Lucy Kippist, Bek Day and Alexandra Carlton join the rest of the Kidspot team to host, Perfect Chaos: Dispatches from the family frontline. It’s our 30 minute podcast that aims to inspire and entertain mums on the go. Each episode features a real life story inspired by the experiences shared by Kidspot mums, plus a Wine Time segment where we share some of our favourite books, movies, inventions and words of parenting wisdom.
EPISODE ONE: How to cope when birth doesn’t go to plan
Episode One: How to cope when birth doesn’t go to plan
One in three women say they experience birth trauma. Lucy Kippist speaks to the founders of Birthtalk, a Brisbane based organisation started by mothers to help women overcome the trauma often experienced after a difficult birthing experience. Do you have a birth story to share? Send us a message on our Facebook page.
EPISODE TWO: How I learned to survive sexual abuse
Episode Two: How I learned to survive sexual abuse
When Margaret Rafferty was seven years old, she and her twin sister were sexually abused by a family friend while their parents socialised in the next room. She tells her story to Bek Day and how this experience has shaped her own parenting.
EPISODE THREE: The fight of your life
Episode Three: The fight of your life
No one ever wants to fight a custody battle, yet for some families it’s a sad and unavoidable reality. Your best defence? Knowing what you’re getting yourself into. Alexandra Carlton talks to a top Sydney lawyer about how to survive the Family Court.
EPISODE FOUR: I married a man 35 years older than me
Episode Four: I married a man 35 years older than me
Ruth Dawkins and her husband, Young met nine years ago in Edinburgh. Theirs is a story about love and how sometimes it takes you on a journey you never expected. Lucy Kippist shares their story.
EPISODE FIVE: I was a mum to three children when I aborted my fourth
Episode Five: The stats are hard to pin down, but it’s estimated that between 40 and 60 per cent of women who have an abortion already have at least one child. So how does it feel to go through a procedure like this when you really, truly understand the implications of your choice? One brave mum of three speaks candidly to Alexandra Carlton about her decision.
EPISODE SIX: I am sex worker, a childcare teacher and a mother
Episode Six: Eva is a sex worker. She also has an 11 year old daughter, has worked in childcare and has now written a book about sex education for pre-teens, with some valuable advice they’re definitely not getting in school. In this fascinating interview, she talks about motherhood and sex work, and how the two actually have more in common than you might initially think. A must – listen.
EPISODE SEVEN: “When the plane caught fire, all I could think of was my kids at home”
Episode Seven: Even though statistics tell us plane travel is safer than travelling by car, flying through the air at 30,000 feet in a passenger plane still freaks us all out on some level. So what’s it like to be on a plane when something DOES go wrong, mid-air? Cassie Parsons was on a flight out of San Francisco when something went horribly wrong. She tells Penny Flanagan what it was like and how her first thoughts were for her kids.
EPISODE EIGHT: My working mother hell (and how I survived)
Episode Eight: The working mother juggle is fraught with emotion. And as one brave working mum tells Lucy Kippist, the wrong working environment can have severe consequences on your health, confidence and family life. Then career expert Kate Southam offers some practical – and surprising – advice for mothers to help them thrive in the workplace.
EPISODE NINE: “I think Kathleen Folbigg deserves another trial”. One mum defends Australia’s most notorious baby killer.
Episode Nine: Kathleen Folbigg is one of Australia’s most notorious serial killers, jailed in 2003 for the murder of her three babies Laura, Patrick and Sarah, and the manslaughter of a fourth, Caleb. She’s currently serving a 30 year sentence for the crimes, but supporters say there wasn’t enough evidence to send her to jail. Alana House is a journalist and mother of two. She regularly visits Folbigg in prison where she says the other woman maintains her innocence. Alana speaks candidly to Alexandra Carlton about why she supports a woman convicted of such unspeakable crimes.
EPISODE 10: When your child has a mental illness
Episode Ten: When you have a child with mental illness, all of your efforts go into helping that child through. But what about your other children? This week’s episode of Perfect Chaos deals with just this issue.
EPISODE 11: When my wife died, it was just me and my three girls
Episode 11: Life changed instantly when Joseph Wakim lost the love of his life, Nadia to breast cancer. Left to raise their three daughters, Grace Michelle and Joy, he faced a long journey. His moving story about resilience, courage and love in the face of loss, is profound and beautiful. A special Father’s Day podcast.
EPISODE 12: A terrible birth scare, a simpler life … and beautiful music
Episode 12: After her daughter was born with a rare and life-threatening condition, NZ singer/songwriter Anna Van Riel sought out a simpler life … and went on to create inspiring, uplifting music for kids.
EPISODE 13: When you blame your own body for loss
Episode 13: How do you cope when you feel like your body fails you? Blogger Lauren Matheson shares her story of motherhood that came at the highest cost. She went through endless rounds of failed IVF, had to deal with the heartbreaking death of twin girls, and her two sons were also the result of difficult and terrifying pregnancies.
EPISODE 14: How to make changes to your life when you’re a parent
Episode 14: Meet Kelly Exeter. She’s a blogger, business owner and mum of two who understands the complex relationship between time and change very well. After a particularly dark couple of years, Kelly decided to face her own fears and change her life for the better. In this podcast she shares some terrifically simple tips for helping you make the changes you really want in your life.
EPISODE 15: Are you at risk of growing a bonsai child?
Episode 15: Writer Alex Carlton thought she had this parenting thing down pat … Until she read this book, put some of its ideas into practice and noticed positive results in her household immediately. In this week’s episode of Perfect Chaos she interviews the author of ‘The Bonsai Child’.
EPISODE 16: Is mother’s intuition real?
Episode 16: Nearly every mum has a story to tell about that time she “just knew” that something was up with her child. There has even been official recognition of the power of these feelings, thanks to mums standing firm and insisting that her feelings are right. Power like this has helped save lives and in many states of Australia the health system makes sure doctors listen to those who know a child best.
So the feeling is real and its power is acknowledged by those in charge of our health, but is it a mysterious force or something more explainable? If you’ve ever experienced this strange force, you’ll want to listen to our interview with science journalist and Skeptic Zone broadcaster, Jo Alabaster.
EPISODE 17: “My mother hid a painful family secret for 27 years”
Episode 17: When Abby Denham-McQuillen got a phone call from her estranged father at 27 years old, telling her he needed a bone marrow transplant, she could never have guessed the chain of events that call would set into motion.
What slowly unfolded for Abby was the story of her mother’s forced adoption before Abby was born, and of a brother she never knew she had. This fascinating and at times heartbreaking story will have you on the edge of your seat.
EPISODE 18: Meet the mum who’s taking on global warming
Episode 18: Julie Hamilton is a mother, a journalist and a nature-lover. Like most of us, the issue of climate change makes her want to crawl under the covers and ignore it, but she realised that sooner or later, someone had to do something – and it might as well be her. She’s putting together a documentary and in the process learning exactly what we can do to make sure the planet is still liveable for our children – and she needs our help.
EPISODE 19: “Motherhood’s not the best thing I’ve done with my life”
Episode 19: Folk singer Suzannah Epsie has bravely released a raw and powerful album that opens up about the ‘truths’ of her life as a mother. While she can see that having children has been a blessing in many ways, she also misses the life she once had.
EPISODE 20: Meet Graeme Base, the creative brain behind ‘Animalia’
Episode 20: Animalia is one of those classic books you’re likely to find on almost every family’s bookshelf throughout the English-speaking world. We’re honoured to welcome the creative brain behind it, Graeme Base, to Perfect Chaos to discuss his books and art, writing for children, travel and the impact technology has had on his work.
