The Motherscope Podcast

Hold onto your butts. This week, I’m talking about a movie I’ve probably watched 100 times and know by heart – Jurassic Park. Spielberg’s beloved dinosaur film ranks high on my list of influential films in my life. I didn’t think I could learn something new about this movie but, in light of the Supreme Court’s recent overturn of Roe v. Wade, I’m interpreting familiar scenes and characters with a whole new perspective. What does Jurassic Park have to do with birth control, conception, nuclear families, and reproductive rights? Is it perpetuating a pro-life agenda? Tune in to hear my thoughts.  Visit this episode's blog post here. Connect with Jackie on Instagram.

Since we’ve been talking about motherhood and its portrayal in the media, I wanted to bring on a couple of guests who can help us dive into representation in books as well. Mia Sutton & Sarah Hartley, hosts of the Reading Through Life podcast, join me on the episode and share some great tips on how to read more and why they like reading books about moms that have more dimension. They also share their top five book recommendations just in time for summer reading. Whether you’d already call yourself a reader or you want to get to that point, you’ll love listening in on this episode. Visit this episode's blog post here. Connect with Jackie on Instagram.

On The Motherscope Podcast, I’m talking about a show that really took me by surprise – Netflix’s The Crown. It took me a while to be open to watching it – even after hearing from many people how great it was. Even though I’ve grown up with a general awareness of the Royal Family gossip, I realized while watching that I knew very little about Queen Elizabeth and the current British monarchy. Now that I’ve seen all four current seasons, I can say I appreciate this show for its history lessons, the drama, its critical eye, and for offering a peek into a world none of us will ever truly know – to include the inner conflicts of the members of the British Royal Family. When my podcast manager and soon-to-be mom of two, Haley, learned of our theme for Season 2 of the podcast, she asked if I’d be covering The Crown, because it’s one of her go-tos. So of course, we had to make an episode for it happen, and I’m so glad we did. Enjoy.  Visit this episode's blog post here.  Connect with Jackie on Instagram.

Today’s episode is a continuation of last week’s episode with Diana Levy that’s all about The Real Housewives franchise, so if you haven’t listened to that, be sure to head over before diving into this week’s conversation. You can find it in your podcast player or using the link below. Today, Diana is doing more and more to convince me that The Real Housewives might just be the most feminist franchise on television as we continue to breakdown marriage, motherhood, and more within the different series. Enjoy (I know I did)!  Visit this episode's blog post here. Connect with Jackie on Instagram.

Welcome to the newest episode of The Motherscope Podcast! This week I’m excited to chat about the Real Housewives franchise with somebody who is more well versed than I could ever be on this lively series that spans many years, many locations, and many topics. I wanted to bring back a guest who I've interviewed before, Diana Levy, and when I asked her if she was interested, she told me she could “write a dissertation” on this franchise – and she definitely delivers and makes a compelling argument for why it’s one of the most feminist series on TV today. Even though I've only watched a couple of the shows, I still clearly have a lot to say about it too – so much so, that we needed to break this up into two parts. I'm looking forward to sharing Part 1 of our conversation with you today! Visit this episode's blog post here. Connect with Jackie on Instagram.

What if we stopped apologizing for the mess in our homes? If you’re like me, a lot of the time the mess we admit to is not what our actual mess and clutter looks like. I know it’s easy to be worried about the judgment, so much so that we overcorrect. Which brings me to today’s episode with Courtney Florey – we are chatting about the popularity of decluttering and organization thanks to shows like The Home Edit and Tidying Up with Marie Kondo. Courtney is a decluttering coach and she has a lot of practical advice for decluttering our spaces that are often not realistically portrayed on these popular shows. It’s time to shed the unrealistic expectations and guilt that we attach to the look of our homes, and focus instead on creating spaces that serve us and our families. I hope this episode is full of tangible steps and motivation for you! Visit this episode's blog post here.  Connect with Jackie on Instagram.

Is there a show that you’ve been watching for a really long time and you don’t know why? For me, this is Grey’s Anatomy. The show has definitely derailed a bit from its original cast and even plot and it’s becoming harder and harder to watch these days. It’s hard to deny how captivating the show was in its prime and in rewatching recently, I’ve especially noticed all of the nuanced ways that motherhood is represented. Joining me today to talk about the good, the bad, and the “Grey” this week is Megan Vos, an amazing writer, Motherscope’s new Community Coordinator, and fellow Grey’s and Shonda Rhimes fan. You’ll hear about the characters we can relate to most, the impact of having Shonda Rhimes as the creator of the show, and much more. Whether you’re a fan or not, I think you will appreciate the characters we talk about and the situations they find themselves in.  Visit this episode's blog post here. Connect with Jackie on Instagram.

Today we have show veteran on The Motherscope Podcast, Colleen Tirtirian. Something I love about Colleen is that she sees the humor of motherhood and really leans into that to cope with some of the harder parts of motherhood. We embrace both the humor and seriousness of motherhood into our conversation about Workin’ Moms (Reitman, 2017) to you today. We focus primarily on the first season and we had a lot to say about the origin of the show, the show’s creator, and how Workin’ Moms can be both abrasive and truthful about the messy realities of motherhood. This is one of the first shows that we’ve covered that is written and produced by all women, and I think it’s easy to see the differences. Listen in and let me know what you think!  Visit this episode's blog post here. Connect with Jackie on Instagram: @motherscope

It's been a while since I've done a solo episode, so I'm looking forward to chatting with you today about the Netflix original series, Ozark, created by Bill Dubuque and Mark Williams (2017). I’ve casually shared about Ozark a few times on social media and every time, I get a response from many of you, so I'm excited because I think there are a number of fans of the show who might be listening. Ozark is very different from any other show that I tend to watch, and yet, I have so much I have to say about it. I’m sharing why I believe the women of the show are the driving forces of its success and the unique portrayal of – and at times mysterious emphasis on – motherhood throughout each season.    Visit this episode's blog post here. Connect with Jackie on Instagram: @motherscope.

Today’s episode is the second part of my conversation with Dr. Rose Schlaff, so if you haven’t tuned into last week’s episode, be sure to do that before listening to this week. We are continuing our discussion on the consequences of sex in the media. Specifically, today we are talking about different things we can do to combat the negative influence of sex as it has been depicted and ways that we can deepen our relationships with ourselves and with our partners. I can’t wait to hear your takeaways now that our full conversation has been published!  Visit this episode's blog post here. Connect with Jackie on Instagram: @motherscope. Connect with Rose on Instagram: @bewellwithrose