After Hours With Amanda

Latest Episodes:

Maybe You’re Not Behind, Maybe You’re Still Becoming | After Hours With Amanda Season 6 - Ep. 1 Jun 08, 2026

Show notes

Season six is here, and I’m catching you up on life, summer, middle school survival, my solo Disney day, and the very real feeling of not being where I thought I would be by this point in the year.

This episode is about the mid year reset we do not always know we need. I’m talking about changing directions, showing up without waiting for motivation, letting go of shame, and remembering that not being where you want to be does not mean you are behind.

Maybe you are not failing. Maybe you are still becoming.

00:00 This Is Your 30 Minutes

00:55 Welcome to Season Six

01:42 Surviving Middle School and Summer

03:01 A New Recording Space

04:45 My Solo Disney Day

05:44 When Your Plans Don’t Happen

07:27 June as a Mirror

08:35 You’re Not Behind

09:58 One Day or Day One

12:38 Changing Directions Isn’t Quitting

14:12 The Pressure to Know Your Path

16:28 Stop Worshiping the Result

19:49 Enjoying the Process

22:41 The Middle Is Not the Ending

24:20 Showing Up Without a Perfect Plan

26:06 Still Becoming

Stay in Line for Your Dream | After Hours With Amanda Season 5 - Ep. 12 Apr 10, 2026

Show notes

In this episode, I’m talking about anxiety, timing, dream chasing, and the coffee line analogy that changed how I see waiting. Just because someone else gets the dream before you does not mean yours is not coming. The only way you do not get your coffee is if you get out of line.

I’m also sharing about health anxiety, mammograms, meditation, glimmers of gratitude, keeping promises to myself, advocating for my body, and learning that authenticity starts with being honest with myself.

This one is for anyone who feels behind, scared, or tired of waiting. Stay in line, boo.

00:00 Surprise, I Missed This
00:19 Finding the Rhythm Again
01:37 Tiny People Are Still the Priority
01:54 Troop Beverly Hills and Disneyland Updates
03:36 Classes, Mammograms, and Health Check Ins
04:36 Timing, Anxiety, and Dream Chasing
05:57 Becoming Before Reaching the Goal
07:38 The Coffee Line Analogy
09:12 Glimmers of Gratitude While You Wait
10:39 Anxiety, Scripture, and Being Present
11:34 Health Anxiety Before a Mammogram
13:01 Life Can Change in an Instant
15:11 Becoming Ready for the Dream
16:10 Finding the Fear Under the Trigger
17:53 Authenticity Starts With Yourself
20:36 Meditation and Listening to My Body
23:35 I Used to Think I Had to Prove Myself
26:36 Stop Proving, Start Showing Up
27:34 Keeping Promises Builds Self Trust
30:18 Learning What Works for My Body
32:42 Other People’s Opinions and Anxiety
35:24 What Anxiety and Dreams Have in Common
36:08 The Thought Is a Passenger, Not the Driver
37:51 Information Is Not Intimacy
40:18 Advocating for Myself
42:08 Being Bold Enough to Trust Yourself
43:17 The Journey Is the Becoming
45:19 Showing Up for Yourself Means Saying No
47:14 Focus on Becoming, Not Just Arriving

Date Your Spouse Like You’re Still Learning Them | After Hours With Amanda Season 5 - Ep. 11 Feb 27, 2026

Show notes

In this episode, I’m talking about the sweetest Disney Pandora surprise, why the Tiana charm felt like a hug from my mom and big J, and how those little glimmers can remind us to keep going when life does not look how we pictured it.

Then we get into marriage, miscommunication, keeping score, serving each other when we are both tired, and what it really means to date your spouse like you are still learning them. I’m not speaking as an expert. I’m just sharing what I’m learning in real time with Blake, life, grief, dreams, and all the tiny chaos in between.

00:00 We Took a Week Off
01:00 Laguna Beach and a Little Disclaimer
02:29 The Pandora Surprise
08:25 Looking for the Princess Charms
10:42 Why Tiana Means So Much
14:26 Snail Mail From a Princess
15:18 The Charm That Felt Like a Hug
17:45 Keep Going When You Feel Behind
20:16 You Are Right Where You Need to Be
21:46 When the Emotional Board Turns Back On
25:10 Marriage, Miscommunication, and No Judgment
26:59 Date Your Spouse Like You’re Still Learning Them
29:34 Giving All Day and Keeping Score
33:41 Coming Back With a Servant’s Heart
41:28 Learning Each Other Again
45:05 The Heart Posture of Repair
48:09 The Boxes We Keep Unpacking
51:03 Glimmers, Prayer, and Encouragement

Your Child Is Not Your Mini Me | After Hours With Amanda Season 5 - Ep. 10 Feb 13, 2026

Show notes

In this episode, I’m talking about why our tiny humans are not our mini mes, even when they look like us, sound like us, or remind us of ourselves. This one is about parenting without projecting, seeing their hearts before assuming their intent, and remembering that behavior is often communication, not just a power struggle.

I’m also getting into terrible twos, big feelings, labels, inner child moments, asking better questions, and learning to let my tiny queens grow beyond the version of them I thought I knew.

Come sit with me for this one. It might call us out a little, but lovingly.

00:00 Three for Three, Baby
00:44 Blind Boxes and Little Joys
02:12 Disneyland, Coffee, and Life Catch Up
04:02 This One Might Call Us Out
09:35 The Comment That Started It
11:19 Why Mini Me Bothers Me
13:04 When We Project Our Story Onto Kids
15:10 Listening Before Assuming
19:05 Stop Boxing Tiny Humans In
20:06 The Terrible Twos Reframe
23:20 Behavior Is Communication
26:38 Letting Them Grow Beyond Our Version
29:34 Questions That Help You Know Them
34:54 Empathy for Them and Yourself
41:44 Making Room for Their Hearts

Progress and Presence Beat Perfect Parenting | After Hours With Amanda Season 5 - Ep. 9 Feb 06, 2026

Show notes

In this episode, I’m talking about a morning where I messed up as a mom, said something that wounded, and realized I could not just wait until the end of the day to repair it. So I used my lunch break, pulled one of the tiny queens out of school, apologized, got Chick fil A, opened blind boxes, and learned something I do not want to forget.

This one is about parenting mistakes, repair, preteen emotions, presence, progress, and why our kids do not need perfect parents. They need parents who keep showing up and trying again.

00:00 Episode Two of 52
01:01 Inside Out Is Too Real Right Now
02:00 Whole Foods Smoothie Drama
02:40 I Messed Up This Morning
04:28 When a Sting Becomes a Wound
06:07 Pulling Her Out to Repair
07:08 Progress and Presence Over Perfection
08:02 Showing Up With Urgency
10:19 What Pursuit Feels Like in Relationships
11:41 Preteen Emotions and the Control Board
14:35 I Do Not Know What I Am Doing
16:04 Staying Present When They Push Away
18:10 Distance Creates the Wedge
19:05 Body Image, Food, and Outside Noise
20:38 Learning What Hat They Need Me to Wear
22:26 Chick fil A, Pop Mart, and Baby Molly
25:24 Progress and Presence Beat Perfection
26:39 When They Need You the Most
28:19 Becoming the Matlock of Emotions
30:18 Foxhole People and Showing Up
31:06 Not Every Seat Needs to Be Filled
34:19 Podcast Dreams and 2026 Energy
35:13 Progress, Presence, and Marriage Too
36:11 You Are Doing Really Good

Stop Taking Your Own Crown Off | After Hours With Amanda Season 5 - Ep. 8 Jan 30, 2026

Show notes

In this episode, I’m talking about fixing your crown, saying dreams out loud, and realizing that sometimes I am the one knocking my own crown off. We’re getting into joyful choices, self confidence, walking, meditation, health PTSD, motherhood, Disney dreams, The Courage to Be Disliked, and why keeping small promises to yourself can rebuild trust in yourself.

This is also the episode where I admit I recorded an entire podcast with no sound, talk about lice season, book a Disney cruise, and declare that 2026 is our year. Delulu is the solulu, bestie.

00:00 Recording on My Phone in 2026
00:58 The Episode With No Sound
02:21 Lice Season and the Stigma Needs to Go
04:12 Reading The Courage to Be Disliked
07:41 Fix Your Crown, Girl
08:05 New Year Pressure and Joyful Choices
09:16 I’m a Walker Now
12:36 Why Am I Dissing Myself?
13:39 Meditation, Health PTSD, and Regulating
16:21 Owning It Without Overexplaining
17:31 Saying the Big Dreams Out Loud
19:21 Pixar Studios and Disney Podcast Dreams
23:14 Why I’m Careful About Guests
24:27 Tell Me Your Big Dreams
25:00 We Booked a Disney Cruise
27:01 The Call Is Coming From Inside the House
28:12 Keeping Promises to Yourself
33:14 A Podcast Episode Every Week
35:14 Stop Taking Your Own Crown Off
38:37 2026 Is Our Year
40:31 Waiting for the Email
41:12 You Are Needed Exactly As You Are

Maybe They Don’t Need a Comparison, They Need Safety | After Hours With Amanda Season 5 - Ep. 7 Nov 14, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, I’m talking about health anxiety, holiday pressure, missed opportunities, Disney dreams, and the measuring stick we sometimes use without realizing it. You know, the one that says, “I wish homework was my biggest problem,” or turns someone else’s hard day into a comparison contest.

This one is about parenting tiny humans, listening without keeping score, validating feelings, and remembering that someone else’s hard thing is still hard, even if yours looks bigger from the outside.

I am not here as an expert. I am here as a mom and human still learning right alongside you.

00:00 The Sweatshirt I’m Afraid to Stain
00:47 When Certain Situations Make Anxiety Louder
02:25 Health PTSD, Grief, and Naming What’s Scary
04:15 Selling Sunset, Kids Meals, and Life Catch Up
05:26 Disney Plans, TikTok Live, and Figuring It Out
06:45 Disney Destiny and Dreaming About a Cruise
08:50 Disney Studios, Big Goals, and Getting Sick
10:56 Canceling a Disney World Invite
12:04 Give Yourself Five Minutes to Be Disappointed
13:28 Thank God That Wasn’t Mine
15:39 Holiday Pressure and Joyful Choices
17:45 Tiny Queens, Guests, and Wanting to Be a Mom
19:06 Feeling Like You’re Not Doing Enough
23:19 The Measuring Stick We Use With Kids
26:17 Why Kids’ Problems Are Still Real Problems
28:08 Meltdowns, Distress, and Missing Tools
30:08 Listening Without Making It About Me
32:56 How Keeping Score Shuts Down Communication
35:41 Support Each Other Instead of Competing
37:06 The Goal for More Consistent Episodes
39:15 Adam, Belonging, and Making People Feel Seen
40:20 Tiny Humans, Inner Children, and Repair
42:51 You Cannot Miss What Is Planned for You

Maybe You’re Allowed to Need Things Too | After Hours With Amanda Season 5 - Ep. 6 Oct 10, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, I’m sitting on my closet floor after a very full week and talking through a realization that stopped me in my tracks: sometimes we do not make ourselves small because someone else is being negative. Sometimes we make ourselves small because we keep choosing everyone else, even when we love doing it.

I’m talking about motherhood, marriage, anxiety, asking for help, taking up space, and why the oxygen mask is not just so we can help everybody else. It is so we can breathe too.

If you have been showing up for everyone but yourself, come sit with me for this one.

00:00 Surprise, We’re Doing an Episode

00:47 Friday, Baby Jesus, and Imperfect Progress

02:17 Life Update: Cheer, School, and Denim and Diamonds

04:11 Tiny Queens and Student Council Inauguration

05:20 Acid Reflux, Alo Jackets, and Disney Holiday Hopes

07:35 Almost Getting a Dog

08:04 Missing the Footsie Pajama Stage

09:16 Continuing the Dreamer and Sidekick Conversation

10:26 The Gift of Being a Constant Friend

12:21 Taking Up Space

14:24 Marriage, Partnership, and Switching Roles

16:50 Movement, Anxiety, and Needing Time for Myself

19:16 Choosing Others Until You Disappear

22:14 The Cape, the Outfit, and Being Loud Again

24:15 Skipping Lunch to Create Peace at Home

26:11 The Oxygen Mask Is for You Too

32:17 Don’t Let Yourself Make You Small

34:53 Letting People Help You

37:25 Why Asking for Help Feels So Hard

38:36 Closet Floor Wrap Up

No Princess Stands Alone: The Power of Sidekicks | After Hours With Amanda Season 5 - Ep. 5 Aug 29, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, I’m sharing the very emotional story of taking the tiny queens to Disney World for World Princess Week, and why the message of “create your own world” hit me so deeply. This one is about Disney magic, motherhood, dreams, sidekicks, grief, gratitude, disappointment, and the reminder that we are not meant to do life in isolation.

If you have been feeling discouraged, unseen, or like your dream is taking the long way around, come sit with me. I hope this feels like a little pixie dust for your heart today.

00:00 Why I Have Tried to Record This 30 Times

02:18 I Took the Tiny Queens to Disney World

03:09 Red Eye Flights and BoardWalk Magic

05:35 The Pajamas That Brought My Family With Me

07:10 Princess Products, Legos, and Sidekick Magic

09:23 Animal Kingdom, Pixie Dust, and Starlight Tears

12:10 Create Your Own World Is More Than Disney

13:07 The Privilege of Being Their Sidekick

15:17 Your Sidekick Might Not Be Who You Expected

17:20 Parenting Means Preparing Them to Fly

20:24 Sidekicks in the Trenches of Growth

22:11 Tiana, Disappointment, and Digging Deeper

27:19 Your Dream Might Look Different

30:11 When the Door Does Not Open Yet

38:12 You Are Needed Exactly As You Are

Is My Communication Conveying My Message | After Hours With Amanda Season 5 - Ep. 4 Jul 21, 2025

Show notes

In this episode of After Hours With Amanda, I’m catching up on life, Disney World, Nat Geo, the toaster saga, working mom rhythms, and some very exciting Florida news with the tiny queens. Then we get into the heart of it: is your communication actually conveying your message? I talk about a parenting moment that reminded me intent and impact are not always the same, why volume matters, and how I’m trying to build communication for the relationship I want with my girls long term. Start with love. Seek understanding. Do not lose the plot in your passion.

00:00 Showing Up However We Can
01:18 Life Updates and the Toaster Saga
04:13 Gummies, Tahoe, and Catching Up
06:15 Disney World Was Its Own Girl
09:01 Nat Geo, Animal Kingdom, and Big Dreams
12:19 Florida News With the Tiny Queens
16:02 Starlight, Girls Trip, and Work Logistics
18:28 Podcast Consistency and YouTube Plans
20:12 Is Your Communication Conveying Your Message?
22:29 Building Communication for the Future
25:37 When the Message Gets Missed
28:07 Intent, Impact, and Volume
32:34 Start With Love, Seek Understanding
34:36 Parenting, Partnership, and New Tools
38:00 Never Give Up on Yourself or Your Dreams

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