66: You Can Love Your Kids And Still Need You

You can love your kids completely and still miss yourself. I’m recording this one from the car on purpose, because sometimes the most honest conversations happen in the in-between moments, on the way to work, before the day takes over. I get real about the question so many moms carry quietly: who am I outside of motherhood?

I share what I was like before kids, when my life was full of hobbies and I could move from interest to interest without checking a calendar. Now everything takes planning, childcare, and a level of logistics that can drain the fun out of even the best intentions. We talk about that adjustment, the grief of losing spontaneity, and the relief that comes when your kids get older and you start getting pieces of freedom back. If you’re navigating mom burnout or trying to find yourself again, you’ll hear your own thoughts echoed here.

I also open up about the practices I’m exploring as part of my self-care for moms toolkit: reading more in every format, trying acupuncture, booking Reiki, staying curious about new experiences, and giving myself permission to experiment without needing to justify it. Along the way I share a few life updates, including how much I miss having Sheree on the mic and what’s coming next for Turn the Paige.

After you listen, come talk to me. DM us, email us, or leave a review and tell me what you do outside of motherhood, what you’ve discovered you love, and what you’re ready to try next. 

If this resonates, subscribe, share the episode with a mom friend, and leave a rating and review so more women can find it.

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Transcript

Welcome To Turn The Page

SPEAKER_00 0:04

Welcome to Turn the Page Podcast. Sisters, best friends, and friendship.

SPEAKER_01 0:10

With relatable episodes that feel like you're chatting with two of your closest friends or sisters. Join us as we turn the page on different topics about adulthood or anyhood.

SPEAKER_00 0:22

And finding yourself again through meaningful friendships. Endless piles of unread library books and endless Amazon package delivery. Real, honest, and a little bit. Talk about it all. So grab your favorite drink, put the kids to bed, lace up your suits, do whatever you need to do, and join us.

SPEAKER_01 0:39

We can't wait to connect with you.

Solo Car Check In Begins

SPEAKER_03 0:42

Hi guys, and welcome to another episode of Turn the Page Podcast. This is one of your co-hosts, Tawana Page, and Shri will be back, but this is a solo episode, another solo. I wanted to do something fun and something different, something spicy to spice things up a bit. I'm actually in the car right now, so I'm like, why not record for the community and just you guys can hear what's on my mind. If this is something that you guys like, I will find time to keep doing this. But yeah, I wanted to talk about today who I am outside of motherhood, and just for all the moms, also who they are outside of motherhood.

Rediscovering Hobbies After Kids

SPEAKER_03 1:36

So a little backstory. Before kids, I had so many hobbies. I was doing so many things all the time, and I loved it. I would just go from activity to activity and hobby to hobby. Um thought it was a little wild back then, but now I realize it's just that is just how my brain works and how I function at a happier level. Not because I'm like being like careless with it, just because I get bored really easily and I always need to have something on deck for me to go to. So I've been reading a lot, audio, Kindle, paperbooks. I've been just trying new things and just discovering things that I thought were like woo-hoo before and like kind of weird. Like acupuncture, like I love it now. I'm going today. I try to go a few times a month because it really helps me. I do Reiki, which is amazing. I have an appointment next week, I think. I what else? I've seen a psychic. I wanna sign up or sign up. I'm gonna schedule to see one and see her again soon. What else have I done? Um I can't even remember. Oh, I've been doing like more things behind the scenes with the podcast and just other like fun things personally that I've been doing that I've been doing behind the scenes, but it's so easy to get wrapped up into motherhood, which it is because I get so wrapped up into it every

The Logistics Of Mom Life

SPEAKER_03 3:34

day. I mean, how can I not? It's automatic. Like I have two kids. I love my kids to damn death, so it's like I'm always wrapped up into like whatever they're doing, which is usually right up under me, so almost seven and almost four. So, you know, they're just all on top of me. If they can go back inside me, they would. So we're at that stage now, which is like kind of a really sweet stage because while I love newborns, they're so freaking adorable and they smell like nothing, and they're just perfect and wonderful, they need you all the time, which obviously they do because they're newborns and they're babies. While that stage was super cute and my kids were super cute babies, like I love this stage more because they're more independent, which gives me more time to do things that I want to do. And I can freely take them places with me now if I need to. I don't have to worry about like lugging a car seat around and like a five-pound diaper bag. They're just like easily they're easier to transport now, shall I say? They have play dates now, and I'm friends with the mom, so it's just like you just kind of let them run and play. So it's like I'm getting some of my freedom back, which smells delicious and amazing. And I will say, like, I do miss before kids because I could just, you know, look up a yoga class and be like, I'm going to yoga like right after work today, or like on a Saturday, like I'm going to yoga at 12 p.m. and like not have to check in with anybody or arrange child care. So those are the things that I struggled with a lot in the beginning after becoming a mom. Because it was just like my freedom was so important to me. I do Pilates now, but I have to obviously schedule that out like days or weeks in advance based on like my work schedule and just like the kids' schedule and just like childcare. And it's just like being a mom is just literally logistics on logistics on logistics. And I am still adjusting to it. I feel like I will always adjust to that just because it's ever ever evolving and ever changing. So I don't know, it's different. Still adjusting to it. But yeah, I'm almost what? Like I'm seven years in. This is wild. Seven years and two kids in. I feel like I've been doing it forever. I just I don't know. It's different every day, obviously, but also some of the stuff is the same every day. So it just, you know, it goes from different adventure to different adventure. But it's really hard for you guys right now because I'm driving and I just love making like comments as I'm driving with the things that I'm seeing, but I'm not doing that right now because I'm focusing on recording this episode, and I don't want that to be all in the episode. So just know that I am exhibiting true self awareness right now because I have been silent this whole drive in terms of like comments and like making comments on the way people are driving and just things that I'm seeing. Anyway, this is for you guys. That is for you. What else?

Heat Wave And Life Updates

SPEAKER_03 7:18

Okay, so it's May here on the East Coast. I mean, it's May everywhere in the United States, but it is May here. It's like 90 degrees in May. Like this is the first week of it being 90 degrees in May, and I'm not really sure what's going on because that's not how I remember living. It's usually so we think it's weird when it's 90 in June, and normal when it's 90 in July and August. But 90 in May is a little different. Um dealing with that, because it went from like not 90 to 90, and currently at like 8.15 in the morning, it's 79 degrees. So, you know, I'm not really sure what's going on. Don't really know what's going on. I do have a little tickle in my throat. I keep wanting to like cough, but I keep drinking water.

SPEAKER_02 8:19

Which is good.

SPEAKER_03 8:23

But what else has been going on? Um, yeah, so we know that Shere had her baby on April 23rd. She will be on the pod very soon to talk about that. Super excited about her return. It's been so lonely over here on Turn the Page Podcast without the other half of the page. But it's cool. Life happens, life ebbs and flows. The best we can do is just go along with it. And can I just say that I took another way to work today, and I'm not taking this way again because there are so many lights, and I could just be on the highway right now, and I'm not. But somehow this is getting me to work sooner than if I was on the highway, probably because I'm traffic. But I don't love lights.

SPEAKER_02 9:14

Excuse me, that was unexpected. I don't love lights. But this is what it is.

Back PT And Health Follow Ups

SPEAKER_02 9:31

Also, have started PT for my back.

SPEAKER_03 9:37

We will get into that in another episode as well. I got my results back, but I'm still waiting to get back from the doctor back. And just some other things that are going on, some other updates once I get like final answers back. We will do I'll do like an actual episode about that. But yeah. So the one comment I will make that I will say is that everyone seems like they're in a rush to get to work, and it just really cracks me up because it's like not that serious. But if we're on a rush to get to work, we probably should have left earlier. But who knows? I literally don't know. But anyway, I am I just wanted to check in and do a little, like, I don't know, like a morning time confessional in the car. I don't know. Um, I am about to head home to this 90-degree day, and don't get me wrong, you know I love summer. You know I'm a summer girl. Like, you know it. I am this is a little, this is aggressive. 90 degrees in May. Yeah, I mean it's still spring. So I don't know what's going on here. But I hope you guys have a good day. I will talk to you soon, and hopefully, next episode will be the other half of the page sisters. Um we'll be back together again. And I will talk to you guys soon.

Tell Us Who You Are Too

SPEAKER_03 11:19

And please, you know, write in, DM us, email us, let me know, like as a mom, what you do outside of motherhood, and if you've discovered new things that you like or that you no longer like. Or, I mean, there's been a lot of things that I have discovered that I like that have come out of motherhood. So that's fun. Yeah, so just let me know. I'm trying to think of other things because I'm gonna say I'm a lot, so sorry guys. I think that'll be um edited out. I think they can edit that out, but so many different random things now that I want to try. Like, I was talking to Cherie, and we want to try a mud bath because some spaws do mud baths, and then maybe like I've we've done painting pottery, like that's already made for you, but why not take a class where you can actually make the pottery, like on the pottery wheel, which I always thought was so intimidating but so cool, and so amazing to the people that do that. But so yeah, it's another something new to try. And now my GPS is like taking me a different whole different way as well, and I'm not a fan of it. So I am gonna end here. This is about almost a 15-minute conversation, which is cool. Just a little check-in with you guys, and I hope you guys have a good day.

Subscribe Review And Wrap

SPEAKER_03 12:57

Remember, like, listen, subscribe, and review, and I'll talk to you soon.

unknown 13:03

Bye.

SPEAKER_00 13:04

Alright, everyone. This was another episode of Turn the Page Podcast. Thanks for hanging out.

SPEAKER_01 13:10

Don't forget to like, listen, and subscribe. And also don't forget to leave a review, please, and let us know what you thought about today's episode and all the other episodes. Thanks, guys. Talk to you soon. Bye.