 4 | Accountant turned PM
Faith-led | Routines | Calgary Gems
💌 [email protected]

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Pastor Nath said recount. So here’s mine. 🥹

And with Thanksgiving coming up, I couldn’t think of a better time.

We moved to Canada with a solid plan, or so we thought. Then came twins, a high-risk pregnancy, 5.am bus commutes, savings that ran out and so many in-betweens a 90 second reel cannot carry.

I used to take my kids with me on every work trip, no matter the extra cost. Then letting my daughter go for a while became the best decision for her, and the hardest decision I have ever had to make.

Today, we are a million miles from where we were. Thank You, Abba, for being so mindful of us. 🙏🏾

If you're carrying guilt over a hard choice you made for your children: a hard decision made in love is not failure. Give yourself grace❤️

To anyone starting over in a new country, career, season, chapter who can’t see past where you are right now: there is no permanent situation, only a permanently loving Abba. If He has done it before, He will do it again. 🤍

Send this to someone who needs encouragement, and follow along. This story is only just beginning.

#hallelujahchallenge #immigrantmum #momof4 #thanksgiving #japa by @aakeye

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9 days ago

If your career feels all over the place, maybe it isn’t.

I used to think mine was a series of unrelated turns.

But audit gave me attention to detail. Civil Defence taught me resilience. Administration taught me coordination. Finance management taught me leadership. Starting again in Canada taught me humility - and that being new doesn’t mean being incapable.

Now, in project management, I use pieces of every one of those seasons.

Sometimes the path only makes sense when you look back.

So, if you’re in the middle of starting again, don’t rush to call yourself behind.

You may simply be gathering what your next season will require. 🤍

What part of your journey makes more sense now? by @aakeye

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24 days ago

Just a lil bit about what I am about 🤍 by @aakeye

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2 months ago

A learning day that doesn’t feel like school ✈️

Part 2 of our Hangar Flight Museum day: the part the twins ran past by 😄

Here’s what’s inside:
🛩 Real aircraft and huge engines up close
🚁 A helicopter parked right out front
📜 The building’s history, from a World War II drill hall to a museum, and the Commonwealth Air Training Plan
🇨🇦 The story of J.A.D. McCurdy, Canada’s first pilot
🎟 A 1919 Calgary Exhibition poster advertising passenger aeroplane rides and aviation stunts
🔬 Displays explaining how flight actually works: lift, thrust and Newton’s laws

Mum tip: older kids will get the most out of the science and history boards, while the little ones can enjoy the planes. Check their website for hours and prices before you go.

You don’t have to plan the perfect day to make memories. One new place, all of us together, is enough. 🧡

These are honestly the moments I will remember ❤️

Save this for your next family day out in Calgary 📍
#CalgaryMums #ThingsToDoInCalgary #CalgaryWithKids #HangarFlightMuseum STEMKid by @aakeye

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2 days ago

The hardest person I’ve ever had to please is me. 🧡

For as long as I can remember, I’ve had that feeling of “if only”

If only I had studied harder in university… but I did, and I graduated with a first class.

If only I had chosen a different course… but I loved accounting, and I’m pretty good at it.

If only I had made different career choices… but every decision made absolute sense at the time, and was the best for me in that season.

If only I were doing more for my children… but I have been intentional with every one of them since the very first.

If only… if only… if only…

But little me would see it differently.

She’d see a girl who moved her whole family across the world, pregnant with twins, and started again from zero.
Who finished school in a new country with babies in tow, built a new career, and is raising four children with as much intention as she possibly can.
She’d see that God carried us through every chapter.

So I’m learning to trade “if only” for “look how far.”

If you’re a mum who keeps replaying your “if onlys”, look back at the little girl you were. She isn’t disappointed in you. She’s proud of you. Your best in every season was enough, and it still is. 🧡

Send this to a woman who needs to hear it today.

#YouMadeIt #ImmigrantMum #MumOf4 #twinmom #workingmum by @aakeye

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3 days ago

Money advice I’d give you in your first year in Canada with kids, if I wasn’t afraid of hurting your feelings. 👇🏾

We came to Canada with savings and what we thought was a solid plan. But nobody told me how quickly those savings could disappear. And this is coming from a chartered accountant household, Yes my husband is also a chartered accountant🙂!

1. Know exactly how many months your money will last. Add up your essential monthly expenses and divide your available savings by that amount. Don’t just assume you have enough because your account balance looks healthy.

2. You may have arrived as a professional, but be prepared to take lower-paying jobs while you find your feet. Don’t build an imaginary budget around a job you don’t have yet. Your bills won’t wait for your dream job.

3. The expenses come in waves. For us, it started with winter clothes for the whole family, then everything started piling up especially when you are converting your local currency to CAD. Plan for the next wave before it arrives.

4. Practise delayed gratification. You might have had a beautiful home and everything you needed back home, but you don’t have to recreate that lifestyle immediately. Your emergency fund is not your furnishing budget.

5. Find your community and don’t be too proud to ask for help. Learn about the support and benefits available to your family. That, and God’s grace, carried us through some difficult seasons.

6. Your income strategy matters just as much as your savings. Sometimes the solution isn’t cutting another expense but finding ways to increase your earning potential. A temporary career detour isn’t failure.

7. If your savings run out, it doesn’t mean you’ve failed your children. 🧡 You can plan carefully and still have life throw you a curveball. Give yourself grace, but keep making a plan to get back on your feet.

Would I still make the move? Absolutely! But I’d plan differently and leave more room for the unexpected.

What’s one money lesson starting over taught you?

Save this or send it to a mum who’s just landed. 🧡

#FamilyFinances #MoneyManagement #WorkingMoms #StartingOver #LifeInCanada by @aakeye

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4 days ago

I used to think being a mom meant I had to do it all. Then I became a mom of 4 and my brain went into full survival mode.

Cook more.

Work more.

Give more.

Be available more.

Do more.

But eventually, I realized that doing it all alone wasn’t strength. It was just exhaustion disguised as ‘super woman’🙂

These are the 6 things I’m leaving behind as I build a life that actually feels sustainable.

Because success isn’t just about looking like you have it together.
It’s also about peace, presence, and giving yourself grace. 🤍

Which one are you ready to stop doing? Comment GRACE if this is your reminder that your best is enough.

If you’re a fellow mum figuring it out as you go, follow me for more real-life remindersthat your best is enough💚🤍 by @aakeye

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13 days ago

Hi, my people! ❤️

In case you haven’t noticed, I am officially in my creator era! 🥳

And apparently, one challenge wasn’t enough.

For October, I’ve signed up for another one! This time, it’s a storytelling challenge with @creator.university__ and the amazing @folasade_daini , starting today!

I recently caught the replay of her Storytelling for Real Life Results webinar, which I couldn’t attend live, and the amount of value she gave away for FREE? I was SOLD! 🤍

I knew I had to sign up, especially when I discovered this was the last challenge of the year.

One thing about me? I will ALWAYS take a bet on myself. And I don’t take NO for an answer!

So, straight off the heels of my September 30-day posting challenge, here we go again! 🥂

I’m looking forward to becoming a better storyteller, building meaningful connections and continuing to shine my light on this little corner of the internet.

More importantly, I pray that through the stories I share, I can inspire, encourage and be a blessing to even more people.

Here’s to showing up, growing, telling our stories and all the wins to come! 🙏🏽✨

October, let’s do this! 🥂 by @aakeye

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15 days ago

This visit definitely ended with a lot of vawulence😩 but we still wouldn’t have it any other way🥰❤️

Bow Habitat Station was such a lovely mix of fun and learning for the whole family. We tried fishing, explored the Discovery Centre, spent what felt like forever at the aquarium, and finished with fish feeding at the hatchery.

There were activities for the twins and the older children but one particular child of mine enjoyed himself so much that he had to be escorted out in tears. 🥹😂

I’m always looking for Calgary places that genuinely work for children of different ages, and this one passed the test.

So, if you’re searching for Calgary hidden gems, educational activities for kids, or unique family activities in Calgary, add Bow Habitat Station to your list.

Save this for your next Calgary family day. 🐟

Which child in your house would refuse to leave?

#CalgaryHiddenGems #CalgaryWithKids #CalgaryMoms #YYCFamilies #BowHabitatStation FamilyActivitiesCalgary by @aakeye

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15 days ago

I posted every day for 30 days.

I gained 90 followers. But that wasn’t the real result. 🤍

In 2020, I opened a page. Planned everything perfectly. Knew exactly what I wanted to do.

Then I stopped before I even started.

So this September, I stopped waiting. 30 days, 30 posts. Some polished, some rushed, some more vulnerable than I expected. But I showed up.

The honest numbers: 4,080 → 4,170 followers. 69,412 views, 21,173 viewers. 52.8% from non-followers. The growth wasn’t explosive. But it was real.

The results that mattered most? A mother who felt seen. Children who learned something new. Comments I’ll carry with me for a long time.

More than anything, posting changed me. There’s something freeing about finally sharing the thoughts you’ve carried alone for years. I no longer feel the pressure to be perfect — I can just show up as myself. Honest. Imperfect. Still becoming.

There is no perfect time to begin. Yes, I wish I’d started earlier. But I started now. I found my voice, I shared my light, and I’ll keep showing up here.

Day 30/30 — but not the end. 🤍

Big thank you to all those that encouraged me to keep going. Your likes, comments, repost meant more than you know🙏🏽🤍🤍

What have you been putting off, waiting for the perfect time to start? Tell me below, I want to cheer you on. 👇🏾

#30DayChallenge #WorkingMum #MotherhoodJourney #FaithLed #CareerGrowth by @aakeye

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18 days ago

At 15, you finished secondary school but couldn’t get into university immediately. You had to do a diploma instead.

At 18, you finally got into university, but instead of starting at 200 level as planned, you had to start all over from 100 level.

At 22, you graduated top of your class with a 4.83 CGPA and dreamed of owning a bank someday.

At 24, you qualified as a Chartered Accountant with both ACCA and ICAN. Yet, didn’t get the scholarship you had put all your hope on.

Then life stopped following the plan. 😂

At 30, you had changed careers four times, across completely different fields and industries, seemingly starting over each time.

At 35, you left the life and career you knew, moved to Canada and started over again… and somehow became a mum of four along the way. 😂

Life looks very different from what that little girl who just loved celebrating her birthday every year imagined.

But I think she’d be pretty proud. 🤍

Day 29/30 by @aakeye

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19 days ago

A good career can still be the wrong fit for your current season.

I didn’t move away from accounting because it had nothing to offer me. In fact, so much of what I learned - budgeting, reporting, deadlines, communication and working with people, came with me.

But project management feels more aligned with the life I’m building now.

The flexibility matters deeply to me as a mother of four. I also love the variety, the opportunity to lead, and being able to see what our work accomplished.

It isn’t perfect, but it feels right for me.

Thinking about a career pivot? Save this for later. Which matters most to you: pay, flexibility, or impact?

#ProjectManagement #CareerChange #WorkingMum #CareerGrowth #womeninprojectmanagement by @aakeye

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20 days ago