My guest for The Happy Hour #157 is Catherine Lowe. You may recognize her from a little show called The Bachelor. Catherine met and fell in love with her now husband, Sean Lowe, on season 17. Millions (self included) tuned in to watch them tie the knot on national television in 2014. They now live in Dallas with their adorable son, Samuel. On today's show, Catherine and I visit in person and cover so very much. We cover all things related to The Bachelor - how she was casted, her journey of fall...
Sep 06, 2017•1 hr 15 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #156 is Andrea Lucado. Andrea is a freelance writer based in Austin, Texas. As the daughter of bestselling author and pastor Max Lucado, Andrea inherited an obsession with words and their arrangement. She has a master’s degree in English literature from Oxford-Brookes University and contributes regularly to online and print publications such as Relevant magazine and SheReadsTruth.com . She recently released a book, English Lessons . In our conversation, we chat about ...
Aug 30, 2017•1 hr 4 min
Today, Sara Hagerty joins me for The Happy Hour #155. Sara is wife to her best friend Nate, and a mother of six, including four children adopted from Africa and two through natural childbirth. Her first published book, Every Bitter Thing Is Sweet , found her a worldwide audience, drawn to the authentic voice heard in her emotive and Scripturally-based writing style, as she searches to find God in the midst of questions and brokenness. Her second book, Unseen: The Gift of Being Hidden in a World ...
Aug 23, 2017•51 min
My friend, LaToria Wilson , joins me today for episode #154 for of The Happy Hour. Let me tell you - her amazing hair and big personality aren't all she has to offer. LaToria has an energy that's all her own and brings an eclectic feel to the hip hop music she makes. Through her music, LaToria aims to offer hope, light, and truth while providing an unforgettable experience. She was nominated for Christian Female Hip Hop minister of the year in 2016. Her latest single Pushin Light is now availabl...
Aug 16, 2017•1 hr
Shauna Shanks joins me for a special live edition of The Happy Hour - recorded in my backyard in the sweltering July heat for our Summer Book Club . Shauna is the author of our second book, A Fierce Love . She's also a wife, mother, and entrepreneur. Shauna and her husband, Micah, have been married for more than a decade, and they're currently building a house out of shipping containers with their three boys on an Ohio farm. A Fierce Love is Shauna's story of fighting for her marriage through he...
Aug 09, 2017•58 min
My friend Chrystal Hurst joins me today for episode #152 of The Happy Hour. Chrystal is a writer, speaker, and worship leader in addition to serving as the chief executive operating officer in her home as a wife, mother of five and grandmother to one. Chrystal is co-author of, Kingdom Woman and her second book, She’s Still There coming out next week. She also blogs and podcasts regularly at Chrystal’s Chronicles where she poignantly reflects her thoughts about her faith and day-to- day experienc...
Aug 02, 2017•57 min
Angela Lanter is my guest for The Happy Hour #151. As one of the hot new trendsetters in the beauty and fashion blogging community, Angela has established a credible reputation and sizable social media following in a short period of time. The founder of Hello Gorgeous blog and Youtube channel , she was named a finalist for the Allure magazine’s Beauty Blogger of the Year Award and was honored with the “Spotlight Award” for Blogger of the Year by PopSugar . She has served as brand ambassadors for...
Jul 26, 2017•50 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #150 is Christy Wright. Christy is both entertaining and inspiring, and presents messages that educate and give hope to audiences all over the country. As the creator of Business Boutique and through her podcast and sellout live events , Christy has equipped thousands of women to successfully run and grow a business so they can make money doing what they love. Since joining Ramsey Solutions in 2009, she has spoken to audiences across the country at women’s conferences...
Jul 19, 2017•50 min
Virginia Cumberbatch joins me today for The Happy Hour #149. Virginia serves as the Director of the Community Engagement Center and Social Justice Institute at The University of Texas at Austin and is a co-founder of HUX STORYHOUSE , a creative strategies collective that uses culturally relevant storytelling to help organizations engage thoughtfully and authentically with markets across the Black Diaspora. Her first book, As We Saw It: The Story of Integration at The University of Texas at Austi...
Jul 12, 2017•58 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #148 is Lisa Harper. Lisa is a master storyteller with a masters of Theological Studies from Covenant Seminary . She’s lauded as an engaging, hilarious communicator as well as an authentic and substantive Bible teacher. She’s been in vocational ministry for thirty years and has written fifteen books and Bible study curriculums but says her greatest accomplishment by far is that of becoming Missy’s (her adopted daughter from Haiti) mama! They live on a hilly farmette s...
Jul 05, 2017•49 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #147 is Kristin Schell . Kristin is an established speaker and blogger on the subjects of food, faith, and hospitality. As founder of the Turquoise Table and Front Yard People movement, Kristin travels the country speaking at conferences and events with an encouraging word on how to open our lives and homes to others. She lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband, Tony, and their four children. Kristin and the Turquoise Table has been featured in a wide variety of medi...
Jun 28, 2017•1 hr 5 min
The very hilarious Sophie Hudson is back today for episode #146 of The Happy Hour. Sophie joined me for episode #54 and for The Happy Half Hour #8 . She's one of my favorite guests and she's back today to chat about our recent travels to Kenya with Compassion International . On today's show, Sophie and I recount several of our favorite stories from Kenya and how they impacted our lives. We chat about visiting the slums (you'll find some pictures below), meeting our sponsored children and their f...
Jun 21, 2017•1 hr 2 min
Maria Goff is my guest for The Happy Hour #145. Maria has made a career out of loving her family and neighbors, raising her children, and turning houses into homes. She is married to national bestselling author of “Love Does” Bob Goff . Together, they operate Love Does , an organization dedicated to helping kids in conflict areas around the world including Uganda, Nepal, India, Iraq, and Somalia. The Goffs have three adult kids who are starting families of their own. They live in San Diego, wher...
Jun 14, 2017•57 min
Sarah Harmeyer is my guest for episode #144 of The Happy Hour. Sarah is the founder of Neighbor’s Table , a concept born from her personal passion for gathering people, and her desire to get to know her own neighbors. She has personally witnessed how lives are transformed when people gather around the table and share their stories. Sarah asked her father to build a cedar farmhouse style table big enough to seat 20. They placed it under the oak tree in her backyard in Dallas, dropped chandeliers ...
Jun 07, 2017•58 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #143 is Angie Smith. Angie is married to Todd Smith, of the Christian group, Selah , and mom to five daughters. In 2008, the Smiths received news that their 4th daughter, Audrey, would not survive, and Angie began blogging as a means of communication with friends and family during those difficult days. Angie now writes books and Bible studies, and teaches around the country, but the heart of her ministry is the same as it was when her fingers typed the very first word...
May 31, 2017•1 hr 3 min
One of my all-time favorite guests, Bianca Juárez Olthoff , is back today for episode #32 of The Happy Half Hour. If you missed Bianca's first appearance, you must catch up here . Bianca is back to fill us in on the latest happenings in her life - including a pretty major life transition with prison ministry. She also answers the how she recharges, where she'd live for a year, her biggest pet peeve and how she defines success. You're going to love catching back up with her. If you're interested ...
May 26, 2017•28 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #142 is Cheryl Scruggs. Cheryl is a Biblical counselor with her husband, Jeff. She is the mom to adult twin daughters - Brittany Morgan and Lauren Scruggs Kennedy (who joined me for episode #132 ). She's also the co-author of I Do Again and Still LoLo . Cheryl and her husband live in Dallas, where they run a marriage ministry called Hope Matters Marriage Ministries . I have been so anxious to get a chance to chat with Cheryl. You may remember part of her story from La...
May 24, 2017•1 hr 8 min
Amber Newberry is my guest for The Happy Hour #141. Amber embraces her calling as wounded healer and seeks to show all people that they are beautiful and beloved. Through sharing her story, Amber hopes to begin to free people that have been living in the bondage of shame in their own stories. You can find Amber at beautifulandbeloved.com where she shares not only her stories, but the ways that God has given her redemption and healing through meditation, yoga, oils, and prayer. In today's show, A...
May 17, 2017•1 hr 2 min
My guest for The Happy Half Hour #31 is my friend, Alli Worthington . Alli is the author of Breaking Busy and Fierce Faith , business coach, advisor and Executive Director of Propel Women . Alli’s no-nonsense, guilt-free take on business, family, and balance has lead to appearances on The Today Show and Good Morning America. She loves to speak at women's conferences and business events. Alli, her husband, Mark, and their five sons live outside of Nashville, TN. Alli was on The Happy Hour for epi...
May 12, 2017•30 min
The Happy Hour is THREE! To celebrate, I invited some of my closest friends and biggest encouragers to join me for a real life happy hour. We met at Chicon , one of my favorite restaurants in Austin and celebrated all that The Happy Hour has become over the last three years. In today's show, you'll get an inside peek into the celebration and my relationships with some of my favorite people. I pull a few friends in to ask me a few questions that you sent in. We cover my tattoos, the best conferen...
May 10, 2017•58 min
It's May y'all! I don't know what it's like where you are, but May is starting off beautifully in Austin, TX. The weather is perfect, every thing is green and baseball season is in full gear. To kick the month off, Megan Tietz is joining me for episode #139 of The Happy Hour. Megan served as the soothing voice and spirited pen behind SortaCrunchy – blog hub for all things faith, family, and natural living from 2006-2014. She is also co-author of Spirit-Led Parenting: From Fear to Freedom in Baby...
May 03, 2017•1 hr
Wynter Pitts + Jamie Ivey
Apr 28, 2017•31 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #138 is Lauren Casper. Lauren is the author of It's Okay About It: Lessons from a Remarkable Five-Year-Old about Living Life Wide Open , and founder of the internationally read blog laurencasper.com . Lauren is a top contributor to the TODAY Parenting Team and has had numerous articles syndicated by The Huffington Post , the TODAY show , Yahoo! News , and several other publications. She and her family live in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Lauren is an adoptive mo...
Apr 26, 2017•1 hr 8 min
Lauren Scruggs Kennedy is my guest for The Happy Hour #137. Lauren is a Texas girl who was swept away to California by the love her life. She has a love for fashion that has been tightly sewn through interning in wardrobe for the CW’s Gossip Girl, the Michael Kors showroom in New York City, and reporting for New York, Paris, and Montreal Fashion Weeks. She’s the author of two best-selling books and keeps up with a lifestyle blog that ignites honest talk and community by sharing stories rooted in...
Apr 19, 2017•1 hr 1 min
My guest for The Happy Half Hour #28 is Latasha Morrison . Tasha is a bridge-builder, reconciler and a compelling voice in the fight for racial justice. A native of North Carolina, Tasha attended East Carolina University, earned a Masters in Business from Liberty University. She has served as Children’s and Next Gen Director and recently joined staff at Gateway Church Central in Austin, Texas as the Director of Operations. In Addition to her church positions, she has simultaneously cultivated Be...
Apr 14, 2017•31 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #136 is Lisa-Jo Baker . Lisa-Jo has been the community manager for (in)courage , an online home for women all over the world, for nearly a decade. She is also the author of Surprised by Motherhood , and her most recent book, Never Unfriended . She lives just outside Washington, DC, with her husband and their three very loud kids, where she connects, encourages, and champions women in person and through her blog, lisajobaker.com . Lisa-Jo is a dear friend of mine, and ...
Apr 12, 2017•1 hr 1 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #135 is Jenny Randle . Jenny is a Creative Ninja, a speaker, art director and Emmy-winning video editor. She’s collaborated on billion dollar franchises in the heart of Hollywood and currently specializes in design and advertising. Jenny has a passion for empowering others to understand their God-given identity, purpose and creativity. She lives in Upstate New York with her husband, Matt, and two young children. Jenny’s preferred creative fuel is Jesus, lattes and fre...
Apr 05, 2017•52 min
My guest for The Happy Half Hour #28 is Shay Shull . Shay is a cookbook author, blogger, world traveler, baseball lover and mom to four. With her husband, Andrew, they live in McKinney, TX, where they each own their own businesses, drink way too much coffee and argue over whose baseball team is superior (she loves the Sox, he's a Yankee fan). Shay's passionate about food, family, faith, travel and adoption. Shay was on The Happy Hour exactly one year ago for episode #82. If you missed that show,...
Mar 31, 2017•24 min
My guest for The Happy Hour #134 is Tsh Oxenreider. Tsh is the author of Notes from a Blue Bike and Organized Simplicity , and is the founder of the community blog The Art of Simple . She’s the top-ranked podcaster of The Simple Show , and her writing has been featured in The Washington Post, CNN, Real Simple magazine, and more. A graduate of the University of Texas, where she studied English and anthropology, Tsh currently lives near Austin, with her family and eats tacos several times a week. ...
Mar 29, 2017•1 hr 1 min
My guest for The Happy Half Hour #27 is Logan Wolfram. Logan would give you full access to her pantry if you lived next door. She is a plate-juggling mom and interior decorator turned author, speaker, and host of the Allume Conference . She is a passionate leader who desires to see women live fully in Christ. Logan is the author of Curious Faith; Rediscovering Hope in the God of Possibility . She is currently working on her second book which is set to release in Fall 2018. Along with her husband...
Mar 24, 2017•31 min
