e069 - Loving Your Blending Family ft Jamie Murray

Hey Mamas, Today's episode is one that I am certain many of you will enjoy listening to as we talk about all things blended families. Let's face it, no longer is our family structure rigid and nuclear. In fact, blended families have always existed, but only over the last handful of decades have we as a society been more open and accepting of them. Raising children is hard work. Marriage is hard work. Navigating family dynamics in any family is hard work. But what happens when you're doing it all over again, in a new relationship and you both have children from prior relationships, and you come together to have an "our baby"? Yep, that's right, things get incredibly messy, but they are oh so worth it. And that is what we are going to talk about today. We are going to hang in the grey areas of motherhood and parenting, the ones we know we want to talk about, but aren't shared enough. Here's to every single mom, dad, and child navigating their perfectly unique blended family! Say hello to Jamie Murray, a CFO at the commercial construction company she owns and operates with her husband, and now author to the much-anticipated new book out in April titled, “How Many Kids Do You Have?” Jamie became a mother at seventeen years old, then went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and a Master of Arts degree in Women’s Studies at Texas Woman’s University in North Texas. Before becoming an entrepreneur and author, Jamie was a high school English teacher for many years. Today she spends her days juggling the demands of running a family, a business and building a brand centered around saying out loud, what blended families all over the world are managing in silence. Jamie met her husband a decade ago, and each brought children from previous relationships. For years, Jamie struggled to balance her role as mom and stepmom, while trying to create a bonded blended family. After years of fruitlessly searching for a resource that reflected her family’s journey, she finally decided to create it for herself. Below are some key takeaways from today's episode: 💡It is up to each of us to accept that we are not just like every other family. Our family dynamics are intense and rooted in heartbreak. That does not mean the world needs our blended families to succeed any less. 💡 Love all the children in your blend—mind, body, and soul—unequivocally, that is what matters most. Everything else is unnecessary. You might not be able to control court orders or custody arrangements, but you can control how you show up as a parent, to all children, including yourself. 💡We each have our own unique histories that make their way into the blend that is our blended family. We need not pretend each other’s personal history does not impact our family in the present. Our future could drastically change if we approached each other and the past experiences we being with us, with grace so we can evolve together, as a family. To connect with Jamie, follow her on Instagram at @howmanykidsdoyouhave Get your signed copy of Jamie's book here and start having the blended conversations today! I hope you enjoyed listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed recording it! Please pay it forward to and share, share, share this episode and your takeaways on social media and tag us @ygtmama #youvegotthismamapodcast. Subscribe + Rate + Leave us a review as it helps get our message get in front of more incredible women who need this. Until next week! Sabrina