If you are intrigued by The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills as well as charcuterie boards, well - DO WE EVER HAVE AN EPISODE FOR YOU. We also talk about our low-key Valentine celebrations ("celebrations" is a *strong* word, really), discuss the wonder of a harp-playing raccoon, and break down what we love about some Nivea cream recommended by our good friend Jamie Golden. Finally, we share some exciting news (to us) (probably not to anyone else) about some inexpensive jeans *and* a sassy jumpsu...
Feb 20, 2019•48 min
We have such a treat for y'all in the first half of this episode: a visit with our dear friend Erin Moon, who regularly brightens our days on Instagram and on The Bible Binge podcast. Erin and I share an obsession related to one of our very favorite musicians, and it seemed like a good idea to have her on the podcast and hash that thing out for posterity. The second half of this episode is a little bit of a catch-up for Melanie and me; we talk about some music I'm loving and a recipe from Melani...
Feb 09, 2019•1 hr
This is the second part of the conversation we started on episode 130, and I have to say that this part is really of no substance at all (but oh, did we have fun). We talk about a new product Melanie loves, an old product Melanie loves again, and my recent descent into a YouTube rabbit hole. We also discuss the books we're working on and actually settle on a title for mine even though we can't say a whole lot about it. So there's some mild vague-ery - but there are also laughs aplenty. It's a sh...
Jan 30, 2019•39 min
Well, as we often do, we spend a lot of time in this episode talking about our recent experiences in the wild and also the nature. Okay. So it's not necessarily our norm. But we definitely discuss our somewhat out-of-the-ordinary weekend excursions. We also talk about some things we've watched and liked, some pants with which I am SMITTEN, and so very, very, very many sneakers - sneakers we like, sneakers we think we might like, and sneakers we appreciate though we would not wear them. You can't...
Jan 26, 2019•49 min
It's our first episode of 2019, and in it we certainly enjoy our fair share of pontificating: about age, about Christmas traditions (CAREFUL IF YOUR SMALL CHILDREN ARE LISTENING), about Melanie's exciting new ice option, and about the National Championship game. We also talk about Melanie's repeat viewing of Friday Night Lights , hear her reaction to Tidying Up , and dig into ALL MY MANY THOUGHTS about Surviving R. Kelly (seriously - if talking about trauma is difficult for you, you'll want to s...
Jan 10, 2019•1 hr 4 min
Travis is here! I feel like that's all we need to say about this episode, really. Because Travis being with us means that we talk about kids and sports and Christmas traditions and concession stand food and our favorite moments of 2018. Basically it's an hour (and change) of talking about everything and nothing with one of our very favorite friends. Enjoy, y'all - and Merry Christmas! Show Notes: - The Cottrell Family Christmas Picture - Angela's Chocolate Gravy Recipe - Pioneer Woman Cinnamon R...
Dec 21, 2018•1 hr 12 min
So it's only been a few days since the last episode, but here's the second part of the conversation we started on episode 126. We jump straight into a discussion about skin care - which includes an update on some new methods we're trying and Melanie's evaluation of her new products from The Ordinary. It's the skincare deep end, and I think it's safe to say that it's one of our favorite places to be. We also talk about Melanie's recent trip to New England, what we've been watching over the last m...
Dec 14, 2018•53 min
Real life has been FULL SPEED AHEAD the last few weeks; between traveling and speaking stuff and keeping up with our people, there hasn't been a lot of time for podcasting. So, this episode is part one of our Official Late November / Early December Catch-up. We talk about my most recent shopping trip with Martha, our respective Thanksgivings, and of course, our Bulldogs and our Aggies. Because I'm not sure if you're aware of it, but my Bulldogs won the Egg Bowl 35-3. And - just a guess - you're ...
Dec 11, 2018•52 min
Here's the second installment of our 2018 Gift Guide, this time with lots of options for women and men. You could also refer to this installment as HERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS WE LIKE and also HERE ARE THINGS WE WILL LIKELY PURCHASE FOR OUR HUSBANDS. So see? The gift guide serves a lot of purposes. We also do a quick recap of this past Saturday's football games because precious is the day when both the Aggies and the Bulldogs are victorious. We hope you enjoy this episode, and we especially hope th...
Nov 22, 2018•1 hr 10 min
I don't even know, y'all. Somehow in trying to correct something in 123 I deleted the last 10-ish minutes, which was our discussion about Jamie Golden's skincare routine. So please do follow Jamie on Instagram ( @jamiebgolden ), and please do forgive my besetting sin of not having a *super* strong understanding of Garage Band even though we've been podcasting since BEFORE THE DAWN OF TIME. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Nov 20, 2018•13 min
All righty - you asked for it, and we aim to please, so here's part one of our 2018 Holiday Gift Guide. We had the best time rounding up ideas, and in this first installment, we focus on hostess gift options as well as gifts for teenage girls and guys. This means that I use my teenage girl voice at least four too many times. Anyway, we hope our suggestions are helpful (and fun!) (and also significantly reduce your shopping stress). As always, you can find links to everything in the show notes. E...
Nov 17, 2018•1 hr 11 min
It took us three tries to get this episode going; we had a little recording trouble with the site we normally use, so then we had to switch over to Skype and blah blah blah we're the Bad News Bears of podcasting. Hi, welcome to the podcast, now watch us get hit in the chest by a fly ball. Or maybe a microphone. Eventually, though, we found us a work-around, and we settled in for a nice, long chat about all manner of things: the State / Bama game, Melanie's recent trip to Marshall, Texas, upcomin...
Nov 13, 2018•1 hr
In this episode there is a very strange crackle-y noise that occurs randomly but consistently, and we have no idea what it is. I suggested to Melanie at one point that it was castanets, but clearly I was being sarcastic because as you all know we only play our castanets during the summer months. I don't even know what that means. Anyway, if you can will yourself to hang in there during all the clicking / crackling, you'll hear us talk about the Mississippi State / A&M game, one of my most co...
Oct 31, 2018•56 min
On this episode we talk about college football - specifically, the Bulldogs' misfortunes against LSU and the upcoming MSU / A&M match-up. We also discuss Harry and Meghan's baby news - along with their Australia trip. Besides that? Oh, just a couple of new strategies from Melanie in terms of fighting her sleep lines, and some serious over-thinking / over-emoting from Sophie in terms of how fast time seems to move these days. As the kids would say, we get all up in our feelings. You know who ...
Oct 24, 2018•1 hr 4 min
Well, if you have ever wanted to hear Melanie and me speculate about the source of a dog's cough, this is the episode for you. We also talk about college football, the relentless heat of early October, and our inability to keep up with teenagers' trends despite our best efforts. Parenting. It is humbling. Finally, we discuss the mystery of free radicals, and Melanie shares some exciting pajama leggings news. Hope y'all enjoy! - The Good Place - Poldark - This Is Us - "Tokyo" - A Million Little T...
Oct 13, 2018•1 hr 1 min
There's a point in every college football season (at least for Aggies and Bulldogs) when disappointment, at least for a few minutes, obscures hope. Melanie and I found ourselves re-acquainted with some disappointment this past weekend, which definitely wasn't what we dreamed it would be. We break down all those feelings on this episode - along with continued analysis of targeting calls and the increasingly lose interpretation of roughing the passer. We also talk about the realities of traveling ...
Sep 26, 2018•1 hr 7 min
Since Melanie and I went to Chicago last weekend, this episode seemed like a great opportunity to recap our trip. We talk about our unforeseen hotel challenges, our night at Hamilton , and our many, many laughs at The Popcast Live. We also discuss college football at great length - and ponder the dynamics of sliding into someone's social media comments with your team's catchphrase. Also, you will not be surprised to know that Melanie has a LOT of thoughts about Aggie football in general and Jimb...
Sep 14, 2018•1 hr 1 min
Well, you will not be surprised to learn that we talk a great deal - A GREAT DEAL - about college football in this episode. There's some accountability in terms of how one of us managed to go to Starkville this past weekend despite some seemingly overwhelming writing obligations, there's all manner of optimism since the Aggies and the Bulldogs combined to score over 100 points in their first games, and then there's the can't-deny-it reality that the SEC West is NO JOKE in 2018. We also discuss b...
Sep 05, 2018•1 hr
As you (might) know, I'm working with a different computer these days, and somewhere in this new-to-me version of Garage Band (which is what I use to edit) I have somehow changed myself to a setting that is likely called "DJ From The 1970s." Melanie sounds quite normal, but I have an echo that will take you straight to the disco, and I have no idea how to fix it. I just know that it makes me sound like I recorded my part of the episode in a tiled bathroom. WELCOME TO EXCELLENCE, everyone. Despit...
Aug 26, 2018•1 hr 4 min
It's been a couple of weeks, so Melanie and I play catch-up in this episode. We talk about a unique challenge I'm facing this weekend, the technological heartbreak of late last week, and why a pep talk from other writers is a very sweet thing indeed. We also talk about the launch of Melanie's new book, Fearless Faith , and discuss this fall's fashion trends (or lack thereof). We also mourn the continued elusiveness of Melanie's much-desired Sam Edelman Camellia boots, so we trust you'll remember...
Aug 10, 2018•1 hr 6 min
Well, our good friend Travis Cottrell is back with us this week, and oh, do we have a fine time. However, since y'all know how we like to pride ourselves on technological excellence, you might as well be aware that apparently my microphone wasn't completely plugged in for this episode. So be forewarned that I sound considerably more tin-ny than normal. DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED, however, because Melanie and Travis managed to get their microphones connected and it all works out fine in the end. On th...
Jul 30, 2018•1 hr 15 min
Our good friend Travis Cottrell is with us on this episode, and we have ourselves a blast. We talk about workout needs of extroverts vs. introverts, we hear about Travis' recent regional airline experience, and we answer a bunch of fun questions that people asked on Instagram. Also, please excuse the many phone alerts / dings / beeps that occur in the first part of the episode. We didn't get our phones under control before we started to record, so it takes a few minutes for all three of us to SI...
Jul 21, 2018•1 hr 4 min
All righty, y'all - this is our Very Special Southern Charm Finale Re-cap. We talk about so many things: Craig, Kathryn & Shep, white tie attire, Patricia's pet caftans, Chelsea & Austen, and last but not least - the train wreck that is Ashley and Thomas. WE HAVE SOME THOUGHTS. And then, after we wrap up our Southern Charm discussion, we talk about several other shows we're watching and enjoying / pondering. Yay for TV! Enjoy, y'all! - Southern Charm - Patricia's pet caftans - The Bachel...
Jul 18, 2018•59 min
On this episode we talk about my unusually quiet house, the latest on Southern Charm , and a couple of Netflix movies that have renewed Melanie's faith in the romantic comedy. We also continue with the questions we didn't finish last week, and as it turns out, we talk a lot - A LOT - about parenting stuff (teenagers in general, only children in particular). You'll also hear all of my (Sophie's) geeky thoughts about The Fourth Estate as well as some podcasts I'm enjoying. Let it be acknowledged t...
Jun 29, 2018•1 hr
A few days ago some of the folks on our Big Boo Facebook page were kind enough to leave comments with some questions / topics that they wanted us to discuss, so that is exactly what Melanie and I do on this episode. We picked seven to start with, and my goodness: WE HAVE SOME THOUGHTS. I actually couldn't fit all of the answers into one episode (you'll hear the rest next week), but we cover a lot of territory when it comes to grief, friendships, writing, and whether or not we enjoy crafts (we'll...
Jun 23, 2018•54 min
In what is no doubt the complete opposite of a surprise, we had some sound issues with this one. We still don't know exactly why. What we do know, though, is that I sound like a loud talker and Melanie sounds like a soft talker who is trying to subtly communicate to me that I need to PIPE DOWN. So thanks in advance for bearing with us; we'll do our best to get that worked out for next time. As for what we talk about, well, there's a lot: college baseball (Mississippi State is headed to the Colle...
Jun 14, 2018•1 hr 8 min
On this episode of the podcast we talk extensively about Southern Charm and caftans. AS YOU DO. We also chronicle some of our current, um, hormone-adjacent frustrations, recap what's happened for our teams so far in the college baseball post-season, and discuss some of our summer reading plans. Plus, Melanie brings us all up-to-speed on some highlights from The Bachelorette - and in doing so improves the quality of all our lives. Hope y'all enjoy! Here's where you can get more info on the stuff ...
Jun 07, 2018•1 hr 10 min
If you're in need of a little superficial to kick off your summer, this is the episode for you. We talk about nail polish, our nail-related frustrations, our favorite summer shoes, and all the reasons why we're embracing the caftan for summer 2018. We also discuss the fact that, in all of our Enneagram 9-ness, we are not ever concerned with any details at any point in time unless we're talking about emotions. Because in that case we are HERE FOR ALL OF IT. Hope y'all enjoy! - Urban Outfitters bo...
Jun 01, 2018•45 min
The Royal Wedding happened. And now we recap. (Spoiler: WE LOVED EVERY SECOND.) Here's where you can get more info on the stuff / products / places we mention: - Sofia Wellesley's dress - Kitty Spencer's dress - Victoria Beckham's dress - Amal Clooney's dress - Gina Torres' dress - Doria Ragland's dress - Queen Elizabeth's dress - Camilla's hat - flowers at the chapel - Meghan Markle's wedding day hair - Meghan Markle's wedding day makeup - Teenager Meghan in front of Buckingham Palace - Meghan'...
May 25, 2018•59 min
This one is all Royal Wedding. And no small amount speculation. Needless to say, we are giddy with anticipation. Here's where you can get more info on the stuff / products / places we mention: Harry & Meghan: Royal Rebels The Royal Wedding attendants Meghan Markle's father caused some drama The Royal We - a fun beach read about royalty that contains zero spiritual edification (just FYI, friends) Harry & Meghan: A Royal Romance Jo Malone Lime Basil & Mandarin Cologne Sponsors: Canidae...
May 18, 2018•56 min
