146. How to Make 2026 Your Best Year Yet | Season 6 Premiere

Welcome to Season 6 of Viva la Mami! In this solo episode, I'm getting real with you about our move to Mexico, the lessons 2025 taught me, and how we can make 2026 our best year yet. Whether you're questioning the "American Dream", struggling with mom guilt, or dreaming of making a radical change in your own life, this episode is for you. 

Let's redefine madrehood together - one decision at a time.

For detailed show notes, visit vivalamami.com/episode146

What You'll Hear:

• What 2025 taught me about moving to another country and the lessons learned
• Navigating the "ni de aquí, ni de allá" feeling all over again, even in the country our parents came from
• What's New in Season 6 and exciting changes for VLM!
• Tips to make 2026 your best year yet

Resources Mentioned:

• Living in Mexico Series (Season 5) - Full episodes about our relocation journey
• Apply to be a guest on the show!
• Suggest an episode topic HERE.
• Suggest a guest for the podcast HERE.

Transcript

Jessica 0:00

How do we make 2026 our best year yet? Here's what I'm learning. Redefine what best year means for you. Stop comparing your journey to anyone else's your best year. Doesn't have to look like Instagram perfection. Okay? Maybe it's the year you finally set boundaries. Maybe it's the year you stop apologizing for your choices. Maybe it's the year you choose rest over hustle. You get to decide what type of year you want. I am back. Welcome to season six of the Viva Mommy Podcast, and I am so excited you are here. I want to take a moment to say thank you specifically for those that have tuned in For the previous five seasons here on the Viva La Podcast. But if you're new here, well Bon welcome I am very excited that you're here. Unlike the rest of the motherhood podcasts available in this sort of like podcast market, unfortunately, they're not a lot of. motherhood podcasts, that are specifically related to the Latina perspective. And so Viva LaMi is here to help you redefine the meaning of Madre hood, so that way you can create your own path without any shame or guilt that often is involved in our cultura and as well as society. And so my hope is for you to tune in for this season and future seasons of this podcast. This podcast exists and continues to grow because of you, especially for those that have started since day one in September, 2022, because you show up, you listen, you share, and if you've been enjoying the Viva AMI podcast, and want to support the show. Here's what you can do. First of all, rate and review the podcast. It literally takes two minutes and helps other Latina moms discover us. also downloading your favorite episodes. Tells the algorithm to share our show with more mommies who need it. Please share episodes with your Amiga, your Primas, your Comadre, and even your Mama, where we often talk a lot about that. If you know what I'm saying. So every review, every download, every share helps us build this community even stronger. So I would really appreciate that. Alright, so now I'm gonna get into this solo episode. It's been a while, uh, it's been what, like two months since you've heard my voice, at least with an updated episode. And so I just want to again welcome you. I can't believe we're here in 2026 And it is season six, so this season is going to be different and I'll tell you why in a bit. But first I want to talk about where I'm recording this episode from If you haven't yet heard my story, I am currently in Mexico, so I'm sitting here in my, in Leon Guanajuato, Mexico. My boys are at school in Mexico, so they are already halfway through the year, which is wild. Uh, the sun is still shining and it still feels like it's July, which is the month that we moved in Mexico and it, this is my first like winter without feeling. Being winter, like I am from Chicago. I was born and raised in Chicago, and so it is so odd to me that there is no snow. It is so odd to me that I'm not wearing a heavy ass jacket, like I'm currently wearing a denim tan jacket, it's literally 70 degrees during the day, like then it falls down to like forties, I would say mid forties. everything feels different And I would say that ever since in July, 2025 when we moved to Mexico, like our lives changed forever. And if you haven't heard our story, we packed up our lives from Chicago and moved to here in Mexico. And let me back up and give you the full picture. in January, 2025, so like literally a year ago I hosted a intentions workshop. As part of my community, the Viva Ami Collective. In Chicago, and I remember writing that I needed to make a radical change. I had four different plans of what could lead to this change. And the last one, like literally Plan D, was for my family and I to move to Mexico. My husband and I had been talking about this, I would say for the past two years, and this was after a trip that we took in Mexico for, like, we stayed there for four, we stayed here for four weeks and. We loved it. We loved, everything that had to do with Mexico, and this was my first time visiting Mexico as a mom and literally the way that families are treated here the way that Mexico is honestly centered around community, but specifically family like that really changed my perspective. And so that four week trip literally changed our vantage point about like perhaps the possibility of moving to Mexico. But that was kind of like plan D. Like I said, that was like, okay, well if nothing works out in 2025, then maybe this can be a possibility. And so in February I had a final interview for my dream job actually working at my alma mater and. While I was waiting to hear back, we went to Acapulco for a friend's wedding and literally, you know, being that it was like it was my husband and I only that went to Acapulco, it was our first trip since having our two kids. And my husband and I, were literally able to talk to each other and we. Sat down and we chatted. I I don't know for how long we were there, like at a restaurant by the beach, but we literally were talking about our goals for 2025, and my husband and I agreed that if I don't get this job, we're moving forward with Plan D, which was relocating to Mexico. Obviously I didn't get the job because I'm here. And so between February when I got the call back, after our trip till like July. This was all a momentum of like us planning, getting ready, saving up, uh, even selling our things for our move to Mexico. And in July we were on the road. And so. I just wanna give you kind of like that context because first of all, if you haven't followed me on social media, and if you start doing this, like you'll see that people just make generalizations about me and my life and our decision to move to Mexico, and I literally got a comment about a previous episode, and I'll show you these episodes in my Living in Mexico series from the past, uh, season, I did a whole blown series of our new life in Mexico. And one of the topics was if we are gentrifying Mexico. And so I'm not gonna go through that because I'll literally go in a rabbit hole. But when I was promoting this episode on social media, like literally I saw a comment today that, oh, whatever. And so I just wanna give you all context that we do not consider ourselves expats, and I believe that this is reverse migration. Our families migrated to the United States out of necessity so that they can achieve the American dream. And they did. They achieved their own version of the American Dream. But for us, and this is speaking out of privilege, which is something that I understand, and know and, um, and accept, but being that I am. A byproduct of this American dream I could have, and I do have the right to say, well, the American dream for me is not working out for us. And so we have that leverage as, especially as children of immigrants to. Come back home Even though culturally like we are raised very differently than in a different country, obviously. We are still connected with our roots, especially first, second generation, uh, children of immigrants. Once you're in the third, fourth generation, it can be a little difficult, but you can still navigate it and it can still be possible for you to go to the motherland. And so if you wanna hear the full story of how we literally prepared for this move, like I said, I will include in the show notes and the description of this video of. My whole living in Mexico series where I am co-hosting it with my husband, Alex, and we literally talked about our experience. Also, if you wanna have more episodes related to our life in Mexico with my husband, let me know and I can definitely have him over. So just let me know if you want any specific topics or themes related to our life here in Mexico. 2025 was definitely a year of like making radical change and Learning different lessons and, and, and I shared this in a previous episode again, as part of the Living in Mexico series, we shared different lessons that we learned about the move here in Mexico, especially now experiencing it. After a couple months, at the time of this recording, we're heading towards like six months, like half a year here, living in Mexico. And even though we are. 100% like content. We are really happy here. We haven't regretted our decision at all. I would say though, that there are moments when we feel like outsiders, where there are still moments when, even though we are like one generation skipped from Our families and ancestors coming from Mexico, we still feel like in a way we don't belong. And I think that's just part of that sort of story, whether if you are immigrating into a totally different country or moving and relocating to the country in which your family is from. So even though we're fluent Spanish speakers, I mean even though we're children of immigrants, even though this is our ura, there are days when I question, do we belong here? Like are we Mexican enough? And for those of us that are children of immigrants and who are first gen specifically, and even second generation, like. in the US we've always questioned like, are we American enough? Like we never seem to fit in. And now coming here, there are definitely moments when I feel like I don't belong and, and I don't feel Mexican enough because obviously I grew up in a different country, in a different culture, in a different way of being, and so literally is all over again, but in a different way. And so for those of you who have immigrated to a different country, let me know, is this the way that you feel too? Let me know by sending me a DM on Instagram. Or you can respond in the comments, And so, yeah, those are kind of like my, my feelings right now and kind of like the reflections and lessons learned from 2025. What's ahead in 2026? Well, let me share my intentions with you because I do believe in the power of manifestation. So as far as with personal family goals, I'll be honest with you, uh, it's been taking me close to two years now to find like full-time employment, and I am not looking for a traditional type of job. Because first of all, I'm in Mexico, so I'm trying to look for a super flexible remote job or because I am a dual citizen, I'm also open to looking for a job here in Mexico. It all just depends on the pay'cause unfortunately, the pay is lower than what I'm used to. All what I'm looking for is essentially, uh, a job, a position where it is flexible because, you know, I'm a mom and, um, and even though my kids are in school, obviously I'm the default parent. Let's just face it. Even though my husband is truly supportive and everything and is 100% on and here in full support and everything, like, let's face it. I'm the default parent, and so I do want, uh, flexibility if in case I have to pick up the kids from school because they're sick or something like that. And the school hours here are kind of odd. I mean, they have a regular start time, just like everywhere else in the US. They start at 8:00 AM but they leave at 1:15 PM how the heck am I gonna find a, a nine to five job type thing? So I definitely want like a flexible job in that regard. Um, and then something that pays enough for me to save, as a stay at home parent. Even though I did get income, I do receive income, little sources of income here and there. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to save for my retirement. I used to like invest in the stock market and that's something that I haven't done, at least through me, my husband. Has been doing that, but I also wanna allow this additional source of income so that, you know, we wouldn't feel as tight when it comes to our savings. And, also just like having this sense of cushion and security for my family. I have been used to having my own income. And kind of being in control of my money because it was my money. And, and that's something that has been very challenging for me. And I'll be honest with you, like I haven't monetized the way that I wish here. Um, in fact, like I, this podcast has been completely non monetized. And so all of these resources that I have been sharing is. Basically giving out for free to y'all and all What I want in return is just like. At least some love and support, right? This, this is truly a labor of love. And the reason why I'm doing this is to have the representation that we need as Latinas, but also as mamas. And so for those of you who are in the job market, who have been in the job market, I mean, I'm with you. I know that it has been very rough for all of us right now, especially when you need flexibility as a mom. Mom. And so for this season, I am going to have guests who. Talk about like money, but also about like ways to help empower you to look for jobs, especially in this rough job market. that's basically it for my personal goals. I don't wanna go overboard, but you know, definitely securing a job. In 2026. As far as with Viva Ami, I do wanna grow. I mean, I have been doing this platform well, for, the podcast since September, 2022. And really since then, that's when I started to evolve on social media and through my website on the blog. But I definitely wanna grow I'm shifting my business model into content creation, um, where hopefully I can get a couple like leads with like brand deals, and like other ways to monetize because I'm trying to look for ways to monetize. And so that's a little bit of a change that on Instagram you're gonna see a little bit more on like that content creation influencer type work. But don't worry, the podcast is still here. The newsletter is still here, the blog as well. Uh, so. I just wanna be intentional of the work that I'm doing so that way I can just continue to build community. And that is also something that I wanna continue doing, is to build community specifically for the Las Mamas that are here in Mexico and online, because that's what this is all about. And speaking of which if you want to support this growth of Viva la Mami, here's what you can do. You can follow me on Instagram, which is@vivalamami. You can follow me on TikTok, which is@vivalamami_ You can rate and review this podcast and download your favorite episodes, and of course, you can also share this with other Latina moms who need this. That is like the simplest way that you can do. I know that you are listening because I see it. I know that you're following me on Instagram, but do you listen on the podcast? So just know that there's so many resources that I share here. It's not just me just. Talking and blabbing and all that stuff and talking about my life. No. I also share very intentional and specific topics that can help you in your motherhood journey. And so every single one of these actions will help me reach more mommies like you. And so as far as with season six, this is what's coming up. I am doing a series about mamas moving or traveling abroad with their families. This is something that I've not really seeing representation of I, there is definitely a lack of like Latina, specifically like Latina parents, mamas, traveling abroad or moving abroad with their families. so I'm gonna do this whole series by interviewing mamas just like you, and me, that were able to do this and make this possible, because I'm pretty sure that if you're listening, I'm pretty sure this has been. In back of your mind just saying, I know it. I, I just know it. So I'll be interviewing Maas who've made similar moves like us or are traveling around the world with their families. And these are going to be real stories, real advice and real talk about what it takes to live abroad. Also with what's new for season six, I will be interviewing people in Espanol, whether if it's a VLM Spotlight episode or if I'm inviting expert guests, I wanna grow my audience where it's not just gonna be in English, but also in Espanol. So that way we can kind of share this commonality of like the struggles, challenges, but also the awesome part about being a Latina mom. And so as part of that, I will be interviewing. Guests, whether if they are the every Latina mom sharing her motherhood story, this has always been the heart of the Viva Ami podcast, which is called the VLM Spotlight episodes. And so I believe that your stories matter and I want to amplify them. And if you wanna be a guest, I will be adding, links in the show notes and description of this video. On how to apply to be a guest on the show. I'm also going to be interviewing expert guests, so I'll be bringing in professionals who can best inform you and other Latina moms on topics that impact our everyday lives. This is from mental health, education, finances, parenting, all of it in between. Whether if it's in English or in Espanol, so that way, you know, you can. Be best informed. And of course you'll be hearing from me on solo episodes like this one where I can get real with you and talk about what I'm learning, struggling with, and celebrating as well. So I think I know what you're going through right now. You're questioning if the American dream is even real. With the whole political climate about our communities being affected by ICE raids, deportations, family separations with the ridiculous costs of housing, food, childcare, like the basic necessities. And you're watching our community that's suffering, wondering, well, what's going on? Like what now? And on top of that, you're dealing with mom guilt, probably. You are questioning, am I raising my kids well? Am I breaking generational curses or creating new trauma? Am I doing enough to keep my kids connected to their roots? Are they bilingual enough? Should I be doing more, saying more, being more? And I see you, I feel you, and I am with you. How do we make 2026 our best year yet? Here's what I'm learning. Redefine what best year means for you. Stop comparing your journey to anyone else's your best year. Doesn't have to look like Instagram perfection. Okay? Maybe it's the year you finally set boundaries. Maybe it's the year you stop apologizing for your choices. Maybe it's the year you choose rest over hustle. You get to decide what type of year you want. Let go of what's not serving you. We don't need to carry everything into our future, what beliefs are you ready to release? That you have to do it all alone. That asking for help is weakness. That you're not Latina enough or American enough make space for new stories and new possibilities. Remember that. This is something that I really challenge you to do. build your network intentionally. As mamas, we tend to isolate ourselves. We tend to not show up in front of the people that can probably make an impact or a difference in your life. And so I want you to remember that your network is your net worth I want you to look. Who's in your corner? Who lifts you up? Who can call you when you're struggling? If you don't have that yet, start building it. Join groups like mine, at least for now. It's a a virtual community, but there's also so many community groups in your area. Like I thought I was gonna have a hard time looking for one here in León. But that's not true. It was very easy for me to find Comida and on both sides I would say, you know, this is what's funny. I've been able to leverage. Right? And I think as Latinas we, we can use our biculturalism bilingualism at our disposal. Even when creating communities, you can be in a community with moms that are not Latinas. But you can also have community with Latinas And so you can be in these best of both worlds. And that's something that I want you to think about, right? Like reach out. To that mom at school. If you feel alone, send that DM to someone whose story resonates with you. We need each other. We need to uplift each other, especially as mamas. Choose your own path without shame. This is my motto, redefining Madre hood. You get to create your own version of motherhood. The transformation I want for you is to give yourself permission to choose your path and the freedom from guilt and shame. And I know that that is hard, especially as Latinas, but that is something that I want you to think about and set these. Tips as like part of your 2026 goals. I want you to have confidence that you know what's best for you and your family. And I want you to seek that community that supports you no matter what you choose. I want you to take action. Look at 2026 with fresh eyes. What's one thing you've been too scared to try? What's one dream you keep putting on the back burner? What if 2026 was the year you actually did it? It doesn't have to be moving to another country like I did. Though it could be possible, but maybe it's finally starting therapy or setting boundaries with your familia, starting that business, taking that trip that you've always wanted to go to. Having that hard conversation with your partner, asking for that raise at your job or leaving the job, that's draining you. And so Amiga. Let me leave you with this. 2025 taught me that courage doesn't mean you're not scared. It means you do it anyway. I was terrified to move to Mexico. I was terrified of failing. I was terrified of just like not being employed. But you know what? It's okay. I essentially did something. You know that saying when one door closes, another door opens, like it is so true. Sometimes the path will lead you into something that you never thought of. And I've learned that on the other side of fear is freedom, and I also want to remind you that your ancestors were so brave to leave everything they knew. They crossed borders, they learned new languages. They built lives from nothing. That courage is in your blood. Again, that's the power of being a Latina and especially a Latina mom. So you have everything that you need already inside you. And so in 2026. I want you to trust yourself more. Ask for help often. Please let go of what's weighing you down. Build your, choose your own path and know that whatever you decide, you are not alone. We're in this together and redefining mahood one decision at a time. So tell me one thing that you're committing to in 2026. Let me know. On Instagram, you can DM me on viva ami, or you can let me know in the comments below. I want to hear from you and if this episode resonated with you, rate and review the podcast. Share with AAMI who needs to hear this and download your favorite episodes of the Viva La podcast because it'll help me so much. I'm so excited. Y'all like season six is going to be amazing and I'm glad you are here for it. All right, AMI. Well, thank you so much for listening in the next episode.