Today I’m chatting with Amanda Cunningham, who is the founder of The Glory Days Co., a company that provides organizational tools for parents and caregivers of special needs children. Amanda’s daughter “Rory” was born with an unexpected diagnosis of Down Syndrome. When looking for tools to support her in this new role as a special needs parent, she found nothing. Desperate, Amanda created an organizational system that is now The Glory Days Daily Planner - the first daily planner for children with special needs.

Amanda talks about this unexpected diagnosis being the shock of her life and how she and her family navigated through all the emotions surrounding it. She also speaks really candidly about of how all of us as Moms have hopes and dreams for our kids and many of us have our worlds rocked as our children naturally are themselves, which may be different from what we hoped. I also ask her to give us some ideas of how to support families whose kids have a medical diagnosis because sometimes we don’t know the right things to say or do. I appreciated her vulnerability in speaking on this subject and I can’t wait for you to listen.

How to support families with a medical diagnose(s):

Engaging your children with people who are different from them

Not saying sorry, saying congratulations at the birth of a child

Always address the child before you address the diagnosis

Links from the show:

“It’s Not Supposed to Be This Way” by Lysa TerKeurst

Find Amanda + The Glory Days:

Website: https://theglorydaysco.com

Instagram: @theglorydaysco

Today I’m excited to introduce you to Anne Smith. She is a wife and mother of four based in Greenville, SC. She has a delightful podcast called But Not All At Once, because as she says, we can do it all y’all, but not all at once. She’s also a public relations and social media strategist, freelance writer, and podcast consultant.

We’re chatting today about her podcast, which I have been listening to for the last few months and love it! We also talk mostly about how we can use nostalgia as self-care We talk about the "selfless selfishness" of providing for your own needs as a mom, and rediscovering your own hobbies and preferences as the hands-on baby stage wraps up.

We also touch on procrastination and how actually doing those grown up tasks like writing up a will, calling your insurance company can also be self-care. Sometimes you just need to go back to how you felt when you got home from school as a kid, sat down, opened a snack and watched Saved by the Bell, ya know? You’re gonna love this fun and light conversation with Anne.

Links from the show:
“Open Book” by Jessica Simpson

Zack to the Future Podcast

“Eligible: A modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice” by Curtis Sittenfeld

“Presumption” by Julia Barrett

Find Anne:
Website: butnotallatonce.com

Instagram: @butnotallatonce

Today I’m interviewing Kathryn Wepfer. She is the founder and CEO of Fulcrum Apparel, which just launched this month, and aims to elevate workwear for Moms navigating the pumping process. Kathryn is dedicated to empowering the female workforce through products and services that enable women to be present in both work and motherhood while achieving all their goals. Kathryn lives in Washington, DC with her husband and two daughters.

I can’t wait for you to hear all about Kathryn and her business, but I am also excited for the bigger conversation and dialogue we had surrounding postpartum moms and pumping in the workplace. It was so amazing chatting with her because my very own experiences with this made all the memories come flooding back. I remember the struggle and the beauty of it, finding the balance of being back at work and yet the pain of leaving my baby, the awkwardness of doing something so personal in a professional settling and so much more. We cover it all in this episode and I think whether you breastfed or not, you can relate to the feelings of just going back to work as a new Mom and the tension that’s there.

Book she mentions:

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert

Find Kathryn:

Website: thefulcrumapparel.com/

Instagram: @fulcrumapparel/

Today I have the pleasure of interviewing Alison Lumbatis for a second time! She was on the show last Fall on episode #65 and spoke to us about body positivity (it’s such a great episode - bookmark it to listen later!). This time, Alison is back because she just wrote an amazing book that we all need right now called “The Ultimate Book of Outfit Formulas: A Stylish Solution to What Should I Wear”. This book is full of ideas for outfits for that is body inclusive, meant for all sizes and shapes and is budget-friendly!

Me and Alison spend a lot of time talking about her outfit formulas and how she uses it to get dressed everyday. She gives us practical ideas, tells us the 3 must-have pieces of clothing for Moms, where she shops and a super encouraging word about dressing for the body you have right now.

Alison is giving away a copy of her new book and I am giving away our October “Mama Needs the Basics” box to one lucky winner on instagram! Go check it out over @mamaneedsbox for all the details so you have a chance to win!

Find Alison:

Buy her book (available September 14 wherever books are sold): The Ultimate Book of Outfit Formulas

Website: Get Your Pretty On

Instagram: @_getyourprettyon

Facebook: facebook.com/getyourprettyon

Today I’m interviewing Melissa Face. Melissa is a writer, author and teacher who lives in Virginia with her husband and two kids. She just recently published a book called I Love You More Than Coffee, which is a compilation of essays from her first 8 years of motherhood, written in real time.

Melissa is so candid about her experiences in motherhood and we talked about her book and how sharing your stories about being a Mom is so important and encourages other Moms to share their stories, too. She is just a delight and I know you will love both our conversation and her book!

Books she mentions:

The Baddest Girl on the Planet by Heather Frese

Abandon Me by Melissa Febos

Find Melissa:

Buy her book: I Love You More Than Coffee: Essays on Parenthood

Website: melissaface.com

Instagram: @melissafacewrites

Welcome back Mamas! We took a little break this summer from the podcast to recoup and focus on some really BIG things that are coming up for Mama Needs Box in the Fall. You’ll hear more about that soon! But for now, since we’re talking about needing more time and time management, I decided to re-air a couple of past episodes that dove deep into how we as Mamas can get more time!

This first episode is with Ashley Brown, founder of Routine & Things, which is a business that is all about helping women get and stay in their happy place by establishing routines that work for them! This episode originally aired in April of 2020 and I’m so excited to bring our conversation to you again as a refresher or for you to listen for the first time!

You will love Ashley! We’ve also included her masterclass called Rock Your Routines in our May box this year plus some beautiful affirmation post-it notes! We still have a few of those May boxes available in our Shop if you’re interested in using her products! Ashley is a joy and I love how she serves Mamas in encouraging us to set up routines so we can be less stressed and enjoy our motherhood! Enjoy my conversation with Ashley!

Links from this episode:

“More than Enough” by Elaine Welteroth

Find Ashley:

Website: routineandthings.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/routineandthings/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/routineandthings
Routine and Things Podcast: https://routineandthings.com/podcast/

Hey everyone and welcome back to a new episode of the Mama Needs Podcast. Today I am interviewing Royah Loie. Royah is a certified doula, childbirth educator, lactation counselor and host of The Insider Mom Podcast. I was a guest on her podcast recently too, in May on episode #55.

She’s on a mission to help mamas break through barriers, release perfection, cultural norms and mom guilt. Whether it’s through addressing archaic maternity leave policies, lack of adequate birth or postpartum support, outdated cultural traditions or seemingly modern but flawed working norms, she aims to support and work with moms to create much needed change in the space of maternal rights and care.

We talk all about self-care in this episode - how to figure out what will fill you up so you can pour back into your family, what it looks like for both of us to practice self-care and towards the end we bust a well-known myth that we all have the same hours in the day as Beyonce! You’ll love the freedom it will give you! Enjoy my conversation with Royah.

Links from this episode:

InsiderMom.com

Tea Drops (the affiliate link will get you 20% off anything)

Difficult Conversations

Will Power Doesn’t Work

Find Royah:

Web: InsiderMom.com

Instagram: @insidermom

Hey Mamas! Welcome back to the Mama Needs Podcast! Today I am interviewing my new friend Stephanie Bagley! Stephanie is an enneagram 7, homeschooling mom of 3 who is always ready for a party. She and her family currently live in a small town in Idaho. Stephanie is also a business Coach for creative entrepreneurs and has a business podcast called The Dream Makers Podcast.

Before we get into this episode, I just want to give you a heads up that we will be discussing postpartum depression and PTSD. If this is triggering to you whatsoever, I would suggest listening to it another time when you’re able to. But, if you’re ready to hear a really authentic and real story from someone who has experienced this and is on the other side, listen in!

And just a quick disclaimer that neither Stephanie nor myself are licensed therapists or counselors, just everyday Mamas telling our stories. You know it doesn’t have to be postpartum awareness month to talk about these things; it should be all the time! You will absolutely love Stephanie, she is a blast! Enjoy my conversation with Stephanie.

Links mentioned in this episode:

Enneagram Institute

Believe It by Jamie Kern Lima

Green Lights by Matthew McConaughey

Find Stephanie:

Web: stephanieannbagley.com

Instagram: @stephaniebagleydreammakers

Podcast: The Dream Makers Podcast

Welcome to a special BONUS episode of The Mama Needs Podcast! Today I am chatting with three of my dear friends, Carla, Melissa and Rebekah, all about the FRIENDS Reunion!

What we talk about:

When we started watching FRIENDS!

How FRIENDS has gotten us through various times in our lives.

Which character we most identify with.

What we thought about the reunion!

How we thought the FRIENDS looked at the Reunion.

What we thought about the guests on the Reunion and who we missed that wasn’t there!

The highs and lows of the Reunion.

TRIVIA GAME! Hear us play a rapid fire FRIENDS trivia game

Hello and welcome to the Mama Needs Podcast! Today I am interviewing Alison Storm!

Alison is a midwestern girl, living in the south with her Irish immigrant husband, and two beautiful kids. Get this: She co-hosts the world’s only Chickfila fan podcast, writes for a local women’s magazine, and leads an effort to help kids learn compassion by selling elephants handmade by young women rescued from slavery in India. This year she is also celebrating the 20th anniversary of the traveling journal she and her friends started in college.

I have loved the Chickfila podcast for over a year now - it was the perfect thing to listen to during the pandemic - the light hearted podcast we all need. Alison is awesome and we chat all about the podcast she co-hosts, how my family got a puppy all based on an episode from that podcast, we talk about the traveling journal she’s been doing with her college pals for 20 years and more! She is just a breath of fresh air! Enjoy my conversation with Alison!

Links mentioned in this episode:

The Unofficial Chick-fil-A Podcast

All She Wrote Notes

Doodles Making a Difference

Set Free Alliance

Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

Find Alison:

Web: alisonstorm.com, chickfilapodcast.com

Insta: @alistorm, @chickfilapodcast