We all recognize Cheryl Hickey as the nation’s host on Entertainment Tonight Canada (ET Canada). She greets over half a million viewers nightly with her news coverage, in-depth profiles and behind-the-scenes exclusives. She interviewed some of the entertainment industry’s elite including Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Oprah and One Direction just to name a few. She’s also been named one of Hello magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful People” and we’re not surprised! While yes, she’s beautiful, we also love her for not shying away from showing her fans that she is just like us in many ways.
Originally from Shallow Lake, Ontario, Cheryl has worked hard to get to where she is today. After graduating at London’s Fanshawe College with a Broadcasting Journalism degree, Cheryl worked in a variety of radio and television roles before joining ET Canada in 2005. She also makes time to give back as she works closely with Sick Kids Toronto, Plan Canada and Operation Smile. Cheryl is also the co-founder and spokesperson for OURS by Cheryl Hickey, a personal care product line that’s safe for the whole family.
We’ve been following Cheryl on ET Canada as well as on social media. She’s one that seems to keep it all real. Yes, her job can be glitzy but she’s not a diva in anyway! In fact, we feel like she could totally hang with us in the school yard. Her instagram includes photos of her family and times that she can just simply laugh at herself.
We recently had a chance to chat with Cheryl to find out how she handles it all!
Your life seems pretty awesome!
CH: There are parts of it that is glossy and fussy but that’s usually the stuff that’s in the studio.
But then you also show your family and gives us a glimpse about your off-camera life. I think that’s the part that I love and you can keep things real and relatable.
CH: Oh, that’s good! Yes, in the beginning of our show, that was something that actually happened by accident. Everyone wanted to put me in the same box as the wonderful, talented and beautiful Mary Hart. Meaning that everything had to be very polished but for me that was a strange place to be because I had been in news before that doing a lot of lifestyle and news stories. To be put into a position where everything was shiny and glossy all the time wasn’t me. I was awkward and goofy. With Instagram I think it gives people some perspective that yes, TV is a part of my life and I get to play dress up and have amazing people who restore me from my Lululemon athletic yoga pants to dresses and perfectly coiffed hair and all that. But that’s not everyday and certainly not all day for me.
And there’s nothing wrong with that either, if that’s someone’s lifestyle.
CH: Oh, not at all! But I do feel blessed that I do get to play in both. As women, you know we are so complex. We’ve got many different seasons so it’s nice to play in all of it.
I admit I did love seeing you recently actually not all gussied up for the Grammys on camera. It was like just hanging out with my girlfriends and settling into a fun popcorn filled night—a refreshing and unexpected change up.
CH: Yes, I remember that night. I had put the kids to bed and literally ran out of the house to get to the studio and had a blast that night! I did get to be cozy in my sweats and talked to the viewers. It was fun!
Speaking of playing dress up…Do you think us moms get pigeon holed in some ways? I mean, I see it when advertisers or marketers think they know how all moms want to dress and seem to feed us the same stereotypical look.
CH: Yes! I agree. Why is such a bad thing for moms to want to want to dress to feel sexy? I think that because a woman wants to feel sexy or tries to look sexy whether it be for her husband or for herself, a night out with the girls or whatever, that’s not a bad thing. To me it’s a confidence thing and the beauty of being a woman. We can be in a business suit and then why can’t we whip out our beautiful 6 inch heels if we want to? I don’t try to apologize for any of those different sides of myself.
So, everyone wants to know, how do you do it all?
CH: Truthfully when I first had my son, I had to come back to work at six months. I was lucky to have a wonderful nanny to help fill that void for when I was at work part-time. I went back to work full-time when he was two-years-old. When he was two he started pre-school but then I was pregnant again. So, we did the same thing. But when my daughter turned two, we decided that we didn’t need a nanny anymore. Jackson was in kindergarten and Nyla loved being with other kids so she went into pre-school. You could tell, she just loved being around other kids. So, we made the choice as a family to do that.
We did end up hiring a part time housekeeper because life is so busy and between working and being here for the kids when I get home from work I wanted to make sure that I’m there 100% for the kids. Sometimes when you try to do it all balls get dropped. So, quite frankly, I’d rather drop the laundry ball so I can spend more time reading with my kids or playing ball outside with them. I had to really let go of that “do it all” mentality and tell myself that it’s okay to ask for help.
It also helps that work has been great. I can leave work by 3 o’clock and go pick up my kids from school and daycare. When we get home we start homework and I make dinner then it’s bath time, books, movies and cuddles. But I’m not doing laundry and pulling my hair out at the same time. So for me, this all works. That’s how I do it! Also, my husband and I are a great team. We always make sure one of us is here for the kids. We never travel at the same time. The most important thing for our family is that the kids have consistency and that they are comfortable. They know they come first no matter what.
I don’t think anything is perfect but what I feel is consistency is important in everything I do. Work knows I’m dedicated and so does the family.
I loved that you are okay to drop the laundry ball!
CH: Oh, I’d love to have my house super clean and things a certain way but I just think if I had to drop something, what would it be? Not that I really want the cleaning ball to drop either but I can’t do it all. The stress of “having it all” or “doing it all” for me is too much.
How do you balance life with your husband? Any date night suggestions?
CH: He makes me laugh all the time. We don’t do any extravagant dates because I’m actually really bad at date nights. When we’re out all I can think about are my kids so I am the worst on date night! I still need to figure that out! The odd time that we do get a date night we will go to a movie or out for dinner. We’ve also done a staycation in the city because it’s nearby.
Oooh! Where to? I love staycations! They are the best for parents to reconnect and because you’re close to home, it helps eliminate that worry of being away.
CH: Yes! We just did one recently. Our son is six years old now and we’ve finally decided we could do a night without the kids. We had a wonderful night at the Four Seasons Hotel and you know, it actually felt like we were away away! We went to the restaurant, spa and swimming. It was really wonderful.
But I have friends that can leave their kids no problem and go away. I want to be that kind of mom too. I still need to figure that out. One day.
Thanks so much for chatting with us!
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