The Less Than Perfect Podcast

Listen in as my husband Adam Smith and I share a very candid and unedited conversation about our health journeys and the goals we have for ourselves.

In this episode, Coco and I share our experiences not only as mothers but as wives and partners. We share our stories about how we maneuvered through our lives as we dealt with the ups and downs of relationships and marriage. We reflect on the moments when we lost ourselves while trying to meet the needs of our families as wives and mothers. 

This episode examines various aspects of motherhood and the experience from different perspectives.

This epsiode explores how husbands and wives navigate through the many aspects of marriage as it pertains to undertstanding each others' individual love language and how they respond to verbal and nonverbal communication with one another. 

Hey everybody thank you so much for tuning in. This week's Miscellaneous Moments episode is all about Leveraging Your Day where I’ll be discussing some of the benefits of getting up early and developing and maintaining a healthy morning routine. I’ll be covering some key sections from a book that an acquaintance of mine shared on her social media platform entitled The 5 AM Club by Robin Sharma  I was so intrigued by the title that I had my husband add it to his Audible account so I could listen to it. In addition to the book, I have also included some information from a few different articles that I found.
https://www.sleepadvisor.org/benefits-of-waking-up-early/
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/this-is-when-successful-people-wake-up
https://www.mandatory.com/fun/1486189-celebrity-early-birds#9

Motherhood can be one of the greatest jobs in the world but it is also a selfless job. Motherhood can bring us the most joy we have ever experienced in our lives but it can also bring us the worse pain, but time and time again we welcome the journey of bringing life into the world because there is no other feeling quite like it. And while some of us may be blessed enough to have someone to share all the experiences of being a parent, there are mothers out there for whatever reason, voluntary or involuntary that are doing it all on their own. This episode is dedicated to all of the single mothers who continue to push forward and continue to make things happen for their children no matter what.

I had the pleasure of talking with Lucy a single mom that has dealt with her share of life experiences. She was kind enough to talk about her life as a single mom and the heartache she dealt with after her untimely divorce shortly after the birth of her baby boy. Her amazing story is a testament to how the loving bond between a mother and a child can give us the strength and courage to weather any storm.

In this weeks' marriage episode, we will be talking with Desiraye and Jared Davis Sr. about their book "I Choose You Again" a 21-day journey to rekindle the spark that made you say "I Do". In their book, the couple shares how they have continued to grow within their marriage. They discuss how important it was for them to find ways to rekindle their love in a way that was transformative and transparent. While on their marriage journey the Davis' continue to tell their story of two imperfect people that have come together to love a perfect God. It is my hope that some of my listeners will find value in the information that Desiraye and Jared have shared with us. You can purchase their book on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Choose-You-Again-journey-rekindle/dp/1980276064/ref=sr_1_16?dchild=1&keywords=I+choose+you+again&qid=1598818449&sr=8-16

This week’s miscellaneous moments topic is all about COVID 19 and the effects it has had on all of our daily lives. And I was finally able to persuade my husband to come on the show with me and share in the discussion because we both feel that it is important to have a way to express the challenges that we’re all currently facing. It is our hope that someone will be able to benefit from our conversation in some way even if only to know that they are not the only ones facing difficult situations brought about by COVID 19.

Stay-at-Home-Mom Depression is Real- And You’re Not Alone is an article that was written by Courtney Lund O’Neil. The article talks about the loneliness, isolation, and loss of identity that sometimes comes along with being a stay at home mom. It shares the challenges mothers face as we transition from the lives that we once lived as individuals with jobs, careers, and personal goals to the role of a stay-at-home-mom, responsible for the life of another human being. O’Neil also touches on some of the emotions that sometimes go along with this transition like anger, confusion, and sadness as a result of the loss of our own identities. She goes on to make mention of the exhaustion that stay-at-home-moms experience but are hesitant to complain about because to outsiders we appear to have been gifted with an easy-going, stress-free life, which I can honestly say is truly not the case. Finally, the author basically says yes there are some moms out there that do make it look easy but for those of us that deal with feelings of depression, it's okay we’re not alone and there is no shame in some of us wanting to work again and that its beneficial to explore positive outlets to help us work through the depression.

While I have come to terms with all of the imperfections of my life, I realize that finding and maintaining a sense of normalcy and happiness is an uphill battle. I know it is okay for me to live in my truth as a stay-at-home-mom despite what other people may think. And as long as I continue to do my best and keep giving my children all the love that I have to give, I can be content in the place the universe has me in.

https://www.parents.com/parenting/moms/stay-at-home-mom-depression-is-real/