The Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey

My guest for The Happy Hour # 256 is Kim Lewis. Kim is a "Little lady with Big ideas!" and is best known for her work as the Lead Designer behind ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” and Founder of Kim Lewis Designs. Kim's work has been featured on ABC, HGTV, TLC, National Geographic, Spike TV and FYI's "Tiny House Nation." Most recently she designs restaurants, boutiques, and hotels around the world, but Kim's passion is in building therapeutic art centers for rescued children in Ghana, Cambodia,Thailand and Honduras. Kim and I start off talking about how the job offer call she received on her wedding day led her to design over 120 homes in 43 states on the show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Kim shares some of the hard places she's walked through, including the loss of her mom and the end of her first marriage. Friends, Kim has gone through difficult suffering throughout her life, but you'll hear tell story after story that will give you the chills of how God showed up, and when Kim leaned in and listened, He answered. I was so inspired hearing her talk about how in the midst of hardships she would ask "how can God be glorified in this valley?" At the end of the show we get to hear about Kim's design business, her growing family, and the creative and fun ways she and her husband Joey are sharing their stories on their YouTube channel. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube Sponsors  Panama City Beach Rothy's Zip Recruiter - try for free! GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE

My guest for The Happy Hour # 255 is Lauren Eberspacher. Lauren is a wife to her farmer husband Eric and mom to her three farm babies. They live in Milford, Nebraska where they own and operate a fifth generation grain farm. When Lauren isn't busy doing all things farming, she is a blogger and speaker, and author of her first devotional, Midnight Lullabies - Moments of Peace for Moms. Lauren and I start off the show chatting about how she went from city girl to farm wife, where she says her life "is kind of like a country song". Lauren opens up about post partum depression that she experienced with her third child, and that the lack of desire to dwell with the Lord was one of the biggest red flags that something wasn't right. We also talk about the importance in investing in friendships built on truth and trust. Lauren and I then discuss fighting for contentment in all circumstances, including fear, suffering, and when things aren't going our way. In the last part of the show, we get a little spicy and talk about sex and finding redemption in the bedroom. Nothing we discuss is inappropriate, but this is an episode you may want to save and listen to when little ears aren't around. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE

My guest for The Happy Hour # 254 is Dr. Andrea Holman. Andrea serves as an Associate Professor of Psychology at Huston-Tillotson University where she teaches, conducts research, and gives talks and trainings around the city about race, racism and privilege and their impact on interpersonal relations. She also uses her expertise to assist foster/adoptive parents pursuing interracial adoption through the local foster agency through which she and her husband are currently licensed foster parents. Friends, get out the pen and paper now because I'm telling you there are so many things you're going to want to write down from the show today!  Andrea and I start off talking about foster care and "naive altruism".  Andrea shares some research findings including what foster/adoptive kids say they needed most in their homes but often didn't receive. We then dive into the subject of beauty, and the value and standard that is pervasive in our culture. Andrea tells us how the words we use often communicate a person's worth with the lens of beauty, and it's so normal that we don't even realize we're doing it. You'll hear Andrea take this a step further and show us how the language we use with relationships can convey someone's value as the relationship instead of their true value a child of God. You guys, I'm still thinking about so many things from my conversation with Andrea. I'm convicted and encouraged by what Andrea's pointed out, and thankful for her wisdom and practical steps we can take to start making changes.  Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube Sponsors Kendra Scott - Use code HAPPYHOUR online or in-store for 20% off, valid until 9/1 Rothy's  Third Love - get 15% off your first purchase GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE

My guest for The Happy Hour # 253 is Stevie of Built by Stevie. Stevie was born and raised in South Florida and describes herself as a long, windy road Christ follower. Stevie now lives in Nashville where she is a #carpentHER and designs and makes furniture full time through her all female run company, Built By Stevie. Stevie and I start off the show talking about how learning to install a ceiling fan led Stevie later create her woodworking business, Built By Stevie. Woodworking started out as just something on the side, but after some unexpected and tough situations, God nudged her through a good friend to start Built by Stevie. Please note in the second half of the show, Stevie and I talk about sexual abuse which I want to be sure I warn you about in case it could be a trigger point for you. No details of the abuse are shared, but Stevie honestly shares her journey of the road of healing from the sexual abuse that she endured as a child. I am so thankful to Stevie for her vulnerability and how she points to the hope we have with Jesus in the midst of suffering and when life is messy and hard.  Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube Sponsors Just. You. Wait. by Tricia Lott Williford LOLA - use code HAPPYHOUR40 get 40% off all subscriptions Zip Recruiter - try for free! Life is Good Ping Podcast   GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE

My guest for The Happy Hour # 252 is Darbie Angell. Darbie describes herself as a confident girl entertaining with style and consumed with wanderlust. At 20 weeks pregnant and put on bed rest, Darbie started her luxury dinnerware business. Darbie's products can be found in Macy's, Bed Bath and Beyond, Dillard's, Bloomies, Kendra Scott stores, Amazon, and many more. Darbie's company also employs 3,000 women artisans in underdeveloped countries, and her main goal is to impact the world one plate at a time! Have you ever asked yourself the question, "how do I invest in what God's given me?" You're going to be inspired to dig into that question after you hear Darbie's story. Darbie starts off telling us how she made the decision to start her business when she was 20 weeks pregnant and put on bed rest. You'll hear her talk about her side hustle selling diamonds that provided the capital she needed to ramp up her business. With a legal pad, tenacity, and following the path God was calling her to, Darbie (still on bed rest!) got her business off the ground. Darbie openly shares how the road hasn't been easy, and there have been roadblocks and challenges. We also get to hear about the impact she's making in Bangladesh at her factory through providing employment for women, access to healthcare, and creating a safe home/orphanage to help children escape from exploitation at brothels. You guys, Darbie didn't start her business when everything was "perfect", and I hope after hearing her story you're inpsired to ask God what you can start doing now with what's He's given you! Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube Sponsors Unum - check out Unum's free parental leave guide! Rothy's Away - use code HAPPYHOUR for $20 off a suitcase Life is Good Ping Podcast GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE

My guest for The Happy Hour # 251 is Vivian Mabuni. Vivian is a national speaker and writer with a passion to share the hope and life found through intimacy with God. With 30 years of ministry experience on staff with Cru (formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ), she loves teaching about the Bible and providing practical applications. I'm so happy to welcome my friend Vivian back to the show! Vivian starts off telling us about when she became a Christian, and how she thought it might be just a phase of her teenage years. Obviously, it was not a phase and Vivian shares how the phrase, Open Hands, Willing Heart has become almost like a mantra in her life (and is the title of her newest book!). I loved hearing her speak about the freedom we experience when we loosen our grip on self-reliance and control, and instead practice obedience, dependence and surrendering to God. Vivian also opens up about what it's looked like embracing when God says "no." She reminds us, "No" is not an absence of love." Lastly, Vivian makes my momma heart weepy when she describes motherhood as "just one long goodbye", but I loved hearing her wise words about sending off our children well. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube Sponsors Kendra Scott - use code HAPPYHOUR for 20% off any full price item online or mention code in store, valid until 9/1/2019 Stamps.com - get a 4-week free trial by clicking the microphone on top of the homepage and type in HAPPYHOUR Third Love - get 15% off your first order Life is Good Ping Podcast GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE

My guest for The Happy Hour # 250 is Elisabeth Hasselbeck. Elisabeth is an Emmy Award–winning talk show host, former broadcaster, and New York Times best-selling author of The G-Free Diet and Deliciously G-Free, and her latest book Point of View. Elisabeth is married to former NFL quarterback and current ESPN NFL analyst Tim Hasselbeck, and they have three children—Grace, Taylor, and Isaiah. You guys, I am so excited about today's show! We are celebrating the 250th episode of The Happy Hour, and I got to interview one of my dream guests. I'm just plain giddy about it! Elisabeth and I start off the show talking about how we can fall into the trap of attaching to jobs, things, and/or roles as our identity, instead of remembering who God says we are. Elisabeth shares stories from her twenty years in broadcasting including those hard topics that came up on her shows. I loved hearing her speak about how she learned that these hard topics are really heart topics, and God cares more about relationship than us proving ourselves right. In the last part of the show, Elisabeth lets us in on what God taught her through her transition from The View, to Fox, and then to stay home with her family. I could have talked with Elisabeth for hours, and I know you're going to love our conversation. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube Sponsors Nations Photo Lab: use code HAPPYHOUR15 for 15% off Zip Recruiter Job Search App thredUp - get an extra 30% off GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE

My guest for The Happy Hour # 249 is Allie Casazza. Allie is the host of The Purpose Show podcast, course creator & world-renowned mom inspirer. Allie spends her days working from home with her husband, Brian, playing Super Nintendo with their four kids, and reading loads of books. She's been featured for her realistic philosophy of minimalism on popular media like Good Morning America, ABC News, and The Jenny McCarthy Show. Allie and I start off the show talking about decluttering! You are not only going to love hearing Allie's tips for simplifying dishes and laundry, but we also discuss how decluttering your life physically can impact your life spiritually, emotionally, and mentally. You'll be so inspired hearing her own story of how decluttering didn't just make her house neater, but created more space and time for the things that truly matter. After hearing the stories she shared of the impact of delcluttering on her clients' marriages, careers, and joy in the everyday, I pretty much told Allie she must come hold my hand to do all these things! Allie then opens up about her struggle with post partum depression and how she worked through it. I am so thankful to Allie for sharing her story and her important message that we need to talk about post partum depression and how we can check in with the new mommas in our lives. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube Sponsors Kendra Scott - use code HAPPYHOUR for 20% off (online and in-store) until 9.1.19 Molekule - use code JAMIE and get $75 off your first order Butcher Box - use code HAPPYHOUR for $20 off your first box and free bacon for the life of your subscription! Life is Good Ping Podcast GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE

My guest for The Happy Hour # 248 is Pam Tebow. Pam encourages women to use the incredible influence God has given them to eternally impact their world. She has appeared on Good Morning America and has won national awards for her ministry work, including Commission for Women's Inspiring Woman of the Year in 2013, Extraordinary Woman of the Year in 2015, and the National Pro-Life Advocate of the Year in 2017. Pam and her husband, Bob, live in Florida; they have five grown children and eight grandchildren. On the show today, Pam shares amazing God stories from her life, and I know you'll be inspired, like I was, to know Scripture better because of Pam's infectious love of the Word. Pam starts off telling us about her family's time in the Phillipines and how they navigated fear through the power of Scripture. You are going to love, love, love the story of how a tune she made up for her kids using Psalm 56 has made a ripple effect in her family's next generation. Pam and I talk about how our children and people we interact with are looking at how we trust God in the situations we face. Pam then shares the story of how she and her family prayed for their fifth child, the doctor's advice to terminate the pregnancy, and how the decision to continue the pregnancy altered the trajectory of so many areas in her life. In the last part of the show, we talk about spheres of influence, and Pam encourages all of us that God will provide what you need to make an impact where He's called you. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube Sponsors Unum - Check out their parental leave guide Rothy's  Third Love  - Get 15% off your first order GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE

My guest for The Happy Hour # 247 is Alia Joy. Alia is an author and speaker who believes the darkness is illuminated when we grasp each other's hand and walk into the night together. Alia writes poignantly about her life with bipolar disorder as well as grief, faith, marriage, poverty, race, embodiment, and keeping fluent in the language of hope. She lives in Oregon with her husband, her mother, her three kids, a dog, a bunny, and a bunch of chickens. In Alia's book, Glorious Weakness, she puts forth the question, "What if weakness was a spiritual gift?" and you guys, I am so thankful to Alia for coming on the show. Her message is so important and brings great insight into mental illness. Alia shares her story that includes dark places such as abuse, leukemia at age 5, her brother's attempted suicide and her own struggle with suicidal ideation, and her diagnosis with bipolar disorder at age 30. Alia tells us how God made Himself known to her during thoughts of suicide and how He brings hope amidst the struggles she still deals with today. We also talk about when the church treats mental illness as sin and how it can push people to feel as though they must keep it private and alone. I appreciated hearing Alia speak about specific ways we can ask how to best walk alongside those living with mental illness, and that we need to start with having compassion built into mental illness like we have compassion for other illnesses. We also discuss what it's been like parenting her children, and that God loves us in our weakness, meets us in our brokenness, and how that's taught her and her children that "no one is going to meet them the way God can." Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube Sponsors Nations Photo Lab - use code HAPPYHOUR for 15% off your order Bolster Sleep Company - use code HAPPYHOUR for 10% off Stamps.com - Click on the microphone at the top and enter code HAPPYHOUR to get a 4 week free trial plus free postage, and a digital scale. GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE