The mother of two shares how her upbringing shaped her parenting, why advocacy matters, and how social media became a tool for change.

When Gabisile Mvubu and her daughter, Hlelo, first jumped onto social media, becoming influencers was never part of the plan. Like many families, lockdown boredom was unavoidable, and social media quickly became the perfect outlet.

Six years later, the mother-daughter duo has built a healthy following. But what truly sets them apart is the advocacy work they do for people living with dwarfism — a journey that is deeply personal because they are proudly part of this community.

 

 

Gabisile, a mother of two, says she has never been overly conscious of her condition.

 

“We live a normal life like anybody else. I have never seen myself as different,” she says, attributing this confidence to her mother’s teachings.

 

“I was raised by a super strong woman — my mom. She, my brother and I all lived with dwarfism, so there was nothing new there. It was our life. One of the biggest lessons that stuck with me from my mom was never letting people treat me like a joke, because that stereotype is still very prevalent in society,” she shares.

 

Allowing her daughter the space to express herself creatively on public platforms meant reinforcing the same values she was taught growing up — lessons, she says, that came straight from the master teacher herself.

 

“Hlelo was raised by my mother,” she explains. “But I was always very present in her life. When she started primary school, she then came to live with us (husband) full time.”

 

She laughs fondly when describing her eldest. “She is my mother’s replica, that one. The respect I see in Hlelo — my mother’s teachings, her confidence — everything. I just took over and continued with what my mother started.”

 

 

Reflecting on the environment that shaped both her and her daughter, Gabisile adds: “When I look at Hlelo, I realise I was actually a bit shy growing up. My mom, on the other hand, was very bold. She always stood up for her children, and that helped build our confidence. That is the same strong foundation Hlelowas raised in.”

 

Inspired by her own mother’s strength, Gabisile always dreamed of becoming a mom. She welcomed Hlelo at the age of 24, embracing motherhood while still leaning on the support of her mother as the primary caregiver in those early years.

 

A decade later, she welcomed her second daughter, Kuhle — a moment she recalls with laughter and joy. Together, her daughters’ names beautifully form Hlelokuhle, meaning “a beautiful plan.”

“That is when motherhood really kicked in for me,” she says with a laugh.

 

“Although I was very active in Hlelo’s life, my mother was the primary caregiver in the beginning. Waiting so long between my pregnancies wasn’t intentional, but I always knew I wanted to give my firstborn all the attention and love she deserved.

 

“With Hlelo, her father engaged me at age 23, so we knew that anything could happen, although it wasn’t first on our to-do list. We were both nervous and excited when we found out, and we had support from both our mothers.

 

“Now with Kuhle — that was a huge surprise,” she adds, laughing. “From just finding out that we are pregnant to raising her ourselves. Remember, we had never done the raising ourselves before, so I feel like this is my first child. Especially because both our moms are late.”

 

 

Questions around what to do came flooding in, and the couple had to learn the basics of infant care from scratch.

“We have become TikTok parents, I must admit,” she says.

 

Gabisile shares that her anxiety levels with the second baby have peaked — from trying to find a suitable childminder to getting used to the reality that babies cry.

 

She laughs hysterically at the memory. “Yho, she cries.”

 

But these new experiences, combined with raising her bubbly 11-year-old, have built her character in ways she did not anticipate.

 

“Motherhood is learning every day. It is knowing what you want is not what your children will want — knowing that not everything is about me. It is having the most patience but also having fun. I believe that taking everything extremely seriously can drive us up the wall,” she says.

 

 

The flip side of motherhood, however, has been dealing with people who question her ability to conceive — a misconception she says still runs deep.

 

“The comments during my pregnancy varied, with some people genuinely curious and others downright disrespectful, which highlighted the vast lack of information about dwarfism. I think what some people can’t comprehend is that we are fully functional human beings — just shorter.

 

“Hence I didn’t post a lot about my pregnancy, because some people are just insensitive. But that is what I hope our page and my journey teach people — that we are all the same.”

 

And what she hopes to teach her daughter is, “Life is not for only the select few but it is for all of us. We are all here for a purpose, to live to our fullest potential, to be kind to everyone regardless and know that your life is yours.”

 

“Just like my mother was my role model, I hope my life preaches to my children. They are enough – we are all enough in our own special ways,” she said.

 

For Gabisile, motherhood was never just a phase. It was always part of the life she envisioned for herself — one rooted in love, confidence and quiet advocacy. And through every post, every lesson and every laugh shared online, she is not only raising her daughters — she is helping reshape how the world sees families like hers.