We Didn't Turn Out OK with Jennie Monness

In this episode, I talk with Kelly Oriard and Callie Christensen, the founders of Slumberkins, a parenting resource designed to help both parents and children build resilience through meaningful stories, characters, and emotional tools that families truly see themselves in. From transitions and repair to grief, gratitude, emotional courage, and the development of a loving inner voice, what they’ve created reaches far beyond plush dolls and books. At its core, Slumberkins speaks to something universal: the inner child we all carry, and how parenting our own children often reveals the voices we needed but didn’t always receive. We connected deeply over our own seemingly “great” childhoods that still held moments of not feeling fully seen or heard, and how those experiences shaped us into people-pleasing adults who struggled to set boundaries without questioning our lovability. Kelly and Callie share vulnerably about stepping away from marriages where emotional safety wasn’t present, choosing instead to model honesty, courage, and self-respect for their children as single mothers. This one felt really special to record, and I’m so grateful for the work and community they’ve created. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this short solo episode I'm sharing what I think confidence really is - not praise, not performance, not getting everything right and not even owning a room. It's a belief in oneself as we are. I introduce the powerful role we play as parents in shaping that belief through our reactions, tone and presence. I also share on how stumbling upon meditation gave me the ability to pause and choose how I react to my kids. It gave me more control over how I respond to them - and I even attempt to guide you through a 60 second meditation practice on how you can start this. TLDR: raising confident kids starts with the work happening inside us. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Rebecca Smith is a friend of my sister’s but she’s also the founder of Mamala Organics, a new mom brand born from a very real moment: becoming a mother and realizing how hard it was to find even a few minutes to nourish herself. She began noticing something so many of us do, dipping into our children’s snacks just to get through the day, and Mamala grew from that shared truth into something meant to feel like a hug for mothers when they need it most. But this conversation goes far beyond a brand story. Rebecca and I naturally found ourselves talking about grit, as founders, as mothers, and as people deeply triggered by the idea of “giving up" and feelings around things we quit as a kid. We explored what it means to keep building for our children, the role our partners play as safe places when we hit those I can’t do this anymore moments, and how that safety is exactly what we hope to become for our own kids. We talk about energy, confidence, and the quiet realization that none of us were born knowing how to do any of this. We’re all learning. We’re all doing this for the first time. I love this episode. It feels like a snapshot of where I am right now, in parenthood, in work, and in life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Erika and I met through the mom influencer world, but our connection felt instant and deeper than coincidence - like one of those meetings that’s meant to happen. Since then, the universe has kept weaving our lives together in ways this conversation brings to light. This episode begins with me in the middle of a full-blown “hot mess mom week,” opening up about the spiral of self-judgment, the fear of other people’s judgment, and how easily we turn inward when we’re overwhelmed. From there, we talk each other through the ways we’re hard on ourselves, and the ways we’re learning to meet ourselves with more grace as we actively break generational patterns, navigate our marriages, and raise daughters we want to grow up unburdened, proud, and free. You’ll hear Erika’s origin story, losing her job at nine months pregnant at the start of COVID, continuing to follow her purpose through uncertainty, and now arriving in a completely different season of life as she approaches nine months pregnant with her second child, six years later. We also talk about her bringing her brand to life with⁠ Eden⁠ - a women’s clothing line designed for every season of motherhood, with quality and comfort at its core, pre, during, and post-partum. But what’s most powerful is that Eden isn’t just a product, it’s a symbol. A vehicle for her real purpose: building support, safety, and community for mothers. This is a conversation about identity, resilience, alignment, and becoming - in motherhood, partnership, and selfhood. You’re going to fall in love with her, just like I did. 💛 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, I got to Zoom-hang with three women who feel like instant soul-friends: Allison Williams (Girls, M3GAN, Get Out) and her lifelong best friends Hope Kremer (early childhood educator) and Jaymie Oppenheim (therapist). It’s a four-way Zoom, so it feels exactly like being dropped into a private group chat, the kind where nothing is curated and everything is real. We talk about momming on meds, realistic expectations changing our parenting lives, confidence and bag size (yes, really), the pressure we put on moments that maybe don’t deserve it, and the ways we all carry high stakes without even realizing it. What surprised me most wasn’t just how honest the conversation was,  it was how familiar it felt. Different lives, different paths, same nervous systems. Same fears. Same gratitude. Same joy. Same constant recalibration of who we are and who we’re becoming as mothers. And that’s exactly the energy they’re bringing into the world with what they’ve created through Landlines: connection, honesty, and a sense of you’re not doing this alone. This episode doesn’t need a long explanation. Just know this: It feels like listening to a lifelong group text thread between three best friends who became moms -  and suddenly realizing it sounds exactly like your own. And that’s the magic. Join their substack.  Listen to their pod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices