Today I’m talking with Katrina McCain, a former fashion model and author of the book Beyond Being Good. We talk about her book, her 9-year modeling career, her Beyond Borders Charity Runway Show, and, um, maybe a wardrobe malfunction or two. Katrina is awesome and you’re gonna love her…and you guys will be proud of me because I only made one Zoolander reference the whole time. Whether you’re wearing Gucci, yoga pants, or Derelicte!, listen in and lighten up.
Today’s episode is sponsored by FabFitFun! FabFitFun is a seasonal subscription box with full-size beauty, fitness, fashion, and lifestyle products. It’s basically like getting a birthday present in the mail four times a year. It retails for $49.99 but always contains products totaling over $200, and they’re giving Lighten Up listeners $10 off your first box when you use code LIGHTENUP at fabfitfun.com.
This week I've combined our Dog Days of Summer series with our monthly crossover episode with Sarah Bragg of Surviving Sarah! So as always with these monthly episodes, you can hear one half of our conversation here on Lighten Up, and the other half over on Surviving Sarah. Today Sarah shares her favorite dog story, and did she commit a crime or not? You be the judge. Then, we tackle back to school. Back to school. What the heck? How is it already that time?! Here in Georgia, the season in upon us so we might as well talk about it. We cover school supplies (Who IS Dixon Ticonderoga?!), our own back to school memories, the first time we sent our kiddos to school, and how it's changed as our kids have grown up. We share tips for navigating back to school, what not to do (ask us how we know!), how to have reasonable expectations about school involvement, how to partner with teachers, how to stay organized with all your kids' papers, and tackling the morning routine, ugh. So whether your kids go back this week, next week, or not for another month, listen in and lighten up!
Today’s episode is sponsored by FabFitFun! FabFitFun is a seasonal subscription box with full-size beauty, fitness, fashion, and lifestyle products. It’s basically like getting a birthday present in the mail four times a year. It retails for $49.99 but always contains products totaling over $200, and they’re giving Lighten Up listeners $10 off your first box when you use code LIGHTENUP at fabfitfun.com.
We're in the Dog Days of Summer and today's guest is my friend Jeannie Cunnion, author of Mom Set Free and teller of hilarious dog stories. I laughed until I cried during our conversation. And hey, if you have small children and aren't ready to to explain reproductive biology to them yet, you might want to grab some headphones. You've been warned. This podcast could also be titled, "The Shitzu Had Its Period." Today on Lighten Up, love is in the air...and the only thing stopping it is a very determined Jeannie Cunnion. Neuter and spay your dogs, listen in, and lighten up.
Today's episode is sponsored by FabFitFun! FabFitFun is a seasonal subscription box with full-size beauty, fitness, fashion, and lifestyle products. It's basically like getting a birthday present in the mail four times a year. It retails for $49.99 but always contains products totaling over $200, and they're giving Lighten Up listeners $10 off your first box when you use code LIGHTENUP at fabfitfun.com.
We are smack in the middle of the Dog Days of Summer, both literally and on this podcast, and today's guest is Logan Wolfram, author of Curious Faith and friend of the show. Logan has big dogs, and big dogs make big smells. My favorite quote from the show is when Logan says, "You just kind of sign yourself up for these weird things when you have animals." Also, I think this episode wins for most use of the word "humping." To prepare yourself for this episode, ask yourself this, "If your dog eats part of your sandwich, do you throw the rest away, eat it anyway, or serve it to your kids?" Ponder that, and while you do, listen in, and lighten up!
Today's episode is sponsored by FabFitFun! FabFitFun is a seasonal subscription box with full-size beauty, fitness, fashion, and lifestyle products. It's basically like getting a birthday present in the mail four times a year. It retails for $49.99 but always contains products totaling over $200, and they're giving Lighten Up listeners $10 off your first box when you use code LIGHTENUP at fabfitfun.com.
Today I'm kicking off a fun series called the Dog Days of Summer, and my first guest is the author of If You Only Knew and host of the popular podcast Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey. Jamie's a friend of the show and I'm so happy to have her back to share some dog stories. I love dogs, but sometimes they are a handful and we have some funny, funny stories this month of dogs getting into all kinds of trouble. Jamie shares about the first dog she and her husband Aaron ever owned, who she calls, "the ugliest thing I've ever seen in my entire life." Summer is the perfect time to kick back and share stories, so grab a glass of something cold, cuddle up with your dog or lovable hamster, listen in, and lighten up!
Today's episode is sponsored by FabFitFun! FabFitFun is a seasonal subscription box with full-size beauty, fitness, fashion, and lifestyle products. It's basically like getting a birthday present in the mail four times a year. It retails for $49.99 but always contains products totaling over $200, and they're giving Lighten Up listeners $10 off your first box when you use code LIGHTENUP at fabfitfun.com.
Today's our monthly crossover episode with Sarah Bragg of Surviving Sarah. I look forward to these episodes so much and I hope you're enjoying them, too. This month Sarah and I are chatting about contentment. We talk about contentment over on her show and then here on Lighten Up, we're digging into discontentment and how discontentment can really lead to both positive and negative things. So we unpack the good and bad sides of it, how we avoid discontentment from social media, and what's making us feel content right now. Pour some coffee, drag over a beach chair, listen in, and lighten up!
Today I'm talking with Kelly Balarie. Kelly is a delight and I can't wait for you guys to meet her. We talk about grocery shopping cart road rage, which is a thing. You know what I'm talking about. And then we talk about Kelly's new book, Battle Ready. She has faced some serious battles, from financial to relational to medical, and instead of letting them bring her down, she's risen to the challenge and in this book, she shares her strategies for combating doubt and all those ways our minds can feel under attack. If you're struggling with insecurity and uncertainty, Kelly has some good news to help you defeat it, so listen in and lighten up.
Quote from the show:
"You can be a light in your community by showing your own darkness...We're all on a search for what's real."
Today I'm talking with Kathy Khang, author of the book Raise Your Voice: Why We Stay Silent and How to Speak Up. I love her so much, because she can speak with authority about very serious topics and then turn around and talk about yoga farts. So. Strap in. You have the distinct privilege today of hearing me describe my first mammogram. You're welcome, world. Then Kathy and I talk about having older kids, tattooed eyeliner, becoming a U.S. citizen, and her book, Raise Your Voice. How do we teach our kids to use their voices and speak up, and how do we speak up about the things that matter to us? How do we decide what to speak up about? I'm digging this conversation because Kathy is fun and funny, and we talk about big important things, too. Pull up a chair, listen in, and lighten up.
Quotes from the show:
"You can say all you want but at some point you will make a mistake. Will you be able to apologize, recognize your own humanity, and be humble in the moment?"
"No one is voiceless. No one is completely powerless. Even in the worst situations, there is some agency that you have. It may not bring about the change that you need desperately. It may not be the door that you need opened immediately, but the fact that you're alive and breathing means that you have a voice."
Well, I just celebrated 18 years of marriage with Alex, which is ridiculous since we’re both only 25. If you follow me on Instagram, you know that almost every Friday, we have coffee and bacon together. Bacon basically saves my marriage, and our weekly bacon date is extremely important. Anyway, I thought it’d be fun this week to invite all you guys on our coffee date. So grab some coffee, pull up a chair with Alex and me, listen in, and lighten up!
This week's sponsor is Teami Blends! Teami is offering Lighten Up listeners 15% off any order with code UNEXPECTED so check out teamiblends.com.
The two questions we ask each other every week:
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It's our monthly crossover episode with Sarah Bragg of Surviving Sarah! This month we're talking about all things summer and summer vacation. Sarah and I tackle the day-to-day moments of surviving summer with your kids over on her podcast Surviving Sarah and here on Lighten Up, we talk about those specially planned moments, like vacations, trips, and camps. We reminisce about our favorite memories of summer from our childhoods and talk about how to lighten up by balancing time together as a family and time apart, because we all desperately need apart time. We share how we do vacations, road trip tips, travel ideas for when you have more than two kids, and the benefits of overnight camps and day camps. Summer is upon us, so listen in and lighten up!
Today I'm talking with Barb Roose, author of Winning the Worry Battle: Life Lessons from the Book of Joshua, and oh my gosh you guys, about 20 seconds into talking to her we discover that we went to the same high school what the heck. Go Medina BEES! Barb shares the most epic wardrobe malfunction story that's sure to give you a nice laughter-induced ab workout for the day, and she gives us a fantastic tip for lightening up. We chat about how to get control of our worry, how the book of Joshua can help us with our helicopter parenting, how to keep our kids' worries from stressing us out, and she gives us practical tools for dealing with worry. Um, also? Last week Bronwyn told about the time she accidentally bought a minivan on eBay and this week Barb admits she bought a house without telling her husband. What is going on with the crazy purchases? Next week someone's going to tell me they bought a horse or a theme park or something. Does worry have you tied up in knots? Listen in and lighten up!
Quote from the show:
"The difference between worry and worship is Who you're talking to."
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As always, if I post an Amazon link and you click and buy something, I make several whole cents. Keeps the lights on around here. Well, keeps about one-quarter of one pixel on. Thanks in advance.
Today I'm talking with Amber Runyon, a former hospice nurse turned social entrepreneur. She founded Eleventh Candle Co. to bring hope and healing to women who've been vulnerable to trafficking, both in Ethiopia and the U.S. Eleventh makes delicious candles and they're offering Lighten Up listeners 25% off using code LIGHTENUP. Amber and I talk about our new dogs, why she started a candle company when she doesn't even like candles, and how candles are helping women out of trafficking. And then I pick her brain about what she's been learning as an entrepreneur, running a fast-growing company, and building a healthy team. Whether you're starting a company, care about ending human trafficking, or just super love candles, listen in and lighten up.
Quotes from the show:
"If we start putting our money where our mouth is, our world will dramatically change."
"Listen to your head, follow your heart, and lead with your gut."
"You want to start a company? Start with therapy."
Today I'm talking with Bronwyn Lea, blogger, lawyer, immigrant, and mom. She loves puns, and we get punny, and then she tells the harrowing tale of how she accidentally bought a minivan on eBay. She shares how we need to lighten up about our homes needing to look perfect before people come over, and practicing "radical and generous hospitality" with homemade ice cream. Bronwyn talks about living as a South African immigrant in the U.S. and gives us the gift of glimpsing immigration through her eyes as an immigrant to the U.S. So pull up a chair, grab a cup of tea or coffee, listen in, and lighten up.
Favorite quote from the show:
"Oh honey, you got your brains from me. That's why I don't have them any more." - Bronwyn's mom
If you like laughing hysterically, you guys are in for a treat today. My friend Anna Quinlan, a freelance writer and copywriter, is on the show and she tells the most epic tale of falling off a treadmill at the gym. I couldn't breathe I was laughing so hard, and then we bonded over our mutual hatred of crafts. We chat about freelance writing, how she adopted one of her boys out of foster care, and sporty sporty fitness. Anna shares about competing in races, training for an Ironman, and how people like me who are not so much with the exercise can challenge ourselves. Whether your thighs are so strong you can crack walnuts between them or you're more like me and can't remember the last time you were on a treadmill, listen in and lighten up!
Favorite quote from the show: "If you're at the table, you're family."
Also: "Step away from the glue gun."
It's the monthly crossover episode with Sarah Bragg of Surviving Sarah, and this month, we're chatting about personal growth. I mean, in between just keeping all my plates spinning I hope I'm growing as a person, at least a little, right? A lot of what contributes to my personal growth are the books I read, the things I listen to, and the products I love. So Sarah and I start out with the books we're reading, and I have a bit of a diatribe about the importance of reading fiction, then we talk about what we're learning right now, and we wrap up with products we're loving. (Between the two of us, we spend an exorbitant amount of time on coffee.) Whether you're totally growing as a person or are already perfect and need no help whatsoever, listen in and lighten up!