Mommywood

A few weeks ago I posted a reel about never initiating, and the comments went feral — hundreds of women saying "same," and a lot of men being brutal about it. So I brought in an actual expert. Carrie has 20+ years as a therapist and has worked with 400+ couples, and she came on to talk about what's really going on: being touched-out, spontaneous versus responsive desire, how you swit...

Jennafer Peery got the call for Broadway two months after finding out she was pregnant. Wicked held her spot through the pregnancy and three months postpartum. Then she went back. We talk about what it actually costs to have two dreams come true at the same time: the daycare guilt, the exhaustion she didn't feel until she stopped, the bedtimes she missed for two years, and why the first year o...

Alexandra and Landon are back! They first came on Mommywood when Alexandra was pregnant and living in LA. Two years later: they're married, they have a 2-year-old son (Aiden), and they left LA for Georgia. We get into all of it — the UCLA benefits mix-up, the LA fires, evacuating with a baby who had RSV, and the kitchen-table moment they decided to just go. They road-tripped for three months,...

Julie Marchiano is a Second City Chicago alum, was on  Barry  (HBO), and books national commercials — and she's also a mom to a 3-year-old, figuring out the same juggle we all are. In this one: the time she met Henry Winkler while folding jeans at the mall, years before booking  Barry ; why she never wanted kids (until she suddenly did); the real math of making it work as a working actor — inc...

What does success look like after becoming a parent—and when the career you love doesn't always go according to plan? This week, Emily sits down with writer, director, actor, comedian, and podcast host Ilana Cohn for an honest conversation about navigating motherhood while building a creative career in Hollywood. Ilana opens up about the reality of raising two kids while wearing countless crea...

What do you do when the industry doesn't make room for your story? You tell it yourself. This week on Mommywood , I chat with actor, playwright, director, and creator Minita Gandhi to talk about building a career on your own terms. From acting on television to writing deeply personal work like Muthaland , Minita shares how she stopped waiting for permission, the importance of authentic represe...

What if we actually said the things we usually only think? This week, I'm sharing the conversations that have been taking up way too much space in my head lately—from questioning my acting career, to wondering if we're supposed to stay in Los Angeles, to feeling guilty that my husband has carried so much of our family's financial load. I also talk about making friends as an adult, moth...

Are we actually living motherhood... or are we documenting it? In this solo episode of Mommywood , I'm unpacking how social media has changed the way we experience motherhood. From matching pajamas and perfectly curated birthday parties to feeling like every sweet moment should become a photo or Reel, it's easy to wonder whether we're making memories—or making content. As someone who&#...

You can love your child more than anything... and still not love every part of motherhood. In this solo episode of Mommywood , I'm talking about the parts of motherhood that so many of us feel—but rarely admit out loud. The overstimulation. The invisible mental load. The decision fatigue. The guilt for wanting alone time. The pressure to "cherish every second." Motherhood isn't e...

I Thought Motherhood Would Make Me Disappear. It Didn’t. Before I became a mom, I was honestly terrified of losing myself. I felt like everywhere I looked, the story was the same: motherhood changes you completely. You stop recognizing yourself. Your dreams go on pause. Your entire identity becomes “mom.” And while I understood that for a lot of women, I also quietly panicked thinking… wait, what...

In this solo episode of Mommywood , I’m opening up about my personal experience taking tirzepatide after struggling with postpartum weight, brain fog, exhaustion, and constant “food noise” after having my daughter. I talk about what finally pushed me to try it, how it affected my relationship with food, my confidence, energy levels, and even the way I approach self-tapes as an actor mom. I’m also...

Emmy-winning writer, producer, and showrunner Tracey Wigfield (30 Rock, Great News, Saved by the Bell) joins Mommywood for an honest conversation about motherhood, ambition, career pressure, and the invisible guilt so many working moms carry. Tracey opens up about running television shows while pregnant, going back to work days after giving birth, navigating postpartum emotions, and the internal p...

This episode is brought to you by Dondersteen Lang Fisher (Never Have I Ever, The Four Seasons, 30 Rock, The Mindy Project) joins Mommywood to talk about becoming a single mom by choice, building a wildly successful career in comedy, and learning to let go of perfectionism after having her son. Lang opens up about having a baby with her gay best friend, the unconventional co-parenting setup that u...

I wanted to bring back this conversation with Audrey Moore because honestly… it feels more relevant now than ever, especially with Self Tape May starting now. This episode turned into such a real conversation about what it actually looks like to pursue acting while also trying to have a life, relationships, kids, stability, rest… all the things we rarely talk about honestly in this industry. Audre...

Actor, musician, writer—and longtime friend—Rob Benedict is back on Mommywood in this special recut highlights episode that feels even more meaningful listening back now. Before I was a mom, I was Rob’s kids’ nanny, so this conversation is deeply full-circle. We talk about raising kids while building a career in entertainment, what support really looks like, and how parenting shifts your identity...

Today on Mommywood , I’m joined by actor and mom Tristan Cunningham — and this conversation covers everything we don’t usually hear about. Tristan shares her journey from growing up in Vermont and performing in a traveling youth circus, to building a career in theater and television — and what it really looks like to be a “working actor” in the in-between. We talk about: Building a career through...

What happens when you’ve already done everything in this industry… and then become a mom? This week on Mommywood , I’m talking to writer, producer, actress, author, and multi–award-winning creative Alisha Gaddis — and when I say she’s done it all, I mean it. Emmys. Latin Grammys. TV shows. Books. Touring internationally. Building a creative career across every lane. But this conversation goes way...

Today on Mommywood , we’re switching perspectives and bringing in a dad. I’m joined by actor and creator CK Bolado , who’s navigating the early days of fatherhood while building a career in an industry that doesn’t exactly slow down for life changes. We talk about what surprised him most about becoming a dad, how it’s shifted his identity as an actor, and what it really looks like trying to be pre...

This episode is sponsored by Olive and June! Use code Mommywood for 20% off Motherhood and creativity collide in this candid conversation with composer, producer, and Mamas in Music co-founder, Tiff Randlo. We dive into the realities of raising kids while navigating a creative career—identity shifts, managing schedules, and building community for mothers in the music industry. Tiff opens up about...

On this episode of Mommywood , I’m talking to Lilan Bowden — and this one goes way beyond the usual actor interview. We get into what it actually feels like to be in the middle of a career while raising a toddler. The constant rushing. The mental load. The moments you realize… maybe you’re the one making it harder. Lilan opens up about:– why “don’t stress” is harder than it sounds– how motherhood...

Lang Fisher is a powerhouse writer, producer, and showrunner — but in this episode of Mommywood , we talk about way more than Hollywood success. Lang opens up about becoming a single mom by choice , having her son with her gay best friend, and how that beautifully modern co-parenting setup came to be. She shares how what started as a joke in a writers’ room became one of the best decisions of her...

Katie Webber is a working Broadway performer, bestselling cookbook author, certified holistic nutritionist — and a mom to a spirited nine-year-old daughter. And yes: she does eight shows a week. In this episode, Katie breaks down what a real performance day looks like as a parent (subway school drop-off, homework, then straight to a 7pm show), why “the job is the break” compared to the mental load...

This Mommywood recut might be one of the most honest conversations we’ve had. Actor and EmotionAL Support podcast host Alessandra Torresani and I actually met while walking our babies in the neighborhood — and quickly realized we were in the exact same stage of new motherhood. In this episode we talk about:• postpartum recovery and mental health • birth stories and expectations vs reality• auditio...

This is a special Mommywood recut — and honestly, one that hits differently now. When this conversation was first recorded, my daughter was only ten weeks old and I was deep in new-mom survival mode, trying to figure out how acting and motherhood were supposed to exist in the same life. Meanwhile, Hannah Hines was already navigating the preschool years, self-tapes, childcare logistics, and the rea...

Mommywood Recut: Past Episode, Present Moment This week I’m revisiting one of the conversations that means more to me now than it did when we first recorded it. When I originally sat down with Marla Sokoloff, I was a brand-new mom trying to figure out how motherhood and acting could possibly coexist. Marla was already living it — raising three daughters while navigating a long career in Hollywood...