two babies in one year 🎉

on postpartum and my debut cookbook

Hello sweet friends!

The past three months have been a raw and beautiful blur, and I’m only just surfacing from the haze. On June 20th, we welcomed our sweet baby boy, Wesley, into the world, just four days before my own birthday.

Photography by Roberta McLean

Parents always say it, but you can’t truly grasp how deeply the season of parenthood changes you until you’re in it. Between an induced birth that turned into an unplanned c-section, recovery from surgery (you don’t expect to be bedridden and unable to tend to your baby right away), the rollercoaster of breastfeeding, and the act of keeping a tiny human alive, postpartum is a lot at once. And you just have to keep rolling with the punches as life unfolds.

But I’m proud of the rhythm we’ve found over the past 12 weeks, through family visits and even a five-week trip to Ontario. Everything feels so fleeting and fragile right now, but Wes has become my grounding force amidst the chaos. He absorbs the world with his eyes more than any baby I’ve met, and he’s teaching me to slow down, be present, and simply sit with what’s around me.

We’ve also learned the importance of putting our oxygen masks on first, because happy parents = happy baby. For us, that’s looked like combo feeding (a mix of breastmilk and formula) so I can get some rest overnight, carving out solo and couple time whenever possible, saying yes to help when it’s offered, and choosing to live life with our baby, not just around him.

For a while, I wasn’t sure how to show up here on Substack (or even find the time) when Wes was squirming for more boob before I could even finish a sentence. But slowly, I’m finding a new cadence of working in bursts, between feeding myself, tossing in laundry, or squeezing in life admin. I miss the long, uninterrupted hours I once had, but I know they’ll come back. And when they do, I’ll definitely be missing this stage for its sweet cuddles and coos.

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When I think about what I want to share here, it always comes back to something simple: showing up for ourselves, so we can show up for others.

This year, showing up for myself has meant figuring out how to launch my debut cookbook while navigating the whirlwind of new parenthood. My Best Friend Is Gluten-Free comes out October 21st, and somehow, I managed to birth two babies this year!

I’ve poured four years of heart and energy into this project, hoping to help those with gluten allergies (plus plant-based, dairy-free, or pescatarian eaters) feel seen, and to bring everyone together around the table.

Inside you’ll find vibrant, Asian-inspired recipes with photos for each dish; a fun playlist of songs tied to my own food memories; a beautifully illustrated gluten-free pantry section with must-have ingredients, favorite brands, and easy swaps; plus sample menus for hosting and handy dietary lists.

At times I’ve wondered if it was all worth it, but then I remember: I’m grateful for my team, amazed at how it came together, and proud of the journey that brought me here. Becoming a self-motivated writer during a pandemic and a cross-country move, learning to play and make space for inspiration away from my desk, and letting go of the pressure to constantly produce, this book is the shape that journey took.

If any of this resonates with you, every preorder means the world to first-time authors like me, and I can’t wait for these recipes to live in your kitchens.

And in exciting news, it’s already been featured in Chatelaine, with Elle Gourmet coming up, and we’ll be celebrating its release with a launch party at Saan Saan in Vancouver on October 23rd! It’s so surreal to see this project making its way into the world. Stay tuned for details if you’d like to join the party 🥳.

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Publication day will be a huge release of energy, but the process has already transformed me. Maybe that’s the greatest gift of this project: an exercise in patience, surrender, and trust.

If this post is anything, let it be a reminder to celebrate your wins (big or small!) and to pause the constant future-planning so you can be present in the now. We’re here, and for better or worse, things will never look exactly the same again.

Just like with Wes, this book reminds me that growth, transformation, and joy rarely follow the plan, and that’s exactly what makes them worth celebrating.

✌🏼 Peace, love, and good food,

Jannell