Cold Toast

First "Conversations with My Husband" episode of 2024 is here and we're talking all the pros and benefits (because there's really no downsides) of working out as a couple.  For over 20 years Travis and I have made exercise and physical well being a priority in our relationship.  We've ran many races together, joined numerous gyms together, and have had many versions of a workout routine. Now as parents, our routine looks and feels different but still one thing remains. We are definitely stronger together!

Happy 2024! The end of the year and the beginning of another is always such a reflective time. Last year was one for the books and on this podcast I talk about the overarching themes and lessons I took away from it all. I find that life presents you with little gifts, which can often times be disguised as challenging moments. Nonetheless, I like this little life of mine and in the grand scheme of the world, it may be small. But in my day to day, this little life is the world in my hands. 

Pumehana and I recorded this last year, actually. And it sat in my drafts all year unedited. But because Pume is who she is, she showed me grace, understanding, and empathy knowing full well that I was going to get to it when I was ready and when I had the time to put my attention to it. This is the theme of our conversation. Two women who live with realness for the lives we are responsible for. She put it the best, "So many nuggets in this episode!" She's right. Take a listen to two women who are doing the best with what we were prepared for. The messages of our childhood live long inside and manifests itself into who we are today - good or bad.

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! This edition of "Conversations with my Husband" is shared in the spirit of love. After 21 Valentine Days together, Travis and I have learned by trial and error, growth and failure, and yielding to win, as the keys to a successful relationship. We share how we love, how we fight, and how we appreciate each other. After all is set and done, we know how to win at love and to have love win every time.

Often times, I find myself at the crossfires of whether I'm good enough as a mother, wife, daughter, friend, sister, or businesswoman. Or if I have the potential to be greater. I think we live in a society that pressures you to be perfect or appear perfect, when in fact, perfection is a fallacy. In this episode, I am talk about being a fan of "good," and being a fan of "great." How these two terms have a complicated relationship and do not exist exclusive of each other. It's a path, a journey, if you will...to greatness. It just comes with a lot of good moments that you have to be purposeful with.

Recent national issues have forced me into a headspace of gratitude mixed with fear. A strange combination of wanting time with my children to freeze but praying they will see a future so bright. This kind of reflection causes me to pause and look back at how I grew up. Life is really full circle and we are all just trying our best to make the best of our little ones' lives while we have them in our grasp.

Happy 2022! In my first podcast of 2022, I talk story with Christy Werner, an inspiring human, a licensed therapist, a wife, and a mother.  We break down the mental load we all face when we're juggling a lot. Motherhood is one thing. Marriage is another. Friends, jobs, family, a pandemic....it's A LOT! I know this episode will be relatable to anyone still reeling from the past two years. Right now, we're all living the "mother" load of mental health.  

The end of 2021 is here! Do you reflect at the end of every year on what just happened? I do, and I'm sharing some ways to do it. This year was another "good" year in my books.  Some lows, lots of highs, and lots of lessons. All in all though, if I've grown, then it's all good. That's my gift to you in this final episode of 2021.  Growth is the ultimate goal.  

Money & Marriage. Two very hard things to navigate in life.  What if I told you that, like marriage, it takes work to create a healthy relationship with money? Travis and I come together to talk about how we manage to make money a necessary pillar in our family foundation. We've had the hard conversations. We've had shame and regret when it comes to money decisions. But like everything else in our relationship, we talk about how we are going to get through it and move forward together.  Our future is brighter because we now know, after many lessons, to make money work for our goals and dreams as a family.

I'm a MILF. Haha, caught your attention? Not that kind of MILF. Rather, I'm living proof that Momtrepreneurship Is Living on Faith. In this episode, I'm back from a short hiatus, and reflecting on the almost 10 years of my momtrepreneur journey. Breaking down the challenges, the struggles, the lessons, and the hope. This was a topic many wanted me to talk about when I started this podcast.  If you can relate, great! If you can't, thank you for opening your mind to this self-induced craziness! 

The last month or so has been one of the hardest I've ever had to endure in terms of managing life, loss, and mental health. I had one of my first anxiety attacks EVER, and it was brought on by so much all at once.  Have you ever been there? I talk freely in this episode about some life happenings.  And one thing was evident to me.  We are all grieving in one way or another. Missing something or someone that is no longer. And trying to process it while filling that space with something new. This process of "change" was magnified for me the last few weeks.  Trying to remember through all the craziness of this world and of life, that life loves on. It just has to.

Sometimes, I go through life and the day to day thinking, "There really needs to be a manual for THIS!" Motherhood, career, family, relationships - who knows how to balance it all so effortlessly? Well, the short answer is no one does. But one mama did try to make it easier for women to learn how to prioritize their time and themselves.  That person is my guest podcaster on this episode, Malia Boersma, creator behind "Manifest Mama," a 6-module course where women can learn how to manage their home, their day, and their joy Like A Boss! Our conversation opened up my eyes to redesigning my days so that life doesn't run me, but so that I run life.  She reminded me that as mothers, we are not perfect, but that doesn't mean we can't manifest a life that we are truly happy with. We just need to prioritize and manage things a little better :)Follow Malia @happilyhomemom on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 

Been meditating a lot lately and in doing so, I've rediscovered one of my favorite singer/songwriters, Joni Mitchell.  Her song "Both Sides, Now" is definitely one of those songs that forces you to reflect on life.  In this podcast, I talk about how that kind of reflection has brought me a newfound appreciation for my life experiences, and how it has carried me through to the resolution of any conflict, any issue, and any past trauma or fear.  I'm thankful to have seen both sides of life in many aspects. Although there's still so much to experience, I am now armed with the gratitude to know that eventually....I WILL come out on the other side.

A Mother's Day tribute. Grace. The yang to my Grit (yin). The practice of giving grace is the practice of forgiving yourself, and others, through moments of ego and anxiety. It's remembering that we are ALL just trying our best to make the best of this life. Life doesn't come with a manual. It comes with examples of generations before us. It comes with lessons of past experiences. It comes with lots of baggage to pack and unpack in every new chapter. As mothers, as wives, as women - give yourself the grace and space to learn and unfold what is before you.  If you ask me, a  mother's grace is what makes the world go 'round.

The last few years, I've begun to reflect on what being a friend means, and what kind of friend I've evolved into.  It's no secret that motherhood often changes friendships. In my experience, there have been drastic changes in my relationships with other women.  Some have weakened, some have strengthened. What I hold true is that life has a way of testing what is durable and sustainable for you. Relationships included. All to make you truer to yourself and stand for what is most important to you. 

One of the most influential people in my life is Travis. Through his friendship and support, I managed to grow into the woman, wife, and mother I am today. Bringing him on as a guest was important to me because he is so impactful in the way I view life and the way I view myself. This conversation will be the first of many insights into our marriage, into our lives as parents, and into our individuality. In this episode we just talk story - just as we would be debriefing a long week with a glass of wine in our hands. Always reflecting together, with every ounce of gratitude.

In honor of "love month," my birthday month, and my favorite month, I wanted to conclude February with an ode to loves past and future loves. And heartbreak. The yin and yang of love is felt as early as our teenage years. As evidenced in the #1 song in the country right now, feelings of emotion resonates with the young and old. In this podcast, I touch upon how the memory of love inspires me to prepare for the inevitable journey of love that my children will embark on when it's their time to experience it.

Having a baby is not easy for everyone.  Infertility affects millions of people around the world and there are a multitude of factors that may cause it. In my first guest episode, I talk with Joryn-Alyssa Manley, a wife, cancer survivor and mother of two, who was a surrogate for a couple trying to have a baby on their own and through the IVF process.  I first read about Joryn's surrogacy experience through social media and was inspired to talk with her about why she decided to give another couple the gift of parenthood, even after having children of her own. Surrogacy is an emotional process all the way around. There are many layers, especially when you're an experienced mother helping another become a mother. Sometimes, before the baby is even born, it takes a village to create one.

Grit has always been a driving force in my life.  It's inspired one of my life mottos: This is not the hardest thing I've ever done. Do you have grit? What does it mean to have it? I share some examples of how I've grown to find the grit I seek in every and any moment of adversity.  When I say "sitting in my grittiness," it is my way of expressing how I just immerse myself in the hard times, feel it, and self-assess to overcome the moment.  

When I think about success, I think about happiness.  That's my own personal measurement of success.  I'm one of those parents who prioritize my own happiness over my children's.  Yeah, I said it.  It's possible.  And it's important! Listen to how I break down why personal happiness is an integral tool to raising children.

Happy New Year! Welcome to the first episode of Cold Toast. Giving it to you short and sweet, I talk about the meaning behind the title "Cold Toast."  I also share a little bit about using this platform as a vehicle for inspiration, while reflecting on my life.  Feeling equal parts excitement and fear.  Just letting vulnerability take the wheel.  2021, let's go!Music by DreamHeaven from Pixabay

Welcome to my new podcast! Cold Toast is what I like to call a "labor of love." It's laborious - literally finding pockets of time to pull off the launch of this podcast.  It's love - therapeutic, and a way for me to practice self-love by honoring my story with hopes it may help or inspire others.  In this introduction, I give a glimpse into what I hope this podcast will be.  So, please, have some cold toast and come along on this journey with me!Music by DreamHeaven from Pixabay