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This will actually be the final episode in this season. Make sure to hang around until the end so I can tell you what’s coming. This week my guest is Courtney Tipping. She told me at the beginning of our conversation that God is good and each day is a new day. I didn’t even know the half of her story, and that mantra already impressed me. Now that I’ve heard the entire thing, I’m blown away. You may need tissues for this one. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
If you want to read more of Courtney’s story, check out her blog here. You can also send her some love on her Instagram here.
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This week’s guest is Coach Jamy Bechler. He’s a professional speaker, leader trainer, and executive business coach and former college basketball coach. We chat about his journey to being an adoptive dad and some of his misconceptions along the way including what type of child he requested the social worker find for him and his wife. I think you’ll appreciate Jamy’s vulnerability and honesty about his story.
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This week I bring you another super hero of a mom. Naomi quick has 6 kids under 8–all homeschooled. Let that sink in. Six little humans under age 8 who are home All. Day. Long. Naomi writes at her blog 127living.com. She’s also an author and speaker. We chat about how she judged me the first time she heard me speak, and how we both have moved on from being those judgey, holier-than-thou mamas. She has some wise words to offer folks who are still in the waiting stage of their adoption.
Here are the places where you can connect with Naomi:
Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
To sign up for her upcoming webinar, Foster Care & Adoption: 5 Keys to Starting the Journey Out Right, click here.
Her book is available at Amazon
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I’m a week late to World Down Syndrome Day. No excuses. Regardless, what this week’s guest, Krista Rowland-Collins, is doing is still important and relevant. She is loving on families as they welcome their children with Down Syndrome into the world through a project called Adele’s Over the Rainbow Baskets. Honestly, the misconceptions that Krista fights against every day kind of blew me away. She talks about how many practitioners still encourage termination of pregnancies where a Down Syndrome diagnosis is involved. Krista is articulate and passionate, and I think you’ll love her perspective.
During our conversation, Krista mentions reading Kelle Hamptom’s blog post about the birth of her daughter. Here’s Kelle’s story or you can get to her blog by clicking here.
Here are the places where you can connect with Krista.
Krista on Facebook.
Adele’s Over the Rainbow Baskets on Facebook and Instagram.
This week I invited my husband, Patrick, to share the mic with me. We sat down to chat about our church journeys, misnomers about the Catholic faith, and why we’re pursuing a smaller, organic church community. Thanks for those of you who asked questions via FB before we recorded. Also, he gets the prize for the best life hack answer ever 
Links* to things we mentioned:
- Pals Socks (use coupon code SAS20 for 20% off )
- Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (Actual Text | Wikipedia Summary)
- Reimagining Church: Pursuing the Dream of Organic Christianity by Frank Viola
- Radical (the book we mentioned by David Platt)
- We Are Church (The thing that Francis Chan is doing)
*some links are affiliate links
Lisa Qualls is the founder of the One Thankful Mom blog. She is a writer and speaker with the unusual chance to have experienced all 3 parts of the adoption triad–birth mom, adoptive mom, and foster child. We’ve connected over so many similarities over the years but she’s far more gracious, wise, and compassionate than me. I know you’ll love what she has to share. We chatted about a part of her story that she hasn’t talked much about…her story as a birth mom. Plus the after effects that having a household of kids can have on even a natural extrovert and my favorite topic of the Enneagram also slipped in. I promise you. I didn’t even prime her!
Here are links to all the places where Lisa is hanging out:
Blog | FB Page | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube
Other things we referenced:
Michael Hyatt – front and back stage days
A podcast that includes Enneagram Subtype descriptions
My Essentially Connected Parenting YouTube Channel
This week I’m welcome my BFF Tricia back to the show and this time she brought her fairy godmother Aunt Tess. we talk about some really important issues like whether or not Santa’s workshop is underground or above ground in the North Pole. But seriously, we had a passionate, yet civil conversation about poverty solutions and minimum wage. Regardless of which “side” you agree with, I just want to point out that at the end of the day we both have huge hearts and just want to help people. We just disagree about what is the best and most effective way to do that.
Tricia will be on stage in Shrek: The Musical in March. Buy tickets here.
Toward the end, Tess mentions G.W. Bush’s ideas around faith-based initiatives. For more info on that, click here.
To connect with Tricia, click here.
To connect with Aunt Tess, click here.
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This week’s guest, Kristin Taylor was nominated by #17 Kathleen Guire. We had a super fun conversation because it turns out we have a lot in common including our Enneagram numbers and how we don’t separate white from colors when doing laundry. I mean what more could you ask for in a friend?
I think you’re going to love her heart for community and what she’s been learning by volunteering at her local pregnancy center.
You can connect with Kristin at her blog. If you need some mismatched socks, check out Pals*!
*In full disclosure, this is an affiliate link, but I never share things I wouldn’t actually use myself or share even if I wasn’t being compensated.
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Meet Rena Rosen. She’s the founder of Art of Compassion, an organization dedicated to a higher level of acceptance, appreciation, and understanding of physical differences among parents and children in our community. During our conversation she shares about what is was like to grow up with a noticeable physical disability and how she’s using her story to make the world a better place. And just like last week’s guest, Jenn, she shares how we can help our kids have appropriate encounters out in public with people who are different.
If you’re parenting a child with a disability or you live with a disability, head to the AbleFinder FB page and click “Send Message” to be connected to a global community of support so you don’t have to feel isolated.
Connect with Rena at Art of Compassion’s FB Page and go buy her book, The Courage to Be Kind.
The other projects she mentioned are the Nora Project and Changing the Face of Beauty.
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Jenn Ernest and I have been friend for forever (see proof above). She has walked through pregnancy loss, secondary infertility, adoption, breast cancer, and she’s parenting a child with limb differences. That’s a lot of situations where people tend to say all the wrong things. During our conversation, Jenn gives practical advice on how to not be THAT person!
P.S. Episode #10 is the one I refer to near the beginning of the show. You can listen here.
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