Elevating Motherhood

Buy Dr. Roseann’s Book: https://link.amazon/B01W27QhM

Nervous system regulation talk is everywhere right now, from mommy chats to social media. But what does it actually mean? What does regulation look like in our children, and how can we recognize when they’re dysregulated? More importantly, what do we do when our child’s behavior pushes us to the point where we’re struggling to regulate ourselves?

My guest today is Dr. Roseann Capanna-Hodge, author of The Dysregulated Kid, and we’re talking about how understandi...

Today, I'm joined by Alex and Ashley Johnson, the husband and wife team behind Rustic Homestead Living. From their homestead here in North Idaho, they're raising five kids, homeschooling, and building a more self-sufficient life while sharing what they're learning along the way.

We're talking about preparing our families for the unexpected, from natural disasters to job loss, and how practical skills, food storage, and everyday self-sufficiency can help us face life's uncertainties with confidence rather than panic.

Alex and Ashley have a really practical approach to preparing your...

Buy Stasi's New Book: Here

Today I’m talking with Stasi Eldredge about her beautiful new book, The Ladder of Love. And beautiful really is the word that kept coming to mind as I read it. There are so many visuals from her book that I've been carrying with me in my everydaylife ever since I read it.

Stasi is a New York Times bestselling author, teacher, and speaker, and she is the co-founder of Wild at Heart Ministries with her husband, John Eldredge. Their ministry has helped so man...

Get Dr. Fay's Book HERE

I am SO thrilled about today’s conversation!

I have been a Love & Logic fan since 2002. That was over a decade before I had children of my own. I was nannying for a family who introduced me to Love & Logic, and I was fascinated by it. At the time, I was studying children’s literature and already had a degree in Communication for the Child, so I was deeply interested in the way adultscommunicate with children and how those interactions shape them.

A lo...

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What happens when you give two eight-year-old girls the responsibility of making breakfast for a family of twelve? Apparently, you get six years of baking experiments, a few kitchen disasters, homemade Pop-Tarts, and eventually, a cookbook!

Today, I'm joined by identical twin sisters Evy and Nola Halberstadt, along with their mom, Abbie Halberstadt of M is for Mama, and two of my own daughters, Annalise and Alora, for a conversation about Evy and Nola’s new cookbook,  Double Delights: Breakfasts, Sweets, Savories, and Snacks for Budding Bakers.

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Buy Dr. Amy’s Book Here: https://link.amazon/B0eewl1mt

What if understanding the way your child's brain works could completely change the way you approach their behavior, their struggles, and your relationship with them?

Welcome back to Elevating Motherhood! Today, I'm continuing my two-part conversation with Dr. Amy Moore, and we're turning our attention to ADHD in children.

Dr. Amy is a cognitive psychologist, clinical researcher, child development specialist, and parent educator with more than 30 years of experience working withneurodivergent children and the...

Buy Dr. Amy's ADHD Book: Here

What if some of the things you’ve always struggled with as a mom aren’t character flaws, a lack of discipline, or evidence that you’re somehow falling short? What if understanding your brain could change the way you see yourself, care for your family, and approach motherhood?

Today, I’m joined by Dr. Amy Moore for a conversation about ADHD in motherhood, and I’m so glad you’re here for this one.

Dr. Amy is a cognitive...

Three years ago, I read a book that greatly influenced my mothering journey.

It was RESET by Debra Fileta, and I loved it so much that I named it my favorite book of the year. So naturally, I invitedDebra onto the podcast. We recorded this conversation, I was excited to share it with you…and then my whole world got flipped upside down.

And this episode stayed in the archives.

For a while, I was a little embarrassed that I had let three years go b...

Teaching Textbooks Free Trial: HERE

Today’s topic is a little bit different but I’m very excited to share this conversation I had with Danielle Zierkelbach because Danielle and I share a Hawaiʻi connection. I spent nearly 20 years on Maui, and Danielle lives on Oahu and is a professional surfer and three-time Hawaiʻi State Champion who grew up in the world of surfing.

But this conversation isn’t really about surfing. It is…but it isn’t.

Danielle became a mother while pursui...

Buy Rachel’s Book Here: https://amzn.to/4dgzkX5

If you’ve ever wondered whether homeschooling can really work through the high school years, this conversation is for you.

Today I’m talking with Rachel Kovac, a homeschooling mother of six and author of Their Future Is Shining Bright: AGuide to Homeschooling in High School. And I have to tell you—this conversation is about so much more than transcripts, college applications, and checking boxes. (Although she provides incredible detailed lists for all ofthose things!) 

We’re ta...

Today I’m talking with Kim, a mom of five, faith-rooted encourager, and the woman behind Ellie & the Boys and the Moms Collective Journal.

Kim has walked through some incredibly hard seasons of motherhood—including single parenting and remarriageafter losing a spouse—and she brings a beautiful perspective to what it means to show up intentionally, not perfectly, in the everyday work of making a house a home.

She started a life long dream of creating a magazine for moms and we’re talking about her fall issue of Moms Colle...

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What do you do when your teenager wants to start dating?

What if they’re already dating—and you’re not sure you love the relationship they’re in?

What if you have preteens? How do you talk to your kids about attraction, boundaries, healthy relationships, heartbreak, and ultimately marriage without making them feel like you’re completely out of touch with their world?

These are conversations so many parents find themselves...

Teaching Textbooks Free Trial: https://www.teachingtextbooks.com/?cid=LORIBETH

Teens Cook Real Food Link:

https://sl290.isrefer.com/go/teenscook/loribeth/

What does it actually look like to raise kids who are confident, capable, and ready for the world?

As parents, we spend so much time protecting our children, helping them, and making life run smoothly for them—but sometimes the very things we do out of love can unintentionally keep them from developing the skills and confidence they need to thrive.

Homeschool Mega Bundle Here: https://www.fortheloveofhomeschooling.com/?ref=loribeth

Marci's Book Here: https://amzn.to/4xvVHQ9

I think we’ve misunderstood homemaking. I do.

Because the best homemakers I know aren’t just creating beautiful homes. They’re creating environments where people feel known, loved, and deeply cared for.

Today’s conversation is one I have been so excited to share with you. I’m talking with Marci Ferrell, author of Homemaking Matters—a book that has landed in my top two favorite...

Get the Homeschool Bundle Here: https://www.fortheloveofhomeschooling.com/?ref=loribeth

If you've ever felt like your kids are happier, calmer, and more engaged after spending time outside, you're not imagining it. There is something incredibly life-giving about learning inGod's creation. The beautiful part is that outdoor learning doesn't have to be a special event or an elaborate field trip. It can become a natural extension of your homeschool day.

Today's guest is Rachel Tidd, author of Wild Learning, Wild Math®, and Wild Reading™. Rachel is passionate about helping families and educators use th...

WOW! 200!

From the bottom of my heart...thank you.

Thank you, friends, for showing up week after week and supporting the Elevating Motherhood Podcast for nearly six years. Whether you've been listening since Episode 1 or you just recently found this little corner of the internet, I want you to know how grateful I am that you're here.

This podcast has always been for you.

It's been an incredible privilege to have conversations with authors, educators, experts, and fellow moms who have encouraged us to become more intentional in our motherhood, homeschooling, pa...

The What

Well, in recent days, podcaster Jennifer Welch and her co-host, Angie Sullivan, shared their colorful thoughtson homeschooling after a caller expressed frustration that stupid people she went to school with were choosing to homeschool their children.

What followed wasn't simply a disagreement with homeschooling. It was a stream of insults. Homeschooling wascalled "the worst, worst, worst." Christian parents were portrayed as people who fear critical thinking. Homeschooling was described as selfish, andraising children with a Christian worldview was likened to child abuse. Parents were called "dumbasses," plenty of f-bombs were dropped, and the...

Buy Jennifer’s Book Here: https://amzn.to/4wiwDLS

Today I’m so glad to welcome Jennifer Pepito backto the show.

Jennifer is the host of the Restoration Home podcast, bestselling author of Habits for a Sacred Home, andfounder of The Peaceful Press, a homeschool curriculum provider many of us know and love. Her writing has been featured in Wild + Free, Commonplace Quarterly, and HomeEducating Family, and she’s been a guest on 1000 Hours Outside, At Home with Sally, and The Read Aloud Revival. Shelives in the mountains with her family, whe...

Whether your baby is still in diapers, you’re in the middle of the school years, your teenager just got their driver's license, or you've recently become an empty nester, the relationship you hope to have with your children when they leave home doesn't begin the day they pack their bags.

It begins today.

It begins with the culture you're creating in your home, the words you speak, the trust you're building, the way you respond to change, and the example you're setting.

In this conversation, we ta...

You don't have to be a politician to change your community.

Back before 2020, when we were still living on Maui, my friend Katie and I lobbied for a new playground to be built upcountry at Kula Park…and it happened! There is a small, but mighty playground with bicoastal ocean views and lots of opportunity for vestibular and proprioceptive input (want to know what that is? Find out in Episode 196!)

Most parents assume playgrounds simply appear because a city decides to build one. They don't realize that many parks, trails, splash pads, an...

Why Does My Kid Always Want Me to Push Them on the Swing?

Understanding Vestibular and Proprioceptive Input

Have you ever wondered why your child begs for 'one more push' on the swing, spins until they're dizzy, hangs upside down from furniture, jumps off things that make you nervous, or crashes into the couch cushions over and over again? What if all of those behaviors are actually your child's body asking for something it needs? Today we're talking about two sensory systems that most parents have never heard of, but once you...

Today's conversation is one I'm pulling from the archives. I recorded this interview with Alyssa Bethke quite a while ago, and as I was looking through past episodes, it felt especially worth bringing back. At the time, I had not yet read her book, When Doing It All Is Undoing You. But after revisiting this conversation, I've added it back to my summer readinglist because the message feels just as timely today as it did then.

If you've ever felt the pressure to keep all the plates spinning, to do more, be more, achieve m...

Some conversations feel tender before they even begin...and divorce is one of them.

Today, I’m joined by Alisha Roth, author of Courageous Divorce, to talk openly about a topic that touches more lives than we often acknowledge.

Whether you’re personally facing divorce, have walked through it in the past, or want to be a steady, supportive presence for someone you care about, this episode is meantto give language, perspective, and a starting point for those conversations.

Buy Alisha’s Book Here: https...

Motherhood has a way of stretching you in ways you never planned for—and sometimes, it asks more of you than you ever thought you could give.

Today’s conversation is with Amy Suzanne Upchurch, founder and CEO of Pink Stork, a women-owned company supporting moms in every season of their journey. But beyond her work, Amy is a wife and a mother of six whose story includes infertility, severe morning sickness, a life-threatening health scare, military deployments, and now raising her youngest son, Maximilian, who has Down syndrome.

This...

At one of my appointments, my OB told me placenta encapsulation wasn't "scientifically proven." Not long after that, I saw her share something on her social media page that felt very...dismissive.

And I remember thinking, there has to be more to this conversation.

Because I know thoughtful, intentional moms who are considering placenta encapsulation. And there are women who have already made this choice and don't feel silly or naive about it.

So today we're opening up a conversation that feels more honest...

If you’re trying to build a family culture where eating out feels peaceful, connected, and screen-free—but aren’t sure how to get there—this episode is for you.

We’re a family of foodies…plus we travel a lot. Based on those two things alone, we end up eating out often. Almost every single time we eat out with our now 12, 10, 9, and 4 year old, we get complimented on the behavior of our children. I’m not saying that to brag. I’m saying it because it signaled something for me…according to many servers at these re...

If you don’t tell your children who they are… the world will.

Every day, our kids are absorbing messages about their worth, their identity, their value. And if we’re not intentional, those voices can get louder than the truth.

Today on Elevating Motherhood, I’m joined by HosannaWong — international speaker, spoken word artist widely known for piece “I Have A New Name,” and bestselling author of How (Not) to Save the World , Uncomplicate It, and You Are More Than You’ve Been Told.

We’re talking abou...

Get Chris’s Book Here: https://amzn.to/4skTgxs

What if the most counter-cultural decision you make as a parent… has nothing to do with screen time or schooling and everything to do with alcohol?

Today’s conversation is honest. It’s tender. And it’s needed.

I’m joined by Chris Janssen to talk about her USA Today bestselling book, Grace Yourself...and about something many families quietly navigate but rarely discuss: hidden or silent struggles with alcohol.

Chris shares he...

When was the last time you received a handwritten letter?

Not a text. Not an email. Not a quick DM.

An actual letter. Written by hand. Just for you.

There is something almost rebellious about that kind of connection now — slow, intentional, non-intrusive… and requiring just enough effort to mean something.

Today on Elevating Motherhood, I’m joined by Amy Daughters — keynote speaker, sports journalist, satirist, and the award-winning author of Dear Dana: That Time I Went Crazy and Wrote All 580 of My Facebook Friends a Handwritten Letter and You Cann...

Bestselling author Jennifer Dukes Lee joins me to talk about her new book How to Love Your Morning and how to create a faith-filled morning routine that actually works for real-life moms. If you long to wake up with hope, purpose, and rhythms rooted in God’s mercies, this conversation will change the way you start your day.

Have you ever noticed how your entire day can beshaped before your feet even hit the floor?

Mornings can feel rushed, chaotic, and chore heavy— especially in a full season of mother...

If you’ve ever wanted to read the Bible more consistently but struggled to stay focused — or if you have a child who getsfrustrated, distracted, or overwhelmed by reading — today’s episode is especially for you.

In our last conversation, we talked about dyslexia for the first time on the show. And one of the questions that came up again and again was, What does support actually look like in everyday life? Not just in schoolwork — but in faith, too.

Today, we’re continuing that conversation in an interview with Laura Bar...

Dyslexia touches so many families. And so many of us quietly wonder if our own child might have dyslexia. My kid wrote a letter backwards…now what?

For the first time on the Elevating Motherhood Podcast, we’re having a dedicated conversation about dyslexia — and while this is our first episode on the topic, it definitely won’t be the last. This is a conversation many moms are already having in their heads, often without clear answers or support.

I’m joined today by Jen Parra, who brings clarity, experience...

Homeschooling is rewarding — but it can also feelmessy, overwhelming, and full of pressure. Choosing curricula, scheduling lessons, balancing priorities — it’s easy to feel like you’re drowning in decisions. It’s common for homeschool parents to question whether they are doing enough or even if they are doing it right.

Today, I’m talking with Carrie De Francisco, author, podcaster, homeschool coach, and “retired” home educator. Carrie knows firsthand how chaotic homeschooling can feel, and she’s written A Home Education Handbook: NineQuestions to Ask for Simple & Balanced Home-Based Learning to help parents cut through the clut...

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In this episode, I’m sharing the heart behind the Elevating Homeschool Spring 2026 Retreat I’m hosting — why it exists, who it’s for, and what makes it different from other events.

This retreat was created for homeschool moms who are doing the work, loving their kids, and showing up daily — but who need space to pause, reflect, and plan with intention. Not to hustle harder. Not to overhaul everything. Just to think clearly again.

We talk about why planning matters, the power of stepping a...

Today’s conversation is a special one.

I’m joined by Amy Hughes, author of Words Like Honey,a book that gently reminds us of the power our words carry, especially in our closest relationships. Amy writes with honesty and tenderness about how our speech shapes the atmosphere of our homes, the hearts of our children, and eventhe way we see ourselves. (And she does it in such a way that she doesn’t make moms feel like jerks when our words aren’t like honey).

This isn’t a conversation about saying ever...

Last week, we began a conversation about marriage—not the highlight-reel version, but the honest, complicated, sometimes fragile reality that so many couples live inside of. And today, we’re continuing that conversation in a deeper way.

Tim and Kathy Bush join me to share their story —a marriage that began on shaky ground and nearly ended in complete destruction. Their relationship was marked by infidelity, trauma, addiction, and secrets that stayed hidden for years. And yet, this is not a story that ends in heartbreak. It’s a story of what can happen when the...

Today’s episode might surprise you — especially if you’ve ever thought, “If my husband would just change, our marriage would be easier…” (You're not alone in this thought...)

I’m sitting down with Ann Wilson, speaker, author, and co-host of FamilyLife Today, to talk about her latest book How toSpeak Life to Your Husband —a book born out of real-life frustration, honest mistakes, and a total shift in how she used her words at home. Ann doesn’t sugar-coat anything. She shows us how encouragement, respect, and truth-filled communication can actually reshape our marriages — not by pretending, but by learn...

Every year December sneaks up on moms — the traditions, the sugar, the sickness, the parties, the pressure. This episode is all about what I’m doing differently next Christmas to create a calmer, healthier, more intentional holiday season for our family. From planning ahead and simplifying gifts to supporting our kids’ immune systems and downsizing expectations, I’m sharing practical changes that reduce stress, protect our peace, and let us actually enjoy Christmasagain. If you’ve ever thought, “There has to be a better way to do the holidays,” this conversation is for you.

Things I’mdoing differen...

This episode is a true meeting of the minds. Kiri Jorgensen and I both bring years of passion and experience in children’sliterature to the table—and this conversation might just change the way you see your family’s bookshelf.

The world of children’s publishing has shifted dramatically over the past few decades. What once felt simple and safe is now layered with hidden social agendas and stories thatoften work against the virtues we’re trying to nurture in our kids.

If you’ve ever been told that “as long as they’...

Guest: Brianna Reiser, Vice President of Experience at Toothpillow

Overview: In this episode, we explore the incredible impact of Toothpillow, a comprehensive airway health program for kids, with Brianna Reiser—an experienced dental professional whose personal journey led her to this work. We dive into the “why” behind Toothpillow, how it works, and my personal experience using it with my daughter.

In This Episode:

Meet Brianna Reiser

14+ years in dentistry

Lost her mother to sleep apnea, which led to her passion for airway health<...