A stranger told us we looked “too happy” to be grieving our son, and that offhand comment cracked open a much bigger conversation: who decides what grief should look like, and why do we treat joy as betrayal after loss? We open the door to our real process—private tears, unexpected waves, quiet days, and the slow return to things that make us feel alive. We talk about parenting four kids while holding absence, choosing fewer commitments to protect our energy, then carefully rebuilding a life...
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A stranger told us we looked “too happy” to be grieving our son, and that offhand comment cracked open a much bigger conversation: who decides what grief should look like, and why do we treat joy as betrayal after loss? We open the door to our real process—private tears, unexpected waves, quiet days, and the slow return to things that make us feel alive. We talk about parenting four kids while holding absence, choosing fewer commitments to protect our energy, then carefully rebuilding a life...
A stranger told us we looked “too happy” to be grieving our son, and that offhand comment cracked open a much bigger conversation: who decides what grief should look like, and why do we treat joy as betrayal after loss? We open the door to our real process—private tears, unexpected waves, quiet days, and the slow return to things that make us feel alive. We talk about parenting four kids while holding absence, choosing fewer commitments to protect our energy, then carefully rebuilding a life...
Start with the truth: voice is medicine. We open up about why we share our story—military roots, marriage in the mess, a daughter’s healing, and the ache of losing our toddler son—and how integrity means speaking from lived experience while letting others hold their own versions of truth. From there, we turn toward the future, using practical tools to make what we want feel present in our bodies today. We explore AI as a creative ally, not a replacement for humanity. Alex talks about using A...
What if a casual question on a deployment cracked open your origin story? We share the intimate, winding path from a rumor Alex heard as a kid to a blood-type clue in Afghanistan, a Facebook search that found a face with the same bones, and an Easter gathering where a single sentence redrew a family map. It’s a story about hard truths arriving late, the kind of love that stays even when it’s hurt, and the shock of meeting a brother who moves like you, jokes like you, and looks like your futur...
Grief doesn’t end; it changes shape. Eight months after losing our toddler, we open the door to where love and ache meet—and to a surprise that softens the edges: a scan that shows us what we are having. The moment lands like thunder and rain, making room for healing and hard questions all at once. We talk candidly about sharing loss online, the backlash that comes with visibility, and the quiet messages that keep us going—like a dad who wrote, “I lost my son. I need help.” That tension betw...
The palm trees are real. So is the sweat, the power cuts, and the quiet tug to want more than a perfect beach day. We open up about moving our family to a Caribbean island after years of service, travel, and loss—and what “paradise” looks like when the highlight reel ends. The conversation goes beyond pretty postcards into the gritty details: life without living room AC, corrosion from salty air, old cars that always need a fix, and a cost of living that makes time feel spacious but can lull ...
"It's normal, but we can't explain it." That's how many women feel during pregnancy - experiencing profound bodily and emotional shifts they themselves don't fully understand, let alone communicate to their partners. In this raw conversation, Jessyl reveals how during boy pregnancies, she developed a physical aversion to her husband's smell and saliva - a common but rarely discussed hormonal response that left her confused and Alex feeling rejected. The journey of pregnancy transforms not ju...
Family boundaries shouldn't be taboo; they're essential. When we first married, cultural assumptions led to uncomfortable jokes about green card marriages, despite my American citizenship. Later, our choice to raise bilingual children sparked resistance from family who feared our kids would never learn proper English. These moments taught us the delicate art of boundary-setting without relationship-breaking. Your immediate family, your partnership and your children require protection. This d...
When life delivers its most devastating blows, do we crumble or transform? Alex and Jessyl explore this profound question through their own journey of facing seemingly insurmountable challenges from brain tumor diagnoses to the heart-shattering loss of their toddler son, Liam. Drawing from their raw experiences, they challenge the notion of "fake positivity" while offering a more authentic approach to finding meaning amid suffering. Their conversation reveals how shifting from "why is this h...
Alex and Jessyl reunite on the podcast, exploring how their family adapts when one parent is away and the deeper lessons they've learned parenting four children. • Jessyl shares how she manages parenting solo while Alex was delivering a TEDx talk in Tampa • The importance of teaching children independence and responsibility from an early age • How their parenting approach differs with four children versus families with fewer kids • The distinction between natural consequences and imposed rul...
Ever wondered if there's a different path for educating your children? One that doesn't involve desks, homework, or standardized testing? Join Jessyl and Alex as they pull back the curtain on their decade-long journey with unschooling – a learning approach that has allowed their four children to thrive while following their natural curiosities. This raw conversation dismantles common misconceptions about education and learning. Jessyl shares how their children taught themselves to read witho...
The journey through grief rarely follows a straight line. After sharing our son Liam's story last season, we're revealing a profound new chapter - Jessyl is 20 weeks pregnant with what many call a "rainbow baby." Despite actively trying to prevent pregnancy while navigating our grief, life had other plans. This pregnancy brings a complex emotional landscape unlike anything we've experienced before. As Jessyl vulnerably shares, "Excitement is not the word I would use... When I think about pre...
Wrapping up our 12-part series exploring grief, travel, and transformation, we pause to reflect on the profound lessons that have emerged from our journey with loss and rebuilding. Listeners who have followed our path through continents, memories, and healing have witnessed not just our story, but perhaps glimpses of their own capacity for resilience. Alex shares how recounting these experiences has served as medicine, helping process grief that continues to ebb and flow. "Liam was a guide a...
How do you tell the story of a child whose life defied medical impossibility yet ended too soon? In this deeply personal and emotional episode, we share the journey of our youngest son Liam—from his unexpected conception to his final heartbeat at just 18 months old. Born with a severe congenital heart condition that should have claimed his life within weeks, Liam somehow thrived without medical intervention, traveling across continents with our family. His extraordinary resilience allowed hi...
That small, seemingly insignificant decision to take a budget flight through London instead of flying direct to Cyprus? It cost us hundreds more than we planned and taught us a valuable lesson about family travel logistics. But that's the beauty of this journey we're on—the unexpected detours often bring the most profound realizations. When we finally arrived at our Cyprus villa, nicknamed "Serenity," it lived up to its name. After the whirlwind pace of Morocco, this spacious three-bedroom h...
Step into the shifting sands of Morocco through the eyes of a family discovering its vibrant landscapes, ancient cultures, and most importantly—themselves. From the blue-washed streets of Chefchaoun, where street performers sing your name for small coins, to the majestic Atlas Mountains with their wild monkeys and Berber cave dwellings, this episode captures the full spectrum of Moroccan wonders. The heart of their journey unfolds in the Sahara Desert, where camel rides lead to picnics where...
Morocco called to us for years before we finally answered. When the opportunity arose to fly from Portugal to North Africa with our children, we knew it was time. What we didn't know was how significant this journey would become in our family's story, especially for our youngest son, Liam. Our adventure began with a four-day stopover in Lisbon, where we finally visited the mystical gardens and castles of Sintra. The winding staircases, underground tunnels, and ancient structures seemed to tr...
Sometimes the most profound transformations happen when we slow down and settle into community. After months of rapid travel through Italy's Via Francigena, our family landed in Portugal's Algarve region for what became a two-month immersion in communal living that would reshape our approach to family life. The adjustment wasn't without challenges. Our children, suddenly surrounded by friends who spoke their language, resisted leaving the property to explore. Rather than forcing our travel a...
What happens when you take your children beyond their comfort zones and witness them discover their own capacity for resilience? In this deeply moving episode, we share the transformative pilgrimages our family undertook across Europe's ancient paths - the Camino de Santiago and the Via Francigena. Alex reveals how his journey with 10-year-old Grayson became a pivotal moment in their relationship, creating space for honest conversations and emotional growth. Walking 96 miles in just six days...
Have you ever stumbled upon exactly what you needed—or what your children were longing for—at the most unexpected moment? That's precisely what happened when our family climbed the steep steps into the medieval fortress town of Capranica, Italy, and found ourselves in the middle of a Star Wars cosplay festival, just weeks after our children had reluctantly parted with their beloved Star Wars helmets. Capranica marked a significant transition in our family's journey. After months of fast-pace...
Have you ever found yourself saying "that's too expensive" while simultaneously dreaming of financial abundance? Our journey through Monaco revealed this exact contradiction in our own thinking. With 33% of Monaco residents being millionaires, the environment of extreme wealth forced us to confront our limiting beliefs about money and success. The true revelation came when we realized how our language around finances was shaping our family's reality. We'd been caught in the trap of scarcity ...
A stranger told us we looked “too happy” to be grieving our son, and that offhand comment cracked open a much bigger conversation: who decides what grief should look like, and why do we treat joy as betrayal after loss? We open the door to our real process—private tears, unexpected waves, quiet days, and the slow return to things that make us feel alive. We talk about parenting four kids while holding absence, choosing fewer commitments to protect our energy, then carefully rebuilding a life...
