Don't Mom Alone Podcast

Heather MacFadyen

Heather MacFadyen, mother of four boys, connects you the listener with people and resources to help you feel less alone. Consider it an invitation to "withness". read less

How to Never Miss Out :: Vaneetha Risner [Ep 402] RWYB Series Wk 1
Yesterday
How to Never Miss Out :: Vaneetha Risner [Ep 402] RWYB Series Wk 1
What would it look like for you to live your best life? What if someone told you that you already are living your best life? Not because you’ve accomplished and arranged things just how you want, but because not only is God with you exactly where you are, but because he purposefully placed you there.  My guest this week, author and mom Vaneetha Risner, encourages us with her harrowing story of intense suffering and God meeting her right in its midst. Frustrated by circumstances and eager to experience God in the same manner others did she felt the Lord gently saying to her, “This is where I've placed you. This is where I'm gonna meet you. I'm not gonna expect you to climb mountains or do things you can't do to meet me.”  Do you feel out of place? Are you looking for the unique and specific ways God wants to use you? Join us for a series focused around my new book, Right Where You Belong: How to Identify and Fully Occupy Your God-Given Space. We’ll walk together through six stories of women leaning into the varied assignments God has given them.   Connect with Vaneetha Risner:  Website:  https://www.vaneetha.com/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vaneetharisner  Instagram:  @vaneetharisner  Twitter: @vaneetharisner    Links Mentioned:   Walking Through Fire: A Memoir of Loss and Redemption by Vaneetha Risner Desperate for Hope: Questions We Ask God in Suffering, Loss, and Longing by Vaneetha Risner (Bible Study)  The Scars That Have Shaped Me: How God Meets Us in Suffering by Vaneetha Risner Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy: Discovering the Grace of Lament by Mark Vroegop Suffering: Gospel Hope When Life Doesn’t Make Sense by Paul David Tripp Walking With God Through Pain and Suffering by Timothy Keller  A Lifetime of Wisdom: Embracing the Way God Heals You by Joni Eareckson Tada   Exclusive Pre-Order:  Pre-Order Right Where You Belong: How to Identify and Fully Occupy Your God-Given Space and receive a FREE audiobook copy, narrated by Heather MacFadyen Related Episodes: The Good God Wants for Our Families :: Paul David Tripp [Ep 285] Bottles of Hope :: Lindsey Wheeler [Ep 386] Faith for the Unexpected :: Christine Caine [Ep 202] Brave Enough to be Broken :: Toni Collier [Ep 388] Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
How to be Truly Strong :: Aundi Kolber [Ep 401]
20-03-2023
How to be Truly Strong :: Aundi Kolber [Ep 401]
What does strength look like to you? Does it look like white knuckling it, holding your breath? Or does it look like putting your oxygen mask on first, and then attending to the needs of others?  We all want to, need to be strong for those around us. But my guest this week reminds us there is a cost to being certain kinds of strong. Aundi Kolber is an author and therapist and her new book, Strong Like Water, helps unpack what true strength looks like and feels like and how to get there. In our conversation she encourages us in the practices of self-compassion and grounding and helps us see how white knuckling it is actually detrimental to our relationships and if we will pay attention to ourselves we can show up better for the people we hold dear.  Connect with Aundi Kolber:  Website:  https://aundikolber.com/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aundikolberwrites  Instagram:  @aundikolber  Twitter: @aundikolber    Links Mentioned:   Strong Like Water: Finding the Freedom, Safety, and Compassion to Move Through Hard Things – And Experience True Flourishing by Aundi Kolber  Try Softer: A Fresh Approach to Move Us Out of Anxiety, Stress, and Survival Mode –and into a Life of Connection and Joy by Aundi Kolber    Exclusive Pre-Order:  Pre-Order Right Where You Belong: How to Identify and Fully Occupy Your God-Given Space and receive a FREE audiobook copy, narrated by Heather MacFadyen Related Episodes: The Window of Tolerance :: Charissa Fry [Ep 260] True Intimacy with God :: Mo Isom Aiken [Ep 318] Quiet Your Inner Critic and Practice Self-Compassion :: Kim Frederickson [Ep 188] Walking Through Seasons of Unbelonging :: Shauna Niequist [Ep 362] Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Students of Our Children :: Karen Stubbs [Ep 398]
27-02-2023
Students of Our Children :: Karen Stubbs [Ep 398]
What does a child need to flourish? There are a million answers to that question, but in all honesty, it’s a little different for each child. We have so many tools available to us to help us see our own personalities and tendencies more clearly. My guest this week is mom and author Karen Stubbs. She challenges us to be students of our kids’ personalities - to tell them the way they are wired is a good gift from God. She encourages us to learn our kids. Not just to correct or discipline them, but to celebrate the way God has made them, help them grow into their strengths, and give them eyes to see their weakness with kindness and grace. Through her ministry, Birds on a Wire, parents can take a quiz to help understand their child’s unique personality and then be equipped to shepherd each unique personality well.  Connect with Karen Stubbs:  Website:  https://birdsonawiremoms.com/karenstubbs  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BirdsonaWireMoms/  Instagram: @karenstubbs  @birdsonawiremoms  Twitter: @BOAWMoms  Podcast: Wire Talk Links Mentioned:   Personality Plus for Parents: Understanding What Makes Your Child Tick by Florence Littauer  Birds on a Wire Personality Color Quiz Wire Talk Podcast Series on Personality  The Art of Motherhood by Karen Stubbs  Survival Guide to Motherhood: Learn to Thrive, Not Just Survive by Karen Stubbs PDF:: How to Parent Each Type  Related Episodes: Honoring Others :: Rachel Wade [Ep 348]  Temperament Guide: Help for All Types of Moms to All Types of Kids [Ep 14]  Understanding Boys Better :: David Thomas [Ep 315] Exclusive Pre-Order:  Pre-Order Right Where You Belong: How to Identify and Fully Occupy Your God-Given Space Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Parenting Sensitive and Intense Kids :: Lynne Jackson and Lydia Rex [Ep 395]
06-02-2023
Parenting Sensitive and Intense Kids :: Lynne Jackson and Lydia Rex [Ep 395]
Some of our precious kiddos live with their sensitivity and intensity turned up a notch from the rest of us. What we think should be simple or routine can trigger big outbursts from our kids. Daily life might feel chaotic or unpredictable.  As a mom of a sensitive or intense child you probably have a good idea of what doesn’t work, but it can be hard to discern what will help in those moments. My guests this week are Lynne Jackson and Lydia Rex of Connected Families. Together, they have compiled research and real life experiences from over a 100 families of children who are sensitive and intense and created a parenting course to support and equip parents.  Lynne and her husband Jim have been regulars on Don’t Mom Alone encouraging moms (and dads) that it is possible to connect with your child, to coach them, and correct them - you never have to lose one to have the other. Lydia joins Lynne in the thick of parenting her own sensitive and intense children to encourage moms to draw from the limitless well of Christ’s love for yourself and your child in real-life challenging situations.  Connect with Lynne Jackson & Lydia Rex:  Website:  https://connectedfamilies.org/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ConnectedFamilies Instagram:  @connectedfams Links Mentioned:   Connected Families - Your Sensitive Intense Child  Connected Families Sensitive & Intense Kids Online Course  Connected Families - 7 Practical Calming Strategies for Kids  Related Episodes: Grace and Truth for Moms :: Lynne Jackson [Ep 296] Helping Your Children With Sensory Processing Issues :: Lynne Jackson [Ep 258]  Connected Relationships (LIVE Event) :: Jim and Lynne Jackson [Ep 222] Discipline 101 (LIVE Event - Friday Night) :: Jim and Lynne Jackson [Ep 221] The Entitlement Fix :: Jim and Lynne Jackson [Ep 200]  Bonus Mentor Episode - Resolving Sibling Conflict :: Jim and Lynne Jackson [Ep 126]  Connecting With Your Kids in Any Circumstance :: Jim and Lynne Jackson [Ep 98] How to Connect, Coach and Correct Your Child :: Jim and Lynne Jackson [Ep 81] Help Your Child Feel Safe and Loved :: Jim and Lynne Jackson [Ep 80] Exclusive Pre-Order:  Pre-Order Right Where You Belong: How to Identify and Fully Occupy Your God-Given Space Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Signpost Parenting :: Ann Voskamp [Ep 394]
30-01-2023
Signpost Parenting :: Ann Voskamp [Ep 394]
Who saw all that you’ve done today? Anyone? A mom’s work usually goes unacknowledged. We want to measure our work by how the house looks or how the children behave, or by how put together we look when we go out. But my guest this week, Ann Voskamp, invites us to prioritize the unseen. She dares us to prioritize things like the riches of Christ, the promise of an eternity in his presence that is “utterly and completely fulfilling,” and our relationships with those around us.  She helps us see the value in “signpost” parenting - not overly concerned with outcomes we cannot control, but deeply committed to continually pointing our kids to Christ and the sufficiency of His great love for us.  Ann is a mom to 7, farmer’s wife and author of several books including her newest, Your Brave Song: An Inspirational Children’s Picture Book That Shows How Faith in Jesus Can Help Kids Overcome Fear, Worry, and Anxiety.  Connect with Ann Voskamp:  Website:  https://annvoskamp.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnnVoskamp Instagram:  @annvoskamp  Links Mentioned:   Your Brave Song: An Inspirational Children’s Picture Book That Shows How Faith in Jesus Can Help Kids Overcome Fear, Worry, and Anxiety by Ann VoskampWaymaker: A Dare to Hope by Ann Voskamp Related Episodes: How to {really} Parent with Grace :: Jeannie Cunnion [Ep 55] How to be Calm and Kind Under Pressure :: Candace Cameron Bure [Ep223] Week Four Summer of Mentorship 2020 :: Sally Clarkson  Exclusive Pre-Order:  Pre-Order Right Where You Belong: How to Identify and Fully Occupy Your God-Given Space Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Clarifying Your Family Culture :: Heather [Ep 392]
16-01-2023
Clarifying Your Family Culture :: Heather [Ep 392]
You know what you’re seeing of someone else’s life as you scroll isn’t the whole story and yet we all find ourselves longing for that perfect vacation, that look of pure delight on their child’s face, or the silent moments they were able to enjoy.  We all know “comparison is the thief of joy,”  and we should run from it. But what if, rather than try to immediately silence or distract whatever we’re feeling in those moments, we got curious about what’s going on inside? What if we could filter what we see and discern what is for us and what isn’t?  In Christ, God has given us a treasure trove of wisdom and knowledge that, by the power of the Holy Spirit, is available to us all the time. We can use that wisdom to guide us as we uncover the “why” behind our comparisons and help us recognize our God-given boundaries.      Exclusive Pre-Order:  Pre-Order Right Where You Belong: How to Identify and Fully Occupy Your God-Given Space Special Listening Guide for this episode:  Download Listening Guide here Links Mentioned:   Feelings Card and “What I Need” Quadrant (scroll down just under the text of the show notes)Feelings Wheel Related Episodes: Shaping Your Family Culture :: Kimberly Amici [Ep 294] Bruce Learns to Label His Feelings :: Bruce and Heather [Ep 316] How to Help a Friend Process Life :: [Ep 395] Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Steady Identity in Shifting Roles :: Kari Kampakis - Part 2 [Ep 391]
09-01-2023
Steady Identity in Shifting Roles :: Kari Kampakis - Part 2 [Ep 391]
“As parents our job is to be kinder and stronger, and wiser.”  Those words are simple and sensible, but that directive can be deceptively hard.  How do we mother - how do we live even - as our roles change hourly, monthly, yearly?  In this second part of our conversation with Kari Kampakis she encourages us that if we are finding our identity in Christ and our joy in Him we can more easily navigate our ever-shifting roles as women. We can be free to teach and guide our children through life and ultimately let go of the reins when the time is right.  Connect with Kari Kampakis:  Website:  https://www.karikampakis.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karikampakiswriter/ Instagram:  @karikampakisTwitter: @KariKampakis   Links Mentioned:   Love Her Well: 10 Ways to Find Joy and Connection with Your Teenage Daughter by Kari Kampakis  Liked: Whose Approval Are You Living For? By Kari Kampakis 10 Ultimate Truths Girls Should Know by Kari KampakisMore Than a Mom: How Prioritizing Your Wellness Helps You (and Your Family) Thrive  by Kari Kampakis   Related Episodes: Motherhood, Career, & Identity :: Kat Armstrong [Ep 171] Brave Enough to be Broken :: Toni Collier [Ep 388] Self-Differentiation and Why it Matters :: Nancy Houston [Ep 335] Rebranded: Stepping Into a New Season :: Christy Write [SOM Wk 6] Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Connecting With Your Daughter Through Humility and Compassion :: Kari Kampakis - Part 1 [Ep 390]
02-01-2023
Connecting With Your Daughter Through Humility and Compassion :: Kari Kampakis - Part 1 [Ep 390]
“I’m not a regular mom, I’m a cool mom” are the words of Mean Girl Regina George’s mom. We know she’s not a great example of a mom, but it can be difficult to sort out  which moments are for connecting and which are for correcting.  You want to be a valid voice in your daughter’s life as she enters their teen years and not just maintain, but grow your connection with her. It is possible to break from what society says and enjoy the teenage years.  Mom of four girls and author, Kari Kampakis, talks with us this week about how humility and compassion can help us navigate our relationships with our tweens and teens. (Bonus - when they see us live this way, it will help them learn to navigate relationships too!) Connect with Kari Kampakis:  Website:  https://www.karikampakis.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karikampakiswriter/ Instagram:  @karikampakisTwitter: @KariKampakis   Links Mentioned:   Love Her Well: 10 Ways to Find Joy and Connection with Your Teenage Daughter by Kari Kampakis  Liked: Whose Approval Are You Living For? By Kari Kampakis 10 Ultimate Truths Girls Should Know by Kari KampakisMore Than a Mom: How Prioritizing Your Wellness Helps You (and Your Family) Thrive  by Kari Kampakis  Related Episodes: Be Vulnerable, Find Your People :: Jennie Allen [Ep 354]  Freeing Your Adolescents to Step Into Adulthood - Ages and Stages - Teens :: Dr. Ken Wilgus [Ep 382]  Ages & Stages Series - The Tween Years :: Charissa Lopez [Ep 380] Helping Our Kids Foster Friendships :: David Thomas and Sissy Goff [Ep 338] Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Every Mom a Theologian :: Phylicia Masonheimer [Ep 389]
28-11-2022
Every Mom a Theologian :: Phylicia Masonheimer [Ep 389]
We are all theologians. We may not be formally educated experts, but we all have beliefs about who God is and how and why he interacts with us (or doesn’t). All of our assumptions, presuppositions, opinions, and ideas make up our theology. The question is, where are we getting our information? What do we base our theology on?  My guest this week is Phylicia Masonheimer, founder of Every Woman a Theologian, and her goal is “to teach [women] how to discern truth, know what (and Who) [they] believe, and live [their] faith boldly in a post-Christian world.” Her day to day work is creating resources for women to learn to study the bible and navigate doctrine because a firm theological foundation matters for us personally and individually as well as for our other relationships be it our spouses, kids, friends, neighbors. That foundation will underpin the comfort we bring to a hurting friend, the discipline we use with our children, and how we treat our spouse.  Connect with Phylicia Masonheimer: Website:  https://phyliciamasonheimer.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/phyliciadelta Instagram:  @phyliciamasonheimer   @everywomanatheologian  Podcast: The Verity Podcast  Links Mentioned:    The Ology: Ancient Truths, Ever New by Marty MachowskiMary Flo Ridley & Megan Michelson Birds & Bees Related Episodes: Become What You Behold :: Ruth Chou Simons [Ep 255]  Let’s Talk About Sex :: Mary Flo Ridley and Megan Michelson [Ep 328] Consistency in Bible Study :: Katie Orr [Ep 352] Giving Kids a Firm Foundation :: Troy Simons [Ep 278] Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Brave Enough to be Broken :: Toni Collier [Ep 388]
21-11-2022
Brave Enough to be Broken :: Toni Collier [Ep 388]
The origins of our word vulnerable are found in a Latin word that means “to wound”. We all know that to be fully known is to open ourselves up to the possibility of being wounded. When we let down our armor, when we expose the wounds of our past  as part of the healing journey is risky and scary, but my guest this week, Toni Collier, says, “Be brave.”  Be brave enough to be just who you are before God - he knows you already and loves you unconditionally. Be brave enough to be just who you are before yourself and let guilt indicate places that need to change and banish shame. Be brave enough to be who you are before safe people who can walk with you, supporting your unsteady but important healing steps. There are better, healthier relationships to be had through the healing journey. As Toni would say, “hurt and hope can coexist.” Toni Collier is a wife, mom, author, speaker, and founder of the international women’s ministry Broken Crayons Still Color which helps women process through their brokenness to get hope. Her newest book, Brave Enough to be Broken, is available wherever books are sold.   Connect with Toni Collier:  Website:  www.tonijcollier.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/colliertoni Instagram:  @tonijcollier  @brkncrayons Podcast: Still Coloring  Links Mentioned:   Brave Enough to be Broken: How to Embrace Your Pain and Discover Hope and Healing by Toni Collier  Setting Healthy Boundaries with Family :: Dr. John Townsend [Ep 250]New Morning Mercies: A Daily Gospel Devotional by Paul David Tripp Related Episodes: Broken Crayons Still Color :: Toni Collier [Ep 267] Healing from Broken Friendships :: Shundria Riddick [Ep 321] How to Help a Friend Process Life [Ep 359] Be Vulnerable, Find Your People :: Jennie Allen  [Ep 354] Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Good Boundaries and Goodbyes :: Lysa TerKeurst [Ep 387]
14-11-2022
Good Boundaries and Goodbyes :: Lysa TerKeurst [Ep 387]
“Good fences make good neighbors” is a line from Robert Frost’s Mending Wall, but the poem goes on to say, “Before I built a wall I'd ask to know / What I was walling in or walling out”  So often in our lives we feel the unrest of chaos or dysfunction in our relationships, but we don’t know exactly what we need to wall out or wall in. My guest this week, Lysa TerKeurst faced a new season of life and wanted to enter it with wisdom and strength - caring for others and herself in each of her relationships. Her personal journey led to her newest book, Good Boundaries and Goodbyes, a guide for each of us as we navigate relationships, practice setting healthy boundaries and even sometimes need to say goodbye.  Connect with Lysa TerKeurst:  Website:  https://lysaterkeurst.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialLysa Instagram:  @lysaterkeurst  Links Mentioned:   Good Boundaries and Goodbyes : Loving Others Without Losing the Best of Who You Are by Lysa TerKeurst    Setting Healthy Boundaries with Family :: Dr. John Townsend [Ep 250]Leslie Vernick and Difficult v Destructive Relationships - https://leslievernick.com Therapy and Theology Podcast  Related Episodes: Setting Healthy Boundaries with Family :: Dr. John Townsend [Ep 250] Forgiving What You Can’t Forget :: Lysa TerKeurst [Ep 304] 5 Schedule Sappers and How to Stop Them :: Lysa TerKeurst [Ep 45] Uninvited :: Lysa TerKeurst, Kay Wyma and Courtney DeFeo [Ep 131] Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Bottles of Hope :: Lindsey Wheeler [Ep 386]
07-11-2022
Bottles of Hope :: Lindsey Wheeler [Ep 386]
Grief has been called the unwanted visitor - it shows up when you don’t want it and it often stays longer than we would want. In the midst of seasons of suffering or grieving it’s so easy to feel isolated and to be isolated, the weight of bringing our real selves into community feeling like another burden to bear. Whatever dreams we might have had of how our life we go or what it would look like for us to serve God and others seem to be an impossibility.  Meet my guest this week, Lindsey Wheeler. For over a decade Lindsay and her family have fought through her chronic illness and fought for her special needs daughter. She has felt the sting of isolation and the deep relief and joy of true community. In the midst of it all she has found a way to serve others and share God’s gentle love for them by sitting with them in their grief. Through her small business, Bottle of Tears (see discount code below), she reminds others they are seen in their grief - by her, by God, by a loved one that would send one of her precious vintage bottles.  Connect with Lindsey Wheeler:  Website:  https://www.bottleoftears.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bottleoftears Instagram:  @bottle_of_tears  Links Mentioned:    IF: Gathering DMA listeners special code for Bottle of Tears: DONTMOMALONE20 for 20% off any order through January 31, 2023. Related Episodes: Adopting Special Needs :: Candace and Alice [Ep 213] Life Giving Faith in Every Circumstance :: Lisa Appelo :: Summer of Mentorship Week 2 Be Vulnerable, Find Your People :: Jennie Allen [Ep 354] Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.
Collaboration Over Competition :: Liz Bohannon & Jessica Honegger [Ep 383]
17-10-2022
Collaboration Over Competition :: Liz Bohannon & Jessica Honegger [Ep 383]
Do you view other moms as collaborators or competitors? Whether it’s our achievements or our difficulties we often compare ourselves to other moms rather than come alongside them (or even celebrate them - gasp!).   My guests this week say it this way -  “[we] are committed to choosing collaboration over competition and running far from that scarcity mentality that there's just not enough at the table. Instead, we're just building a bigger table.”  Jessica is the founder of Noonday Collections and her business partner Liz Bohannon founded Sseko and they are joining forces to become the world’s largest fair-trade fashion selling brand. They encourage us that joining together as moms doesn’t deplete our resources but actually multiplies them.  Connect with Liz & Jessica:  Website:  https://www.noondaycollection.com  https://ssekodesigns.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/noondaycollection https://www.facebook.com/ssekodesigns Instagram:  @jessicahonegger   @lizbohannon  @noondaycollection @ssekodesignsTwitter: @noondaystyle  Links Mentioned:   Become an Ambassador! (Get a heart to heart necklace AND join Liz, Jessica and I for a virtual happy hour!!) Sign up here and in the drop down menu on how you were connected select “Don’t Mom Alone”. Noonday Collection https://www.noondaycollection.com   The Best of You: Break Free From Painful Patterns, Mend Your Past, and Discover Your True Self in God by Dr. Alison Cook Related Episodes: Winning Together as Co-Laborers :: Heather MacFadyen[Ep 367] Be Vulnerable, Find Your People :: Jennie Allen [Ep 354] Relationships You Need to Be the Mom You Want to Be :: Heather MacFadyen [Ep 341] Friendship is Hard :: Amy Weatherly and Jess Johnston [Ep 350]  Featured Sponsors:  Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors.  Moms making a difference: join our bakery project. Click here to contribute to our goal of raising $12,400 to equip a bakery for 125 women in Guatemala.