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Martha Yuna Lay

@marthayunalay

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Intentional motherhood & homemaking
cooking diary, faith, timeless petite style
Stepping away from this space for a while♥️

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We are officially a family of four.

Welcoming our beautiful blessing, Arthur Malachi Lay 🕊️🤍

“I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made” Psalm 139:14

Our little bub surprised us by arriving two weeks earlier than expected. 28 January, 1:58 PM.

After an emergency C-section, it took me some time to process all the emotions and giving myself the space to recover, to slow down, and simply be present with my family as we embraced this precious new season.

This second birth felt completely different from the first, but the joy of finally being home together with the newest member of our little family is beyond words 🥹

We’re back in the sleepless nights and the newborn bubble. Everything feeling a little all over the place yet we’re here savouring all those first cuddles, feedings and skin to skin snuggles.

We are thankful for this beautiful gift of life 💌 and feel blessed by our inner circle who have been supporting us throughout this new season. by @marthayunalay

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8 months ago

A little reintroduction ✍🏻

This space has grown with me over the years, and I’m grateful you’re here. Now your turn! I’d love to know you a little more …where are you from, and what do you enjoy most about my content?

Here, I share moments of motherhood, homemaking, faith, and the simple things that shape my days.

My hope is that this space feels like a gentle conversation at the kitchen table...honest, encouraging, and a reminder to find beauty in the ordinary.

#homemaking
#slowliving #intentionalliving #lifestylecreator #christianmotherhood by @marthayunalay

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4 months ago

When you scroll your screen today, I hope you find something that inspires you, uplifts you, and meets you right where you are in this season ✨

💗 Finally I’ve launched this little website landing page I’ve been working on since October and it’s live now (You can find the link in my bio above).

This space is a little introduction about me and what I do and I am so excited to share it with you.

💗 Now I write 📖✏️ on Substack . I have called my little blog Gracefully Rooted. If you would like to connect and read my weekly post, hit the subscribe button over the link on my website. I’d love to have you join me on this journey.

💗 To all of my new followers , welcome! 😊 I’m so glad you’re here.

While my Instagram grid is curated with an eye for aesthetics, I pour my heart into the captions and daily stories. it is more than just curated images you’ll see in here.

There’s more than meets the eye…snippets of my life as a stay-at-home mum, the highs and lows of motherhood, the joy found in homemaking and the beauty of unplugged moments baking muffins with my son.

💗 You’ll also find petite-friendly outfit inspiration and glimpses of the hidden gems my family discovers around Brisbane.

Through it all, my hope is to inspire you to embrace the timeless beauty in every aspect of life.

I believe we are all God’s creation, and He makes everything beautiful when we see it through His lens.

💗 Whether it’s through faith, fashion, motherhood, or life & style, I pray this space encourages you to live with intention, purpose, and authenticity…reflecting the unique beauty God has placed within you ♥️

#TimelessBeauty #FaithJourney #MotherhoodMoments #PetiteStyleInspo #SimpleJoys #LifeWithPurpose #Feminine #Femininestyle taken in Brisbane, Queenland, Australia by @marthayunalay

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2 years ago

Something I’ve been meaning to share …✍🏻♥️

I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and I’ve decided it’s time for me to step away from this little space and focus on the life right in front of me, while making room for what’s next.

I’m incredibly grateful for all the connections, friendships, creative pursuits and opportunities this space has given me.
It has been such a lovely part of my life, and I’m leaving it with a full heart. ☺️♥️

From tomorrow, I’ll be stepping away from Instagram and taking the app off my phone.

Maybe I’ll be back someday. Maybe I won’t.

If you’re wondering why…

Well, I started this page before I had children of my own, and it has been such a fun, humbling and full of learning journey to see how this little space has grown and changed with me.

Since becoming a mama of two, I’ve realised just how precious my time is.

Instagram has changed so much over the years too.

As a creative, I’ve found that being present on this platform now asks for more than just creativity.
There is a cost to maintaining a presence here, and somehow, that no longer fits the season I’m in.

In hindsight, I think we all know how easy it is for social media to keep us engaged.

Yes, I’m talking about the doom scrolling until midnight, constantly reaching for our phones to check what’s going on in here… 😅 The little dopamine hit that keeps us coming back for more.

And it made me wonder: at what point does something we enjoy become something we’re overly attached to?
Could we, without even realising it, start making our phones an idol?

Perhaps that’s exactly why I felt the need to step back…

I believe God has been pursuing my heart through all of this. And I’ve realised that holding onto this platform was leaving me with a divided heart.

I’ve become a little weary of something I started with good intentions slowly becoming something that distracts me from what God is asking of me in this season.

I know this conviction isn’t for everyone.

➡️ slide next to read more..

You might be in a completely different season.

Maybe you’ve just started a business and need an online presence.
Maybe you’re an empty nester with more time to create something on by @marthayunalay

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a month ago

In my baking era and perhaps in a new chapter of life where I’m learning to enjoy a quieter kind of life, even when the reality is far from quiet.

But lately, I’ve been finding so much joy in the simple things.

Baking something from scratch.
Going outside and enjoying nature under the sun.
Gathering around the table with our loved ones.
Making home feel like home.

And I’ve been loving seeing the cute life updates photos sent through to my messages from my close circle and family.

Oh, it reminds me of the good old days.

Isn’t this what our phones were meant for?
Simply communicating, checking in and sharing the little bits of life with the people we love? 🥹♥️

I love seeing and hearing the life updates they send me directly.

Isn’t this how we used to communicate?

We checked in.
We sent each other pictures.
We told each other our stories.
We made time to see one another and nurture our friendships.

Somewhere along the way, I think we became so busy sharing our lives that we forgot what life felt like before social media when we could simply enjoy a moment without thinking about how to capture it or share it.

I love capturing pictures. I really do.

But I’m learning that maybe not every moment needs to become content.

Some precious memories are worth being lived, not just shared.

And I wonder…

Do our happiness, our homes, our children, our milestones and our lives really need an audience to make them meaningful?

Because perhaps social media hasn’t only changed the way we communicate.

Perhaps it has slowly changed the way we exist and live.

My old soul sometimes wonders…

has social media left us all a little too caught up in vanity?

I don’t know.

Maybe that’s a question each of us has to sit with for ourselves.

But just as winter has passed and spring makes room for new growth, I think I’m learning to do the same.

To leave behind what I’ve outgrown.

To make room.

To embrace what is new.

And perhaps, for me, that looks like a quieter life 🍃 by @marthayunalay

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a month ago

For our family, @lovevery.au @lovevery has been part of so many little moments of discovery, playing, learning, connection and growing together. From our firstborn and now to our second one…

If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that childhood doesn’t need to be filled with more.

Sometimes, the simplest invitation to play can be enough.

#lovevery #loveverybaby #montessoriathome #montessori #montessoritoys by @marthayunalay

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a month ago

These are the mornings I want to remember ♥️

A little inspiration for the slow mornings when you just want to stay at home. A little independent play, fun times to explore and discover… a time to simply just be and play 🏡 with our favorite @lovevery.au #Loveveryau

#montessoriathome #playandlearn #montessoritoys #sensoryplayideas by @marthayunalay

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a month ago

A slower approach to getting dressed…
Choosing what I love.
Wearing what I already have.
Investing in pieces that last.

For this little “what I wore” moment, I styled two pieces from @review_australia , the Vista Shirt Dress and Cassia Cardigan paired with a simple white skirt.

I loveeee the idea of investing in timeless pieces that can be styled in different ways and worn season after season.

#whatiwore #ReviewAustralia #slowfashionstyle #petite #petitestyle by @marthayunalay

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a month ago

When someone asks what we do at home on the weekend…

Me: make a chocolate board and call it slowing down 🍫🤌🏻

A little @aldiaustralia Choceur chocolate, some sweet treats all at an ALDI price.

Sometimes the simplest little things really do make home feel a little more special.

#AD #ALDIChocolate2026 #ALDIAustralia
#AussieMum #weekendtreat by @marthayunalay

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2 months ago

The guilt of taking time for yourself. I know that feeling ♥️

I always thought I should focus more on keeping up with everything I needed to do.

Be stronger. Be more put together. Be more self sufficient.
Do everything perfectly.

And no wonder so many of us mums end up running on empty.

Somewhere along the way, we started believing that taking a pause was a waste of time.

That being busy meant being productive.

That doing more meant we were doing better.

Busy calendars equal productivity.

Rushing through everything becomes normal.

And perhaps we don’t even realise how much we are missing because we are always rushing to the next thing.

But recently this is what I am learning:

When I choose to nurture my soul first, I don’t just feel better.

I show up better.

I can’t pour into my household while constantly running on empty.

I am not limitless.

God is.

And maybe that’s why He invites us to rest…

Not because there is nothing left to do…

But because rest allows us to care for our bodies, quiet our minds and remember that God is in control.

Maybe this is your reminder.. this weekend …take time to rest.

whatever rest looks like to you…

You are not stepping away from your life.

You are taking a moment to pause so you can actually be present in it.

And perhaps these little moments aren’t something to feel guilty for.

Perhaps they are moment to be grateful for.

The life you get to live, the people you get to love and the gift of rest and being here for it all.

Wishing everyone a good restful weekend ☕️

#motherhoodunfiltered #motherhoodencouragement #mumguilt #mumguiltisreal by @marthayunalay

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3 months ago

This song ♥️ What could I have done with the last hour if I hadn’t spent it scrolling?

Lately I’ve been asking myself this question. I know this is not really a popular post on Instagram feed but I hope if this came across to yours, let’s talk about it☕️👇🏻

Our phones aren’t the enemy.
They connect us, teach us, sometimes inspire us, and for me, they’re also part of my work.
But somewhere along the way, many of us have become more connected online while feeling more disconnected in real life.

Sometimes we tell ourselves we just need “a quick scroll” to unwind yet we finish feeling more overwhelmed, more distracted, or simply wishing we had spent that time differently.

👉🏻

The world can feel noisy and chaotic.
I know and I understand it is good to care about what’s happening beyond our homes and to serve our communities well. But… the lasting change … starts with us.

How many conversations have we rushed through because we were distracted?

How many milestones have we watched through a camera instead of with our own eyes?

How many relationships have quietly drifted apart because it became easier to form opinions about people from what we see online than to sit across the table and truly know them?

It starts with the way we love the people within the four walls of our home.

The conversations we choose to have.

The meals we share.

The memories we make.

The children we raise.

Those ordinary moments matter more than we realise.

This post isn’t about rejecting social media.

It’s simply a reminder that hit myself first …that… there is a beautiful life waiting beyond the screen.

So here’s your little reminder today:

Put down your phone.

Turn off the notifications.

Open your Bible. There is a reason why one bible verse means different for one person to another. Because the revelation from the Lord is personal! Abide in Him!

Call your mum or your sister.

Bake something.

Plant a herb or any plants.

Read a book.

Take a walk.

Sit with your children.

Because the life we’re longing for is often found in the quiet, ordinary moments we’ve been too distracted to notice.

#slowliving #intentionalliving #homemaking by @marthayunalay

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3 months ago

If you’re doing your grocery shop at ALDI, definitely grab these chocolates.
One of my favorite hidden gem discoveries at Aldi lately 😆 I’ve been adding them to my banana overnight oats, and they make breakfast feel like a little treat ✨

#ad #AldiChocolate2026 #ALDIFinds #EasyBreakfast #BreakfastIdeas by @marthayunalay

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3 months ago