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With March for Life happening just a couple of weeks ago, there’s been lots of excitement about the pro-life movement and many discussions about abortion in Christian circles.  One of these important discussions is the trauma women experience when they’ve been through an abortion. And yet many women who regret their abortions and need healing for what they’ve been through feel like they can’t talk about their experience–especially in religious circles. We’ve been really inspired by the story of Beatrice Fedor who bravely shares about the trauma of her experience with abortion and how she found healing when she discovered faith and sought help to process her grief.

Beatrice is a lovely French woman, Catholic convert, and pro-life advocate living in the American south with her husband and children. She vulnerably tells her story in this episode and offers beautiful insight and hope to other post-abortive women. Beatrice has great wisdom to share about resources that can help women heal from the trauma of their abortions.

This isn’t an easy topic and we openly discuss the horror of abortion and the pain of losing children through abortion, so this might be an episode to listen to when the kids aren’t in the room. But please know we tackled it thoughtfully and that the theme of this discussion is hope, forgiveness, and healing. If you have experienced abortion or want to be equipped to help a friend heal from trauma, we hope this episode will bless you and point you to resources that can offer hope and healing.

Books We Talked About in this Episode:

Forgiven and Set Free by Linda Cochran

Resources for Post-abortive women:

Rachel’s Vineyard

Sisters of Life Retreats

Suicide Prevention Hotline

Silent No More Awareness Campaign (Beatrice’s Story)

Connect with Beatrice:

• Beatrice’s blog
• Twitter

And psst! Can you help us get to know you better and understand what our listeners want from the podcast? We put together a survey and it’s super short. We so appreciate it if you could spend a couple of minutes filling it out for us! Complete the survey here.

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

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One of the questions we get the most from listeners is “I’m really lonely and feel isolated. How do I build a community and find friends so I’m supported in my faith? ” Well, our friend a former guest on the show, Rebecca Frech is here to share all about doing the hard work of friendship. Rebecca has been researching for and writing a book on the problem of loneliness and how to build good community and she has some brilliant insights to share with us! Did you know that a human being can really only handle a certain number of relationships? Rebecca’s going to tell you what that number is and how to make the most of it.

If you’re not familiar with Rebecca, she is a fiery and fun writer and mom of eight living in Texas. Her new book Can We Be Friends? comes out May 22nd. You can also find her at The Catholic Conspiracy.

In this episode we discuss the pervasive problem of loneliness in our culture and how our connection to virtual life through social media is both a symptom and a contributor to this problem. Rebecca gives us some real talk about doing the work of finding friends (“go where the people are!”) and how to go about building up a real community. We know you’ll love this episode, so grab a cup of tea and listen in!

Books We Talked About in this Episode:

Can We Be Friends? by Rebecca Frech

(You can pre-order and it releases May 22nd!)

Connect with Rebecca:

• Rebecca’s blog
• Facebook
• Instagram

And psst! Can you help us get to know you better and understand what our listeners want from the podcast? We put together a survey and it’s super short. We so appreciate it if you could spend a couple of minutes filling it out for us! Complete the survey here.

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

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Do you love Stranger Things like we do? We hope so because that’s what we’re diving into with this episode! Today we’re interviewing Alexi Sargeant, theatre maker, game creator, fellow Stranger Things fan, and writer for such publications as First Things, The Weekly Standard, Commonweal, Aleteia, and more. He lives in New York City with his lovely wife (and fellow writer) Leah Libresco.

In this episode we discuss a piece by Alexi that we loved about what makes children vulnerable in the world of Stranger Things and what parents can learn from the series. How do we equip children to live in a world where danger is lurking? Is there hope for a generation of broken families? Is the Upside Down a symbol for the internet? Would we watch a Steve and Dustin spin off show? (Yes!) These and other deep questions are what we examine.

So get ready to for a conversation about TV, why Winona Ryder is GREAT, and why we should be engaged parents. Hope you enjoy it!

Links we talked about in this episode:

Alexi’s great piece for The Weekly Standard about Stranger Things

Our Sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by Around the World Stories. These original audio stories are designed to teach kids about different countries and cultures in an engaging way. There’s currently a set of 52 stories that focus on 13 European countries as well as a six-story set about artists. The stories are fun adventures about kids in different countries in Europe. They also provide supplemental guides that includes discussion points about the stories, activity ideas, recipes and background info. The stories are created for kids ages 5-12 and are produced by a fellow homeschooling family traveling around Europe and collecting stories (dream job, right?!)

Around the World Stories is offering a great discount code for FoC listeners who want to try out their stories for FREE! You can use CARROTSMONTH for one free month of a subscription (and you can cancel at any time). Or you can use CARROTS20 to get 20% off any of the story sets including the gift certificates for them (would make a great Christmas gift)! So head over to their site to use your discount codes!

Connect with Alexi:

• Alexi’s site
• Twitter

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

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Regardless of your vocation, the Little Way of St. Therese of Lisieux can help you in your spiritual life. But what exactly is this Little Way and how does it work on a practical level? This is what we wanted to discuss and we knew just the right person to invite to share her wisdom on this topic: Nancy Bandzuch! Nancy is a mom of many little ones who has shared extensively about the spirituality of St. Therese on her blog Do Small Things with Love and her podcast Just One Small Thing. She is so lovely and down to earth.

In this episode Nancy talks us through St. Therese’s Little Way and acceptance of our own smallness can open us up to the grace God wants to offer us and lead us to holiness. Nancy also explains some misconceptions about St. Therese since many of us have trouble connecting with her because we assume St. Therese didn’t struggle  like we do ( her writings show that she really did!).  We also get into what living out the Little Way looks like in our daily lives and how it can help us in our vocations. It’s an inspiring and beautiful message, so grab a cup of tea and enjoy!

Books we talked about in this episode:

(This post contains affiliate links.)

The Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux

Our Sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by Sister Moon Graphics, a family-owned Catholic card company. The online shop provides both greeting cards and blank correspondence cards for all seasons of the liturgical year.  The designs are inspired by traditional Medieval illuminated manuscript, and seek to bring the beautiful dignity of the Christian faith to all who receive them. Cards are sold individually and as packaged Christmas cards sets. Sister Moon Graphics can be found at sistermoongraphics.com and at their new Instagram account.

Connect with Nancy:

• Nancy’s blog
• Nancy’s pattern shop
• Pinterest
• Facebook
• Podcast

And don’t forget that you can get Nancy’s 2018 Catholic Women’s Companion Planner at the discounted rate of $30 for FoC listeners! Just head here to see more details or make your order.

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

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Every few months, instead of chatting with a guest, we like to ask our lovely listeners for questions they’d like us to answer and record a Q&A episode! These are always a lot of fun and it’s fantastic to hear your questions. While we couldn’t convince our husbands to be guest hosts discussing British costume dramas as requested by several listeners (maybe someday!!), it’s a great episode that covers some thoughtful questions.

In this episode we shared about how we adult, where we fit in all those pesky grown up tasks like dealing with insurance companies or making dentist appointment. We also confess that we do NOT do anything resembling “work” after the kids go to bed.  We also gave advice we’d love to have heard when we were single ladies and some general rules of thumb for handling interactions with extended family (good boundaries). Then we touch on some other topics like how we encourage vocations to religious life for our kids and how Haley and her husband have managed to be a one-car family for the past 12 years.

We hope you enjoy this Q&A episode!

Other Q&A episodes:

What’s Working for Us Right Now (Organization and Pray in the Everyday)

How Small Can We Go? (And Other Questions Answered)

And because it’s just a few weeks away…

Advent Low Down: Our Guide to Living the Beauty of the Season

Our Sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by Liz Escoffery of Indy FertilityCare. Liz teaches the Creighton Model of FertilityCare to help couples both trying to get pregnant and trying to avoid pregnancy (and single women too wanting to learn more about their health!). She teaches in person in central Indiana and virtually to anywhere in the world. Her specialty is in helping women going through the difficult postpartum time/breastfeeding before cycles return.  Liz provides prayer support and accountability as well as instruction and offers free 15-minute consultations for anyone wanting to get more information about working with her. You can contact her through her website.

Check out the freebie on her website: 5 Ways to Less Stress While Postpartum Charting

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

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We love Bonnie Engstrom and she’s joined us on the podcast before to chat about liturgical living, but we’ve never devoted an episode to her amazing story of her son James and the alleged miracle that brought him back to life….until now! Despite being familiar with the Engstrom’s story and hearing it from Bonnie herself in the past, neither of us could make it through this episode without ugly crying. It is just so incredible and moving.

If you don’t already know the lovely Bonnie, she has seven beautiful children and she lives in the midwest with her husband Travis. She’s the voice behind the popular blog A Knotted Life and a writer for Blessed Is She.

In this episode Bonnie walks us through the events of her son’s stillbirth and his miraculous recovery after an hour post-birth with no pulse. We talk about the intercession of Ven. Fulton Sheen they believe is responsible for this miracle as well as the process of beatification and how James’ life and health contribute to the cause for Sheen’s canonization. This is an emotional story so definitely get the kleenex ready!

Links for this episode:

Our last interview with Bonnie about Lent

Our Sponsor:

This episode is sponsored by Liz Escoffery of Indy FertilityCare. Liz teaches the Creighton Model of FertilityCare to help couples both trying to get pregnant and trying to avoid pregnancy (and single women too wanting to learn more about their health!). She teaches in person in central Indiana and virtually to anywhere in the world. Her specialty is in helping women going through the difficult postpartum time/breastfeeding before cycles return.  Liz provides prayer support and accountability as well as instruction and offers free 15-minute consultations for anyone wanting to get more information about working with her. You can contact her through her website.

Check out the freebie on her website: 5 Ways to Less Stress While Postpartum Charting

Connect with Bonnie:

• Bonnie’s blog
• Facebook
• Instagram

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

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Caring for children with special needs is a challenge that so many families face. We’ve been inspired by how artist Carolyn Svellinger has vulnerably shared about her family’s journey with one of their sons who has autism and really wanted her voice to be heard on the podcast. Carolyn is a mom of four boys (and one on the way!) with a lovely blog, Svellerella, and beautiful etsy shop.

In this episode Carolyn shares her story of discovering that her son Emmett had autism and how special needs parenting has expanded her heart and her understanding of what it means to be pro-life and honor the dignity of each person. We discuss how friends and relatives can support and encourage families with children on the spectrum as well as how Carolyn balances self-care and her creative work with her obligations to her family. So grab a cup of tea and enjoy the conversation!

Connect with Carolyn:

• Carolyn’s blog
• Carolyn’s etsy shop
• Facebook
• Instagram

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

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Every so often we tell the listeners ahead of time about a great book we want to discuss and have a little FoC “book club.”  This time it’s the Father Brown stories by famous British Catholic writer G.K. Chesterton.  A longtime favorite of Christy’s, Father Brown was a new read to Haley. The central character, Father Brown, is an ordinary and humble Catholic priest with the ability to get to the heart of the matter and solve murder mysteries when everyone else is baffled. These classic detective short stories are full of charm and wit.

In our discussion we tackled some fun topics such as why we are drawn to mysteries and Chesterton’s take on detective fiction and how the character of Father Brown is a response to popular detective characters of the time like Sherlock Holmes. We also compared Chesterton’s tales to the recent Father Brown television series (and some of our other favorite murder mysteries).

We had a lot of fun chatting about this lovely read and we tried not to spoil the tales for you if you haven’t had a chance to pick them up yet. So grab yourself a basket of laundry or a cup of tea and enjoy!

Today’s book:

(This post contains Amazon affiliate links.)

Father Brown: The Essential Tales

Other books we talked about:

G.K. Chesterton: The Apostle of Common Sense by Dale Ahlquist

The Man Who Was Thursday by G.K. Chesterton

In this episode:

A Defense of Detective Stories by G.K. Chesterton

Father Brown (also streaming on Netflix)

Father Brown

Sherlock

Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries

Luther

And check out our previous book episodes!

We’ll definitely be chatting more about Father Brown in our Facebook group so be sure to join in over there!

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

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For ages we’ve wanted to discuss the pornography epidemic on the podcast because it affects so many marriages and women’s lives. Even though pornography is a problem even for many in the Church, it’s a difficult topic to breach which can make those suffering from the effects of porn feel even more alone. We are so thrilled to have Matt Fradd joining us to discuss this weighty issue. Matt is a speaker, podcaster, and author of recently published book The Porn Myth as well as Restored: True Stories of Love and Trust After Porn co-authored by his wife, Cameron, of the Among the Lilies podcast.

This episode includes some heavy themes so it might be one to listen to with your headphones and not around kids. We delve into difficult questions like whether someone who is addicted to porn is capable of the sacrificial love marriage requires and what to do if you discover your spouse is addicted to porn. Matt has great insights and shares resources designed to help women who have been betrayed by a spouse’s use of pornography and the abuse that can accompany it. This is a hard topic to discuss, but we are excited to send this episode out into the world and hope it can help women who are hurting to know they are not alone and to find the help they need to heal and move forward from trauma. We’re so grateful Matt took the time to join us and share about this toxic problem.

Mentioned in this episode:

Restored: True Stories of Love and Trust After Porn by Matt and Cameron Fradd

Bloom for Women

Books:

The Porn Myth: Exposing the Reality Behind the Fantasy of Pornography by Matt Fradd

Treating Trauma from Sexual Betrayal by Dr. Kevin Skinner

Treating Pornography Addiction by Dr. Kevin Skinner

What Can I Do About Me? by Rhyll Anne Croshaw

Related:

4 Signs Your Man Is Serious About Quitting Porn: Verily Magazine

God Hates Divorce. But God Doesn’t Hate Divorced People: Patty Breen for America Magazine

Connect with Matt:

• Matt’s web site
• Matt’s podcast: Pints with Aquinas
• Facebook
• Twitter

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

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Leticia Ochoa Adams’s vulnerable writing about her son Anthony’s suicide convinced us that more discussion of mental illness and suicide in the Catholic community is needed. We are so honored that Leticia was willing to share her story and her wisdom about this tragedy in her family. Leticia is a writer, mom, and grandmother in central Texas and you can find her blog Through Broken Roses at the Catholic channel of Patheos. Her work can also be found in a new book edited by Patrick Madrid called Suprised by Life.

This episode includes some heavy themes so it might be one to listen to with your headphones and not with your kids. We get into some of the distorted attitudes Christians can have toward mental illness as well as the unique difficulties faced by families that have lost a loved one to suicide. Leticia shares with us about how her parish community has carried her family and walked with them in their grief (as well as reactions and attitudes that have been hurtful). We also briefly get into the issue of separating yourself or your family from toxic friends or family members when necessary.  We really hope this episode will be meaningful to many people and we’re so grateful to Leticia for talking to us about such a personal topic.

Mentioned in this episode:

Surprised by Life by Patrick Madrid

Connect with Leticia:

• Leticia’s blog
• Facebook
• Twitter

Our sponsor: 

Come hang out with us!

• The Fountains of Carrots Raspberry Cordial Social Club on Facebook (our Facebook group)
• Connect with Haley on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her blog
• Connect with Christy on Facebook, Instagram, and her blog

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

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