I said something in this week's episode that I did not realize was a confession.

I told my guest that I only use AI for "silly things." Outfit ideas. Recipe swaps. Silly little searches while I fold laundry.

She stopped me cold.

"Brittany, what you're calling silly? That's someone else's business. When you look up outfits, someone's outfit business gets found. When you search for a gift, someone's gift business gets found. Your silly is someone else's product being discovered."

Mama. Chills.

In this episode of The Money Hungry Mama Podcast, I sit down with Lexi Birmingham — a former corporate sales VP who quit her 15-year job during maternity leave, taught herself Claude in six months while her son slept, and built Bermo Co: a talent growth marketplace that runs on custom AI infrastructure.

Lexi is the smartest AI voice I have talked to in months. She is not the person telling you to let AI write your captions. She is the person teaching you how to build an AI infrastructure that runs your business behind the scenes while you keep your voice, your writing, and your family time completely intact.

This is the conversation for the mama who has been told to STAY AWAY from AI — but who is quietly worried she is being left behind. Both things can be true. AI can be a threat to your authentic voice AND the most powerful business infrastructure you have ever had access to. Lexi teaches you how to hold both.

Plus: the six months she spent on maternity leave learning Claude, how she cut 90% of her business subscriptions by building her own AI tools, why GEO is replacing SEO (and what 60% of your buyers are actually searching), the "gap scan" she runs for startups that surfaces where their revenue is quietly slipping, and the "lobster roll in Miami" moment where she decided to quit her corporate job for good.

For every mama who has been afraid of AI. And every mama who is quietly wondering if she should be more afraid of being LEFT BEHIND by it. 💛

Find Lexi: @bermo.co on Instagram | bermoco.com

Pre-Order The Money Hungry Mama Guide - https://a.co/d/04HXaEwG

You looked down at your baby and something pulled — I don't want to leave her. I want to figure out how to stay. This is Episode 100, and it's for the mom who refuses to choose between being present and providing.

If you've felt the guilt of maternity leave ending, the ache of daycare drop-off, or that quiet fire that lit the day you became a mom — this one will find you. Brittany shares the urgent care moment that started it all ("with every mouth comes a loaf of bread"), why the pull to stay home isn't selfish, and how she built a work-from-home life so she never had to hand her kids to someone else.

For every mom searching for a side hustle, a work-from-home income, or a way off the maternity-leave cliff — there's a third door, and it's not on the menu they gave you.

🎧 Then join the FREE Find Your Perfect Hustle class on September 17 — https://themoneyhungrymama.myflodesk.com/freewebinar

Stay hungry, mama

I have a confession, mama.

Before I built The Money Hungry Mama into what it is today, I tried thirty side hustles. Thirty. Because every time I saw someone else winning at something new, I thought I could do that too. I chased every shiny thing. I burned out. I quit. I started over. I called it "figuring things out."

Meanwhile, this week's guest was quietly doing something I could not do at the time.

Vanessa Rose Watts is the owner of Pumpkin Lee Prints — a custom invitation and event design business she has been building for twenty years. No storefront. No website (still doesn't have one, four years into planning to make one). No TikTok dances. No viral trends. No pivots. No off-ramps.

Just twenty years of the same beautiful work, done a little better every year.

In this episode of The Money Hungry Mama Podcast, Brittany sits down with Vanessa Rose to talk about the growth philosophy that saved her from every trap most mompreneurs fall into — and gave Brittany the words for what she wishes someone had told her ten years ago.

"Stay in your lane. When you're ready to grow, make it a two-lane road. Then a three-lane road. But it's still YOUR road. It's branches off the same tree — not nine different plants in your garden."

This is the conversation for the mama who has been chasing every trend, jumping between hustles, exhausted from being pulled in a thousand directions — and quietly wondering if there is a different way.

There is. Vanessa Rose has been living it for two decades.

Plus: how she built her business entirely on word-of-mouth and referrals (no paid ads, no dance trends), why "being your own marketing" beats copying what everyone else is doing, the elementary teacher pivot that changed her life, how to know when it's time to expand your lane, why the "excited bug" of trying every new thing is the biggest threat to your business, and why the mama who says yes to less makes more.

For every mama who has been made to feel like her slow build is falling behind. It's not. It's compounding. 💛

Find Vanessa Rose: @pumpkinlyprints on Instagram

Website: Pumpkinlypaperie.com

The Money Hungry Mama Guide — coming Sept 8, 2026. https://a.co/d/04HXaEwG

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Before Estee Levin had her son, she said yes to every opportunity that came her way. Every wedding. Every late night. Every gig that was tired-but-worth-it. Every stress filled overworked opportunity that felt like it might lead somewhere.

She never said no.

Then she became a mother.

And motherhood did not restrict her business — it did something much more powerful. It refined what she was willing to say yes to.

In this episode, Brittany sits down with Estee Levin — host of Not Your Average Mom Pod, a full-time PR professional, and the owner of her own wedding planning business — to break down the principle that most mompreneurs never fully name for themselves:

The Refined Yes.

Motherhood does not shrink your ambition, mama. It sharpens it. Every yes now has to earn its place around your family. Every opportunity has to fit the season you're in. Every chase has to be worth the hour it will take from someone you love.

The mama who says yes to less makes more — because every yes she gives is now aimed.

This is the conversation for the mompreneur who has been drowning in commitments she said yes to for the wrong reasons, the mama who has been comparing her pace to her pre-baby self, and the woman who needs permission to want less and mean it more.

Plus: how Estee grew up in the wedding industry (her dad co-owned a Jersey wedding boat), why the best wedding planners come from the venue side, how to start a wedding planning side hustle without quitting your day job, the two-weddings-a-month rhythm that works around family life, why she did her first solo wedding for FREE and what it opened up, and the boundary shift most first-time moms don't see coming.

For every mama whose yes has been costing her family more than it earns. 💛

Find Estee: @notyouraveragemompod on Instagram

 The Money Hungry Mama Guide — coming Sept 8, 2026

https://a.co/d/04HXaEwG

Your audience is not ignoring you, mama. They are counting.

Modern consumers need to see your content, your message, your name, or your product roughly 24 times before they take action. Twenty-four touch points. That's not a psychological quirk — that's the math of an oversaturated attention economy where every mama scrolling has 40 open tabs in her brain at any moment.

Most mompreneurs quit at touch point 6, 8, maybe 12 — because the silence feels like proof that nobody cares.

The silence doesn't mean nobody cares. The silence means they haven't hit their threshold yet.

In this episode, Brittany sits down with Lisa Vara — the owner of Lux Virtual Services and a mama who launched her whole business at 55 after a divorce forced her hand — to break down The 24-Touch Truth: the principle that separates the mompreneurs who quit at post #12 from the mompreneurs who quietly build empires by post #24.

Lisa built her business almost entirely on word of mouth + consistent Instagram + one incredible networking event. No paid ads. No massive social budget. Just consistent, patient showing up until the right people found her.

If you have ever felt invisible on social media, if you have ever wondered whether your content is even landing, if you have ever wanted to quit because nothing seems to be working — this episode is your permission slip to keep going.

Plus: how Lisa turned 35 years of admin expertise into a business almost overnight, why networking events pay for themselves ten times over, why the "if you're the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room" rule applies to every mom in business, what to look for when hiring your first virtual assistant, and Lisa's honest advice to any mama trying to make her first $500 online.

For every mama who is showing up when it feels like no one is watching. Keep going. They're counting. 💛

Find Lisa: @luxevirtualservices on Instagram | luxevirtualservices.com

Sami Sopko is a mom of three from Cleveland and a co-founder of BuilderBox — a STEM learning kit built for kids (including neurodivergent kids) who don't want to follow the "rules" of a typical activity box.

Earlier this year, she had a crazy idea. What if she DM'd a famous celebrity from her hometown and asked him to help her get her boxes into local school districts?

Two moms from Cleveland. One short DM. Sent to someone she'd never met.

Within a few minutes, he responded: "I got you."

The video announcing the donation got 32 million views in a single day.

In this episode, Sami — a listener-turned-guest and one of Brittany's own audience members — walks Brittany through the entire story, the philosophy behind BuilderBox, and the principle that changed the trajectory of her whole business: the audacious ask.

Most mompreneurs never ask. They don't send the DM. They don't email the school district. They don't reach out to the sponsor. Because they assume the answer will be no.

Sami is proof that the mama who asks is the mama who builds something extraordinary.

Plus: how she built BuilderBox from her garage as a mom of three, why she started marketing on Instagram BEFORE the product was ready, why she deliberately chose NOT to do a subscription model, how she's building for neurodivergent kids first, the co-founder dynamic that makes her business work, and why motherhood has actually made her a BETTER CEO than she was pre-kids.

For every mama sitting on a DM she's been too scared to send. Send it. 💛

Find Sami: @builderboxco on Instagram | builderboxco.com

Free Fb group https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1FVmxXpM3J/

📘 The Money Hungry Mama Guide — coming Sept 8, 2026https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/money-hungry-mama-brittany-plumeri/1148503744

Most business advice tells you to be likable. To smooth your edges. To attract "everyone."

Alesha Courtney did the opposite — and built a thriving online health coaching business helping women ditch diet culture and stop calorie counting for good.

In this episode of The Money Hungry Mama Podcast, Alesha — a nutritionist, personal trainer, dog mama, and former brick-and-mortar studio owner — tells Brittany why being opinionated is not a bug, it's the whole strategy. Alesha filters aggressively. She has strong opinions. She loses followers on purpose. And her ideal clients find her BECAUSE of it, not despite it.

This is the conversation for the mompreneur who has been softening her voice, hedging her opinions, and trying to please everyone — and quietly wondering why her business isn't landing.

Plus: how Alesha turned her own eating disorder recovery into a decade-long career, why she closed her all-women's studio after COVID and went fully online, how she built a personal brand that AI can't touch, why 2026 is the year of storytelling and human-first content, and her simple advice to every woman thinking about starting: just start. Start messy. F* perfectionism.

For every mama who has been told to be less — and is finally ready to be more of who she already is. 💛

Find Alesha: @alesha_courtney on Instagram

Free MHM Fb grouphttps://www.facebook.com/share/g/1FVmxXpM3J/

📘 The Money Hungry Mama Ultimate Guide — coming Sept 8, 2026https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/money-hungry-mama-brittany-plumeri/1148503744

Stephanie Lopez is a Vice President of Finance at a global consulting firm. She is also the owner of Aquatots Tom's River — a swim school with 57 employees that opened just two years ago. And a mom of four kids under seven. And she has never quit her corporate job.

Let me say that again, mama: she has never quit.

In this episode, Stephanie walks Brittany through the structural tool that makes her impossible-sounding life actually work. She calls it her "blackout period" — a daily non-negotiable window from 4:30 to 8:30pm where she does ZERO work, ZERO email, and is 100% present with her kids. Then her side hustle begins at 8:30 and runs until 11:30 every night.

That four-hour container is the difference between burning out and building a 57-employee business while keeping her dream corporate role.

This is the conversation for every mama who has been told she has to QUIT to build something big — and who is finally ready to learn the system that makes building-AND-keeping actually work.

Plus: how she and her husband took their 401k and put their house on the line to open Aquatots, why waiting 9 extra months for the perfect location was the smartest move they made, the marketing strategy that took her from 200 pre-sales to 700 in one week, and the mistake she'd undo if she could (rushing the opening because of financial pressure).

For the mama who's been told she has to choose. You don't have to choose. 💛

Find Stephanie: @aquatotstomsriver on Instagram | Aquatots Tom's River

Pre- Order The Money Hungry Mama Guide -https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/money-hungry-mama-brittany-plumeri/1148503744

In January 2023 — the dead of winter, the wrong season for a gardening business, with no other income and three daughters depending on her — Mari Guadagno quit her 25-year corporate sales job at Xerox and went all-in on her container design business.

Her daughters' first reaction? "Mom, it's January. How are you going to pay the mortgage?"

Mari panicked. Until the angels answered.

In this episode, Mari — a single mom of three girls and the founder of Willow and Oak Custom Planters — walks Brittany through the moment she realized her hobby was a real business, the COVID pivot that gave her permission to dream again, the text message that arrived in the exact moment she was second-guessing the biggest decision of her life, and the marketing strategy that built her business from zero to thriving in 4 years with almost zero online ads.

This is the conversation for the mama who has been at a corporate job too long, the single mom who has been told she can't "play small," and every woman wondering if it's too late to start something. Mari is proof it isn't.

Plus: why friends saying "you should get paid for this" is the universe trying to tell you something, why service-based local businesses are an underrated path to entrepreneurship, and how Mari is teaching her three girls what it really means to bet on yourself.

For every mama who has been waiting for the "right time" to leap. 💛

Find Mari: @willowandoakcustomplanters on Instagram | willowandoakcustomplanters.com

Fb grouphttps://www.facebook.com/share/g/1FVmxXpM3J/

The Money Hungry Mama Guide — coming Sept 8, 2026https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/money-hungry-mama-brittany-plumeri/1148503744

Instagram: @themoneyhungrymama

Louisa Vilardi had her best business year ever in 2025. She made the money. She hit the growth. She scaled her photography business in ways she'd been dreaming about for a decade. And it felt awful.

Because the cost of that growth was her family.

In this episode, Louisa — a former high school English teacher turned 10-year photography business owner and mama of three — walks Brittany through the framework she uses every January to make sure her business is growing the right way, not just the fast way. She calls it Refine and Release: keep what's working, release what's draining you, and stop measuring success by money alone.

This is the conversation for every mompreneur who has ever felt the icky in between of "my business is growing but my family is paying the price" and who needs permission to scale back without it meaning failure.

Plus: how Louisa built her business secretly during maternity leave (no website, no Instagram, no LLC), the pay-what-you-can pricing model she used to launch, the moment her mom passed away weeks after her son was born and changed her whole "why," the "two costs to every success" framework, and the fully-clothed-jump-in-the-ocean story that taught her how to take leaps in business.

For the mama who is tired of the lie that more = better. 💛

Find Louisa: @louisavilardiphotography on Instagram | louisavilardi.com

The Money Hungry Mama Guide — coming Sept 8, 2026 https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/money-hungry-mama-brittany-plumeri/1148503744

Instagram: @themoneyhungrymama

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