The Moms I Know Podcast

In the spaciousness of summer, we find room for expansion, daydreaming, and reconnecting with our desires.  In this episode, we explore the female experience of desire in all aspects of today's society and discuss how we can lean into our desires to live more fully in our truth.   "It thrills us and torments us.  It controls our thoughts, destroys our lives, and it's all we live for.  Yet, we almo...

There are many philosophies out there now about how to best raise your children...Attachment Parenting is one that we feel very strongly about.  For this episode, we welcome Ina Avote as our special guest to teach us all about how we can apply these principles in our daily lives as we're raising our children and grandchildren.    "Love is simple. Love never fails."   For this episode, we welcome I...

One of our biggest challenges as parents is to help our children explore their boundaries so that they can learn to calculate and manage risk for themselves.   "The more risks you allow your children to make, the better they learn to look after themselves."  - Roald Dahl   Over the past 10-20 years, we've seen an epidemic, especially in the United States, of parents trying too hard to keep their c...

Molly Caro May is a writer whose work explores body, place and the foreign/familiar.  In this episode, Molly shares with us from her own postpartum experience as well as how she weathered the storm.   "Let's go ahead and blame the mother...at the peak of her sleep deprivation...she get's a little angry at the world...You are not allowed to have darkness...bullsh*t.  This sounds like a military ope...

Sending your children off on their own to a foreign country is not an easy task, and yet the benefits are priceless and life-changing.   "There are two things children should get from their parents: roots & wings." - Johann Goethe   It's truly our job as parents to raise our children to be confident, secure, and compassionate human beings so that they can go out into the world and make a positive...

The gift of music is one that every child deserves to receive.  The cost is little and the benefits are extraordinary.   "Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything." - Plato   When it comes to kids and music, the bottom line is to create opportunity and make music a normal part of life from an early age.   Music is a great tool and res...

For this week's episode, Maria sits down with Bobbi Geise of Learning by Nature, a Bozeman, MT-based organization that works to build natural play spaces for schools and communities, for an exciting conversation about the benefits of natural play for children (and adults) of all ages.   "Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength...

Summer is upon us!  A season for expansion and growth, and our favorite thing to hear as moms, "I'm bored!"  In this episode, we flip the script and offer you 5 terrific ways to bust boredom this summer!   "I think it's necessary to let kids be bored once in a while.  That's how they learn to be creative." - Kim Raver   Let's flip the script and get us all set-up for a successful summer!  No over-...

Whether you have teenagers now or you are about to enter this developmental phase with your children, we hope that this episode will provide you with inspiration, tools, and resources for your parenting journey.   "Why did parenting change from preparing our kids for life to protecting them from life, which means they're not prepared to live life on their own?" - Julie Lythcott-Haims   For those o...

In this episode featuring special guest, Kelly Dearie, Sheila and Maria dive into the popular topic of gut health with a twist.  Listen in for this lively conversation about the importance of gut health for both overall wellness and libido.  This is an episode you won't want to miss!   "Let thy food by thy inspiration." - Kelly Dearie   It's becoming much more widely known through research that gu...

Sheila and Maria discuss the importance and benefits of introducing children to animals of all kinds and offer suggestions for ways to do so.     "A child who loves animals is an adult who has compassion for people." - Toni Payne   Whether you live in a small city apartment or down home on the farm, there is something for everyone.  Studies show that there are so many benefits, mentally, emotional...

If you didn't grow up going on outdoor adventures with your parents, the idea of taking your own children into the wilderness may seem overwhelming.  In this episode, we give you the basics of what to expect and how to plan for a successful family camping trip.   "Wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity of the human spirit and as vital to our lives as water and good bread." - Edward Abbey   Fr...

Maria and Sheila discuss the import role that family culture plays in developing strong, lifelong relationships for siblings.   "Siblings are the people we practice on, the people who teach us about fairness and cooperation and kindness and caring - quite often the hard way." - Pamela Dugdale   The experience of raising siblings brings with it many joys and many challenges.  Love multiplies as we...

Our children are an amazing reminder of what life is all about and the lessons they teach us are countless.   "While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about." - Angela Schwindt   In this episode, Sheila and Maria sit down with Jessica Rios of Leaning Into Light to have an in-depth conversation about the lessons we learn through motherhood. Through...

As we continue our dive into storytelling this month, we had the pleasure of sitting down with author and writing coach, Chloe Rachel Gallaway, to talk about more about the healing powers of storytelling.   "Know the truth and the truth shall set you free." - John 8:32   After a very unique early childhood, Chloe found her path to healing through the unconditional love modeled for her by her foste...

After reflecting on the power of storytelling, we've decided to share our interviews with our own mothers with you.  This special, 50-minute episode of The Moms I Know offers you an intimate look into the life of Maria's mother, Elaine Anderson.   "Be useful. Be kind." - President Barack Obama   For this episode, Maria sits down with her mom, Elaine Anderson, for an intimate interview.  Elaine sha...

Storytelling has the power to connect generations, and yet, we don't always share them.    "In every conceivable manner, family is the link to our past and bridge to our future." - Alex Haley   You may know many stories from your parents and grandparents, but maybe you've never taken the time to dive deeper. To uncover exactly how those experiences made them feel and to understand the motivations...

This is a great time of year to get outdoors!  Children are naturally drawn to nature and there are so many learning opportunities in the garden.   "Why try to explain miracles to your kids when you just plant a garden." - Robert Brault   Whether you are growing a full vegetable or flower garden or just starting out, whether you are homeschooling or wanting to add to your children's experiences an...

As moms, when we master time management, we can also master so many other things, and we can start to design our lives in a way that is in alignment with our values and be more present for our families and for ourselves.   "You can't pour from an empty cup." - Unknown   Often times moms are overwhelmed, over-worked, over-stressed and burning out.  Holistic time management brings together the corpo...

It's so important to bring our children into the kitchen, not just to teach them about cooking, but so much more.  In this episode, Maria and Sheila offer their recommendations and reasons for teaching children kitchen skills from an early age.   "You have got to have a 'what the heck' attitude in the kitchen." - Julia Child   So many valuable life skills are learned in the kitchen, not just the o...

A large part of physical growth and development for children relies upon age-appropriate games and movement.  In this episode, Sheila and Maria discuss how to nourish children through these developmental stages with a wide range of activities to physically and mentally challenge them as they grow.   "Time is a game beautifully played by children." - Heraclitus, 6th Century BC   In our modern socie...

If things are fun, they gain relevance and children remember them and games are fun for us, too!  In this episode, Maria and Sheila discuss age-appropriate ways to incorporate games into our daily activities to make things more fun and educational for our children.   "The single most important skill that parents can acquire is playing." - Lawrence J. Cohen   Learning happens so much more quickly t...

Drawing on ancient teachings about parenting, Maria and Sheila embark on a conversation about how to raise this modern generation of children with resilience and empathy.   "Recognize the inner realities.  If you try to make your children good, you will make them and yourself miserable; show them you believe in their natural goodness and all will be blessed.  If you try to make them honor you, you...

Just as our bodies can carry physical ailments from our ancestral heritage, our psyche also carries ancestral trauma into our lives and there's a way to break free!   "Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes." - Carl Jung   Have you ever felt in your body that there was some unfinished business, or that a piece of something in your life didn't really belong to you?  In this episode, Sh...

Over the course of decades of parenting, teaching, and coaching, Maria and Sheila have had many inspirations, influences, and mentors.  This episode honors those who've come before them and who've paved the way for this generation of joyful, conscious parenting.   "If it hasn't been in the hand and in the body, it can't be in the brain." - Bev Bos, author of Don't Move the Muffin Tins   There are...