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Birds In A Tree

Storytelling Podcasts

Birds In A Tree features stories about parenting. Topics include family, birth, adoption, fostering, autism, military, stepchildren, loss, addiction, ADHD, politics and everything in between. We focus on the good, the bad, the hard and the glorious. Through each story, we hope to find the bond and similarities that we all share.

Location:

United States

Description:

Birds In A Tree features stories about parenting. Topics include family, birth, adoption, fostering, autism, military, stepchildren, loss, addiction, ADHD, politics and everything in between. We focus on the good, the bad, the hard and the glorious. Through each story, we hope to find the bond and similarities that we all share.

Twitter:

@birdsradio

Language:

English

Contact:

301-501-1887


Episodes

Lacey - "I Had Four Little Girls Come To My House In The Middle Of The Night...That Started My Journey Into Motherhood"

3/13/2018
Lacey is a supermom. She won't tell you that, but she is. Knowing she wanted to be a mother, and realizing at 25 that she might not be on a traditional route to motherhood, Lacey decided to explore foster parenting. After completing the training, Lacey received a call at four in the morning that changed her life. She is now the mother of six girls who are all biological sisters. We talk in this episode all about becoming a foster parent and an adoptive parent, mustering the courage to have empathy for biological parents who cannot care for their children, and her late night conversations that have altered the course of her life.

Duration:00:35:41

Kaitlin - "I Was A Little Too Focused On What I Thought The Bigger Picture For Us Should Have Been, Rather Than Her Big Picture In Her Mind"

3/6/2018
Kaitlin is raising her son Oliver and navigating a co-parenting relationship with her ex-wife. Kaitlin admits that although after five years of marriage she thought that they both wanted to have a baby, however in hindsight feels as though her ex-wife wasn't fully prepared to make such a major life change. Now the two navigate a co-parenting relationship together and try to make Oliver the main focus of their decisions.

Duration:00:20:55

Ingrid - "You Never See A Bill...As Long As Your Baby Or You Need To Be Taken Care Of, It's Done"

2/27/2018
Ingrid and her partner have one son and live in Canada. Ingrid admits that she never really thought she wanted to be a mother, but when the feeling hit she couldn't think of anything else. Their journey to parenthood is its own great story and makes the bonds of a family even more special. Giving birth in Canada, Ingrid says that through their publicly funded healthcare system, they never see a medical bill. Not even when their newborn son had a health scare, the cost of the NICU and treatment were taken care of. We talk about the differences between America and Canada, why she is happy to raise her son in a country that values the resources that help new parents, and the sadness of watching her home country grapple with issues that are valued and taken care of in her adopted home.

Duration:00:34:49

Melissa - "I Don't Want To Do Things That Will Leave A Bad Taste In Her Mouth; I Want Her To Do What We Want To Do"

2/20/2018
Melissa and her husband have always had a love of the outdoors. As avid climbers, hikers, bikers, skiers, and campers, they are now raising a daughter to love these activities as much as they do. Even though Melissa admits they can't be as extreme as they were before children, they are giving their daughter every opportunity to cultivate her own love of nature and activity and that gives them the opportunity to enjoy what they love as a family.

Duration:00:34:42

Fern - "My Level Of Denial Got Deeper And Outside Pressure To Do Something Got Stronger...It Created A Lot Of Emotional Turmoil"

2/13/2018
Fern is the mother two boys, one of whom has autism. Fern admits that because her son didn't fit into a typical autism mold - he made eye contact, loved to cuddle - she didn't believe that he could be autistic. However, as months passed and doctors, friends, and family asked more questions, Fern had a long conversation with herself and realized that she needed to face any diagnosis head on and without anymore denial. She said that was the moment that the fear went away and they began to seek treatment for her son. We talk all about what it's like to notice changes in your child and when it becomes clear to seek help, how to unclench as a parent and begin to enjoy the life of parenting, and the difficulty of putting aside your own interests when you are fully engulfed in parenting.

Duration:00:29:07

Veronica - "My Kids Are Going To Go Into This World, How Can I Arm Them Against Alcoholism And Addiction? Because It's Just So Prevalent"

2/6/2018
Veronica is the mother of two sons and has been sober from alcohol and drugs for over 17 years. As a licensed therapist and recovery coach, Veronica has spent most of her adult life working with others to maintain their sobriety. Veronica has written two popular books on the subject - Why You Drink And How To Stop: Journey To Freedom and Get Sober For Free: Your Practical Guide. She also conducts lectures and workshops on alcoholism, addiction, and spirituality. We talk all about parenting in sobriety, how to talk to your children about addiction, and the freedom sobriety brings to life. You can find Veronica at www.veronicavalli.com, on Twitter at @veronicavalli, and on Facebook at Veronica Valli Soberful.

Duration:00:28:12

Melissa - "She's The Perfect Person In My Eyes, So It's Hard To Do What She Did, But I Try To Do The Best That I Can In Her Memory"

1/30/2018
Melissa and her husband have one son, Miles, and have decided that they are a one-child family. What makes her choice to have one child interesting is that Melissa is one of six sisters - born eight and a half years apart. Melissa and her sisters have always had a unique bond - and even though they live all over the country, they have stayed the best of friends. Tragically, their mother passed away when they were teenagers, and as they have become parents they have tried to keep her memory alive in their children. We talk about parenting after the loss of a parent, what being a teacher means when you are a mother, and what having a son is like after living with so many women.

Duration:00:19:16

Katie - "You Just Go Where The Work Is...We Call It The Freeway Philharmonic"

1/16/2018
Katie and her husband are raising two children, and have spent their careers are professional classical working musicians. Meeting in college, they both knew that they would be moving and traveling as part of their work. Now that they are raising children, she feels fortunate to surround the kids with classical music and talented musicians but knows that it also means long hours traveling to gigs and lots of hotels. Fortunately, her kids love staying in hotels. We talk all about the pros and cons of being a professional musician, the difficulty of trying to teach your own children when you are a professional teacher to so many others, and what it's like to go into labor when you are about to play an important solo.

Duration:00:34:37

Mia - "I Was Nervous As A First Time Parent And I Work Here...But My Advice Is To Get Involved And Stay involved"

1/9/2018
Mia is an employee of her communities school system and the mother of a six-year-old daughter. Mia has spent her career working with schools and seeing what they can offer children - but when it was time to enroll her own daughter, she admits the process was daunting. Her daughter was academically ahead during preschool, and although she has a late birthday, tested up to kindergarten when she was only four years old. Mia admits that a lot of thought and conversation with her husband and other members of the school system went into making the decision - but she says it was the best decision they could have made. We talk all about the intimidation of entering the public school system for the first time, how to navigate the various programs to make sure your child gets a great education, and what the heck an immersion program really is.

Duration:00:28:01

Jan - "Foster Independence At A Very Young Age...They Can Do A Lot More Than You Give Them Credit For"

1/2/2018
Jan is the ultimate "Mother of Boys" - she raised six of them. With six boys spread ten years apart, she says life was as full of joy as it was rambunctious. Now a grandmother, she says she is proud of the men they have become and of the friendships and bond they share between them. She offers her advice for raising independent men and living in a large family.

Duration:00:28:22

Catherine - "He Was A Prime Example Of That Dad That Is Not Connected Until That Child Is Tangible To Them, But Once It Happens It's The Best Thing That Ever Happened"

12/12/2017
Catherine and her husband are currently raising their one-year-old son Jack. Catherine is American and her husband is British, and the couple has lived on "both sides of the pond." After agreeing through most of their relationship that they did not want children, a pregnancy scare forced Catherine to rethink her decision. After a lot of thought and discussion, they decided to get pregnant. However, for most of her pregnancy Catherines husband was still apprehensive. It wasn't until the birth of her son that her husband fell in love and totally got on board. Catherine and I discuss making the decision to have a child, what it's like to raise a son with family so far away, and how to survive airplane rides with small children.

Duration:00:21:55

Leah - "We Explain Emotions To Girls And We Dismiss Emotions With Boys...I Think That's Completely Wrong"

12/5/2017
Leah is a mother of two boys living on a farm in West Virginia. She and her husband are "theater people" and have had to carve out professions piecing together jobs in their rural community. They spend their days hiking and being boys, but she has always been aware of the need to have her children understand and express their emotions. We talk about life a mother of all boys, resources for unlimited amounts of energy and raising empathetic boys in a hypermasculine world.

Duration:00:28:19

Mark - "Husbands Are Fully Capable. You Can Leave The Kids With Us For Days On End, They Will Still Get Bathed, Fed, Go To Bed At A Reasonable Hour"

11/28/2017
Mark is the other half of the parenting/business/success team of our last guest, Kendall. When Kendall brought Mark the idea of moving back to his rural hometown, it took a minute to believe she was serious. He had a full-time job in the city, they had friends and social obligations, but he had always longed for his daughters to have a connection to his hometown the way he did. There was one small catch - Mark needed to convince his job that it was feasible. He did, and he spent the first six months commuting back to the city for work. When his daughter told him that she was sad he was gone so much, Mark made another major life decision for the health of his family. We talk all about big life choices, raising daughters and why portrayals of fathers in the media are all wrong.

Duration:00:33:39

Kendall - "When I Started My Company I Thought 'Well, It'll Work Or It'll Be A Colossal Failure, And That Wouldn't Be The End Of The World'"

11/14/2017
Kendall is the mother of two girls, and is one of the bravest boss women I know. Before becoming a mother, Kendall decided that instead of working for a company, she wanted to start her own graphic design business. So she took business classes, got mentors, networked, and taught herself how to become an entrepreneur. Ten years later, she and her husband run an incredibly successful graphic design company. Kendall admits that after the birth of her second daughter, she had a lot of mommy guilt about not being able to do it all, and after the sale of their house in Baltimore, made another drastic change for the health and well being of the family. And because I am unashamed of plugging of my friends and their endeavors, if you need some graphic design work done, visit their website at http://www.curlyred.com/

Duration:00:39:17

April - "It's A Lot Of Missing Each Other And Struggle And Stress, But Then Enjoying The Moments We Can Together And Finding Those Moments When The Time Allows"

11/7/2017
April and her husband have two children, ages 11 and 8, and they are a military family. April spends much of the year away from her husband while he is off with the special forces, and she navigates her way through parenting solo. Even though they talk nearly every day, the family still faces parenting challenges when he does come home, and they work through each challenge as it comes. April has not put her dreams on the shelf, however, and she is currently working on her doctorate and teaches at local universities wherever they live. At the end of our conversation, April mentions a major life change that the family has only recently taken on.

Duration:00:31:08

Alex - "I Knew In My Heart That They Were Going To Come Together, However, I Didn't Think It Would Be So Soon"

10/31/2017
Alex is the mother of two children and a step-mother of three children. Alex and her husband met while serving their country in Iraq, and with both parents being in active military service the family is always thinking about what they will do if both parents are called up to duty. Alex came into the relationship knowing about her husband's children but admits to naively believing that they would all get along well. It has been a hard journey for the entire family. Alex also reveals another shocking detail about her husband's life, and what the family is doing with this new information.

Duration:00:24:26

Amanda - "I Don't Want Them To Feel Like They Have To Choose - Do I Sit With Mom Or Do I Sit With Dad?"

10/24/2017
Amanda is a single mother to two pre-teen girls, and the journey through divorce and co-parenting have not been easy. During the separation and divorce, Amanda had to work through lawyers and even spoke only through email as the communication of last resort. Things have gotten easier for her, but only because of her willingness to put her children before her own needs and feelings, and is hoping that she can teach her daughters to make good choices as they blossom into adulthood.

Duration:00:23:57

Alyse - "They Remember The First Overdose...They Remember Details That I Don't Even Remember From That Day"

10/17/2017
Alyse is a mother with a lot on her plate. With four children under the age of six, Alyse and her husband spent the first part of their marriage as a military family. She knew when her first child was six months old that something was not "normal" and spent five years working with a host of doctors and specialists to finally get a proper diagnosis. Alyse and her husband are also dealing with an issue that many families in America are dealing with and that many try to hide - addiction. After her husband broke his back and required surgery, he became addicted to pain pills and they have been battling the disease since.

Duration:00:41:48

Aki - "I Try To Help People To Make Decisions That Make Sense But Also Allow Themselves To Be Human And Also Model That For Their Children"

10/10/2017
Aki is the mother of a twelve-year-old daughter and is also a life coach for parents. Aki got into this particular line of work after having her own daughter and quickly realizing that she didn't have all the answers. She works with parents to help them find confidence and connection so that they can enjoy their families. She admits, however, that being human means makes some mistakes, and feels that every child should see that as part of a healthy parenting dynamic. You can find Aki at www.parentingpaths.com, or on facebook: @parentingpaths.

Duration:00:30:11

James - "I've Had People Give Me Weird Stares, But When I'm With My Daughter People Think I'm The Cool Dad"

10/3/2017
James and his wife Stacy are the parents of one-year-old Ozzy, and are about ready to give birth to another child any day. James is true punk rock - eight-inch purple mohawk, ear stretchers, he has played in a band, and his career is working at a high-end guitar factory. We talk all about peoples perceptions of him - with and without his daughter - and how people go from scared to infatuated when he's out playing with his kid. We also talk about work/life balance, and what it's like to be on the phone with someone in the world of rock n' roll while your kid is playing on the floor.

Duration:00:22:19