Call Your Sister with Joy & Jinger

This week on Call Your Sister, Joy and I are talking about moving out for the first time. Neither of us went to college, so most of our “learning to live on our own” happened inside marriage, and we’re sharing all of it.

Joy got married at 19 and spent the first six or seven months living in an RV beside the house she and Austin were still renovating, cooking lasagna in a crockpot. She tells the story of the cherry-wood bed frame Austin and his dad built from scratch, which turned out so tall it came up to her armpits while she was very pregnant. I share what newlywed life was like in Laredo, Texas, a mile from the Mexican border, with dollar tacos, a Bible study in our small apartment, and the day we moved out because of a cockroach problem from the neighbors.

We also talk honestly about the adjustments no one prepared us for. We were both so agreeable early in marriage that we barely knew our own opinions, and we talk about how our husbands encouraged us to speak up. We get into our first experiences with money, from my fear of not having enough to Joy’s learning how to do the books with her mother-in-law’s help, plus the times the electricity almost got shut off because we each thought the other had paid the bill. If you’re a newlywed, getting ready to move out, or looking back and laughing at your own first-apartment mistakes, this one’s for you.

Topics covered: moving out for the first time, newlywed life, first apartment, adjusting to marriage, marriage and money, budgeting as newlyweds, learning to cook, making friends as an adult, living in an RV, young marriage, sisters podcast

🎧 New episodes of Call Your Sister with Joy and Jinger every week. Subscribe so you don’t miss out!

00:00:00 - Introduction: Moving Out for the First Time

00:00:59 - Joy’s First Home: Renovating and Living in an RV

00:05:29 - Adjusting to Marriage and a New City

00:08:07 - From the First Apartment to a Home

00:11:44 - Learning to Live Together and Communicate

00:16:21 - Adjusting to Finances as Newlyweds

00:21:55 - Learning to Manage Bills Together

00:27:50 - Grocery Shopping, Cooking, and Expectations

00:30:54 - From Adventurous Cooking to Family Meal Routines

00:36:57 - What We Wish We’d Learned Before Moving Out

00:38:54 - Learning Independence as Adults

00:43:25 - Final Thoughts and Sign-Off

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Hey guys, it’s Jinger! This week on Call Your Sister, Joy and I are talking about our first heartbreaks. Joy hasn’t had a classic heartbreak story, so she turned the tables and interviewed me. We start with our first crushes and Joy’s story of sitting through Austin’s plans to ask another girl out when she was 16, and how she tried to be supportive while hoping it wouldn’t work out.

Then I share my first real heartbreak: a long-distance friendship in my early teens that our parents wisely ended because we were too young.

We also get into growing up in a very formal courtship culture, when 20-plus guys would ask about the girls in our family over a couple of years, and why I turned them all down for a crush I barely knew. Then Jeremy came into the picture and changed everything.

We close with advice for any teenage girl going through heartbreak: find your identity in Christ, surround yourself with good friends and accountability, and reach out for help right away if you’re struggling with body image or food.

Topics covered: first heartbreak, teenage crushes, courtship vs. dating, Christian dating advice, body image and eating disorder recovery, finding identity in Christ, comparison and insecurity in marriage, how we met Jeremy and Austin, advice for teen girls, sisters podcast

🎧 New episodes of Call Your Sister with Joy and Jinger every week. Subscribe so you don’t miss out!

00:00:00 - First Heartbreaks and Early Crushes

00:02:44 - Joy’s Crush on Austin

00:06:44 - Jinger’s First Heartbreak

00:08:08 - How Relational Stress Affected Jinger’s Health

00:11:41 - Recognizing an Eating Disorder and Asking for Help

00:15:28 - Faith, Identity, and Recovery

00:17:48 - From a First Crush to New Possibilities

00:21:23 - Choosing Jeremy Over a Longtime Crush

00:26:48 - Learning to Accept Each Other’s Past

00:30:50 - Finding Freedom from Self-Criticism in Marriage and Motherhood

00:34:54 - Advice for Teens Facing Heartbreak and Body Image Struggles

00:39:28 - Trusting God’s Plan Through Heartbreak

00:41:52 - Lessons Learned and Final Encouragement

#Parenting⁠ ⁠#Motherhood⁠ ⁠#MomLife⁠ ⁠#ParentingTips⁠ ⁠#RaisingKids⁠

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COZY EARTH: Luxury Shouldn’t Be Out of Reach. Visit ⁠https://CozyEarth.com/jinger/⁠ and use my exclusive code JINGER for 20% off best-selling sheets, towels, pajamas, and more.

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This week on Call Your Sister, Joy and I are talking all things learning to drive. We grew up in Arkansas, where you can get your permit at 14 with a quick written test, and our dad taught us to drive long before any of that. We started on the weed eater, worked up to the lawnmower, then moved on to the golf cart and ATV, and eventually got behind the wheel of a car.

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FUNCTION HEALTH: Function because it’s the only health platform that gives you access to the kind of data most people never see—and the insights to actually take action. Learn more and join using our code JINGER at ⁠https://functionhealth.com/JINGER/⁠ for $25 off your membership!

TRUST & WILL: Protect what matters most. Trust & Will makes it simple and affordable to create your will or trust online in minutes. Visit ⁠⁠https://trustandwill.com/JINGER⁠⁠ and get 20% off when you use the code JINGER.

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This week on Call Your Sister, Joy and I are talking all things weddings — the details nobody remembers but felt huge in the moment, the stuff we'd actually change if we could do it again, and the behind-the-scenes reality of getting married while being filmed for TV.

OUR INCREDIBLE SPONSORS:

COZY EARTH: Luxury Shouldn’t Be Out of Reach. Visit ⁠https://CozyEarth.com/jinger/⁠ and use my exclusive code JINGER for 20% off best-selling sheets, towels, pajamas, and more.

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This week on Call Your Sister, Joy and I are talking all about sibling rivalry and what it was actually like growing up together in a house full of kids. We get into some of our favorite (and funniest) memories — like Joy's infamous fight with our brother over the school computer, and her reputation as the sibling who'd get talked into doing things she probably shouldn't have. Joy also owns up to being the one who body-slammed and pranked our brothers a little too much growing up!

We talk honestly about how conflict was (and wasn't) handled in our house, how birth order may or may not actually shape your personality and temperament, and the ways growing up avoiding conflict has shown up for each of us as adults — including in marriage and parenting our own kids. I share a story about my mom's kindness toward a stranger that shaped how we were taught to treat people, and we dig into people-pleasing, learning to hold your tongue, and figuring out how to disagree with someone you love without it turning into a blowup.

If you grew up with siblings, or you're raising kids who are constantly bickering, this episode is full of honest, relatable conversation about family, conflict, and grace.

🎧 New episodes of Call Your Sister with Joy and Jinger every week — SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss out!

#Parenting⁠ ⁠#Motherhood⁠ ⁠#siblings⁠ ⁠#sisters⁠ ⁠#RaisingKids⁠

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This week on Call Your Sister, Joy and I are getting into some seriously embarrassing territory: our awkward teenage phase. We're talking bad fashion choices (hello, giant hand-me-down t-shirts and my infamous green linen tunic-over-skirt look — the one I was wearing the day I met Jeremy), disastrous hair experiments, and the crunchy-mousse curls and hairspray-soaked ponytails that may or may not have caused permanent damage.

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Welcome to the very first episode of the Call Your Sister Podcast! We can’t believe we’re finally saying that.

In this episode, we’re sharing how a casual FaceTime conversation between sisters turned into a brand-new podcast and why Joy and I decided this was the right time to do it. We talk about what you can expect from Call Your Sister, some of the fun things we have planned, and why we want this show to feel like you’re jumping onto one of our regular sister FaceTime calls with us.

But starting a new podcast isn’t even the biggest news of the episode: Joy is pregnant with BABY #4! We talk about how she told me, why this pregnancy has felt so different, and what it’s like stepping back into the baby stage after a bigger age gap.

That leads us into a much deeper conversation about something we both had to rethink as adults: how many children should you have? Growing up, we both assumed that having as many children as possible was simply what you were supposed to do. We talk about questioning those childhood teachings, what Scripture actually says about children and family, and how we’ve learned to approach those decisions with our husbands through prayer, wisdom, and without fear.

Then we lighten things up with some sister talk about Type A vs. Type B moms, perfectly organized refrigerators, dishes sitting in the sink, the pressure to have everything together when you’re hosting, and how social media can make it feel like everyone else is doing motherhood better than you.

We also reveal just how much we actually text and FaceTime each other, confess how terrible we both can be at responding to messages, and talk about why we decided to make room for this podcast.

This is the beginning of something new, and we’re so excited to have you here. Think of Call Your Sister as an hour every week to sit down, catch up, laugh, talk honestly about life, motherhood, faith, family, and all the things we’d normally be talking about on the phone anyway.

So… call your sister. 🤍

Topics covered: Joy Forsyth pregnancy, baby number four, Call Your Sister Podcast, Jinger Vuolo and Joy Forsyth, family size, childhood teachings about children, motherhood, Christian parenting, Type A vs. Type B moms, social media and motherhood, sister relationships

🎧 New episodes of Call Your Sister every week — SUBSCRIBE so you don’t miss out!

00:00:00 - Life Updates and a Major Teaser
00:05:26 - Introducing the Call Your Sister Podcast
00:12:18 - What to Expect from the New Podcast
00:13:22 - Big News from Joy
00:18:10 - Deciding How Many Children to Have
00:20:48 - Rethinking Their Childhood Teachings on Family Size
00:27:21 - Type A vs. Type B Moms
00:30:43 - When Personality Types Become Excuses
00:32:44 - Balancing Hosting, Social Media, and Priorities
00:35:09 - How Often the Sisters Communicate
00:36:59 - Texting Habits and Email Overload
00:39:56 - Worth the Call
00:40:55 - Why They Decided to Start the Podcast

#CallYourSister #JingerVuolo #JoyForsyth #Motherhood #Pregnancy #Sisters #MomLife #Parenting

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In this episode of the Jinger & Jeremy Podcast, my sister Joy and I are talking all about finding joy — even, and especially, in the hard seasons of life. We start light, talking about the small everyday things that bring us joy right now: home, routine, our kids, beach days, sunsets, and even a few Facebook Marketplace wins (wait until you hear about Joy's chandelier find).

But we also go somewhere deeper. Joy opens up about the miscarriage of her daughter Annabelle at 20 weeks and the season of depression that followed, and how she had to fight against becoming bitter while learning to trust God through something she never saw coming. I share my own experience with postpartum depression after having Evy, along with a spiritual crossroads I walked through where I had to wrestle honestly with hard questions about faith. We talk about the difference between happiness and joy, how joy can return in small, unexpected ways after grief, and why getting your labs and vitamin D checked is such a simple but important reminder when you're feeling low.

We wrap up with a fun rapid-fire on what's currently bringing us joy, and even float the idea of a Jinger & Joy spin-off podcast — let us know what you think!If you've ever walked through loss, depression, or a season where joy felt impossible to find, this conversation is for you.

Topics covered: finding joy after loss, postpartum depression, miscarriage and grief, choosing joy in hard seasons, faith and doubt, motherhood, everyday gratitude, sisters podcast

🎧 New episodes of the Jinger & Jeremy Podcast every week — SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss out!

00:00:00 - When Joy Becomes Hard to Find

00:01:26 - The Everyday Things Bringing Us Joy

00:11:09 - Trusting God and Choosing Joy Through Trials

00:15:21 - Seeing Everyday Joy Through a Child’s Eyes

00:18:59 - Finding Joy in Nature and Community

00:23:27 - Settling Into a Family Home

00:25:52 - The Comfort of an Ordinary Routine

00:30:26 - Coffee Shop Outings and Family Routine

00:31:15 - Facebook Marketplace Finds and the Chandelier

00:36:00 - Rapid-Fire Things Bringing Us Joy

00:37:34 - A Reminder to Check Your Health

00:38:56 - Should the Sisters Start a Podcast?

OUR INCREDIBLE SPONSORS:

TRUST & WILL: Protect what matters most. Trust & Will makes it simple and affordable to create your will or trust online in minutes. Visit ⁠https://trustandwill.com/JINGER⁠ and get 20% off when you use the code JINGER.

ARTICLE: If you’re looking to upgrade your space, we’ve been loving Article. Their furniture is modern, high-quality, and easy to style. Go to article.com/JINGER for $50 off your first purchase.

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In this episode of the Jinger & Jeremy Podcast, my sister Joy and I are getting real about something almost every mom deals with: feeling overwhelmed. We're talking about overscheduled kids, overcommitting to social plans, and how to know when a busy season has crossed the line into burnout.

Joy opens up about how her capacity to handle things comes in waves, and why she and Austin made the decision to protect at least three quiet evenings at home each week just to reset as a family. I share how Jeremy and I hit our own breaking point after years of "gone, gone, gone" through ministry and church commitments, and what it took for us to finally say it's time for a change, even when that meant pulling back from good things and worrying about what people would think.

We dig into the difference between a busy season (like a home remodel or a book deadline) versus a lifestyle that's simply unsustainable long term, and the practical ways we've each learned to say no, protect our family's time, and communicate openly about what we can and can't handle in any given week.

If you've ever felt stretched too thin, guilty about pulling back from commitments, or unsure how to reset when life gets too full, this conversation is for you.

🎧 New episodes of the Jinger & Jeremy Podcast every week — SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss out!

00:00:00 – Intro & Welcome

00:00:54 – What's Making You Feel Overwhelmed This Week?

00:04:23 – Stepping Back from Overcommitment (Bible Study Story)

00:06:08 – What Helps vs. What Doesn't When You're Overwhelmed

00:09:21 – How Austin & Jeremy Notice When We're Overwhelmed

00:12:35 – Communication, Sleep & Letting Go of What's Not Yours to Carry

00:14:44 – Do You Need to Leave the House Every Day?

00:22:34 – Burnout, a Stress Rash & Learning to Rest

00:24:36 – Things We've Said No To Recently

00:30:12 – Does Your Capacity Change With the Season?

00:32:11 – Feeling Like an Introvert & Emotional Drain

00:34:02 – Joy's Genuinely Restful Day

00:38:18 – Jinger's Genuinely Restful Day

00:42:02 – The "Milestone Party" Trend

00:44:54 – Are Themed Birthday Parties Over the Top?

00:52:44 – Overscheduled Kids & Youth Sports

00:58:02 – One Thing That's Helping Us Slow Down

01:00:07 – Closing Thoughts & Outro

COZY EARTH: Luxury Shouldn’t Be Out of Reach. Visit ⁠https://CozyEarth.com/jinger/⁠ and use my exclusive code JINGER for 20% off best-selling sheets, towels, pajamas, and more.

FUNCTION HEALTH: Function because it’s the only health platform that gives you access to the kind of data most people never see—and the insights to actually take action. Learn more and join using our code JINGER at ⁠https://functionhealth.com/JINGER/⁠ for $25 off your membership!

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In this episode of the Jinger & Jeremy Podcast, I'm sitting down with my sister Joy to talk all things marriage, especially what it's really like getting married young. Joy was 19 when she married Austin, and I was 22 when I married Jeremy, so we're diving into our different timelines, how our age gaps compared, and what marriage actually looked like once the "happily ever after" honeymoon phase wore off.

We get honest about the biggest surprises marriage threw at us — from learning how to communicate (and why miscommunication is behind almost every argument), to balancing work and family life when your husband's job doesn't fit a typical 9-to-5, to figuring out how to find your own voice and opinions after years of just going along with everything. I open up about how I used to be way more passive early in our marriage, and how Jeremy actually pushed me to become more independent... even when that meant a little more "friction" at home!

We also get into some of the funnier, more personal sides of marriage: Jeremy's prankster habit of bringing snakes and reptiles into our house, Austin's germaphobe tendencies and nightly shower routine, and the best piece of marriage advice we've actually stuck with — a simple nightly question that's helped keep our communication open for years.

If you're newly married, engaged, dating young, or just curious what marriage looks like behind the scenes for us, this episode is full of honest, relatable, and encouraging conversation about love, growth, and building a life together.

🎧 New episodes every week — SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss out!

OUR INCREDIBLE SPONSORS:

COZY EARTH: Luxury Shouldn’t Be Out of Reach. Visit ⁠https://CozyEarth.com/jinger/⁠ and use my exclusive code JINGER for 20% off best-selling sheets, towels, pajamas, and more.

MOM COZY: The Mom Cozy Night Pro Bottle Warmer and Deep Clean Bottle Washer make late-night feedings and bottle sanitizing so much easier. Get 20% off at momcozy.com with code JINGER.

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