Episode 71: "Whatever you're feeling, it's OK and it's normal" with Emma Shaffer

Today was a special day because I got to chat with my best friend from childhood, Emma Shaffer. Emma is a part time marketing consultant as she makes a career change into teaching Elementary School and is a single mom of 1. She, like myself, grew up in Truckee, CA and now lives and works just across the state line in Reno, Nevada. Emma is one of the strongest mothers I know, and I am so fortunate to be able to do this whole parenting thing with her, so I’m so excited to share her story with all of you!

In her episode we chat about:

  • Being a single mom juggling school and work during postpartum
  • Being induced just a day or two before her school semester started
  • Juggling staying in college when she was postpartum with Otto
  • The challenges of exclusively pumping
  • The benefits of a flexible school schedule with little babies
  • Her experience with Postpartum Anxiety around 9 months
  • Struggling to connect with her baby for the first couple months and the feelings of not being able to share this with other people
  • Grandma El's Diaper Cream
  • And so much more!

This episode of the Postpartum Podcast is sponsored by ICON UNDIES. Did you know that 1 in 3 women experience little bladder leaks when they run, jump, sneeze, or laugh? This is especially true for new moms. But because of Icon, You don’t have to worry!  Their undies feel like a regular, beautiful pair of underwear, but can hold up to 6 teaspoons of liquid without the bulky, bunchy plasticy feel of a pantyliner.  Icon is also offering listeners of the podcast $5 off your order with code postpartum at checkout. 

Today’s episode is also sponsored by Ecocentric Mom. Pregnancy & new motherhood are the most thrilling times in any woman's life. - but they can also be the scariest. We're overwhelmed with information about what products are safe & effective for ourselves and our babies. Ecocentric Mom helps you navigate those choices by delivering monthly discovery boxes of products to help you care for yourself and your growing family.  Each month subscribers receive organic, natural or handmade products and lifestyle accessories chosen just for your stage of motherhood - from pregnancy to postpartum and beyond. Podcast listeners are invited to use code POSTPARTUM10 to receive a 10% lifetime discount on your subscription.

You can find the show wherever you find your podcasts, or stream it here.

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As always, please consider subscribing and leaving a review on iTunes here. Your reviews really help the show out because they allow it to be more visible so that we can reach more moms. 

Do you shop on Amazon?  Use this link and do your shopping as you always would and the show will get a teeny tiny kickback. 

You can also support the show by becoming a patron on Patreon.  No donation is too small, for as little as $1 per episode, you can make a huge difference for the show.  Click here to learn more. 

Thank you SO much for your support!

Episode 70: The importance of Birthing Choices and Community with Lori O'Donley

Today it was such a joy to talk to my dear friend Lori O'Donley! Lori is a public affairs specialist for the US Air Force, has a master's degree in communications, served in the Air Force herself for 4 years and is mom to two kids. Lori and I met when we were both starting that master's degree program when she had just had her second baby.  She is someone I will always have to thank for the career path I ended up on because of her encouragement to look into my birthing options when I was pregnant with my daughter. Lori is such a light, enjoy!

In her episode we chat about:

  • The importance of knowing your birth options
  • Her difficult postpartum period with her first child
  • The unkind care she received in the hospital during her first birth
  • The amazing difference when she had a midwife for her second
  • The importance of knowing what to expect from your body during birth
  • How much she loved Birthing From Within for Birth Preparation
  • Starting a grad school program when her daughter was 3 weeks old
  • The importance of giving new parents space and time to bond
  • Scary Mommy for your sanity!
  • And more!

This episode of the Postpartum Podcast is sponsored by ICON UNDIES. Did you know that 1 in 3 women experience little bladder leaks when they run, jump, sneeze, or laugh? This is especially true for new moms. But because of Icon, You don’t have to worry!  Their undies feel like a regular, beautiful pair of underwear, but can hold up to 6 teaspoons of liquid without the bulky, bunchy plasticy feel of a pantyliner.  Icon is also offering listeners of the podcast $5 off your order with code postpartum at checkout. 

ICON is also giving away THREE pairs of Icon Undies to one lucky winner this month for Mother's Day! Enter to win at the Rafflecopter Giveaway below!

You can find the show wherever you find your podcasts, or stream it here.

***

As always, please consider subscribing and leaving a review on iTunes here. Your reviews really help the show out because they allow it to be more visible so that we can reach more moms. 

Do you shop on Amazon?  Use this link and do your shopping as you always would and the show will get a teeny tiny kickback. 

The podcast is also sponsored by Audible.com.  To get your FREE audiobook and 30-day trial, please go tohttp://www.audibletrial.com/postpartum   

You can also support the show by becoming a patron on Patreon.  No donation is too small, for as little as $1 per episode, you can make a huge difference for the show.  Click here to learn more. 

Thank you SO much for your support!

Episode 55: "There Should Be Gold Stars in Parenting" with Karen Johnson

Today I enjoyed chatting with Karen Johnson about her birth and postpartum stories.  Karen is a work-at-home mom freelancer. She blogs at The 21st Century SAHMShe has also been featured on some larger sites such as Scary Mommy & Huffington Post, and is a contributing writer in two other anthologies: Lose the Cape: Never Will I Ever (and then I had kids!) and What Does It Mean to be White in America? as well as The Postpartum Year.

In her episode we talk about: 

  • The switch she felt when she decided to leave teaching to be a stay-at-home mom after her first baby was 9 months old. 
  • Figuring out how Stay-at-Home moms make friends
  • Transitioning to being a Work-at-Home Mom as a writer
  • The importance of remembering our partner's struggles too
  • The pride of making it happen every single day
  • The struggle of a lack of praise and evaluation for being a mom
  • The importance of finding something that is just for you outside of motherhood

Check out Karen's blog! And don't forget to use Meetup.com to find your own village. 

 

This episode of the Postpartum Podcast is sponsored by Earth Mama Angel BabyEarth Mama Angel Baby has been safely nurturing pregnant women and babies for over a decade with trusted, certified organic and natural herbal products formulated to support the entire journey of childbirth, from pregnancy through postpartum recovery, breastfeeding, and baby care, and even baby loss. Listeners can get 20% off your order with the code"Postpartum20" at checkout.  

You can find the show wherever you find your podcasts, or stream it here.

***

As always, please consider subscribing and leaving a review on iTunes here. Your reviews really help the show out because they allow it to be more visible so that we can reach more moms. 

Do you shop on Amazon?  Use this link and do your shopping as you always would and the show will get a teeny tiny kickback. 

The podcast is also sponsored by Audible.com.  To get your FREE audiobook and 30-day trial, please go tohttp://www.audibletrial.com/postpartum   

You can also support the show by becoming a patron on Patreon.  No donation is too small, for as little as $1 per episode, you can make a huge difference for the show.  Click here to learn more. 

Thank you SO much for your support!

Episode 25: "You Know Your Baby Better Than Anyone Else" with Me, Kellie Edson, interviewed by Kelsey Wharton

Today is a special episode where I invited Kelsey Wharton from episode 4 back to both give us an update on her life with two children and to have her interview ME.  

Kelsey with her second born, Cedric.

Kelsey with her second born, Cedric.

I wanted to turn the tables and be able to share my own birth and postpartum stories with my listeners  without having me just talk at you. And Kelsey's podcast, The Girl Next Door Podcast with her neighbor Erica is one of my favorites and her and I really connected so I thought she would be a wonderful person to have on to interview me!

Me and Clare - She isn't much of a baby anymore at almost 2 years old!

Me and Clare - She isn't much of a baby anymore at almost 2 years old!

In this episode we talk about:

  • Kelsey's advice & experience on life with two kiddos
  • About my daughter Clare's birth story (which you can also read here) & both Kelsey and I's coping methods for labor
  • My ICEA certification and how I decided to enter birth work
  • Nipple Shields & Tailbone Pain
  • Accepting the changes in our bodies Postpartum
  • Focusing on non-comparison, and doing what's right for our babies and families
  • And so much more.

Thank you SO much Kelsey for coming on and taking over the show for an episode!  :) 

Check out Kelsey's Blog, Rising Shining.

Also the Girls Next Door Podcast and her other podcast with her husband, Matrimoney where they discuss marriage and moneyYou won't be disappointed!

As always, please consider subscribing and leaving a review on iTunes here. 

You can also stream this episode directly here. 

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An update on The Postpartum Year Anthology: Thank you all SO much for your submissions! I have received over 50. Yay!  Due to the insanity of the holidays, I will likely not get into reading through them until the new year. (An email will go out to those who submitted shortly, so hang tight.)

And again - THANK YOU!