The Commons with Karla

Today we are chatting with my wonderful niece, Megan. Megan was an athlete and enjoyed spending time with family in her small, tight-knit hometown. Fast forward and she is 22 years old, in graduate school, and living in a new city. These great life events can be difficult, no matter what. However, Megan explains the extra challenge of going through these big transitions during the pandemic. Althou...

Today we are talking with Kate about her calling to foster and adopt. She has two children who are biologically hers, and then overnight became a mother of 4 due to an emergency adoption situation. Fast forward- Kate and her husband also adopted a 4-year-old girl and later welcomed an older son into their family.  Although her calling has not come without challenges, and a little bit of fear, it h...

Today we are talking with Assemblywoman Jill Tolles. Jill is a mother of two adult daughters, who have recently moved out of the house, making Jill and her husband empty-nesters. Jill started her political journey as a mom advocating for education in the state of Nevada, which led to her becoming a member of a task force against child abuse. Jill worked on legislation to put prevention programs in...

In this episode, we are chatting with my friend Susaan. When she was 18, Susaan moved to the United States of America from her home country of India. As you can imagine, this move came with many changes that Susaan explains to us in this conversation. Although, she views the changes as positive - they did not come without challenges. Adjusting to a completely new lifestyle and culture can come wit...

When I think of the word community, my friend Shayla comes to mind. Shayla’s awareness of her need for genuine community grew from challenging seasons.  Shayla always felt the need to be “the happy or funny” one and felt the need to hold it together for everyone around her. However, Shayla learned that to have deep, true community she did not always have to be the strong one and put on a brave fac...

Today we are talking with Rachel. Rachel is the perfect example of someone who has decided to “live all in” by truly committing her full attention to being intentional in her life and in her relationships with others.  No matter what life throws her way, Rachel takes it head on and always makes the best of every situation. In this episode, Rachel teaches us through her story that taking a positive...

In this episode we are chatting with Jess, an amazing wife, mom, and friend. Often during November, we take time to reflect on the things that we are thankful for. Jess is a wonderful example of a woman who exudes gratitude. In this episode, she talks about how she got to this point in her life by taking intentional time to work on herself, her knowledge of God and what he says, and her relationsh...

Today we are talking with Catie, who by nature is such a nurturing woman. Catie’s kindness and love of taking care of others reflects in her marriage, parenting, grandparenting, and friendships. It all started when she devoted herself to helping her husband finish and succeed in medical school. Her love overflowed into raising her children, and children who were not biologically hers. Catie’s most...

Today we are chatting with my dear friend Teresa. In this episode Teresa shares how she used difficult circumstances from her childhood to help build the strength she has today. Recently, she has had to channel that strength into coping with her most current challenge.  Teresa has just gone through a big milestone transition - becoming an “empty nester”. Teresa’s only child recently has moved out...

Today we are talking with a friend from my Book Club, Jessica. Jessica is a wife, and busy mom of two who loves to read. She uses books as a way to connect with others through Book Club, and says she became closer with her best friend from dental school through trips to Costco and Barnes & Noble together. In this episode, Jessica expresses how her reading journey has evolved throughout all of...

In this episode I am talking with a wonderful lady named Missy who I met when she contacted me after hearing me on a book podcast. From there our friendship grew.  Missy lives in a rural area, where finding community can be challenging with the physical barriers of not having people living very close together. To help overcome this challenge of distance from other people, and larger cities, Missy...

Today we are chatting with Kari Sweeney. Kari is a busy working mom, who like the most of us, has a full schedule. Something that Kari loves to do for herself is to read books and to talk about books. She found that when she didn’t make time to do that, it showed in her mental health and in her relationships with others. Kari decided she was going to always make it a priority to make time for hers...

Today we are talking with my friend, Victoria. Victoria really is a wonderful example of a woman who values community, family, and faith. In this episode, she talks with us about how she navigates tough conversations and conflict in her relationships while still honoring her values. Victoria’s strength in her faith shines through and reflects in all of her relationships. She also is involved in a...

Life’s challenges don’t seem so scary when you have a community who helps you know that you are not alone.   In this episode, I am talking with my dear friend Karen. Karen is blessed with two amazing children with Down Syndrome. In this episode Karen talks about how through the journey of raising her kids, she is able to make great connections and friendships with other parents who also have child...

Do you feel deeply rooted within your community, or are you just going through the motions most days?   Over the past few weeks, we have discussed how to navigate different relationships and begin fostering deeper connections within them. This week we are discussing how to connect deeper within our communities.   Connecting within our communities is good for our well-being and it takes our lives f...

As we get older and have children, most of us find it more challenging to stay connected with friends during the busy season of raising kids. What if we used some of these opportunities with our children as a reason to make new connections, rather than as an excuse not to?   In this episode, I am talking to Christina who was able to be a stay at home mom and be very involved in her children’s scho...

It’s true that there are now more ways than ever to make new friends. You can hop online and look within certain interest groups, or head to various social gatherings to connect face to face. With technology, it’s easier than ever to connect with people across the world or right in our very hometowns. But while there are more ways than ever to make friends, it can still seem at times that we are l...

In honor of “Back to school” time, I am having conversations with people who are in the thick of building community and making a difference at school.  I am interested in talking with educators and parents to get their firsthand perspective on what it is like to form connections and relationships with staff and students in the school buildings.   Today I am talking with one of the best teachers I...

Do you have a distant relative that often crosses your mind that you haven’t spoken to in a while?   Life can get crazy, and it can be easy to get lost in the day-to-day, connecting with those we run into within our daily communities, but not really going any further. Before we know it, days, weeks, and even years might have passed where we have lost touch with those we love.   Is the work worth i...

Today we are talking with a school Principal named Krissy or Ms. Brown as most people in our community call her. Krissy talks with us about how as a child she was able to go with her father to his school when he was a teacher and coach, then later as principal and superintendent. Krissy was inspired by her father’s love for education, so she decided to follow in his footsteps.  She was able to bri...

It’s true that connection is something that we all long for. But why is it often that we struggle the most to connect with those closest to us?   If the above is something that you can relate to, you are not alone and we are so glad you are at the Commons today.   This episode is the first of a series of episodes that we are releasing this month to help our community dig deeper into finding true,...

Today is a FIRST for The Commons. We have our first man and teenager on the podcast!   I am here with my husband Chad and my daughter Sophia. If you have been following the podcast, you know that we talk a lot about friendship and connection. I have found there has been a common theme in recent episodes - family connections. So I thought, what better time to talk with my family about what that loo...

We have so many conversations a day, but how many of those conversations do we truly commit to digging deeper than surface level?   So often we participate in conversations with the intention of responding with our own feelings or with the intention of cutting the conversation short to get back to our busy lives. In this episode, Maggie challenges us to dig deeper. She talks about how her conversa...

There is always a sense of relief when you have a friend or companion that has shared the same struggles as you and is able to relate with your feelings and emotions. There is comfort in knowing that you are not alone.  Today’s conversation is with one of the most loyal women I know, my dear friend Shelley. Shelley has been through a lot in her life, all of which has inspired her to be loving and...

Life is full of hard and challenging times.   One of the most important things to have during these seasons is community to support you, guide you, and sometimes just listen to you. Today we are talking with Lindsay, who four days postpartum with her third child discovered she had a brain tumor that led to a cancer diagnosis. Lindsay tells us how much her community really stepped up, quickly, for...