Surviving Sarah

My friend Amy Wicks joins me today. Amy is one of those people that I met at a conference simply because we sat down next to each other and about 10 minutes later we were fast friends. Amy is a wife and mother to 3. She is the voice of the weekly Simply Wholehearted Podcast which i had the honor of being a guest. She leads The Simply Wholehearted online community on Facebook and serves as Director of Mom's Ministry at Radiant Church in Kansas City. She has recently co-authored with Sara Hagerty The Unseen Way, a book study created for Unseen: The Gift of Being Hidden in a World that Loves to be Noticed. But for today's conversation, Amy joins me to talk about creating an intentional summer with your kids. She has created an amazing course called Simply Summer and I highly recommend taking advantage of this course. In this conversation, we talk about what makes summers so difficult for moms, how we can survive summer with intentionality, how we can own our time instead of it owning us, how to create meaningful minutes, and how to help our kids set goals for what they want to accomplish over summer. Amy's Simply Summer Course - use discount code SURVIVING for 10% off Today's show notes Connect with Sarah: Instagram // Facebook // Website

Ruth Schwenk joins me today. You may know Ruth from the website she created called TheBetterMom.com. She is a wife and mom to 4 kids. She is an author of several books including the two we mention in today's episode: The Better Mom Devotional and Settle My Soul. If you've ever felt alone in motherhood or struggled to love every stage of motherhood, you will relate to this conversation. Ruth has such a heart to come alongside other mothers to help them feel seen and known. In this episode, Ruth shares her advice for new moms, the importance of surrounding yourself with women who are a set ahead in life and those who are a set behind you in life. And in that true form, I ask for her advice on how to handle sibling conflict. And lastly, after walking through a year of health hardship with her husband, she shares what brave has looked like for her. Today's show notes which includes Sarah's takeaways, ways to connect with Ruth and discussion questions in case you want to gather a group of women together to discuss the episode. Freebies: Sign up for Sarah's monthly newsletter containing her survival kit Download Sarah's FREE planner pages to help you be more productive and efficient NEW!!!! Season Two of Sarah's other podcast, Raising Boys & Girls is available! Connect with Sarah online: Instagram // Website

Last month, I asked you to join me in reading The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown. This is one of my all time favorite books and one that I sit with on a regular basis. I've already heard from many of you how this book has been wrecking you in the most beautiful ways. I asked my dear friend, Sarah Anderson, to join me around my table to discuss the book. We had the best conversation that included our takeaways, favorite quotes, things that surprised us, things we are putting in to practice and what is helping live a wholehearted life. Freebies: Sign up for Sarah's monthly newsletter containing her survival kit Download Sarah's FREE planner pages to help you be more productive and efficient Be sure to check out the show notes online for links to everything we mentioned and discussion questions that you can use to discuss this book and episode with your friends.

Jordan Lee Dooley joins me today. She is a multi-passionate women who is speaks, writes, podcasts (SHE podcast) and creates (SoulScripts). And she has a book launching in May called Own Your Everyday: Overcome the Pressure to Prove and Show Up For What You Were Made To Do. In the midst of a culture where everybody feels like they need to work within their purpose and/or push their creativity to be a side hustle, it's easy to feel like purpose and position become blurred. It is sometimes difficult to find the balance between working for income and working with meaning. We talk about the balance between purpose and position; how to discover what you were made for; things that limit us from stepping towards what we were made to do; who inspires her; and what she's learned in the early years of marriage. Freebies: Sign up for Sarah's monthly newsletter containing her survival kit Download Sarah's FREE planner pages to help you be more productive and efficient Connect with Sarah: website // Instagram // Facebook Go listen to Season 2 of Sarah's other podcast Raising Boys & Girls

I am happy to welcome my friend, Heather Zempel, to the table today. She is a pastor, author, speaker, wife and mom. She was formerly a biological engineer and a legislative assistant in the U.S. Senate before becoming a pastor. She now serves as the Discipleship Pastor and Ministries Director at National Community Church in Washington, DC. She recently published a book called Big Change, Small Groups which is all about creating community. There is so much goodness packed into this conversation. Not only do we cover random stories about vultures, but we also talk about some really important ways to connect with others. Finding community in a city is hard enough, but have you ever imagined what it must be like to find community in a city where everyone is defined by which political aisle you belong to? So we talk about what its like to build community with people that you disagree with, advice on creating a safe place for community to cultivate, how her community showed up for her when she walked through a difficult and vulnerable season and she shares a lot of advice on how to handle conflict in relationships. Freebies: Sign up for Sarah's monthly newsletter containing her survival kit Download Sarah's FREE planner pages to help you be more productive and efficient NEW!!!! Surviving Sarah Book Club - let's learn together! In April, we will read The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown. Sign up today! Connect with Sarah: Monthly newsletter | Instagram | Facebook

One of my favorite things is to have reoccurring guests on the show. I love inviting people back to the table who I just really enjoy and today's guest is one of those people. KariAnne Wood, whom you may know as Thistle Wood Farms, joins me again. She is a home blogger, influencer and author who has written a new book called The DIY Style Finder. If you have ever asked the question, "How do I figure out my decorating style?" then this episode is for you! We talk about why its so hard to find our style, our biggest design regrets, how to push past the fear of decorating, our favorite rooms to decorate, advice on how to decorate on a limited budget and what to do when your home is temporary. I have never laughed so much in an episode. KariAnne is such a delight. And before we jump into the conversation, I want to let you know that the audio may sound a little different. Skype has been giving me such grief lately, so I apologize that it might sound a little off than what you are used to from me. Okay, now it's time for you to join KariAnne and I around the table. Freebies: Sign up for Sarah's monthly newsletter containing her survival kit Download Sarah's FREE planner pages to help you be more productive and efficient NEW!!!! Surviving Sarah Book Club - let's learn together! In April, we will read The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown. Sign up today!

Way back in January I sat down with today's guest and as I was editing the episode, I found myself talking about things that I was journaling about and working on this very morning. My friend, Emily Shupert, joined me around my table. She is licensed professional counselor and founder of a boutique counseling and coaching company here in Atlanta called Simplify Life Counseling + Coaching. She is the author of the book The Happiness Map which was written to offer women a personalized navigation tool to find happiness in life right now. Emily and I have an honest conversation about anxiety (including postpartum anxiety), fear and shame and how that affects us as women. We also turn the table and I step right into the hot seat of vulnerability and allow Emily to ask me some personal questions about fear. This conversation is full of practical and helpful advice—I know you are going to enjoy it. Check out links to everything we mentioned, ways to connect with Emily, takeaways and discussion questions in today's show notes. NEW!! I just started a Surviving Sarah book club! We will read The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown together in April 2019. Sign up here! Connect with Sarah: Instagram // Website // Facebook

This month, I chose to re-release my first conversation with Sandra Stanley. If you don't know her, she is an author and wife to pastor Andy Stanley. She is one of the most likable people and this conversation was one of my favorites from the early days. In this episode, she shares all sorts of advice for moms, wives and women in general. Plus, she mentions an item in her survival kit and is now a stable in my wardrobe. The original episode aired in May of 2016 so you may notice a little difference in production quality. I love how far we've come! Here's a link to the original show notes. Come find me on Instagram or Facebook or stop by my website to download FREE planner pages to help you be more efficient and productive with the time you have.

Today, I want to have a conversation with you about health. I'm not sure that I've shared on the show my own health journey. In fact, did you know that I wrote a book all about it that was published when I was in my twenties? It was written for teenage girls and called Body. Beauty. Boys. The Truth About Girls and How We See Ourselves. That book chronicled my journey through eating disorders and body obsession and the truths that finally helped me see myself clearly. The girl who wrote that book as a 25-year-old had yet to experience turning 30 and yet to experience having babies and yet to experience turning 40. And I'm talking you today and I have yet to experience what turning 50 or 60 is like but I do know that there are some principles that we can adopt now that is beneficial no matter what age we are. There are principles that will help you to have a better perspective on yourself and your health. Connect with Sarah: Instagram Check out the show notes for this episode which includes links to everything we talked about and discussion questions for the episode. For information about the FASTer Way to Fat Loss Sign up for Sarah's monthly newsletter which will inform you on all the things that helped her survive that month.

I have been looking forward to putting today's conversation in your ears for a long time. Shannon Miles joins me around the table. She is the CEO and Co-founder of Belay which is a staffing company serving businesses all over the US. When Shannon faced an all too common, yet emotional decision to stay home with her new baby or return to a fast-paced, demanding career (that she loved), she knew that there had to be a way to have both. Shannon shares her story and advice on how she didn't take no for an option. We talk about her book titled "The Third Option" which is all about figuring out how to have both a career and family. We talk about what to do when you feel stuck and how to figure out that next step. If you enjoyed today's episode, would you take a screenshot and share it on your favorite social channels and tag me. I'm @sarahwbragg on Instagram and SurvivingSarahPodcast on Facebook. That's an easy way to support the show. Another thing you could do is to leave a 5 star rating and review on iTunes. Your review will help other women who feel alone or depleted find encouragement. You can find links to everything we talked about and discussion questions to complement today's episode online at SarahBragg.com. While you're there, be sure to sign up for my monthly newsletter in which I send out the details to my own survival kit. Maybe something that is helping me survive will help you, too. And since we talked about planners, if you'd like a FREE resource to help you plan your day, your week and your meals, go to SarahBragg.com/planner and download your FREE planner pages today!

Jessica Reinhart joins me today on Surviving Sarah. She is the creator behind the brand Lumitory which exists to help encourage community and meaningful connection in your home and in your community. She loves to breath life into something that makes a positive impact in the world. In addition to her work, she is a wife and a mom. And our conversation is such a good follow up conversation to my recent episode about friendship. We talk about how to navigate the waters of social media and real life friendships, how to create a sense of belonging in our home with our family and practical ways to build connection in your community. If you enjoyed today's episode, would you take a screenshot and share it on your favorite social channels and tag me. I'm @sarahwbragg on Instagram and SurvivingSarahPodcast on Facebook. That's an easy way to support the show. Another thing you could do is to leave a 5 star rating and review on iTunes. Your review will help other women who feel alone or depleted find encouragement. You can find links to everything we talked about and discussion questions to complement today's episode online at SarahBragg.com. While you're there, be sure to sign up for my monthly newsletter in which I send out the details to my own survival kit. Maybe something that is helping me survive will help you, too. Thank you for listening and as always I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

I am happy to have Alli Worthington join me around the table. Alli is a powerhouse of a woman who has authored several books and is a speaker, podcaster and business coach. She is also the co-founder of the Blissdom Conference which is a business conference that helps writers, podcasters, influencers and online entrepreneurs take their work to the next level. I so want to be apart of that in the future! Among those things, she is a wife and mom of 5 boys who has a goal to help women live the life they were created to live. And in this conversation, we talk about happiness. We talk about misconceptions about happiness, how she survived walking through a hard season of bankruptcy and losing her home, how adopting a happiness mentality can benefit your life and business and practical ways to increase your happiness. I love that Alli is very practical so this conversation is gonna not only motivate you but leave with you with some action steps. I wanted to make sure that you don't miss out on something I offer. Each month, I send out to email subscribers my very own survival kit. It's where I talk about all the things that helped me survive that month including what I'm reading, what i'm watching, what I'm listening to and just what I'm loving. You don't want to miss out on all the things so go to SarahBragg.com and sign up. When you do, you will receive the planner pages that I created for FREE. So that is a win, win. Come find me on Instagram or Facebook! Let's be there for each other as we survive life!

This month, I decided to re-release my conversation with Sofia Dickens where we talk about parenting and developing emotional intelligence in our kids. We also talk about what it's like to be an entrepreneur. One of my kids' favorite board games has been EQtainment's Q's Race To The Top. You definitely want to check that out! This episode originally aired in June of 2016 so you may notice a little difference in production quality. Love how far we've come! Here's the link to the original show notes. Come find me on Instagram or Facebook or stop by my website to download FREE planner pages to help you be more efficient and productive with the time you have.

We are already at the end of month which means it is time for me to sit across the table from you and have a heart to heart. I am loving these episodes where it's just me talking right to you. And this month, we are going to talk about something that I think most of us struggle with. Every time I've reached out to you guys about what topics you'd like to hear addressed, there is one that rises to the top—friendship. Isn't it interesting that even as adult women, we struggle in the friendship department like we did when we were tweens. So in this conversation, we are going to talk about how to find friends, how to keep friends and what to do if you lose friends. Help me help you! Take the 2019 listener survey and be entered to win a $25 amazon gift card Connect with Sarah: Instagram // Facebook // website

I am so happy to welcome Knox McCoy to the show. Knox and his family are no strangers to the Bragg's. We used to live in the same city and became great friends. Knox even helped me launch the podcast way back when. If you don't know Knox, he is the co-host of the wildly popular podcasts "The Popcast with Knox and Jamie" and "The Bible Binge" They are killing it on the iTunes charts and if you haven't subscribed to their shows, then press pause and go do it. You won't be disappointed. And sidebar, his co-host Jamie Golden was on Episode 17 of Surviving Sarah if you want to go back to hear more of her story. Knox joins me to talk about all things faith and pop culture. We talk about his book The Wondering Years along with what it was like to be so vulnerable in his writing. We talk about his evolving faith—how questions should be honored and what helped him navigate them. We also talk about everything from Survivor to baseball to something that blew his mind about his beloved Tom Brady. This is two friends talking about things that don't really matter and things that do. I hope you enjoy it! Download your FREE planner pages here and help me curate content for the show by taking my 2019 podcast survey here Come find me on Instagram or read today's show notes here

You are going to love today's episode. I loved it when I recorded it and loved it when I edited it. Kathleen Edelman joins me. She is an expert on temperaments and recently released a new study called I Said You Heard. It is a 6 week video based study that will help you understand yourself and others better in order to communicate better. We talk about the difference between temperaments and personalities, Kathleen breaks down each of the four temperaments and tells us who they are, what language they speak, what they need, what their strengths and weaknesses are, how to communicate well between temperaments and how to handle conflict better. There is so much good and powerful information in this episode. I think you're gonna love it. Each year I create a survey so that I can make sure that I am serving you well. I would really appreciate it if you would take a few minutes and answer some questions about the show. And as a reward, you will be entered to win a $25 amazon gift card. Go to SarahBragg.com/survey I truly want to help guide you to be the best you that you can be. So let's be friends. Make sure to hit that little subscribe button so you will never miss an episode. And come find me @sarahwbragg on Instagram or twitter or SurvivingSarahPodcast on Facebook. And if you enjoyed this episode, please share it on your social channels and tag me.

Dr. Deborah Tillman joins me today but you may know her best as America's Super Nanny for Lifetime television. She is a child development and parent educator, speaker, author and founder & CEO of Happy Home Child Learning Centers. And today, we have such a helpful conversation. It was like Deborah was in my home being super nanny and helping me to the best parent I can be. We talk about how she became America's Super Nanny, how to handle a strong willed child, how to steer your child in the right direction and how to set boundaries with your kids. Connect with Sarah: show notes // Instagram // Facebook Be sure to sign up for Sarah's newsletter and receive FREE printable downloadable planner pages

I love the start of every year because there is something fresh about it. I love looking back at the previous year at what I loved or what I enjoyed and taking notes of what I'd like to repeat or do more of in the coming year. One thing that I want to do more of this year is to come alongside you to help you navigate life. So each month, I'm going to do an episode from me to you. No guest. Just me. Talking straight to you. For January, I decided to answer a question that I am asked a lot: How do you manage your time? I share with you the tensions we feel when it comes to managing our time, why we need to learn to budget our time, what I personally do to manage my time on a daily and weekly basis. Download your FREE planner pages Connect with Sarah: Instagram // Facebook // Website

I am the producer and host of the podcast Are My Kids on Track where I interview the brilliant Sissy Goff, David Thomas and Melissa Trevathan about the 12 emotional, social and spiritual milestones every kid needs to develop. I thought it would be fun to release one of those episodes here on Surviving Sarah for you to enjoy. These conversations are so very helpful and practical. I highly recommend listening to that podcast--there are only 13 episodes! You can even download discussion questions to go along with them here. You can also purchase their book of the same title here.

I am happy to welcome Nicole Zasowski to the table today. She is a Marriage & Family Therapist in Connecticut where she lives with her husband and son. She's co-authored a couple of books with her mentor written primarily for therapists and she has a book coming out next year. I really loved chatting with Nicole and I practically pushed her in the deep end right off the bat in this conversation about vulnerability. We talked about what vulnerability looks like, how to have courage to show up in the middle of something hard, why vulnerability is the key to having good relationships, how to draw boundaries in relationships and what makes a relationship safe. Sponsors: Download Sarah's FREE new planner Butcher Box - For $20 off your first box and 2 FREE pounds of Salmon go to ButcherBox.com/SURVIVE and enter SURVIVE EveryPlate - For 6 free meals across your first 3 weeks and free shipping on your first delivery, go to EveryPlate.com and enter SURVIVE6 FASTer Way to Fat Loss Today's show notes can be found here and you can connect with Sarah socially here

It's my pleasure to welcome Beth Keener and Greer Howard from The Local Lense to the show today. The Local Lense is an online entertainment media outlet covering entertainment in the south. They have been friends for years and cover entertainment as friends. They want to lift the industry up with positive, approachable and relatable content. Both have a long history of work as actors in the entertainment business. Currently, Greer is the in house reporter for the Atlanta Braves and Beth spent last season working as a side line reporter for Atlanta United. We have a fun conversation about life in the entertainment industry. We talk about how they became friends and ultimately formed a business together, what their roles as sports reporters, advice on how to work well with friends whether in business or just personally, challenges they face working in that industry and how to navigate the pressure to look a certain way. This episode's show notes

I was happy to welcome Kara Kae James back to the show. She is a Surviving Sarah OG appearing way back on Episode 33. She is the founder and executive director of Thrive Moms which is a ministry all about empowering moms. She and her husband have 4 kids and she just launched her first book into the world titled "Mom Up—Thriving With Grace in the Chaos of Motherhood" We have a great conversation about what it looks like to embrace the chaos of motherhood. We talk about practical ways to do that, what helps us cultivate joy and how to take care of yourself during seasons of chaos. Links Mentioned: Previous Surviving Sarah episode with Kara Kae Daring Greatly by Brené Brown Kara Kae's new book: "Mom Up—Thriving With Grace in the Chaos of Motherhood" Show notes for this episode Survival Kit: Audible Apple Air Pods Sponsors: Download Sarah's FREE new planner Connect with Kara Kae James: Instagram // twitter // Facebook // website // Thrive Moms Connect with Sarah: website// Facebook// Instagram// twitter// Pinterest// YouTube

It's time for my favorite episode of the year. Every year, my good friend Merica Stum joins me around the table. We take some time to look back at the previous year and look forward to the next one. We talk about changed for us this year, what we learned, books we read, good habits we started, what was hard, what made us laugh and what surprised us. And then we talked about what we hope to do and look forward to in 2019. We talked about a lot of things so be sure to check out the show notes at SarahBragg.com for any link that we mentioned. I just love the start of a new year. This is the only time where the unknown of what lies ahead feels reassuring than scary. And Merica and I share quite the love of planners. I decided to create something for you. It's a downloadable planner both weekly and daily pages. I've been doing this and it has been the helpful for me—helps me be productive each day and week. Its yours for free at SarahBragg.com/planner Happy New Year friends! I'm excited to journey with you—to be a guide to help you survive this life. Thank you for listening and as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier. Connect with Merica: Instagram Connect with Sarah: website// Facebook// Instagram// twitter// Pinterest// YouTube

Each month I re-release an older episode of Surviving Sarah and I decided to re-release my conversation with Rachel Stafford for December. You may know her as the Hands Free Mama. She is a best selling author penning the books Hands Free Mama, Hands Free Life and Only Love Today. Rachel is one of those people who have been influential in my life—even without her knowing it. I can remember reading her blog back when Sinclair was about 2 or 3 years old and her words were such an encouragement to me. And now we live close to each other and she has been gracious to give me some of her time for morning walks to talk about life, faith, parenting and writing. I think she is such an amazing woman. I chose to put this episode back in your ears because we are standing at the cusp of a new year and I think this conversation will set you up for 2019. This conversation originally took place on the cusp of 2017 and what we discussed greatly impacted me. And I still reference what we talked about often and practice the phrases that we said on a near daily basis. If you want to be the best you that you can be, then this episode is a must listen. Click here for the original show notes from this episode. Connect with Sarah: website// Facebook// Instagram// twitter// Pinterest// YouTube

Here we are, the week before Christmas and the last episode for 2018. And I can't think of a better conversation than this one to leave you with this year. Paige Knudsen joins me around my table. She is one of those women that is further down the road from where I am so I lapped up this conversation like a puppy. She has been married nearly 20 years and they have 4 daughters between the ages of 17-25. But Paige became a widow when she was 30 years old with 3 girls under the age of 3. In this conversation, she shares her journey. She talks about the importance to remember how God has shown up in the past and what that journey of loss was like. This episode is chocked full of goodness—of wisdom, encouragement and hope. I know you are going to enjoy it. So pull up a chair to my table and join the conversation. Be sure to click subscribe so that you never miss an episode. And if you enjoyed this show, please leave a 5 star rating and review on iTunes. Links Mentioned: Surviving Sarah episodes with Rachel Faulkner Brown and Brittany Price Brooker Survival Kit: Journaling La Labo candles - enjoying your senses Sponsors: Surviving the Holiday Hustle: Tips to Enjoy the Season - click here to download your FREE copy Connect with Paige: Website // Facebook // Instagram Connect with Sarah: website// Facebook// Instagram// twitter// Pinterest// YouTube

Tricia Goyer joins me today and I have been anxiously awaiting the day that I could share this episode because I found it to be so helpful to me as a parent. Not only is Tricia the author to 70 books (yes you heard that right), but she is also the mom to 10 kids (you also heard that right). When she and her husband were on the verge of being empty nesters with 3 kids, they decided to start over. They have adopted 7 kids and some through adoption via foster care. If anyone has the experience to talk about parenting, it is Tricia. I invited Tricia to the show to talk about her latest book, Calming Angry Kids. This is a topic that so many of us struggle with—it is often what makes parenting so hard. We talk about how trauma is connected to why some kids are angry, how to not take your child's anger personally, tools to help calm your child and how to calm yourself when you feel your temperature rising. Sponsors: Teami Blends - Go to TeamiBlends.com and use the code SURVIVING for 20% off your order of $34.99 Lasting - Surviving Sarah listeners can unlock the entire app and get your first month of Lasting Premium for just ninety-nine cents by visiting getlasting.com/survive and using the offer code survive. Surviving the Holiday Hustle: Tips to Enjoy the Season - click here to download your FREE copy Connect with Tricia: Website // Facebook // Instagram // twitter // Pinterest // Podcast Connect with Sarah: website // Facebook // Instagram // twitter // Pinterest // YouTube

Kimberly Stuart joins me today and I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed this conversation. She is the author of 8 novels, including her most recent book, Heart Land. Her books have been featured in Cosmopolitan, Huff Post and the Chicago Sun-Times. She has a passion to write chemistry-driven, smart romance. I knew from the initial email she sent me that she would be the kind of person I would enjoy chatting with and the kind of author I would enjoy reading. In this episode, we talk about the loss of the rom com, our favorite rom com stories, the challenges of writing romantic novels and why it's important to read fiction. Links Mentioned: Kimberly's latest book: Heart Land Kimberly mentioned this book: Sugar Survival Kit: Educated by Tara Westover Books by Marisa De los Santos specifically Love Walked In and I'll Be Your Blue Sky JOYN Sponsors: Teami Blends - Go to TeamiBlends.com and use the code SURVIVING for 20% off your order of $34.99 EveryPlate - For 50% off your first box of EveryPlate, go to EveryPlate.com and enter the code SURVIVE Surviving the Holiday Hustle: Tips to Enjoy the Season - click to download your FREE copy Connect with Kimberly: Website // Facebook // Instagram Connect with Sarah: Website // Facebook // Instagram // twitter Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Each month I want to put an episode back in your ears that was released earlier in the life of the show. And this month, I have one of my favorites for you. It's my conversation with Jamie B. Golden from the Popcast with Knox & Jamie and the Bible Binge. I love having fun and laughing and this episode doesn't disappoint. I have been friends with Jamie for a long time and its been so fun to watch their business grow and thrive. It's wild how much has changed since this episode first aired. We talk about how she became a full-time podcaster and cake pop baker. As a single woman, God called her to quit her reliable, full-time job in order to walk blindly into a new season. She talks about how she discovered what her skills were in the midst of being a Jill of all trades. plus, she shares a never before told story about her childhood to which She now has issues with her mailbox (counseling may be needed). Click here for the show notes for this episode. You can find me on Instagram, twitter, Facebook and my website. Let's continue the conversation!

It's that time again for another crossover episode with my good friend, Melanie Dale. Each month, Melanie and I sit down and have a conversation about a topic that we are both surviving and that we could lighten up about. So one part is here and the part of the conversation is on her show, Lighten Up with Melanie Dale. So be sure to hop over there when are you are finished listening to this one. Today, we talk about the jobs we dreamed of having as kids, what work looked like for us before and after having kids, ways to be present wherever you are, tips to be more efficient and some survival skills when it comes to managing your family. Sponsors: Lasting - Surviving Sarah listeners can unlock the entire app and get your first month of Lasting Premium for just ninety-nine cents by visiting getlasting.com/survive and using the offer code SURVIVE. The Gift That I Can Give by Kathie Lee Gifford - get 30% off with code SURVIVE. Visit Store.Faithgateway.com and apply the code at checkout to redeem your offer! What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or Website Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Tasha Morrison joins me around the table. She is a bridge-builder, reconciler and compelling voice in the fight for racial justice. We talk about where to start when it comes to building bridges between races, why black lives matter, and how people of faith should be leading the way when it comes to justice. And just in time before you head to your family's house for the holidays, I ask her what to do if a friend or family member says something that you know is offensive. This is such an important conversation for us to have and I'm thankful for Tasha leading the way. Links Mentioned: Be The Bridge Sponsors: Follain - For only $22 (that's over 50% off!) try the Clean Essentials Kit today. Go to F-O-L-L-A-I-N dot com/SURVIVE to try the kit and enter SURVIVE at the checkout for FREE SHIPPING. The Gift That I Can Give by Kathie Lee Gifford - get 30% off with code SURVIVE. Visit Store.Faithgateway.com and apply the code at checkout to redeem your offer! Connect with Tasha: Website // Facebook // twitter // Instagram What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or SarahBragg.com Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Shannan Martin joins me again around the table. Shannan is one of those people that I would love to just be her neighbor. She is the author of Falling Free and her latest book, The Ministry of Ordinary Places: Waking Up to God's Goodness Around You. She and her husband, Cory, have four kids and many years ago they chose to move from their dream home to the other side of the tracks. If you haven't heard Shannan's story, I encourage you to listen to Episode 16 which can only be accessed at SarahBragg.com. Today's episode picks up where that conversation left off. We talk about how to go about loving your neighbor. We talk about the art of paying attention and how the art of listening holds tremendous power. Your life will be changed for the better in the first 10 minutes of the show due to some conversation about cooking. Links Mentioned: Shannan as a guest on Surviving Sarah episode 16 Shannan's books: Falling Free and The Ministry of Ordinary Places: Waking Up to God's Goodness Around You Smitten Kitchen Here's the latest sheet pan recipe I've been cooking Sponsors: Lasting - Surviving Sarah listeners can unlock the entire app and get your first month of Lasting Premium for just ninety-nine cents by visiting getlasting.com/survive and using the offer code SURVIVE. Butcher Box - For $20 off your first box and a package of free bacon in every box for the life of your subscription, go to ButcherBox.com/SURVIVE and enter SURVIVE The Gift That I Can Give by Kathie Lee Gifford - get 30% off with code SURVIVE. Visit Store.Faithgateway.com and apply the code at checkout to redeem your offer! What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or online at SarahBragg.com Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

I am excited to welcome Jessica Honegger to the table today. She is the Founder and Co-CEO of Noonday Collection and the author of the book Imperfect Courage. She is someone who knows all too well what stepping out in fear looks like. We talk about what it looks like to step out when you are afraid, what going scared looks like, how the power of showing up in a vulnerable way can build authentic relationships and how judging others is connected to how you see yourself. Links Mentioned: Jessica's book: Imperfect Courage: Live a Life of Purpose by Leaving Comfort and Going Scared Sponsors: Audible - Start a 30-day trial and get your first audiobook for FREE by visiting Audible.com/SURVIVE or text SURVIVE to 500500 The Gift That I Can Give by Kathie Lee Gifford - get 30% off with code SURVIVE. Visit Store.Faithgateway.com and apply the code at checkout to redeem your offer! What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or SarahBragg.com Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

It's that time again for another crossover episode with my good friend, Melanie Dale. Each month, Melanie and I sit down and have a conversation about a topic that we are both surviving and that we could lighten up about. So one part is here and the part of the conversation is on her show, Lighten Up with Melanie Dale. So be sure to hop over there when are you are finished listening to this one. Today's topic is near and dear to my heart and I have been having all the thoughts and feelings about it. We have a whole conversation about failure. We talk about what we learned about failure early on, how rejection is connected to failure, and how fear plays a role. So much good stuff packed in a small window of time. Links: Lighten Up with Melanie Dale crossover show with Surviving Sarah Daring Greatly by Brené Brown Infreakinfertility by Melanie Dale Crossover episodes with Melanie about marriage here & here Sponsors: EveryPlate - For $50 off your first box of EveryPlate, go to EveryPlate.com and enter the code SURVIVE Lasting - Surviving Sarah listeners can unlock the entire app and get your first month of Lasting Premium for just ninety-nine cents by visiting getlasting.com/survive and using the offer code SURVIVE. What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter Be sure to sign up for my monthly survival kit newsletter over at SarahBragg.com Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Linda Kay Klein, the author of PURE: Inside the Evangelical Movement that Shamed a Generation of Young Women and How I Broke Free, joins me today. She is the founder of Break Free Together, an organization committed to helping people claim their whole selves—mind, spirit, and body. Linda's work has been featured on NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross, Elle.com, GoodHousekeeping.com, and many others. Linda is a trained Our Whole Lives (OWL) sexuality education facilitator and Vice Chair of the Board for the Forum for Theological Exploration. She holds an interdisciplinary Masters degree from NYU, where she focused on American Evangelical Christian sex and gender messaging for girls. By the title of the book alone, you can tell where this conversation is heading. If you grew up in the True Love Waits or I Kissed Dating Goodbye culture then you will find this very interesting. We talk about growing up during the purity movement, where this movement came from and what it was a reaction to. We also talk about the fear and shame that have been used as external motivations for purity and how we can start building a healthy conversation around sexuality. This conversation may be uncomfortable or awkward or it may cause you to feel frustrated. But this is such an important conversation for us to have especially if you grew up in the purity movement and especially if you are now parenting kids after growing up through that movement. We have to be aware of the shame that we carry—we can't build shame resilient kids if we don't address our own shame. And we have to be committed to figure out how to have conversations around sexuality that don't include shame. Links Mentioned: Linda's book: PURE: Inside the Evangelical Movement that Shamed a Generation of Young Women and How I Broke Free Daring Greatly by Brenè Brown Linda's organization Break Free Together Connect: SarahBragg.com Sarah on Instagram & twitter & FB Shownotes Sponsors: Warby Parker - for FREE Home Try-On Kit go to warbyparker.com/survive

With this being infant loss awareness week, I wanted to re-release my conversation with Sarah Rieke. She is a kind hearted, gentle spirited woman who has suffered the loss of children and has a passion to walk with women who also suffer loss. We talk about grieving and fear and what she would say to a women walking a similar path. She also has a podcast called Heart Lessons so if you are looking for more from her be sure to check that out. You can find the show notes to this episode here. Come find me... Website // Instagram // twitter // Facebook

Crystal Stine joins me today. She is a mom to a 6 year old little girl and she married her high school sweetheart. Professionally, she is an author, speaker and freelance communications consultant. Her first book Holy Hustle: Embracing a Work Hard, Rest Well Lifestyle came out this summer. So we talk about what a holy hustle is, what it looks like to honor God in both our work and our rest and how manage the tension between both. Links Mentioned: Crystal's book: Holy Hustle: Embracing a Work Hard, Rest Well Lifestyle Kimberly Stuart's book: Heart Land Love God Greatly Sponsors: RXBAR - RXBAR is offering you an exclusive pack of 6 Adult bars and 4 Kid bars so the whole family is able to enjoy! For 25% off your first order, visit RXBAR.com/SURVIVE and enter promo code: SURVIVE at checkout. What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Ellie Holcomb joins me around my virtual kitchen table. This was the first time we've met and she is such a delight! I'm sure if you've ever heard her on another show or seen her in concert then that comes as no surprise. She makes you feel like you've been friends forever. If you don't know who Ellie is, she is a singer/songwriter, mother to 3 and wife to Drew Holcomb who is also a musician. We recorded this episode way back in July when she was fully pregnant with their third. She has since welcomed Samuel Rivers Holcomb to the world. This conversation feels like we are all joining her on her front porch with a cool drink in hand. We talk about what's its like to manage the tension of living out her dreams in regards to work while also living out the dreams of being a mom; we talk about how she handles the tensions around social media; we talk about what she wants her kids to know and understand and how that connects to the new children's book and EP that she just released. Links Mentioned: Surviving Sarah episode with Sandra Stanley Sarah Bragg's book Body. Beauty. Boys. The Truth About Girls and How We See Ourselves Ellie's book Who Sang The First Song and EP Thoughts That Make Your Heart Sing by Sally Lloyd Jones Are My Kids on Track podcast and book Sponsors: FASTer Way to Fat Loss What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Karla Akins, mother of 5, educator and author joins me today to have a conversation about her book A Pair of Miracles: A Story of Autism, Faith and Determined Parenting. Karla and her husband adopted twin boys 23 years ago who later were diagnosed with autism. One thing I like about Karla's perspective is that she has parented through the stages. Her boys are 23 now. If you are a parent of a kid with autism, I think you will benefit from that perspective. We talk about facing hardship, helpful tips for parenting autistic kids, advice on how to handle siblings and what helped her when she was in the thick of raising her boys. Links: Karla's book: A Pair of Miracles: A Story of Autism, Faith and Determined Parenting Surviving Sarah episode with Dr. Caroline Leaf on how the mind can change the brain What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

It's that time again for another crossover episode with my good friend, Melanie Dale. Each month, Melanie and I sit down and have a conversation about a topic that we are both surviving and that we could lighten up about. So one part is here and the part of the conversation is on her show, Lighten Up with Melanie Dale. So be sure to hop over there when are you are finished listening to this one. Today, two non-fashion blogger girls talk about how we survive the fashion world. We talk about our fashion icons growing up, some embarrassing clothing moments, our favorite fashion season, where we shop, our make up survival kit and where fashion & faith intersect for us. It was a fun conversation with lots of laughter. Links: Lighten Up with Melanie Dale crossover show with Surviving Sarah Check out some of my favorite fashion pieces here Sponsors: Hello Fresh - For a total of $60 off, that's $20 off your first 3 boxes, visit HelloFresh.com/surviving60 and enter SURVIVING60 at checkout. What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Jessica Turner joins me today. She is the author of Stretched Too Thin: How Working Moms Can Lose the Guilt, Work Smarter, and Thrive. She is also the founder of the lifestyle blog, The Mom Creative AND she works full-time in corporate America. Her family includes three kids (ages 10, 7 and 3) and her husband, Matthew. Her new book is like a practical handbook to help coach you when you feel stretched too thin—to help you find your rhythm and discover a life of contentment where you are. We start by talking about some unsaid pressures we face when it comes to being working moms and the guilt that sometimes follows. And then we dive into some very practical Survival Skills or life hacks if you will. We talk about what to do about food, home management, self-care, commuting and school participation. So many good practical tips were tucked into this conversation—I think you're gonna love it. Sponsors: True Botanicals - Go to truebotanicals.com now to get free samples, and receive $20 off orders of $40 or more off your first purchase with the code SURVIVE RXBAR - RXBAR is offering you an exclusive pack of 6 Adult bars and 4 Kid bars so the whole family is able to enjoy! For 25% off your first order, visit RXBAR.com/SURVIVE and enter promo code: SURVIVE at checkout. Green Chef - For $50 off your first box of Green Chef, go to GreenChef.us/SURVIVE What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

I wanted to re-release my chat with Kay Warren where she talks about walking through the suicide of her son since it is suicide prevention week. If you don't know her already, she is the co-founder of Saddleback Church, pastor Rick Warren's wife and an advocate for people living with mental illness, HIV&AIDS and for orphaned and vulnerable children. You quickly can tell that she wants to be a voice for those who cannot speak for themselves. We talk about signs of mental illness in your kids, what its like being a parent of a child who suffers, practical ways the church can do to change the conversation about mental illness and suicide and her advice that every pastor's wife needs to know. What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway? Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or online at SarahBragg.com

I am so thrilled to have Jen Hatmaker join me at the table. Jen has been a household name for me for many years. She is someone who has always made me laugh and made me think. She has worked in ministry for all her adult life alongside her husband, Brandon. They have 5 kids ranging from 12-20 and when we recorded this episode, she was about to take her daughter across the country to college. She is an author, speaker, podcaster who loves people and Jesus deeply. We have an honest conversation about faith. We talk about her faith journey, learning to ask questions, how exposure can be the best teacher and giving your kids the permission to make their faith their own. I know that not everyone listening agrees with everything that will be said. But here is what I love about conversations like this: when you allow yourself to have a conversation with someone and you enter the conversation with a posture of curiosity, you'll find that empathy and kindness follows. I want to invite you to enter the conversation that way. So pull up a chair and join the conversation. Sponsors: Butcher Box - For $20 off your first box and 2lbs of FREE ground beef in every box for the life of your subscription, go to ButcherBox.com/SURVIVE and enter SURVIVE What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Today's guest is Emily Vogeltanz. She's a mom, wife, a country girl living in the city, and a church builder. She has worked with Passion Conference + Passion City Church for 16+ years in various roles. She currently helps lead Passion City Cumberland and the Grove which is a monthly women's gathering. I was so excited to sit across the table from her. We talk about marriage, kids, ministry, fear, travel, dreams and what we want most of our own hearts to believe. This is one of those episodes that is packed full of goodness—that feels like you literally sat down with a friend over coffee. I'm so excited to invite you to pull up a chair to the table. Links: Passion City Church The Grove Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Holis Surviving Sarah with Suzanne Stabile (enneagram) and Sarah as a guest on Suzanne's show, The Enneagram Journey Sponsors: Care/of - for 25% off first month of personalized Care/of vitamins use code SURVIVE True Botanicals - get free samples and receive $20 off orders of $40 or more off your first purchase with the code SURVIVE What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

It's that time again for another crossover episode with my good friend, Melanie Dale. Each month, Melanie and I sit down and have a conversation about a topic that we are both surviving and that we could lighten up about. So one part is here and the part of the conversation is on her show, Lighten Up with Melanie Dale. So be sure to hop over there when are you are finished listening to this one. This month we are talking about our emotions—specifically about anger. We talk about the last time we were angry, what triggers our anger, what helps us control our anger and what helps us control the anger before we erupt like a volcano. Links: Lighten Up with Melanie Dale crossover show with Surviving Sarah Rising Strong by Brene Brown Are My Kids On Track podcast & book Feelings Chart She's Gonna Blow by Julie Barnhill - Surviving Sarah episode 80 Triggers by Wendy Speake & Amber Lia - Surviving Sarah episode 10 Calming Angry Kids by Tricia Goyer Lisa Jo Baker on anger Sponsors: True Botanicals (Amazon affiliate links used when possible--purchasing through these links is an easy way to support the show. Or shop using www.SurvivingSarah.com/amazon and a portion of the what you buy will go back to the show.) What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Sarah Beckman joins me today. She is a mother to 3 kids between the ages of 17-21. If you are a mother entering in the high school phase, she would be a great person to friend. Our conversation is focused around her book which is called Alongside: A Practical Guide For Loving Your Neighbor in Their Time of Trial. We have a practical conversation around how to come alongside someone you knew who is walking through a difficult season or circumstance. We talk about what loving your neighbor really looks like, excuses we often give to not step in and what we can do in light of each excuse. What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Hettie Brittz joins me for today's episode. She has been married to her husband for 25 years and they have three kids (2 teenagers and one in college). She is also a speaker, author, and a foremost voice in parenting advice and personality styles. She is from South Africa but is currently residing in the United States. She has created a course to help people understand how they are wired and codeveloped the Tall Trees Profile which helps parents understand their child's temperament. I have to say that this was one of my favorite conversations. There is something vulnerable about it. I have a great desire to understand myself better and to understand my children better. We have a conversation about how understanding how you are wired will help you parent better; how working with traumatized kids helped her see how understanding temperaments was the key to helping unlock the heart and she unpacked the different temperament types. She said, "When you understand what our kids need, we get the motivation to parent." What we talked about gave me so much hope. I felt understood. And I started to understand my girls better. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did. Links: Hettie's books: (Un) Natural Mom and Growing Kids with Character Strength Finder book Tall Trees Profile and Tall Trees Profile Assessment for Kids What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

Elizabeth Grace Saunders joins me today from my new kitchen table. Our family moved into a new rental home back in July and it was fun to record the inaugural episode around my kitchen table in the new house. Elizabeth is an internationally recognized expert on effective time management and the founder of Real Life E Time Coaching and Speaking. She joins me today to talk about the idea of divine time management which is all about aligning yourself with God's heart. We talk about why we feel guilty for resting; where to start when it comes to organizing our day; why we tend to say yes to everything; and advice for how to prioritize our time during a busy season. Links: Divine Time Management by Elizabeth Grace Saunders What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

It's that time again for another crossover episode with my good friend, Melanie Dale. And if you are new to the show and haven't heard one of these episodes you are in for a treat! Each month, Melanie and I sit down and have a conversation about a topic that we are both surviving and that we could lighten up about. So one part is here and the part of the conversation is on her show, Lighten Up with Melanie Dale. So be sure to hop over there when are you are finished listening to this one. This month we are talking about going back to school. Can you believe summer is over??? We talk about our favorite grades growing up, being our kid's advocate at school, tips on how to relate to your kids' teachers in non-overbearing ways, how we handle homework and first day of school traditions. Links: Lighten Up with Melanie Dale crossover show with Surviving Sarah What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

I am so excited to welcome Heather MacFadyen to the show today. You likely know her from the God Centered Mom podcast. She's been hosting that show for 5 years! If you don't know her already, she's a mom to 4 boys. We talk about fears that we have and how fear is the root problem to other emotions we have like anger; we talk about guilt and shame in motherhood and what to do when shame is driving your identity. What did you enjoy about this episode? What was your takeaway. Let's continue the conversation on Instagram or Twitter or you can send me an email here. Thank you for following along life with me. I love being apart of your day. And as always, I hope this show helps you survive a little easier.

I am so excited to share this conversation with you. Dr. Caroline Leaf sat down across the virtual kitchen table with me a few months ago. She is a is a communication pathologist and cognitive neuroscientist. Since the early 1980s she has researched the mind-brain connection, the nature of mental health and the formation of memory. She was one of the first in her field to study how the brain can change (neuroplasticity) with directed mind input. She has helped hundreds of thousands of students and adults learn how to use their mind to detox and grow their brain to succeed in every area of their lives, including school, university and the workplace. Her passion is to help people see the power of the mind to change the brain, and to see the link between science and spirituality through controlling their thoughts and emotions, learning how to think and learn, and finding their sense of purpose in life. You guys I was so nervous to talk with her because she is just so very smart. I felt like I would be out of my league, but Dr. Leaf is truly delightful. And as we talk, its evident that she has a huge heart for people to have hope and life change. Did you know that when we as Jesus followers talk about taking thoughts captive that science actually backs that up? What we talk about over the next 30 minutes is fascinating. We talk about the connection between science and faith, how you have the power to turn on your brain in order to get rid of toxins, the science behind captivating your thoughts, how to change your mind and how to help our kids learn to change their thought patterns. I loved this episode and hope you do, too. Links: Dr. Caroline Leaf YouTube channel - you definitely want to subscribe to this! 21 Day Detox A good starting point to learn more is to read her book Switch On Your Brain Other books by Dr. Leaf Her newest book comes out July 31! Think, Learn, Succeed: Understanding and Using Your Mind to Thrive at School, the Workplace and Life ShowNotes to this episode Did you enjoy today's conversation? Rate the podcast. My goal each week is to encourage you to survive in this very thing called life. If you were encouraged or inspired or entertained, head over to iTunes and leave a brief review with a 5 star rating.