Gather Moms

Latest Episodes:

Will You Be My Friend? Why That Question Gets Harder as You Get Older with Kara Veach: EP 229 Nov 02, 2026

Show notes

If you have ever moved to a new place, sat alone at a sports game, or wondered why making friends as a grown woman feels so impossibly hard — this episode was made for you.

Kate and Rebecca sit down with Kara Veach, pastor, speaker, writer, and mom of three who recently uprooted her family from North Seattle to plant Discover Church in San Marcos, California. Kara knows firsthand what it feels like to start from zero — and she has been thinking deeply about why adult friendships are so hard and what to actually do about it. She is the author of Walking Upside Down and is currently writing her second book, Will You Be My Friend?, which explores how to cultivate meaningful friendships through every season of life.

This conversation is honest, practical, and full of the kind of wisdom that makes you want to text someone you have been meaning to reach out to.

About Kara:

Kara Veach is a pastor, speaker, writer, and mom of three who is passionate about helping women build authentic friendships and vibrant communities. She and her husband Kyle have been in pastoral ministry since 2010 and planted Discover Church in San Marcos, California in the fall of 2025. She is the author of Walking Upside Down and is currently writing Will You Be My Friend? Find her at @karaveach on Instagram.

In This Episode:

Moving from North Seattle to San Marcos with three kids in the middle of middle school and elementary school and how they involved the kids in the decision
Why adult friendships are so much harder than childhood friendships and what we lose when we leave the built-in proximity of school and sports
Will You Be My Friend? Says no adult ever — the premise of Kara’s upcoming book and why we have completely lost the ability to just ask
Robin Dunbar’s friendship circles — your five, your fifteen, your fifty — and what Jesus’s three and twelve actually teach us about friendship
Friends come for a reason, a season, or forever and why not every friendship death is a failure
What we get wrong about conflict in friendships — ghosting, drifting, and filling in the blanks with the worst possible story
In the absence of communication, people always fill in the blanks with something bad
When to let something go and when to actually have the conversation
What we actually miss out on when we stay home in our sweatpants and skip community

Resources Mentioned:

Walking Upside Down by Kara Veach — available on Amazon at https://a.co/d/0g74dKtk

Connect With Kara:

@karaveach on Instagram Discover Church — discoverchurchsd.com | @discoverchurchsd

Connect With Us:

Gather Moms: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Kate Henderson: Instagram | Facebook

Rebecca Bradford: Instagram | Facebook

Mom Rage Is Real: Elizabeth Andreyevskiy Struggled With It, Now She Coaches Moms Out of It: EP 228 Oct 26, 2026

Show notes

Kate and Rebecca sit down with Elizabeth Andreyevskiy, a Ukrainian-born, Russian-speaking mom of four in Jacksonville, Florida, who went from struggling with mom rage in her own home to coaching Christian moms out of it full time. Elizabeth is the host of the Emotionally Healthy Legacy Podcast and the founder of a coaching program specifically designed to help moms break free from anger and cultivate calm, peaceful authority in their homes.

This conversation is for every mom who has ever said something she regretted, felt shame she could not share, or wondered if there was something deeply wrong with her. There is not. But there is a better way — and Elizabeth walks us through it step by step.

About Elizabeth:

Elizabeth Andreyevskiy was born in Latvia to Ukrainian parents and has been in the United States for nearly 30 years. She and her husband met at a Russian Baptist church in Minnesota and now live in Jacksonville, Florida with their four kids. She is the host of the Emotionally Healthy Legacy Podcast and a part-time coach helping Christian moms break free from anger. Find her at emotionallyhealthylegacy.com.

In This Episode:

Elizabeth’s own story: what mom rage felt like the first time it happened and why she felt like a monster
Three boys five and under with a husband who traveled for work and what waking up already on edge every day does to a mom
The difference between anger and rage and why it matters
Green zone, yellow zone, red zone – how the brain actually works and why you feel like you cannot stop once you are in the red
Why shame grows in the darkness and keeps moms stuck in the cycle
Why Christian moms especially feel like they cannot tell anyone – and why that makes the problem worse
The journaling technique that rewires your brain for the hard moments before they happen
How you know it is time to get professional help
Anger as a symptom of burnout and how to recognize it
What saved Elizabeth: morning routine, mindset work, and stopping the shame spiral

Connect With Elizabeth:

Emotionally Healthy Legacy Podcast | emotionallyhealthylegacy.com

Connect With Us:

gathermoms.com | @gathermoms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.comm | @gathermoms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.com

Gather Moms: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Kate Henderson: Instagram | Facebook

Rebecca Bradford: Instagram | Facebook

What Nobody Told Jackie Castro About Year One (And What Actually Surprised Her): EP 227 Oct 19, 2026

Show notes

This one is for every new mom in the thick of year one and every seasoned mom who needs to remember how sweet and hard it all was.

Kate and Rebecca sit down with Jackie Castro, a familiar face from their student ministry days who has grown up, chased her dreams across the country, landed in New Hampshire, and is now a first-time mama to almost-one-year-old James. Jackie is a semi-retired singer-songwriter, social media professional, and content creator sharing new motherhood and everyday life in New England. She came into this conversation braced for the hard parts of year one — and left us all with a reminder that the joy was bigger than she ever expected.

About Jackie:

Jackie Castro is James’s mom, a semi-retired singer-songwriter, and content creator sharing the magic in the everyday. She grew up in Rockwall, Texas, spent time in Austin and Nashville chasing music, and now lives in New Hampshire with her husband Zach and baby boy James. Find her at @thejackiecastro on Instagram.

In This Episode:

What actually surprised Jackie most about year one and it was not what she expected
She was braced for the hard and was not prepared for this much joy even in the middle of the night feedings
The changing table moment: how mom guilt hit for the first time and what she and her husband did about it
Is this forever? The question every new mom asks at 4am and the answer that finally gives peace
How becoming a mom completely changed the way Jackie sees God as a father and how she started praying bigger
Working in social media as a mom content creator – the healthy way to use it and when it becomes harmful
Isolation in a new town – working from home, finding community, and the little things that help
Earlier years of anxiety, depression, and chasing dreams that felt lonely and unfulfilling, and what rest actually feels like now

Connect With Jackie:

@thejackiecastro on Instagram

Connect With Us:

gathermoms.com | @gathermoms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.comms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.com

Gather Moms: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Kate Henderson: Instagram | Facebook

Rebecca Bradford: Instagram | Facebook

Becoming a Mom Without a Mom: Marlene Dominguez on Mother Wounds and How God Meets You There EP: 226 Oct 12, 2026

Show notes

Kate sits down with her dear friend Marlene Dominguez, a first generation Dominican American, wife to Manny, mom of three curly-haired boys, and co-founder of Brave Church in Washington Heights, New York City – the neighborhood she grew up in, left for ten years to serve in Fort Worth, Texas, and was called back to plant a church in. Marlene’s story is layered, beautiful, raw, and full of the grace of a God who meets us exactly where we are.

This conversation covers identity, motherhood wounds, endometriosis, postpartum anxiety, counseling, natural births, curls, cafecito y pan, and what it really means to say “this is their childhood, but it is also my motherhood”.

About Marlene:

Marlene Dominguez is a first generation Dominican American raised in Washington Heights, New York City. She and her husband Emmanuel co-lead Brave Church, a church plant in their home neighborhood. She is a mom of three boys, a speaker, and the creator behind the Instagram community @curlswithapromise where she has spent over ten years pointing women back to their identity in Christ through the lens of beauty, faith, and culture.

In This Episode:

Growing up in Washington Heights – Little Dominican Republic – and being called back to plant Brave Church
Curls with a promise and the decade-long journey of embracing her natural hair and the identity story underneath it
It is their childhood but it is also my motherhood, and why Marlene refuses to forget that
No junior Holy Spirit, raising practical adults, not children whose entire world revolves around them
Being diagnosed with endometriosis in her first month of marriage and what God spoke to her in that season
Becoming a mom without a mom, the mother wound that motherhood brought to the surface
Postpartum anxiety, EMDR therapy, and the therapist who told her what worked back then no longer serves her now
The trust fund language she and Manny use in their marriage and why it changed everything
Brave is not the absence of fear it is being a mom without a mom and doing it anyway

Connect With Marlene:

@curlswithapromise | Brave Church in Washington Heights

Connect With Us:

gathermoms.com | @gathermoms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.com

Gather Moms: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Kate Henderson: Instagram | Facebook

Rebecca Bradford: Instagram | Facebook

Working Mom, New Town, No Friends Yet: Ashley Weece on Surviving the Season You’re In EP: 225 Oct 05, 2026

Show notes

If you have ever moved somewhere new and wondered why it still does not feel like home, felt guilty for working (or for not working), or said yes to one too many things and regretted it the next morning, this episode is for you.

Kate and Rebecca sit down with Ashley Weece, mom of two boys ages four and two, who moved across the country with her husband to plant a church in Brunswick, Maine. Ashley has been a full time working mom, a mostly stay at home mom, and everything in between. She knows what it feels like to start over with no community, juggle kids and ministry, and wrestle with the guilt that comes with every choice.

This is an honest, encouraging conversation for every mom trying to find her footing in a new place, balance work and family, and stop measuring herself against a version of motherhood that does not fit her season.

About Ashley:

Ashley Weece is a wife, mom of two boys, speaker, and church planter. She grew up in Kansas, spent nine years in Kentucky, and now lives in Brunswick, Maine, where she and her husband Justin planted Ironcoast Church.

In This Episode:

Moving somewhere new with no community, and the three year rule that helped Ashley stop feeling behind
Why comparing how fast other people settle in makes it harder, and why roots take time to grow
The “better mom” myth: why Christian moms feel pressure to parent one right way
How Ashley went from “I’m definitely working” to surrendering the whole decision to God before her first baby was born
Working unhealthy hours with her first and finding a healthier rhythm with her second
The pressure of being a ministry mom and trading performance for presence
Living in a five loaves and two fish season, when you do not have enough time, sleep, or food
Limitations as a gift from God, and why wearing a bathing suit in 20 degree weather is a lot like ignoring your season
The overcommitment trap and the fear that if you say no, you will never be asked again
How Ashley decides what to say yes to, and why she caps speaking at three events a year
Letting your kids be loved by other people, and why childcare can grow their capacity to love and be loved
Mom friends with different parenting styles and why we need each other
Simple prayer rhythms with little kids: the drive to daycare and bedtime
Boy mom advice: find a mentor mom with boys, build a daily rhythm, and get them moving every day

Connect With Ashley: @ashleyweece

Ironcoast Church: https://ironcoast.church/

Connect With Us:

gathermoms.com | @gathermoms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.com

Gather Moms: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Kate Henderson: Instagram | Facebook

Rebecca Bradford: Instagram | Facebook

Caroline Shankle: What Your Daughter Actually Needs From You, A 22-Year-Old Tells Moms the Truth EP: 223 Sep 21, 2026

Show notes

This episode is unlike any other this season. Instead of hearing from a seasoned mom, Kate and Rebecca sit down with someone who just lived the teenage years, and has the book to prove it.

Caroline Shankle is a 22-year-old author, Texas A&M graduate student, and daughter of bestselling author and Big Boo podcast host Melanie Shankle. She survived mean girls, soccer injuries, heartbreak, and the anxious pressure of being a teenager in the social media age, then wrote a 100-day devotional to help the next girl do the same. The Lion and the Bear is a young woman’s compassionate guidebook for defeating life’s giants by trusting God one step at a time, written from the trenches, not a distant pedestal.

This episode is a gift to every mom raising a daughter, and every daughter who just needs to know she is not alone.

In This Episode:

The breakup and Zoom call that became the origin story of Caroline’s book
The lion and the bear: how David and Goliath became her framework for hard seasons
What being a teenager in the social media age really feels like
Holding two truths: God is good, and you can still be beat down and tired
The mistake moms make trying to fix it too fast, and what teens need instead
Stay out of the boat: why getting in it with your daughter wears you down
Reading the room: why advice lands better three days later than in the moment
What not to say when your daughter is hurting, and what actually helps
Growing up with a mom on a public platform, without the pressure to be perfect
The anxious generation and why this generation is wired differently
What saved Caroline: God never wasted any of it

Caroline’s Website: https://carolineshankle.com/the-lion-and-the-bear/

Connect With Caroline: carolineshankle.com | @carolineshankle on Instagram

Connect With Us: gathermoms.com | @gathermoms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.com

Gather Moms: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Kate Henderson: Instagram | Facebook

Rebecca Bradford: Instagram | Facebook

Culture Is Coming for Your Kids — Amy Davison Teaches Moms How to Fight Back Without the Bubble Wrap: EP 222 Sep 14, 2026

Show notes

This is the episode that will change how you think about every show your kids watch, every song they hear, and every conversation happening on the school bus.

Kate and Rebecca welcome back return guest Amy Davison, Vice President of Mama Bear Apologetics — one of the most trusted resources for Christian moms who want to raise kids that think critically, love biblically, and stand firm in the faith. Amy is an Air Force veteran, mom of four (18, 16, 14, and 2), and a woman who has been in the trenches of this cultural conversation long enough to know exactly what tools moms actually need.

This is not a fear-based conversation. It is a faithfulness-based one. And it is packed with some of the most practical, biblical wisdom for navigating media and culture that we have ever had on the show.

About Amy:

Amy Davison is Vice President of Mama Bear Apologetics, a ministry dedicated to equipping Christian moms to raise the next generation to think critically and stand firm in the faith. She is an Air Force veteran, a writer, and a mom of four. Find all of Mama Bear’s resources at mamabearapologetics.com.

In This Episode:

Why bubble wrap Christianity does not work — if Satan got into the garden he can get into your living room
Your living room is either a training ground or it is not — and the armor of God is not a spiritual safe space
The shift that has happened in children’s media over the last 15 years — what was a punchline on Friends is now in CoComelon
Media is not neutral — it is the most proficient form of propaganda ever created and our kids are consuming it daily
Every worldview answers the same six questions — and the ones being fed to your kids have very specific answers
The history of the sexual revolution and why it matters for what your kids are watching today
The ROAR method — Recognize the message, Offer objective discernment, Argue for a healthier approach, Reinforce with prayer and discussion
Words matter and definitions are being hijacked — buzzwords every mom needs to know how to unpack with her kids
The no-flinch rule — fix your face, mama, because if you freak out they will stop coming to you
The difference between fear and wisdom in parenting — fear panics, wisdom prepares
Teen brain development — the prefrontal cortex, the amygdala, and why boys especially need more time
What homeschool kids, private school kids, and public school kids all have in common — they are having the same conversations, just in different places
I am not responsible for my children’s choices — I am responsible for the message of the gospel
It is never too late — you are responsible for the time you have been given right now

Resources Mentioned:

Mama Bear Apologetics — mamabearapologetics.com

Mama Bear Apologetics Guide to Sexuality The ROAR Method and buzzwords blog series — all at mamabearapologetics.com

Connect With Us:

gathermoms.com | @gathermoms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.com

Gather Moms: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Kate Henderson: Instagram | Facebook

Rebecca Bradford: Instagram | Facebook

Millye Hale, the Grandma With 33 Years of Parenting Wisdom Moms Need to Hear: EP 221 Sep 07, 2026

Show notes

This episode is goinIf you have ever wished you could sit down with a wise, seasoned grandma who has seen it all and lived to tell about it with joy — this episode is for you.

Kate and Rebecca sit down with Millye Hale, a mom of three grown children, grandmother of three under two, mentor mom of 33 years, founder of her own parenting ministry, and the woman who once turned a dental hygienist career into a full time calling to come alongside moms and families. Millye is the kind of woman who quotes scripture the way most people breathe — naturally, constantly, and at exactly the right moment.

This conversation is full of timeless, biblical wisdom on parenting that will make you want to pull out a notebook.

In This Episode:

What it actually means to be an intentional mom — and the image of a plant with dirt under your fingernails that will change how you see your season
Why discipline is really discipleship — and why moms keep waiting for the spanking conversation
The difference between behavior modification and going after your child’s heart
Why it is not the severity of a consequence that changes behavior in a child — it is the certainty
Never give them a taste of victory — and what happened when Millye held the line on a Noah’s Ark vest
We are not raising kids — we are rearing spiritually mature adults and the difference matters
The teaching and training rails — where parents should be spending most of their energy
The Special Spot — one of the most creative and practical parenting hacks you will ever hear
Creativity as an underrated superpower in parenting — good parents are marketers for good choices
What grandparenting actually looks like done right — filling in the gap and being a cheerleader
Perfectionism as Millye’s own fig leaf — and how the Lord dismantled it
Keep your eyes on your own paper — the phrase her mentees call her just to hear her say
What saved Millye in her own motherhood journey

Resources Mentioned:

Millye Hale’s Groundwork Study — https://millyehale.com

The Groundwork Study videos — free at https://millyehale.com

The Groundwork Study book — available on Amazon

The Collapse of Parenting: Leonard Sax

Connect With Millye:

https://millyehale.com | @millyehale on Instagram

Connect With Us:

gathermoms.com | @gathermoms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.com

Gather Moms: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Kate Henderson: Instagram | Facebook

Rebecca Bradford: Instagram | Facebook

Hard Is Not the Same Thing as Bad — Abbie Halberstadt, Mom of 10 Tells Us the Truth About Motherhood: EP 220 Aug 31, 2026

Show notes

This episode is going to challenge you in the best way.

Kate and Rebecca sit down with Abbie Halberstadt — bestselling author, fitness instructor, homeschooling mama to ten kids including two sets of identical twins, and a Bible-believing Christian who desires to know God and make Him known. Abbie lives by a motto that has become a movement: hard is not the same thing as bad. And in this conversation she brings that message straight into the everyday wilderness of motherhood.

From birth stories to biblical truth, from complaining to community, this episode is packed with the kind of honest, scripture-grounded wisdom that moms in every season need to hear.

About Abbie:

Abbie Halberstadt is a writer, fitness instructor, and homeschooling mother of ten children, including two sets of identical twins. She lives by the motto that “hard is not the same thing as bad” and loves encouraging women to dig deep in the everyday trials of motherhood for the treasures of joy and growth that are there in abundance. She, her husband Shaun, and their children live in the Piney Woods of East Texas.

In This Episode:

What it actually looks like to be open to however many kids the Lord has for you — and how Abbie ended up with ten
Birth stories from a mom who has done it eight times including two sets of twins
The trend on social media that prompted Abbie to write her first book M Is for Mama — a rebellion against mediocre motherhood
Why hard is not the same thing as bad — and the scripture that backs it up
The real difference between venting and complaining — and how to know which one you are doing
Go to the throne before the phone — a phrase that will stick with you
Why your children’s outcome is not your resume — and what the Bible actually promises about parenting
What to do when you have a prodigal child and feel like God failed you
Why your family is your first community — and how to stop stepping over it looking for something else
The one thing that saved Abbie in motherhood — and why it might not be what you expect

Abbie’s Books:

M Is for Mama — A Rebellion Against Mediocre Motherhood

Hard Is Not the Same Thing as Bad

You Bet Your Stretch Marks

Find Abbie at misformama.net and @abbiehallberstadt on Instagram

Connect With Us:

gathermoms.com | @gathermoms | Join our Patreon at gathermoms.com

Gather Moms: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Kate Henderson: Instagram | Facebook

Rebecca Bradford: Instagram | Facebook