The Mama Sisterhood

I am so thrilled to bring you today's interview with a true miracle mama, Ebony Ford. After suffering through devastating losses, Ebony became pregnant with her daughter, Reign, however a joyous time quickly turned scary when Reign had to be delivered early at 26 weeks while Ebony fought for her life, diagnosed with HELLP syndrome. Ebony has used her story to support others, and I am so honored she took time out of her busy life to chat with me today. You'll hear about:

- Moving through stillbirth and miscarriage

- HELLP syndrome and waking up in the ICU after delivering her daughter at 26 weeks

- Raising a micropreemie

- Choosing to become pregnant again after birth trauma

- All about her AMAZING community, Miracle Mamas

You can find Ebony at:

Website: www.miraclemamas.org

Miracle Mamas club:

I am so excited to bring you today's episode! Renee Sellers in an AMAZING mama that I have gotten to know and she joins us today to share her journey with her two daughters, Opal and Lucy, who are both autistic. You wil hear about:

- How her two girls present entirely diffrerently in terms of their autism

- Myths about autism

- Potential signs of autism

- How to encouge our kids to interact with others who may have a disability

- (This one is my favorite!) Why her family celebrates diagnosis days

You can find Renee on Instagram at @rainbows__after__rain

Today is a solo episode! I wanted to share about Gavin's surgical journey for his CP. When he was 4, he had a surgery called Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy which is a 7-hour surgery where the surgeon finds the nerves leading to muscle spasticity - and severs them. Gavin then had to relearn how to sit, stand, walk, and more. A couple months later, he had a surgery to lengthen the muscles in both calves. In this episode, you'll hear about:

- What it's like to make such a terrifying medical decision

- The power of touch dogs

- When and how to advocate for your child

- Other lessons I learned along our surgical journey!

As usual, you can follow me on IG at

@mama.sisterhood

I am so happy to share this interview with you all! Today's guest is Laura Swanson who is the mom to an AMAZING girl named Harper. Harper had her first seizure the day of her 5th birthday party, and Laura shares their journey and how this has affected her as a mom. You will hear about:

- What it's like having a child with epilepsy

- How this has affected her mental health, particularly anxiety and OCD

- The importance of advocating for your child

- The need for self-care and expressing your needs as a mom (ALL moms, not just those of kids with medical needs)

Check out Laura's IG page at @lifewith.laurajessica

Today, I'm happy to share my interview with Ashley, whose 8-year-old daughter, Sadie, has been diagnosed with a rare disease called Sanfilippo Syndrome. Sanfilippo, as described by Ashley, is similar to dementia or Alzheimer's, but in children. In this episode, you will hear about:

Katrina Mullen's story is INCREDIBLE! Katrina was a mom of 5 boys, working as a NICU nurse, when she met her now-daughter, Shariya, who had just given birth at age 14 to micropreemie triplets. She bonded with the young mother and months later, when her daughter and the triplets were going to be moved to foster care, Katrina stepped in and said "yes" - to expanding her family and adopting Shariya. Katrina now has 5 boys, a daughter, and triplet grandchildren. In this unbelievable episode, you'll hear about:

- How Katrina and Shariya bonded in the hospital

- What it was like to say "yes" while being a single, working mother of five

- Shariya's amazing journey and what she is doing now

- How you can support others, such as a young mom

Happy 4th of July!

I'm so honored to have Ali DiIorio on today to share about motherhood with her husband in the Air Force. Ali is the mom of two boys, who are 3 years old and 6 months old. Her husband has been in the military for the last five years, and Ali shares how this has affected their family. You'll hear about:

- What it's like to move with kids every few years

- How she finds mom friends when she's frequently in a new place

- How being a military family has shaped her family values

- How you could help a military mom

Thank you to Ali's husband and to all other current and past members of the military for your service!

Today, I have TWO guests, Melissa and Elise, who is 6 years old. Elise is non-binary/gender fluid, and in the first part of the episode, Elise answers questions and shares thoughts while in the second half, Melissa shares experiences and advice from a parent's perspective. This episode includes:

- The importance of pronouns

- How our vocabulary is lacking necessary words and how words we commonly use can make others uncomfortable

- Advocating for your child

- Supporting your child while also giving yourself grace while you learn along with them

I am so honored to bring you my interview with Larissa Canestraight - she was one of our amazing NICU nurses and she is here today to share her own journey with her son, Blake. In this episode, Larissa shares about:

- Her journey with polyhydramnios

- A 3.5 month NICU stay and how being a NICU nurse affected her experience

- Making the hardest medical decision, infant loss, and making the most of the time you have

- Advocating for yourself and your loved ones

- The power of family and friends who go the extra mile

Thanks for listening!

Kaylee Hurt is BACK! To learn more about her journey with her daughter, Kaydee, check out Episodes 11 and 12, but today, she is here to talk about what it's like to raise her daughters on a farm! I learned so much about farm life (pros and cons), and Kaylee has SO much good advice that applies to motherhood, no matter where you live!

In this episode:

- What it's like living on her particular farm and all about calving

- What types of chores her daughters do on the farm

- The lessons her daughters have learned on the farm

- How her family makes memories in different ways than others

- How life on the farm can be incorporated into homeschool, including participation in 4H