The Whole Mama - A Podcast with Jenna Gibbons

We’ve been called.  We have to be brave, bold, and strong for our little humans that God so graciously gave us.  What an honor that was given to us by Him for a reason.  What a responsibility that often feels way too big…but let’s remember that we were chosen for this by God…and we have to trust his judgement and his belief in us.  Despite what we have always heard…we CAN be a mother and a teacher...

Join me for this open and honest conversation we recorded in the fall about motherhood, loss, music, friendship, and chasing those dreams with Courtney Dashe and Morgan Leigh Garner of Hadley Park. As we raise our young kiddos, we continue to follow our dreams because we want our children to know.:  "Mama had me and kept going.  Mama was present AND chased her dreams."  Nashville singer/...

“Reading aloud with our kids is indeed the best use of our time and energy as parents.  It’s more important than just about anything else we can do.”  -Sarah Mackenzie As I have started this homeschooling journey, I have tried to educate and read several books that were recommended to me.  Two of those were T eaching from Rest and The Read Aloud Family . Wow.  If you need some inspiration and moti...

I share our journey to this decision, how God guided us in this direction, why we as mamas/parents need to be involved in our children’s education, why we need to listen to what He tells us, and why we need to do what’s best for OUR family. Every situation is different.  This is our story, and I hope it inspires you, motivates you, and encourages you to make the best decisions for your family with...

“ Being actively involved in an experience, reflecting on the experience, conceptualizing the experience, and using what you have learned to make decisions and problem solve in order to apply new ideas gained from the experience. ” - David Kolb Cooking with our kids does a number of things for them.  It helps them establish math concepts, practice language skills, follow directions, recognize scie...

"In a recent study, 84% of parents agreed that family meals were important, but only 50% of family dinners were eaten together."   Who gathers at your table?  How often?  Is it sacred time or time served distracted and disengaged? Today, we are talking all about the importance of gathering at the table with your family to share yummy food and connect and reflect together. It’s a time whe...

"About 19 percent of children and adolescents in the U.S. are obese — a record high, according to the latest data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey." https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/public-health/childhood-obesity-rates-hit-all-time-high-survey-finds.html https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/childhood.html How can we change this?  It can start right in your kitc...

As we start another school year with uncertainty, anxiousness, and a heavy amount of anxiety, let’s remember our role as mamas (parents) and what we can do for our kids at this moment in time. Let us offer our child solid ground, familiarity, and support while showing up  for them every single day. Our support should be meaningful and intentional.  We should look at them and say:  “No, [their name...

Check out these quick and easy ways to help your child stay strong and healthy: 1. Choose nutrient-dense foods 2.  Teach healthy hygiene habits 3.  Research and give supplements that are best for your family 4.  Maintain a healthy lifestyle 5.  Be Active Outside 6 .  Teach and model good manners ALSO...help your children establish good sleep habits from an early age! I referenced this website a lo...

It was an honor to chat with my friend and fellow podcaster, Eric Egan, in this episode about speaking confidently and raising little humans. He is our first DADDY on The Whole Mama podcast and husband to my dear friend and previous podcast guest, Tricia!   We talked all about overcoming anxiety, learning from our failures, and the important role fathers have today. We also chatted about teaching...

One of the greatest gifts you can give your child is to teach them to serve others.     How can we teach our children to naturally offer to help others?   Today I want to focus on something I heard while listening to a Christian radio station the other day.  It was so profound that I had to share it and tie it into this episode because it fit so perfectly.  They were talking about raising kids the...

Today is all about how we can pour into ourselves.  It is refreshing, it is revitalizing, and it is necessary. Motherhood sure offers us a rollercoaster of emotions. We willingly accept this responsibility with an open heart as it feels like a calling from God. A calling to bring new little people into this world and somehow raise and shape them into the best version of themselves.   It sure isn&a...

“There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they’ll take you.” ― Beatrix Potter These days, it can often be challenging to instill a love of writing in our kiddos who are constantly bombarded by games, YouTube, movies, and shows.  In fact, many kids (including my own) love to watch OTHER kids play instead of engaging in that enjoyment themselv...

“Reports say 78% of moms say they put off taking care of their own health to care for family members.” Let’s think about this, if we move our self-care to the top of the priority list (and make it a non-negotiable item without feeling a sense of guilt for doing so), we are positioning ourselves to be a happier, healthier, and better mama overall for your kids. Emma Bennett, LCSW, who specializes i...

"According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, kids ages 8-18 now spend, on average, a whopping 7.5 hours in front of a screen for entertainment each day, 4.5 of which are spent watching TV. Over a year, that adds up to 114 full days watching a screen for fun." As we wrap up this month's focus on getting your kids outside…what if your kiddo doesn’t like the outdoors? Kids aren’t playin...

Wow!  This episode is so important for mamas with kiddos struggling with sleeping!!!  Eva Klein is a wealth of knowledge! "Eva is a Certified Infant and Child Sleep Consultant and is the founder of My Sleeping Baby and the Sleep Bible program. Eva’s main goal is to help her clients establish healthy sleep habits for their children. After experiencing the debilitating effects of chronic sleep...

"Parenthood starts when you are ready to invest in something greater than yourself...your family." Join me for this episode as I chat with Emily Pardy, Founder and Counselor, of Ready Nest Counseling in Nashville, Tennessee, as we talk about Ready Nest Counseling's incredible services for families, entrepreneurship, mental wellness, and embracing the beautiful mess of motherhood! Al...

There is an urgency…not to make more money or to get that next deal...the urgency here is that our kids are growing up in front of us every single day.     It's the fact that our kids are only a newborn, toddler, 5 year old, middle schooler, and graduate once.   We won't ever get this time back again. Many moms I talk to always feel busy, rarely enjoy being present with their families, a...

Are you tired of the hustle ALL THE TIME?  Are you ready for a minute to yourself and your wellness both physically and mentally?   Different Kinds of Massage: https://wellnessmama.com/127199/massage-therapy-benefits/ "Massage can range from light pressure to deep tissue (a lot of pressure) and there are many types of massage.  No matter the type, massage can help with many things." Bene...

How do your kiddos handle mental stress and anxiety?  Do you all have a plan to mentally handle challenges that come along in life?     As we wrap up Mental Health Awareness Month, let’s talk about a few ways we can help our kids proactively nurture their mental health: 1.        Gratitude Check   2.        Imagery  3.        Negative Thought Challenge   4.        Talk Time   5.        Overall Wel...

Is anyone else just…exhausted?  Irritable?   You can tell when you get to that point when you need a break because the following starts to happen: -you feel like you are in the twilight zone -you have a VERY short fuse -everything and everyone irritates you -you want to be left alone…all the time -you start yelling WAY faster than you used to   -You are basically not feeling yourself and need a re...

Does your child know how to hold a book, turn the pages, point to words and pictures, or point to the front cover, back cover, spine, and title page of a book? “Concepts of print are a great predictor in a child's future success as a reader.  Concepts of print influence a child's fluency and accuracy as a reader later in life.” Concepts of print is the understanding that books contain le...

“Phonics instruction serves one purpose - to help readers figure out as quickly as possible the pronunciation of unknown words.”  A solid foundation in phonics will set children up for success in all areas of their education and will help them to easily decode unfamiliar words. Phonics is the relationship between spoken sounds in a language and the letters or combination of letters that represents...

"Approximately 68% of women and 57% of men with mental health problems are parents." "The most common mental health problems experienced during pregnancy and after birth are anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)." https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/statistics/mental-health-statistics-family-and-parenting   " Approximately 12 million women in the United...

This is the last episode of this season - #50!  Wow.  Please email me at jenna@iamthewholemama.com with your favorite episode(s) since we launched last October! May - Mental Health Awareness Day Mental Health Statistics:   "Youth mental health is worsening. 9.7% of youth in the U.S. have severe major depression, compared to 9.2% in last year’s dataset. Even before COVID-19, the prevalence of...