Ma-Honey's

Brielle and Michael are back after a short break to fix their audio! This week they talk about how becoming parents to their son Roman (21 months) has changed them as individuals and as a couple.

00:00 Welcome back to the Ma-Honeys

00:18 Back after a break (goodbye, audio issues!)

01:04 Recording from home

01:20 Today's topic: how parenthood changed us

02:13 The biggest change: going from zero kids to one

02:40 Brielle: less independence, more structure

04:50 Michael: living and modeling your values

06:35 Sleep, schedules, and night wakings

08:30 More intention in our daily routines

09:33 Filling your cup: faith, prayer, and energy

11:30 Releasing expectations

12:20 The diaper blowout story

14:00 Learning joy from a toddler

16:50 Slowing down and being present

17:45 Mother's intuition and "what if I'm not a good mom?"

20:40 Brielle chasing her music dreams

24:10 Being an example for our kids

28:35 Honoring stay-at-home moms

30:40 Better communication as a couple

31:50 A word for those who aren't parents yet

33:20 Michael on becoming a dad later in life

36:35 The twin baby boys debate

38:07 Wrap-up

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CONNECT WITH US

The Ma-Honeys: @ma_honeys.podcast

Michael:

@the.michaelmahoney

Brielle:

@brielle_colleen

@brielle.colleen.music

Ep. 5: Roman's Birth Story — Our At-Home Birth

Brielle and Michael share the full story behind their decision to have an at-home birth — from frustrations with the hospital system to the 46-hour labor that brought Roman into the world.

Show Notes:

- Intro & static noise apology

- Life update: sold the Arizona house, new Jeep, Roman's diaper blowout story

- Why they chose to share their at-home birth story

- Starting with the hospital system — feeling like "just a number"

- C-section statistics & suggestive language from hospital staff

- Brielle's anxiety and the weight of restrictive hospital guidance

- Talking to friends who'd done an at-home birth

- Researching doulas and midwives

- Doula vs. midwife — the difference explained

- The birth class & taking accountability

- Cost comparison: doula/midwife vs. hospital

- Finding out it's a boy

- Labor begins — November 22, 2024, Brielle's birthday

- Early labor, walking, and natural positioning exercises

- Hip pain & signs the baby wasn't positioned well

- Active labor intensifies — the belly-lift technique

- Stalling at 7cm for 10 hours

- The tub, wine, and calming the nervous system

- The "shock" scare & considering a hospital transfer

- Brielle's mental shift — surrendering into the pain

- Water breaking & the meconium scare

- Final stretch — pushing begins

- Roman is born — Michael catches him

- The spiritual moment of catching Roman

- Brielle's recovery & would she do it again

- Wrap-up & final thoughts on the decision

Follow along:

Ma-Honeys Podcast

IG: https://www.instagram.com/ma_honeys.podcast

Michael

IG: https://www.instagram.com/the.michaelmahoney

Website: http://www.iamconductr.com

Brielle

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle_colleen/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle.colleen.music

Ep. 4, Pt. 2: Our Relationship with God (Continued)

Part two of Brielle and Michael's conversation on faith — including the story of a life-changing trip to Israel, how they pray now versus how they used to, and what they hope Roman inherits about faith and gratitude.

Show Notes:

0:00 – Intro, picking up the story

0:16 – The 2023 trip to Israel begins

1:16 – Meeting IDF soldiers & the mission behind the trip

2:22 – Michael's naivety about religion going in

4:03 – Arriving at the King David Hotel

5:16 – The Garden of Gethsemane & meeting the Catholic priest

7:00 – Michael starts feeling something shift inside

9:38 – Sitting with the weight of Jerusalem's history

11:36 – The priest, the rabbi, and the guitar song

13:06 – Why God put him there — searching for the purpose

15:15 – Sharing the story with Brielle afterward

17:35 – Present day: no church home yet, watching Elevation Church on Sundays

18:00 – The song "Let You Go" & letting go of a fear-based God

20:04 – Wanting Roman to find God through love, not fear

21:00 – Brielle's hopes for how their kids come to faith

22:00 – Relationship with God as a two-way relationship

23:01 – Morning gratitude practice & nightly prayers with Roman

25:00 – Brielle on praying from vulnerability and gratitude

27:04 – Praying from gratitude vs. praying from need

29:18 – Letting go of timing and expectations

30:22 – Learning to ask different questions in prayer

33:14 – Wrap-up, Roman wakes up

34:00 – Clarifying: Mormons are Christian

35:15 – Outro & call to action

Mentioned in this episode:

Elevation Church

IG: https://www.instagram.com/elevationworship

Follow along:

Ma-Honeys Podcast

IG: https://www.instagram.com/ma_honeys.podcast

Michael

IG: https://www.instagram.com/the.michaelmahoney

Website: http://www.iamconductr.com

Brielle

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle_colleen/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle.colleen.music

Website: http://www.theballroomedit.com

Ep. 4: Our Relationship with God

Brielle and Michael open up about faith — their different upbringings, the moments that pulled them away from God, and the experiences that brought them back. A raw, personal conversation about belief, doubt, and what they hope to pass down to Roman.

Show Notes:

0:00 – Intro & welcome back

1:07 – Framing today's topic: our relationship with God

3:00 – Where they are now — gravitating toward Christian faith

4:12 – Different upbringings: Catholic vs. LDS

5:22 – Recommended resources: Wesley Huff, Dr. Jordan Peterson

7:12 – From atheist/agnostic to belief — Dr. John Lennox's influence

9:42 – Brielle's LDS upbringing & early questioning

12:53 – The "take care of the men and children" moment

15:06 – The patriarchal blessing & turning point

17:14 – Rebellion, marriage, and stepping away from God

17:58 – Hitting bottom during divorce — praying as a last resort

19:43 – Feeling seen again & rebuilding the relationship

21:00 – Michael's take: generalizing one experience onto a whole religion

23:19 – Michael's Boston Catholic upbringing & the Spotlight-era context

26:56 – The Joshua 14:10 passage — "kept me alive, not kept me waiting" (Pastor Steven Furtick, Elevation Church)

30:38 – On faith, certainty, and passing it down to their son

32:15 – The dog attack story — part one

35:23 – The second German Shepherd attack, two weeks later

41:06 – Finding gratitude & recognizing the pattern

43:52 – The friend's question: "Is this the program you want to pass to your kid?"

45:29 – Committing to a relationship built on love

48:44 – Teaser: the Israel story, coming in Part 2

Mentioned in this episode:

Wesley Huff

IG: https://www.instagram.com/wesley_huff

Dr. Jordan Peterson

IG: https://www.instagram.com/jordan.b.peterson

Elevation Church

IG: https://www.instagram.com/elevationworship

Follow along:

Ma-Honeys Podcast

IG: https://www.instagram.com/ma_honeys.podcast

Michael

IG: https://www.instagram.com/the.michaelmahoney

Website: http://www.iamconductr.com

Brielle

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle_colleen/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle.colleen.music

Website: http://www.theballroomedit.com

Ep. 3: Our Health & Wellness Choices

Brielle and Michael get real about their health journeys — what changed, why they eat the way they do, their daily routines, and how they're raising Roman with awareness and autonomy around food.

Show Notes:

0:00 – Intro & health disclaimer (not doctors/fitness pros)

1:33 – Michael's transparency: working with Elevation Health on fertility/biomarkers

5:10 – What got you interested in your health & what changed

13:44 – Brielle's shift: from restrictive eating to learning PFC (protein/fat/carb)

20:06 – A day in their life: meals, protein powder, honey, sweets in moderation

28:02 – What they want their child to inherit — awareness & autonomy over food

34:01 – What fills their cup: morning routines, prayer, journaling, spirituality

38:27 – Handling it when others' choices don't match theirs

42:40 – Final advice: get clear on what you want, examine your relationship with food

48:00 – Wrap-up & next episode teaser

Mentioned in this episode:

Katie's Creations

IG: https://www.instagram.com/dliteswenham

Heart and Soil

IG: https://www.instagram.com/heartandsoilsupplements

Elevation Health

IG: https://www.instagram.com/elevetionhealth

Follow along:

Ma-Honeys Podcast

IG: https://www.instagram.com/ma_honeys.podcast

Michael

IG: https://www.instagram.com/the.michaelmahoney

Website: http://www.iamconductr.com

Brielle

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle_colleen/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle.colleen.music

Website: http://www.theballroomedit.com

Ep. 2 Pt. 2: How We Met (Our Story, Continued)

Part two picks up where the story left off — a passport crisis before an international flight, moving in together, getting engaged, welcoming their son, and the whirlwind that brought them to New England (and soon, Florida).

Show Notes:

0:00 – Intro & thank you

1:01 – The text after the event & inviting her to Denver

3:02 – She says no — testing trust

4:22 – Moving to Arizona, missing their first "date"

6:23 – "I want to date you" — Michael's blunt declaration

7:59 – First date in Utah, sprinklers, and stargazing

9:36 – Long distance begins; the powerful weekend visit

10:17 – Halloween & meeting family

12:32 – California birthday trip — official boyfriend/girlfriend

13:44 – Flying out to drive her (and the dog) to Arizona

16:16 – Saying "I love you" & moving in together

17:47 – The Europe trip is booked

19:43 – The passport crisis

23:17 – The $1,200 flight fix

25:53 – The Seattle airport gate scare

28:07 – Getting pregnant, moving toward marriage

31:14 – Proposal & engagement, summer 2024

32:00 – Roman's birth, November 2024

34:01 – Deciding to leave Arizona

35:03 – The move to Massachusetts & wedding planning

36:04 – The wedding day

38:01 – The brutal New England winter

40:05 – Current life & the plan to move to Florida

41:00 – Wrap-up & what's next

Follow along:

Ma-Honeys Podcast

IG: https://www.instagram.com/ma_honeys.podcast

Michael

IG: https://www.instagram.com/the.michaelmahoney

Website: http://www.iamconductr.com

Brielle

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle_colleen/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle.colleen.music

Website: http://www.theballroomedit.com

Ep. 2 Pt. 1: How We Met (Our Story)

Brielle and Michael take you back to the beginning — how they first crossed paths in 2018, the wild coincidences that led them to the same rooms, and the slow-burn shift from coaching relationship to real feelings.

Show Notes:

0:00 – Intro, dad shirt, life update

2:05 – 19-month-old toddler trenches

2:43 – How they first crossed paths (2018, Utah)

8:16 – Michael's first impression of Brielle

11:44 – NLP training world & early overlap

15:20 – Brielle's 2019 wedding

18:39 – Michael's divorce, stepping away

20:56 – Brielle's separation & low point

22:01 – Coaching relationship begins (2022)

27:52 – Scottsdale event — the shift begins

32:07 – Michael's "define the one" moment

34:01 – Dinner, flirting, and getting caught

41:56 – Part 2 teaser

Follow along:

Ma-Honeys Podcast

IG: https://www.instagram.com/ma_honeys.podcast

Michael

IG: https://www.instagram.com/the.michaelmahoney

Website: http://www.iamconductr.com

Brielle

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle_colleen/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/brielle.colleen.music

Website: http://www.theballroomedit.com

0:00 – Intro & meet the hosts Michael and Brielle

0:21 – Current life: living with in-laws, baby Roman

1:38 – Our Next Moves

3:16 – Why we started the podcast

3:40 – Show topics: mindset, health, clean living

5:15 – Brielle: singer, dancer, creative

6:00 – What the show is NOT

7:26 – Navigating sharing their son on social media

12:48 – Faith & different religious backgrounds

15:08 – Teaser: how they met (there was drama)

19:16 – Michael’s brain vs. Brielle’s soul

22:30 – Personal growth & transformation

24:49 – Listeners as friends, not followers

28:35 – Closing thought: Matthew 6:22 on generosity