Shows
The Workmatters PodcastThe Why and How of Bringing Your Whole Self to Work with Alex FittinWelcome to another episode of The Workmatters Podcast! In this episode, Brandon Swoboda and Darrel Harvey sit down with Alex Fittin, an Enneagram coach and trainer whose passion is helping individuals, teams, and organizations thrive by understanding the core motivations that drive us. Drawing from her trauma-informed practice, Alex shares how the Enneagram goes below the surface of what we do to uncover why we do it, and how this deeper self-awareness can foster more effective, resilient, and faith-anchored workplaces.Alex opens up about her journey from being a people person to becoming an...
2025-10-2330 min
Push GoAlex Fittin on Laying Down a Successful Parenting Podcast to Pursue Coaching with the EnneagramAfter coming to the realization that she couldn’t be the only adoptive mother feeling alone in her journey, Alex Fittin sought to connect with other moms who had adopted by way of a podcast. Alex launched the Adoptive Mom Podcast (AMP) and grew her following to surpass over one hundred thousand downloads from all over the world. However, Alex realized that it was the engagement with podcast guests, not the process of running a successful podcast that was fulfilling. So, after much reflection on what she wanted to focus on, she hung up her podcasting microphone and became a...
2023-02-2232 min
The Adoptive MomAMP S8E119: Dudes Who Adopt #7 - Bryan Fittin & Peter Reeveshttps://theadoptivemompodcast.com/blog/peterreeveshttps://littleampersandco.com
2021-11-0149 min
The Adoptive MomAMP S7E103: Dudes Who Adopt #6 - Bryan Fittin and Ryan SmithWe women take a lot of credit for being superheroes in the adoption world (thank you, thank you), but dudes are quite the heroes, themselves. Most kids from hard places bring a lot of dad-related baggage to the table. Abandonment, abuse, the list goes on. Adoptive dads can often feel set up for failure when it comes to caring for their kids.On top of all that, society has trained them not to have feelings or emotions or safe places to talk about the hard stuff and get support. Men are set up for success in so...
2020-11-0950 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S7E96: Enneagram 1s and Adoption - Kara-Kae JamesWe 1s are an interesting bunch. I feel like we get labeled as a lot less fun than we actually are. Most of the 1s I know, including myself, are social, reasonable, funny, and charismatic, but how do we balance the desire to be all of those things with our other desire to be good, just, and righteous?Kara-Kae James and I are chatting all about it this week. We are also of course talking about how our 1-ness influenced our adoption processes and how it impacts our lives now as adoptive moms...https://theadoptivemompodcast.com/blog...
2020-09-2144 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S7E95: The Enneagram and Trauma - Suzanne StabileI teased in the last episode that there would be a lot of episodes with specific, practical adoption tie-ins coming. Well, little did YOU know that one would be coming the VERY NEXT WEEK... https://theadoptivemompodcast.com/blog/suzannestabile
2020-09-141h 05The Adoptive MomAMP S7E94: Why the Enneagram Matters in the Adoptive Mom Community - Whitney CharlesThis season of AMP is dedicated ENTIRELY to The Enneagram. You will hear me give an overview of the Enneagram in the episode, and I will link to additional resources (as always) down below. But what I really want to talk about is that lady up there, Whitney Charles!SO usually I bring you a guest for the season premiere that is a bit more known, so why am I introducing you to someone new for this one? Because she and I have partnered up to bring to fruition something that encapsulates the entire point of...
2020-09-0736 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S6E93: How to Use Your Platform to Showcase Adoption - Korie Robertsonhttps://theadoptivemompodcast.com/blog/korierobertson
When I started The Adoptive Mom Podcast, I made a list of names that I really wanted to have on the show some day. They were big names of incredibly influential people in the adoption world. Today, I can cross one of them off my bucket list.
Korie Robertson was on that list because I am continually amazed at how she lives out her family’s adoption story in subtle but influential ways. Always just living it out in grace and love and letting us all have a glimpse into how she does it.
Even th...
2020-05-2548 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S6E92: This One Will Ruffle Some Feathers - Andrea McCurdywww.TheAdoptiveMomPodcast.com
2020-05-1839 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S6E91: Adoption Hacks - Kandace LecocqToday I get to collaborate with Kandace Lecocq from the Adoption Hacks podcast! Kandace is doing amazing work on her show by featuring experts in the adoption world and teaching the masses how they can join the adoption community. Kandace and I did an episode for her podcast as well, and that of course will be linked in the show notes. So give this episode a listening, and while it’s playing, go to Adoption Hacks and subscribe to stay in the know with everything Kandace is doing.
2020-05-1146 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S6E90: From Sexual Abuse to Pregnancy to Adoption - Chante' DentChante' Dent
https://theadoptivemompodcast.com/blog/chantedent
2020-05-041h 08The Adoptive MomAMP S6E89: From Adoptee to Lifelong Adoption Champion - Natalie Ventohttps:theadoptivemompodcast.com/blog/natalievento
Being an adoptee is a journey in and of itself. Being an adoptee with a dream of motherhood and adopting is another journey. Being an adoptee with a dream of motherhood and adopting and infertility issues is another journey. Being an adoptee with a dream of adopting and a husband who doesn’t share that dream is another journey. Being an adoptee with a dream of adoption going through a divorce is another journey.
It’s safe to say that Natalie Vento has lived a whole lot of journeys packed into a short amount of year...
2020-04-2759 min2020-04-2048 min2020-04-131h 072020-04-0627 min2020-03-301h 122020-03-2358 min2020-03-1649 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S6E82: Ethical Adoption, Ethical Life - Brendan Synnottinterview with CEO Brendan Synnott about his adoption story and ethical clothing company, Pact.
2020-03-0940 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S6E81: Slay Like a Mother - Katherine Wintschinterview with Katherine Wintsch about her book, Slay Like a Mother and her research on motherhood and shame and all the things we go through as moms
2020-03-0245 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S6E80: What It's Like to Raise a Child with Reactive Attachment Disorder w/ Gina HeumannInterview with Gina Heumann about her memoir, Love Never Quits, about adopting and raising a child with RAD.
2020-02-2449 min2020-02-171h 05
Adoption HacksThe Adoptive Mom - Alex FittinHost of The Adoptive Mom Podcast Alex Fittin is with us today! Alex shares her own personal journey of adoption and how it led her to resourcing and supporting others through her podcast.
Typically Alex is interviewing guests for The Adoptive Mom but today she gets to share her story!
We dive into topics like older child adoption, RAD and family dynamics. And we also look talk about the importance of counseling and finding support.
Podcast: The Adoptive Mom
Instagram: TheAdoptiveMom
Facebook: The Adoptive Mom Podcast
2020-02-1342 minThe Adoptive MomAre You Ready for Season 6???Alright Guys, who’s ready for season six of the adoptive mom podcast? I know I am! Ready to know when it’s coming? NEXT WEEK! That’s right, one week from right this very second, you will have a brand spanking new episode of AMP in your podcast feed and I hope you are so super pumped because I am like doing cartwheels over here.Let me tell you what you can expect from this season, cause y’all know I have almost all of the episodes already recorded and on deck for you. Thi...
2020-02-1012 minThe Adoptive MomAMP Plus - "Jesus was Adopted"www.Patreon.com/TheAdoptiveMom
As an adoptive parent, I have come to know that for something as beautiful and restorative as adoption to happen, something else has to be broken and wrecked first. Someone has to lose their child in order for someone else to adopt them. That’s what God was trying to tell me that night. He had to lose His perfect Son to the sinful world so that we could be adopted by Him and be saved. Christmas IS magical, but first it had to be devastating. It was the night that Jesus became separated from God an...
2019-12-2316 minThe Adoptive MomS5:E78 Full Circle - Adrian CollinsInterview with Adrian Collins about her journey from birth mom to bio mom to adoptive mom to re-adoptive mom.A s a birth mom and adoptive mom, she writes and speak about the complexities of adoption and making peace with choices that bring heartache. She is both brave and blemished, learning to accept her imperfections and live each day to the fullest! She loves to read and travel and drink coffee.
2019-12-0251 minThe Adoptive MomS5E77: AMP Plus|Can't Adopt? Here's What You CAN Do - Alex Fittin (Me!)Every week over on Patreon, I do a bonus show for Team AMP - the AMAZING listeners and supporters who choose to invest their cash money in helping to produce the podcast starting at just $5 a month. Today, I wanted to give all of you guys a preview of what these shows are like! They are always a deep-dive on the topic discussed in the regular show, and always chock-full of research, practical tips, and my heart for the issue. They usually run about 10 minutes long and go along with the Bible Study Guide for the week that Team AMP...
2019-11-1823 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S5E76: Sponsoring a Child across the World...and then Some - Camille Lancasterwww.theadoptivemompodcast.com
Interview with Camille Lancaster about their story of adopting their sponsor child, who turned out to be deaf.
2019-11-1149 minThe Adoptive MomS5E75: Beauty is Rising - Kelli Beltwww.theadoptivemompodcast.com
Kelli has a background in marriage and family therapy, and as a fellow adoptive mom, she is a perfect person to walk alongside mamas and help them feel love and connection through these hard times.
She and her family waited over SEVEN YEARS to bring their baby girl home from Ethiopia, and that long, hard waiting process is part of what we talk about in his week’s episode. She describes to us how difficult it is to walk with the Lord when your soul feels like it’s being ripped out of you and when you can’...
2019-11-0448 minThe Adoptive MomS5E74: Attachment in the Upside Down- Shannon GuerraThe title of Shannon Guerra’s book includes “Understanding and supporting attachment in adoptive families.” So when I sat down to talk to her in our interview, I was expecting to talk about attachment parenting and other Connected Child-y type stuff, but that’s not what happened. Instead, we talked about the journey we go through as moms of kids from hard places. The journey of feeling let down by unmet expectations, and of realizing what “hard” actually means, and of learning to love someone who can’t love you back, and of finding your people who are *really* your people. I...
2019-10-2852 minThe Adoptive MomDudes Who Adopt #4Every season, my husband Bryan takes over the show and does an interview with a fellow stellar adoptive dad. I love love love getting to feature these because as much as moms are often overlooked in this adoption thing, dads are too! Their role is often seen as support for their wife and kids, which is fair, but they have a crazy important role in raising these kids and showing them Jesus in a broken world. These kids have often been hurt by their earthly bio fathers. In many cases, they will never know who their bio dad is...
2019-10-2155 minThe Adoptive MomAMP S5E72: American Ninja Adoption Warrior - Marissa RuperYou know those people that you follow online that aren’t like, famous or anything, but they are to you because you’re so familiar with and inspired by their story? So when you meet them after YEARS of online stalking, it’s like meeting an actual celebrity? That’s me with Marissa Ruper.
Marissa and her husband Abe have been adopting older kids from Ethiopia since long before our journey started. She wrote about it on her blog which I found randomly and followed religiously. She didn’t write on it often, so when she did, you knew she had a majo...
2019-10-141h 01The Adoptive MomS5E71: Saving the World, One Tee Shirt at a Time - Haley CoonI think that for a lot of us, “the need” feels so overwhelming, right? Like sure, we could do a small part of whatever, but what difference does it even make? Does our small donation really help? Does our sharing of all the articles that float around social media have all that much reach?
Haley Coon believes it does. They are an adoptive family, but that just wasn’t enough for her. She felt the pull to do more to raise awareness and CASH MONEY for foster care and adoption.
Enter: Restoration Threads.
Haley started her t-shirt company in 2018 and has gr...
2019-10-0752 minThe Adoptive MomS5E70: Can Adoption Be Funny? - Lucas BohnI love to laugh, and I follow several comedy pages on Facebook and Instagram, one of which is Dry-Bar Comedy, a page dedicated to promoting stand-up sets that are more on the clean side. So there I was, scrolling through Facebook as I do, and I see a stand-up routine with adoption in the title. I tapped it to turn the sound on and I sat through the whole set talking about hilarious and inappropriate responses to incredibly inappropriate questions that we as adoptive families get all. the. time. SO FREAKING FUNNY.
I reached out asking for an interview and...
2019-09-3041 minThe Adoptive MomAMP Plus #5: Fear and AdoptionEvery week over on Patreon, I do a bonus show for Team AMP - the AMAZING listeners and supporters who choose to invest their cash money in helping to produce the podcast starting at just $5 a month. Today, I wanted to give all of you guys a preview of what these shows are like! They are always a deep-dive on the topic discussed in the regular show, and always chock-full of research, practical tips, and my heart for the issue. They usually run about 10 minutes long and go along with the Bible Study Guide for the week that Team...
2019-09-2320 minThe Adoptive MomS5E68: Afraid of All the Things - Scarlet Hiltibidalwww.TheAdoptiveMom.com
Do you ever get yourself into just a pit of fear and frustration and paranoia that the worst is bound to happen any moment now? That’s how Scarlet Hiltibidal has lived most of her life as well. It was such a deeply-ingrained part of her being that she continually has to overcome that she wrote a whole book about it. Not just about her fears, but about how she has learned to hold the gospel up against them.
One of my favorite things about Scarlet is that she’s afraid, but she’s a fighter. Even throug...
2019-09-1658 minThe Adoptive MomS5E67: Following the Dream to Adopt AND Win the Gold - Laura Wilkinsonwww.TheAdoptiveMomPodcast.com
Beating what many said were impossible odds in one of the biggest upsets in Olympic history, Laura, starting in eighth place and with a broken foot, came from behind to win the 2000 Olympic platform gold medal. Laura has also won the 2004 World Cup and the 2005 World Championships, becoming the first woman in history to win all three coveted world titles in platform diving. Along the way, she has won 19 US National Titles, been voted by the American public the 2000 US Olympic Spirit Award winner and was nominated for an ESPY award. Laura has also been inducted into...
2019-09-0942 min
The Adoptive MomS5E66: What It's Like to Be a Single Adoptive Dad - Peter Habyarimanawww.TheAdoptiveMomPodcast.com
If foster and adoptive parents are like the regular superheroes of this world, then single foster and adoptive parents are like actual Superman himself…the ultimate superhero. (Don’t @ me with Thor, they’re in different universes and that’s not the point.) Single parents not only step up for battle…they do it with even less support. Add in a lifetime of trauma, and you have Peter freaking Habyarimana.
2019-08-2659 minThe Adoptive MomS5E65: The C Word - Live Show with Ann MeythalerSometimes in adoption we are handed really hard circumstances. There’s unknown trauma, abuse history, really unsettling diagnoses like RAD or ODD, the list goes on. But what happens when you get a hard diagnosis that is completely separate for adoption circumstances? Like cancer? Or Autism? Or a genetic condition?
In this week’s episode of The Adoptive Mom Podcast, we’re discussing just such circumstances. Between my experience with my son’s Marfan’s Syndrome diagnosis and my guest Ann Meythaler’s daughter’s cancer battle, we had a lot to talk about.
2019-08-1946 minThe Adoptive Mom[BONUS] How to Talk to Your Spouse About Adoptionhttps://www.patreon.com/theadoptivemom
This is a BONUS episode following my conversation with Heather McFadyen(S5E1) about " How to Talk to Your Spouse About Adoption." This is a weekly show I'm doing for my Patreon supporters and you can join in! I have a study guide that we will launch weekly a well to help you make the most of the topics we cover. This is all for YOU! Thanks for supporting what we do here at AMP!
2019-08-1609 minThe Adoptive MomS5E64: When Your Spouse Doesn't Want to Adopt - Heather McFadyenI want to welcome you guys to the fifth season of The Adoptive Mom Podcast and give you the sincerest THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for the support, encouragement, and partnership that you guys have gifted to me these past two years. I can’t wait for you guys to see what we have in store for this season and I’m thrilled to death that I get to take you along for the ride!
Heather and I got to chat about her family connections with adoption and then her personal story of trusting God and letting go o...
2019-08-1253 min
The Adoptive MomS4E63: “This Is Not Watercooler Talk.” - Leigh Anne TuohyFor those of you less in the know: Dubbed a “warrior princess” by author Michael Lewis in his best-selling book The Blind Side, Leigh Anne is the inspirational matriarch of the Tuohy family. Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy are the proud parents of daughter Collins and sons Michael Oher and Sean, Jr. In February 2013, Leigh Anne and the whole Tuohy family were on the sidelines cheering Michael and the Baltimore Ravens on to his first Super bowl victory.
https://theadoptivemompodcast.com/blog/leighanntuohy
2019-05-271h 00The Adoptive MomS4E62: The Physical Toll that Trauma can take and How A PT Can Help - Kristi HarrisOk you guys. I’ve covered all of the other major therapy disciplines, but I’ll be honest, I wasn’t quite sure where PT fit it. My son is in PT, but it still seemed like more of an outward issue, not a trauma issue (with the exception of some physical abuse stuff of course). When I talked to Kristi Harris a few months ago, I asked her what her thoughts were. I knew she was a PT and I knew she had an amazing adoption story, but I just wanted to make sure this topic would be applicable for yo...
2019-05-2049 minThe Adoptive MomS4E61: She Went Viral for Adoption! - Casey DouglasToday I am excited to introduce you you Casey Douglas!
Casey is a data analyst and a wedding photographer - two things that obviously go hand in hand.
She and her husband are also therapeutic foster and adoptive parents to teenagers. Yes! That ripe old 27 year old up there!Her heart for kids from hard places that are what many would and do call “Unadoptable” is profound, and I can’t wait for you guys to hear about how she and her husband care for “the least of these.”
2019-05-1359 minThe Adoptive MomS4E60: Adoption, Birth Moms, and Human Trafficking - Josh Bryant|Andrea and Michaela from Shared BeginningsHAPPY BIRTH MOTHERS DAY!
This coming Saturday, we get to honor, either directly or in our thoughts and prayers, the women who brought our children into this world. No matter what our experience with her is, she deserves our love and respect for giving our children life.
Today I have a couple of different guest interviews for y’all. The first is with that guy up there. Josh Bryant is an attorney, adoption ethicist, and adoption reform advocate in Northwest Arkansas. He spent several years practicing family law in which he did adoptions on behalf of adoptive parents. He is al...
2019-05-061h 05The Adoptive MomS4E59: One Plus One Equals Zero - Christie ErwinChristie Erwin’s deep love for children led her and husband, Jeff, to become foster parents in 1993, for a private, non-profit adoption agency. It was there that the foundation for Christie’s passion and driving concern for children in foster care was laid. After fostering for eleven years with the private agency, the Erwin’s became foster parents for the Arkansas Department of Children and Family Services in 2004. They fostered over fifty children during their twenty years of fostering.
2019-04-291h 03The Adoptive MomS4E58: Dudes Who Adopt - CR Braniff and Bryan FittinIt’s time yet again for our seasonal Dads Episode!
Y’all went crazy over this last time, so guess who’s back? Back Again…Bryan’s back…with a friend.
Sorry.
But you guys! get excited to meet C.R. Braniff. You guys met (or already knew) his wife Angela back in season 3, and now you get to meet the other 1/2 of the This Gathered Nest power couple.
2019-04-2245 minThe Adoptive MomS4E57: Trauma and Oppositional Defiance Disorder - Megan TaylorWe are finishing up the Trauma Series this week!Y’all, I don’t know about you but it has been so good for my heart to talk to professionals about the things our kids go through, learn that we’re not alone, and get tips and tricks for walking alongside them as they go through these hard struggles.This week, we’re getting to hear from Megan Taylor about Oppositional Defiance Disorder.ODD is something that I do not personally deal with in my home, but I know a lot of listeners who do...
2019-04-1546 minThe Adoptive MomS4E56: Trauma and Reactive Attachment Disorder - Vance Crowwww.theadoptivemompodcast.com
Trauma is stupid. There, I said it. I think we can all agree that trauma can just eff off, right?
The worst part of trauma is that it actually rewires our brains to react and live our lives in a way that is shaped by, you guessed, trauma. This dumb thing can present itself in different ways, too. So there’s no like “Oh, you have trauma? Well I know exactly how to handle that.” None.
2019-04-081h 04The Adoptive MomS4E55: Trauma and Prenatal Drug Exposure and Abuse - Christine Culpepperwww.TheAdoptiveMomPodcast.com
Do you deal with trauma in your home?
If you’re an adoptive mom, the answer is yes. I know, you’re probably thinking “I got my kid as a newborn, we’re all they’ve ever known.” but the body remembers, and there will still be trauma there. As we learn more and more about our brains and how trauma affects them and when it affects them, we begin to realize how aware we should be to our kids’ needs in this area and how best to meet those needs.
This episode will be the first of 3 episodes...
2019-04-0157 minThe Adoptive MomS4E54: Adoptive Moms and Mental Health - Ashley Brettinwww.TheAdoptiveMomPodcast.com
Do you struggle with minor issues in your own mental health while also caring for the mental health for our kids from hard places?
That’s a lot of prepositions, I know. But that’s also what my friend Ashley Brettin and I are discussing today!
2019-03-251h 08The Adoptive MomS4E53: Foster Care & Fashion - Ashlee Peters of "Mama Likes A Deal"www.TheAdoptiveMomPodcast.com
I want you guys to meet my new friend, Ashlee. She’s the coolest, seriously.
In addition to being an open-to-adoption foster mom, she and her husband have 3 bio kids, 2 goats (yeah), and she runs an awesome business sharing online deals and steals to save us money on women’s fashion, kids clothes, home decor, gifts, and more!
2019-03-181h 06The Adoptive MomS4E52: High Needs Mom Life - Jac ErnstDo you have adopted kids with needs that are just…more than “normal?” As adoptive mamas, we quickly become so familiar with kids who are not neuro-typical and just require a little bit extra. Extra therapy, extra patience, extra care, extra attention, extra caution…the list goes on.
That’s what Jac Ernst has built her platform on.
2019-03-1155 minThe Adoptive MomS4E51: Let's Get Organized - Jolene Smithwww.TheAdoptiveMOM.com/email
Look at Jolene - She just * looks * organized, right?
That’s cause she is, friends. Jolene has this incredible talent to take a problem and find solutions to the chaos in order to survive crazy seasons and stay in the fight.
That’s a lot of words, sorry. I’m just so excited about this episode!
In her life before foster care, she was a CPA. Now, she parents 7 children in her home, plus a 23 year old foster who is launched and on her own. She also works for The CALL in NWA as their Database and Fi...
2019-03-0458 minThe Adoptive MomS4E50 - Sensory or Behavior? - Leah Burrywww.TheAdoptiveMomPodcast.com
Meet Leah Burry. She is an Occupational Therapy Assistant who has taken it upon herself to deep-dive into sensory education within her career. She and her husband are also licensed foster parents who specifically provide respite care for other foster families. She’s pretty awesome and I am so excited that she got to sit down and talk about respite care and sensory needs for kids from hard places.
2019-02-2554 minThe Adoptive MomS4E49: Mom Up! - Kara-Kae JamesI really wish there was a good way to type out that “in the club” airhorn noise. You know the one. If I could, I would put it right here because oh my goodness y’all SEASON 4 IS HERE!!!!
What better way to celebrate than by featuring Kara-Kae James??
2019-02-1855 minThe Adoptive MomS3E15: A Different Kind of Family - Meg Meredith, Kayla Crow, Madi Hutson, and Patty Baxterwww.TheAdoptiveMomPodcast.com
Essentially the entire point of this podcast is to talk about families who do not share biology, this this episode will take it a step further. When they collectively adopted a large sibling group, the Meredeth, Crow, Hutson, and Baxter families combine to form one big, happy family.
In this episode, I got to sit down with the women of each of these families to talk about their dynamic, why it’s important to keep their kids together, and how they make that work.
2018-12-311h 02The Adoptive MomS3E14: Kids are Aging out of Foster Care, How Can We Help? - Kamilah Bunn, CEO of The Adoption Exchange Associationwww.TheAdoptiveMomPodcast.com
This week, I had the incredible honor to interview Kamilah Bunn, the CEO of The Adoption Exchange Association which runs, among other things, the National Heart Gallery.
Kamilah and I got to discuss what adoption looks like on a larger scale and how the AEA helps bring awareness to the need and resources to those who step up for kids who need families. They work with The Dave Thomas Foundation and several other organizations to reach as many kids and parents as they can get their hands on to further this incredible initiative to which we have...
2018-12-1754 minThe Adoptive MomS3E13: What Is Adoption Like for a Dad? - Chuck Butler and Bryan FittinChuck and Amy have two biological and two adopted kids, and Amy recently shared about their disrupted adoption experience as well. Chuck and Bryan chat about manhood and fatherhood and what those roles mean for this incredibly hard calling to which we’ve all said yes. They also answered some listener questions crowdsourced from social media, and, bonus, they’re both hilarious.I have to tell you about my husband Bryan really quickly too. He is just my favorite person on earth (Shocker, right?). He is so smart and business-savvy, but he’s also cool and trendy...
2018-12-101h 08The Adoptive MomS3E12: Practical Skills to Help Kids Who Have Been Abused - Z & Britt Ivywww.TheadoptiveMomPodcast.com
On top of having two daughters, the issue of being able to protect yourself hits close to home for the Ivys. When Britt was raped in college, she thought she’d never get past her trauma. Even after she married her husband Z and was in an assuredly safe environment, there was still a gap in her life as a result of what happened years ago. It wasn’t until their family dove into Gracie Jiu Jitsu that she began to fully heal.
2018-12-031h 21The Adoptive MomS3E11: Dealing With The Pain of a Disrupted Adoption - Part 2 (Randi Perkins)www.theadoptivemompodcast.com
In part 2 of our series on disrupted adoption, we sit down with Randi Perkins. Randi and her husband Lloyd have 3 boys, none of whom are adopted, but not for lack of trying. Randi had a tough few years where she waited out a hard season of following the Lord that ended in 3 disrupted adoptions. From really hard behavioral problems to some spiritual warfare issues, Randi had to learn to follow God wherever He led her.
2018-11-2640 minThe Adoptive MomS3E10: Dealing With The Pain of a Disrupted Adoption - Part 1 (Amy Butler & Rachel Kirksey)First up, a VIP of the show, Amy Butler. You guys fell in love with Amy back in season 1, and she’s here on this episode to tell you guys about a much harder part of their adoption journey, one in which they chose to disrupt a placement for the health of their family. The finale interview of part 1 comes from Rachel Kirksey. Rachel and her husband Ben never opened as an adoptive home or even as a foster home officially, but they did say yes when God literally dropped a young boy on their doorstep and asked the...
2018-11-2659 minThe Adoptive MomS3E9: Our Bio Kids - What Does Adoption Mean for Them? - Abby HutchinsAbby Hutchins is a freshman in college and still living at home with her EIGHT siblings, only one of whom is biologically related to her. She was old enough when her parents started their adoption journey to be fully aware of what was going on and how different her life was starting to look like.
2018-11-1953 minThe Adoptive MomS3E8: He's Walking across the Whole Country for Adoption - Glenn Kosterwww.theadoptivemompodcast.com
www.theadoptivemompodcast.com/email
Glen Koster has an incredible story, and I mean that in the truest sense of the word. It’s incredible that one human could go through so much and come out alive, healthy, and loving Jesus in the end.
2018-11-121h 00The Adoptive MomS3E7: "Let Me Wreck Them" - Jeanette TapleyIn her episode, Jeanette and I chat about her story and about how adoption has influenced her podcasting and how she shares her story with the world. This woman is doing really cool things, and I am so honored that she’s including me in some of them!
2018-11-051h 02The Adoptive MomS3E6: Kinship Adoption and All That Comes with It - Missy WorleyToday’s episode is all about kinship adoption and all of the intricate relationships that are affected as a result this unique type of adoption.I am so excited that I got to sit down with Missy Worley. Missy is an adoptive mama through foster care and also, of course, by adopting her oldest daughter who is actually her biological niece. The kicker is, Missy and her husband took placement of their now daughter while they were still engaged. So crazy, right? Missy was able to share with us what their story has loo...
2018-10-2255 minThe Adoptive MomS3E5: Those Three Words||A Memoir of a Birth Mom - Christine BauerI love that Christine is using her voice to share her experience and change the stigma that so many birth moms before her and even still now struggle with as they are making the hardest decisions of their lives. I can’t wait for y’all to join us for Christine’s story!There is so much controversy surrounding our attitude toward birth moms, and it completely revolves around our own experiences. Whether we have an open adoption with our kids’ bio moms, an international adoption where we may never know what their situation is, a domestic adoption where th...
2018-10-1551 minThe Adoptive MomS3E4: When An Adoption Falls Through - Kristen CompstonMost of my interviews are happy ones. They come with beautiful adoption stories, practical tips and advice, and success stories. This episode has those things too, but it also has a story of great loss and heartache.
2018-10-0859 minThe Adoptive MomS3E3: Nontraditional Adoptions - Kanya Carlson, Gerardo Yañez, & Brandy ShioyamaI say in the podcast intro that every adoption story looks different, and that is obviously very true, but some adoption stories look WAY different and come about in wild and crazy ways. That’s what this episode is all about! I got to interview 3 different adults who have 3 very different adoption stories.
First, I want to introduce you to Kanya Carlson. Kanya and her husband Ty are high school sweethearts have 4 kids of their own and are occasional respite parents for their foster parent friends. Kanya is also the Children’s Ministry Director at her church, so she gets to h...
2018-10-011h 22The Adoptive MomS3E2: How Speech/Language Therapy Can Help Our Kids From Hard Places - Sarah McGoodenMeet Sarah McGooden! Sarah is married to Nate and is a bio mom of 4, but she definitely has her share of difficulties in the parenting realm along with us adoptive mamas. Along with all of the regular mom stuff, she is also an SLP at an elementary school in an incredibly high risk district. She sees and treats kids from hard places all day every day.
2018-09-2454 min
The Adoptive MomS3E1: Adoption on a Broader Platform - Angela Braniff (This Gathered Nest)My first guest for SEASON THREE (!!!) is Angela Braniff. Angie is a creator and vlogger over on Youtube, a lifestyle and beauty blogger, and an Instagram baller. Oh yeah, and an adoptive mom of course! She and her husband Chris are parents of two bio daughters and 5 adopted kiddos from all over. I’m pretty sure they entered some sort of contest to see how many different adoption avenues they could take. They have adopted internationally (and special needs, to boot), domestically, and also via embryo adoption, which was a first for me to learn about!
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The Adoptive MomS2E13: Stories from 3 Adopted Kids Who Made it into Adulthood as Winnershttps://theadoptivemompodcast.com/blog/adultadoptees
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The Adoptive MomS2E9: An Indian Adoption Story Meets a Special Needs Adoption Story - Sarah Jacob (Sarah Loves India)
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The Adoptive MomAMP S1E13: Katheen and Kennedy Barnes - What It's like to Be Adopted as an Older Child
2017-11-2659 min
The Adoptive MomAMP S1E12: Rebekah Price - Understanding Trauma and Its Affect on Our Children's Brains and Behaviors
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The Adoptive MomAMP S1E11: Heidi and Charlie Loften - Creating a Church Environment where Adoptive Families Can Thrive
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The Adoptive MomAMP S1E10: Brooke Schafer - When Your Friends Do Hard Things, You Don't Run Away ScaredI love giving you guys episodes filled with stories from adoptive moms who are there with you in the ups and downs of this beautiful and messy adoption life, but it's important to remember that we aren't the only characters in this thing. There are lots of people who are affected by our decision to care of the least of these, and for this episode, we will focus on an important support system, friends.
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The Adoptive MomAMP S1E4: Carole Barskey - When Seasoned Adoptive Moms Have Something to Offer Younger OnesOne of the most important things I did for myself and my family along this journey was to seek out a woman to disciple me, a woman who has been through this crazy journey herself and could pass that wisdom along to me (please please pleeeease). Enter: Carole. I doubt she knew how important our coffee dates would become to me, but I'm so glad we made it work.
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