Episode 302: Keeping it Real with the Super Mamas: Staying Motivated through Tough Times

Good days and bad days are totally normal, and this vent session will remind you that we all go through it!

First, Paulina starts us off with the story of how she lost her toenail. We’ll give you fair warning: if you’re squeamish, you might want to skip to minute 12 of our episode. 🙈 And that’s not all that’s happened to her lately! Her husband got covid, and so did she! Remember when she and her family first tested positive for covid in 2020? Then Bricia talks about working on her latest cookbook and the stress of creating new recipes on top of work and mom life. She gets busy and realizes that it’s okay to outsource sometimes.

Ultimately we’re still learning that even during some of our toughest days, there is always goodness to look forward to, a light at the end of the tunnel.

Pick or Tip of the Week

Bricia is watching Inventing Anna on Netflix. It’s so good that you’ll want to binge it all in one night.

Paulina just watched Cheer on Netflix. The motivation and determination the athletes have really helped her push through during her injury and covid. Paulina is also obsessed with Coach Monica’s leadership skills and is taking notes from her too.

Links

Paulina mentions having a home birth with her last daughter to avoid needles. Listen to that episode here.

Watch Dopesick on Hulu. An incredible story, but scary reality.

Paulina was riding dirty around her house on a medical scooter like this one.

Remember when Paulina got covid for the first time in 2020?

Lastly, if you don’t have our Oaxaca cookbook then what are you waiting for??

Episode 278: Continuing Tradition & Culture through Storytelling with children’s author, Meg Medina

“Storytelling is important because that’s the way we continue tradition.” - Paulina

Being a story teller is a true talent and children’s author, Meg Medina, shares her gift with us in this week’s episode. We talk about how many of Meg’s stories are inspired by the memories & traditions she created & learned in her own family, how we can tap into our inner child to unleash our creativity and why we need Latinx voices in the book world. Plus she shares about her new book, “Merci Suarez Can’t Dance” and a few of her other titles that are favorite bedtimes stories in our homes too! 

More about Meg: Meg Medina is an award-winning Cuban-American author who writes picture books and middle-grade and young adult fiction. Her middle-grade novel Merci Suárez Changes Gears received a Newbery Medal and was a New York Times Notable Children’s Book of the Year, an International Latino Book Award nominee, and a Kirkus Prize for Young Readers’ Literature finalist, among many other distinctions. About this sequel, Meg Medina says, “I’m so excited to bring my readers into the world of the Suárez family and Seaward Pines once again. . . . New friends, new teachers, and new self-doubts. It’s been a thrill to write about all the zany things that the seventh grade can throw at a person.”

Her most recent picture book, Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away, published in September 2020 to several starred reviews. Her young adult novel Burn Baby Burn earned numerous distinctions, including being long-listed for the 2016 National Book Award and short-listed for the Kirkus Prize. She is the 2014 recipient of the Pura Belpré Author Award and a 2013 Cybils Award winner for her young adult novel Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass. She also received the 2012 Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Award for her picture book Tía Isa Wants a Car.

Meg Medina’s work examines how cultures intersect through the eyes of young people, and she brings audiences stories that speak to both what is unique in Latino culture and qualities that are universal. Her favorite protagonists are strong girls. In March 2014, she was recognized as one of the CNN 10 Visionary Women in America. In November 2014, she was named one of Latino Stories’ Top Ten Latino Authors to Watch.

When she is not writing, Meg Medina works on community projects that support girls, Latino youth, and literacy. She lives with her family in Richmond, Virginia.

Our Favorite Titles from Meg Medina

Her newest book - Merci Suarez Can’t Dance

Mango, Abuela and Me

Tía Isa Wants a Car

April is Independent Book Store Month! Learn more about how you can support at indiebound.org and to find an independent bookstore near you.

LINKS

Follow Meg on Instagram @megmedinabooks and on Twitter @Meg_Medina - she’s most active there!

Visit MegMedina.com to order her books directly and for more news, events and resources on all things children’s literature.

Episode 218: Live Your Story & Get What You Want with Gardenia Ramirez of @lolaytula

Did you miss us? We’re back with a new episode after a holiday break! This week, we sit down with Gardenia Ramirez, founder and owner of LOLA Y TULA, a curated collection of handmade Mexican folk art. She talks about her “little” business she created out of love, passion, and necessity, plus all about her family and how her mom showed her that you should always go further, learn more, and get what you want. She really believes that you can have a big idea, but you need to believe in yourself, try all the things, have a good product, plan, & story - then you’ll make it.

Before the episode, Bricia also shares about her surprise wedding anniversary trip, and it’s a story you’ll want to share with your partner as inspiration for your next couple’s getaway. If you haven’t heard the story about white roses, you’ll want to listen to our Valentine’s Day episode from a few years ago. To keep it short and sweet, her husband surprised her with an incredible trip to Napa, packed all of her outfits for her (that was a surprise on it’s own), and took her to The French Laundry. Check out the rest of her itinerary below!

Bricia’s Surprise Napa Trip

Brunch at The French Laundry

Calistoga Ranch

Hot Air Balloon Ride

Pick or Tip of the Week

Bricia really wanted her pick of the week to be the perfect date dress that her husband surprised her with during their trip (look at how cute they are at the French Laundry), but she can’t find it ANYWHERE. So she changed it to these great boots from Macy’s, and she always gets a ton of compliments whenever she wears them. She has them in white and black, super comfortable!

Paulina’s tip is very Paulina. It’s the Arnicare Pain Relief Gel, and it’s great for sore muscles. It was in a gift bag that she received earlier this year, and it really came in handy after she ran her half marathon next month.

Links

Follow Gardenia on Instagram at @lolaytula and shop her gorgeous products at lolaytula.com

Also, the actor Bricia saw in Napa is Noah Centineo from the Netflix movie, “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before.”

Episode 169: Spooky Halloween Stories with the Super Mamás

Boo! It’s Halloween and the Super Mamás talk spooky stories and picking out supplies for their DIY costumes at their favorite store, Target. From Paulina’s Disney family inspo, to the King of Pop, we got Halloween on lock. Also, Bricia talks about her scary/weird story with lil Eduardo and Paulina talks about her Halloween story with “Amanda” at her old apartment back in the day. Happy Halloween Super Mamás!

Happy Halloween with the Super Mamás:

(3:00): Paulina’s halloween costume inspiration

via GIPHY

(7:40): Baby Eduardo’s DIY Halloween costume

(9:00): Earning your mom badge with DIY activities, school projects and cooking

(12:09): Bricia’s scary/weird story with her son

(24:28): Paulina’s ~spooky~ story

(32:40): The difference between the US and Mexico during Halloween

Our Pick/Tip of the Week

(33:20): Struggling to find last minute costume ideas today? Visit your local Target and pick up something like this: Unicorn Mascot Costume Head

Also, in a rush? Download the Target App and use their new Drive Up service. Bricia has been using this A LOT lately. You place your order directly on the app, then once you park, your items are brought out to your car by a Target member! Easy peasy.