Get ready to feel seen, mom friends. In this light-hearted and humorous episode, we wrap up Season 5 of the Mama Work It podcast with a collection of relatable mom life memes. As we prepare for our annual break, join us for a fun-filled discussion that highlights the everyday challenges and triumphs of working motherhood. From sleep deprivation to the infamous "mom brain," we dive into the memes that make us laugh and remind us that we're not alone on this mom life journey.

Here’s what you’ll get out of today’s episode:

·      The mental load of motherhood and how many unanswered texts you probably have on your phone because of it

·       The struggle of being a pumping mom and how The Rock is helping us laugh about it

·       Tips, tricks, and ways to NOT let the reality of mom life memes cause you defeat

Links mentioned:

Episode 10: Tired as a Mother with Dr. Sarah Mitchell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKBSY4tkEvA 

Episode 173: Taking a Mom Vacation with Jillian McCloskey https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/taking-a-mom-vacation-with-jillian-mccloskey/id1549805160?i=1000698848936 

Time MOMagement 4-week program: www.mamaworkit.com/timemomagement

Biz MOMagement 90-day program: www.mamaworkit.com/bizmomagement

Time MOMagement book: www.mamaworkit.com/timemomagementbook

Biz MOMagement book: www.mamaworkit.com/bizmomagementbook

Word to Your Mother journal/planner: www.mamaworkit.com/wordtoyourmother

Mama Work It blog: www.mamaworkit.com/blog

Mama Work It podcast: www.mamaworkit.com/podcast

Kid Artwork Frame: https://amzn.to/44CLXYH 

Give these posts/accounts a follow/like/share:

Meme#1: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/37928821849504579/ 

Meme #2: https://www.instagram.com/p/DHqdf7MsNvi/ 

Meme #3: https://www.instagram.com/p/DKrhqcitOr0/

Meme #4: https://www.instagram.com/p/DLMRrpuM990/ 

Meme #5: https://www.instagram.com/p/DLOUtscS56w/ 

Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review if you loved this episode!

For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.  

We'll be back this fall with more amazing guests and topics on the Mama Work It podcast. Until then, keep on working it, mama friends!

Have you ever thought about becoming a foster parent? Did you know there are currently 368,000 children in foster care in the U.S. with nearly a third of those children waiting to be adopted according to Statista, the Christian Alliance for Orphans, and other sources? 

This week on the Mama Work It podcast, foster and adoptive mom Elizabeth Shafer (also the founder of Tandem Life Coach) shares her experience as a family who has fostered nine children and adopted three of them. Elizabeth peels back the curtain on what foster care is really like and how, despite the grief and sadness encountered at various points in the experiences, she wouldn’t change a thing as it brought her and her husband their three most precious gifts. 

Here’s what you’ll get out of this episode:

·       Elizabeth’s journey with infertility and how it led her to becoming a foster parent and adoptive parent

·       The process on how to get started as a foster parent 

·       The stuff no one talks about when it comes to reunification in foster care and Elizabeth’s personal foster experiences

Here’s where you can find Elizabeth and connect with her after the show:

https://www.tandemlifecoach.com/ 

https://www.instagram.com/elizabethjshafer/ 

Read Elizabeth’s story on the Mama Work It blog:  https://www.mamaworkit.com/blog/the-gift-of-infertility 

Don’t forget to subscribe if you loved this episode!

For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.  

If you feel stuck in your working mom life right now, and making a change or taking a risk is the last thing you believe you could ever do in the season you’re in, listen to the Mama Work It podcast this week. 

In this empowering episode, guest Charlotte Friborg—a two-time bestselling author, speaker, and transformational life coach—who is on a mission to help moms create a fulfilling career without sacrificing their role as a mother shares how she combines Law of Attraction principles, NLP, and Human Design to support working moms in uncovering their authentic path, building confidence, and manifesting meaningful change.

Whether you're balancing a 9-to-5, launching a business, or simply seeking clarity on your next step, Charlotte offers grounded wisdom and powerful insights for taking intentional risks while honoring both your ambition and your motherhood.

Here’s what you’ll get out of today’s episode:

·       Common struggles moms face when navigating career change and motherhood and ways to overcome them

·       The possibilities that open up when moms do the deep inner work and take aligned risks

·       Charlotte’s #1 piece of advice for moms feeling stuck or afraid to follow through on changes they deeply desire

Here’s where you can connect with Charlotte or purchase her best-selling books after the show:

https://www.charlottefriborg.com/ 

https://www.facebook.com/charlotte.friborg/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/fulfilledworkingmoms  https://www.instagram.com/charlotte_friborg/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotte-friborg-5154907a/  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_V2OvTiFpKclUbyn-9ImCg

Books:

Make Your Own Money: Shine Your Light with Purpose and Balance https://amzn.to/43J3lL5 

Fulfilled Working Mom: Have it All in Your Family and Career https://amzn.to/44fyQMT 

Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review if you loved this episode!

For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.  

Feeling like you have no time for rituals or connection with your kiddos lately? This episode is for you!

This week on the Mama Work It podcast, I interviewed Monica Virga Alborno, founder of Wanderwild Family Retreats and host of Wand(HER)wild podcast. Former Fortune 500 executive and a globe-trotting mother of two, Monica shares her incredible journey from corporate leadership to conscious entrepreneurship, all while parenting young children as an expat living in Norway.

With roots in New Jersey and a heart that spans the globe, Monica opens up about what it means to create sacred rituals within motherhood, how to intentionally build a life and business that aligns with your values, and how even the busiest mama can find small but powerful ways to reconnect—with herself and her children.

Whether you're deep in the trenches of motherhood or looking for more meaning in your everyday routines, this conversation will leave you feeling seen, inspired, and supported.

Here's what you’ll get out of today’s episode:

·       What sacred self-care looks like in the context of modern motherhood

·       Simple ways to introduce intentional rituals for moms who feel like they’re just surviving

·       How Monica weaves her global experiences, leadership background, and passion for holistic growth into everything she creates

Here’s how to connect with Monica and learn more about her amazing retreats after the show:

Website - Wanderwild Family Retreats - https://wanderwildfamilyretreats.com/  

Website - Wand(HER)wild - https://wandherwild.com/

Instagram - @wanderwildfamilyretreats and @wandherwild  

Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review if you loved this episode!

For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.  

Mom Guilt. It’s the worst. Showing up in all different ways and messing up all the things you work so hard to do. We’ve talked about mom guilt before on the Mama Work It podcast, and-as much as I dislike this topic-it’s a necessary one to discuss again because it still keeps happening!

Today we’re unpacking the truth behind mom guilt so we can better understand that guilt and manage it effectively. I’m sharing a personal mom guilt story – that just happened to me – along with other examples where mom guilt may be showing up for you. Tune in to learn more about mom guilt so you can tune it out of your mom life. 

Here's what you’ll get out of today’s episode:

·              The breastfeeding saga and how mom guilt can affect so many moms from the get-go

·              Comparisonitis and how it grows mom guilt in places it doesn’t need to be

·              The movie that will make you realize that it’s better to laugh than cry about working mom life and mom guilt 

Here are some book, self-assessment, and movie recommendations based on this episode:

Books: 

Taming Your Gremlin by Rick Carson https://amzn.to/4dDkARb 

The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown https://amzn.to/3FuJOVg 

Self-assessments:

Enneagram https://personalitypath.com/free-enneagram-personality-test/

DISC personality test https://www.123test.com/disc-personality-test/

Love Languages https://5lovelanguages.com/quizzes/love-language

Movie: 

I Don’t Know How She Does It https://amzn.to/4dCPWYd 

Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review if you loved this episode!

For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.  

Are you ready for summer, mama? Or are you getting triggered by all the things summer related? 

We’ve talked about fall triggers. We’ve discussed holiday triggers. Now it’s time for summer triggers. If you’re ready to feel seen as a working mom trying to hold it together in the summer, and maybe even laugh a little with Marisa and Estella, two working moms who get it, tune into this week’s episode of the Mama Work It podcast.

Here’s what you’ll get out of this week’s episode:

·       Is it true that we do indeed only get 18 summers with our kids? 

·       The competitive sport of summer camp sign-ups and the audacity of summer camp schedules for working parents

·       Summer schedules and how to navigate PTO, mom guilt, and everything that comes along with the juggle of work life, mom life, summer life. 

Read the summer incentive blog post Marisa mentioned: https://www.mamaworkit.com/blog/summer-routine-incentives-for-kids

Don’t forget to leave a review if you loved this episode!

For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.  

Tired from the invisible labor you’re doing day in and day out? Feel like you carry a super heavy mental load around and can’t seem to lighten it, no matter how much you try? This episode of the Mama Work It podcast is for you!

Join the conversation this week with speaker, author and coach, Lori Sugarman-Li, as we talk about sharing chores and responsibilities at home so moms aren’t stressing out and burning out. Lori’s children’s book, Our Home, helps readers understand the way homes function and the meaning behind seemingly simple tasks and how they can take ownership in some of those daily responsibilities, so moms don’t have to feel like they’re doing it all. 

Here's what you’ll get out of today’s episode:

·       The secret sauce to creating a well-oiled machine at home, despite nearly 50% of parents in the U.S. reporting their stress is overwhelming.

·       Different word choices you can use to get more buy in from your family in taking ownership of tasks at home

·       Ways to get the help you need as a mom without necessarily having to ask for it

To connect with Lori after the show or purchase her book:

https://www.instagram.com/ourhomeourpride/  

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lori-sugarman-li-50592911/ 

https://ourhomeourpride.com/ 

Our Home book: https://amzn.to/4jZ2eN1 

Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review if you loved this episode!

For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.  

If you work in an industry where you feel like the only mom and maybe even the only woman, this week’s episode of the Mama Work It podcast is for you. 

Mama Work It podcast guest Annie Pratt, a long-time leader in male-dominated tech companies is sharing her insights on how to build confidence at work, even when it feels like you don’t necessarily fit in with your coworkers. Her advice is helping lower the stats of women leaving tech roles due to lack of support and opportunities during seasons where the juggle of working mom life can feel downright impossible.

Here’s what you’ll get out of today’s episode:

• How Annie shows up authentically and confidently as a tech executive while juggling daycare pickups and bedtime snuggles with her two toddlers.
• Ways to challenge the norm at work if the environment isn’t family friendly to working parents
• The importance of celebrating wins in relation to building confidence and how Annie does this in her own life

 Here’s where you can connect with Annie after the show:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/annie-pratt-a6a8177a/ 

Don’t forget to subscribe and leave a review if you loved this episode!
        
For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.  

When you hear the word “Mom”, I imagine the word “vulnerable” doesn’t come to mind. No way! You’re glancing from left to right and fishing through your purse for sunscreen or water or a granola bar. There it is—half eaten, but still good. 

As a mom, being vulnerable can feel like something we are very uncomfortable with. Plus, who has time for that? 

And yet, vulnerability is what connects us the most. Vulnerability can form long lasting friendships. Vulnerability can be the key we need to get into a happier and less lonely mental space. Vulnerability, as taboo as it is, is the secret sauce for moms to thrive, not just survive the season of motherhood. Because doing the impossible shouldn’t be something we do masked in silence. 

As a writer being the core of what I love to do, I wrote a vulnerable story I’m sharing with you this week on the podcast (and the blog). Whether you relate to the content of the story or not, I hope you feel empowered to share your vulnerability with the world too, because chances are it will connect you more than you ever imagined.

Different kind of episode this week—hope you enjoy!

Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review if you loved this episode!

For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.  

 To check out Marisa's books mentioned in today's episode:

Time MOMagement: How to Get the Time You Need to Do the Things You Want https://www.mamaworkit.com/timemomagementbook

Word to Your Mother: A Mama's Guide to Journal Today and Slay Tomorrow https://www.mamaworkit.com/wordtoyourmother

Biz MOMagement: The Working Mom's Guide to Go From Employee to Entrepreneur https://www.mamaworkit.com/bizmomagementbook

Boy Moms: Collective Tales of Mothers and Sons https://amzn.to/42tD1mk 

 If you’re a mom who doesn’t know what her hobbies are anymore, it might be time to tap into a fun creative outlet. Cue this week’s guest on the Mama Work It podcast, Jenn Todling, mom, wife, author, speaker, executive coach, and adjunct instructor at the University of Denver’s Frontline Manager Leadership Program. Jenn recently released her memoir, Dancing on My Own Two Feet, where she dives deep into her own creative passions that took a back seat for a big chunk of her life, and how she reignited that fire within her to create the balance, beauty, and life she craved. If you’re ready to get back to a place of creative fulfillment so you can thrive in motherhood, at work, at home, with your spouse, in other relationships, and more, Jenn’s advice is solid gold. 

Here's what you’ll get out of today’s episode:

·        Tidbits of Jenn’s amazing life story (you will definitely want to read this book, trust me!)

·        How Jenn reconnected with dance and how it helped her as a Big 4 audit partner

·        Ways Jenn doesn’t let mom guilt creep in and sabotage her creative expression

 Here's where you can connect with Jenn after the show and purchase her book: Dancing on My Own Two Feet.

https://jenntodling.com/
https://jenntodling.substack.com/
https://www.instagram.com/jenntodling/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenn-todling-acc-cpa-41690013/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61557117761935

https://amzn.to/3Djubz5

Don’t forget to subscribe and leave a review if you loved this episode!
      
 For more resources on juggling mom life, work life, wife life, fill in the blank life, head on over to www.mamaworkit.com and subscribe.