Abi’s poetry e-chapbook, Gaining Mom-entum: Poems, Parenting, and a Podcast is available now! (See below for more info)

Welcome to the final episode of Gaining Mom-entum! It is with teary eyes, full hearts, and a can’t lose attitude that Abi & Meghan announce that this will be the final episode of the Gaining Mom-entum podcast. Please join them as they take a stroll down podcast memory lane, a retrospective of sorts of the three seasons of the GM pod. They revisit the wide range of conversations and topics that made up the 32 episodes and 19 minisodes to highlight their top moments from each season. Turns out, there’s a lot that Meghan & Abi love about creating and hosting this show. A huge highlight for both of them were the many guests who shared their time, their perspectives, and their truths with the GM community. Abi & Meghan also interview each other to see how each of them feel about different parts of the GM experience, including a rapid fire Q&A round. They round out this final episode by reflecting on the things they’ve learned, the things they’re still learning, and the things they will keep learning after three seasons of heartfelt, meaningful conversations with each other, their guests, and the Gaining Mom-entum community. Thank you for joining us! Please take care of yourself, take care of each other, and continue to get comfortable being uncomfortable while we do our best to raise our kids for the world we want them to grow up in and the world we live in now. Meghan & Abi wish you all  the best as you continue on in your parenting and life journeys!

As always, thanks for listening! Even though we’re saying goodbye, please keep sharing Gaining Mom-entum with anyone in your life who you think would benefit from listening to the pod!

IG: @gainingmom_entum

Facebook: Gaining Mom-entum Podcast

Email: gainingmom.entumpod@gmail.com

Music: Evan Dysart (Spotify and Bandcamp; Extended Cut of Podcast Theme for Gaining Mom-entum)

Gaining Mom-entum: Poems, Parenting, and a Podcast (Abi’s ebook, available on her website, abiolaregan.com)

Welcome to the penultimate episode of Gaining Mom-entum season 3! Abi & Meghan kick things off with what they’ve been listening to, reading, and watching lately that features Black artists and/or was made by Black creatives. Afterwards, they move into the subject of this episode - entrepreneurship. They are thrilled to welcome their guest, Christine Hardie, to the podcast to talk about starting her business, Riley’s Cidery. Christine shares how the idea for the business came about, familiarizing herself with the unfamiliar, and learning not to expect perfection. She talks about not letting the idea of making mistakes hold her back and that being “perfect in its own way”. She talks about asking for help, marketing, and embracing community by creating a space for people to gather and engage. Christine lets us know how she manages her time with the many hats she wears in her life as well as involving her children in the business in their own way. She shares with Meghan & Abi the challenges of entrepreneurship as well as her favourite parts of owning and operating a business. They round out the episode celebrating the gold medal that Riley’s Cidery’s Sip & Tell won at the International Beer and Cider Awards and with some advice that Christine would give to any parents looking to take the leap into starting a business.

As always, thanks for listening! Share Gaining Mom-entum and follow/comment/review wherever you get your pods.

IG: @gainingmom_entum

Facebook: Gaining Mom-entum Podcast

Email: gainingmom.entumpod@gmail.com

Music: Evan Dysart (Spotify and Bandcamp; Extended Cut of Podcast Theme for Gaining Mom-entum)

Artwork: Catherine Cachia (IG: @catherinecachia, catherinecachia.com)

Riley’s Cidery

Riley’s Cidery Instagram

Welcome back to another episode of Gaining Mom-entum! Meghan & Abi catch up on what they’re watching, playing, and listening to with their families these days. (Hint: They do talk about Bruno.)

This week’s topic - educational entertainment - finds Abi & Meghan having two conversations with two talented, engaging creators of children’s content. Up first, they speak to Michael Moore, the creator, animator, and narrator of the popular children’s video series, Brain Candy TV. He shares how he got started creating Brain Candy TV, the skillset he needed to acquire to make Brain Candy TV happen, and helping children become ready for the things they’ll learn in school through his videos. Meghan & Abi share how their children incorporate what they’ve learned into their pretend play. Michael lets them in on what he likes most about making Brain Candy TV, the seriousness with which he takes the responsibility of the impact his videos have on kids, as well as the challenges. He also discusses his plans to expand the STEM video offerings that are part of the Brain Candy TV archives and reflects on some of his favourite feedback, complete with a little cameo from Abi’s child.

The second half of the episode features Meghan & Abi’s conversation with children’s book author, Monique Perreira. Monique shares her process for how she came to write and publish the bilingual children’s book, Mirai Montre et Raconte Show and Tell, as well as giving many well-deserved shout outs to her illustrator, Chantal Piché. She discusses the decision-making that went into making Mirai a bilingual book, how her love of children’s books began as a young adult and the great inspiration that is Robert Munsch. Monique shares her challenges, joys, and the feedback she’s received as well as the children’s health series that she’s working on next.

As always, thanks for listening! Share Gaining Mom-entum and follow/comment/review wherever you get your pods.

IG: @gainingmom_entum

Facebook: Gaining Mom-entum Podcast

Email: gainingmom.entumpod@gmail.com

Music: Evan Dysart (Spotify and Bandcamp; Extended Cut of Podcast Theme for Gaining Mom-entum)

Artwork: Catherine Cachia (IG: @catherinecachia, catherinecachia.com)

Resources:

Brain Candy TV website

Brain Candy TV YouTube

Mirai Montre et Raconte Show and Tell

Monique’s Instagram (@monique.m.pereira)

Chantal Piché, Illustrator

Welcome back to Gaining Mom-entum! This week, Meghan & Abi start the episode off talking about the recent losses of three celebrities who played formative roles in their upbringings - Betty White, Sidney Poitier, and Bob Saget. Then they segue into this week’s topic - anger and frustration. They start with some definitions clarifying the differences between anger and frustration before exploring their own relationships with both of those feelings and how they’ve been exacerbated by the pandemic. They look back at their childhood expressions of anger and frustration and what those expressions look like for them now as parents. They reframe how we look at healthy expressions of anger but are clear that manifesting anger in a hurtful way is never to be condoned. They talk about burnout, their anger and frustration triggers, recognizing escalating emotions, as well as outdated gender roles in expressions of anger and racist stereotypes that affect how Abi expresses anger and parents about anger. They also discuss how they strive to find positive things to do with their anger so that  expressing it can become a point of pride.

As always, thanks for listening! Share Gaining Mom-entum and follow/comment/review wherever you get your pods.

IG: @gainingmom_entum

Facebook: Gaining Mom-entum Podcast

Email: gainingmom.entumpod@gmail.com

Music: Evan Dysart (Spotify and Bandcamp; Extended Cut of Podcast Theme for Gaining Mom-entum)

Artwork: Catherine Cachia (IG: @catherinecachia, catherinecachia.com)

Resources:

Coronavirus Parenting: Managing Anger and Frustration (Child Mind Institute)

COVID Parenting Has Passed the Point of Absurdity (The Atlantic)

Managing Anger (Coping Skills for Kids)

7 Simple but Powerful Anger Management Activities for Kids (Parents with Confidence)

Anger Management for Kids: 14 Best Activities & Worksheets (PositivePsychology.com)

25 Famous Women on Anger (The Cut)

The Other Side of Anger (NPR)

Welcome to the first Gaining Mom-entum episode of 2022! Meghan & Abi kick things off by discussing how the holiday season went for them and talking about Harry Potter and the 20th anniversary reunion. Then, Abi & Meghan are so excited to welcome their guest, Vanessa, to this week’s episode. Vanessa is the founder of Mint Worthy, a personal finances coaching company specializing in talking to and with women about money matters. She is here to answer Meghan & Abi’s questions about money and finances. Turns out, those two have a lot of questions which is great because Vanessa has a lot of helpful answers, tips, suggestions, and advice. So sit back and enjoy this conversation about money, finances, and getting comfortable talking about it all. Vanessa shares how and why she came to start Mint Worthy. Together, they get into what financial literacy means, gendered messages around money, how to teach their children about money, talking about money as a family, having money dates with their partners, financial planning, philanthropy, and so much more.

Vanessa also shares what’s on tap for Mint Worthy in 2022, including the Unblock Abundance ™ program beginning on January 31st. She was kind enough to provide the Gaining Mom-entum community with a 10% off promo code, so if you’re interested, join the waitlist now on the Mint Worthy website (or type in www.unblockabundance.co) and when enrollment opens on January 17th, use code MOMENTUM10 for 10% off.

As always, thanks for listening! Share Gaining Mom-entum and follow/comment/review wherever you get your pods.

IG: @gainingmom_entum

Facebook: Gaining Mom-entum Podcast

Email: gainingmom.entumpod@gmail.com

Music: Evan Dysart (Spotify and Bandcamp; Extended Cut of Podcast Theme for Gaining Mom-entum)

Artwork: Catherine Cachia (IG: @catherinecachia, catherinecachia.com)

Welcome back to Gaining Mom-entum! This is the first minisode of season 3 and the last pod drop before 2022 so Meghan & Abi are getting reflective. They spend this minisode discussing the intentions they laid out for the year and how they think they’re doing with them. Meghan’s intentions are to not let fear and self-consciousness be her driver, to be intentional with her time, and to practice patience. Abi’s intentions are to practice patience, keep getting comfortable being uncomfortable, and to spend more time nurturing the relationships in her life. As it goes with intentions, these continue to be a work in progress but it’s all about the journey, not the destination, right? Best wishes and be safe as we close out 2021 and ring in 2022, Gaining Mom-entum community! We’ll be back with a new episode on Thursday, January 6, 2022.

As always, thanks for listening! Share Gaining Mom-entum and follow/comment/review wherever you get your pods.

IG: @gainingmom_entum

Facebook: Gaining Mom-entum Podcast

Email: gainingmom.entumpod@gmail.com

Music: Evan Dysart (Spotify and Bandcamp; Extended Cut of Podcast Theme for Gaining Mom-entum)

Artwork: Catherine Cachia (IG: @catherinecachia, catherinecachia.com)