Little Hands, Big Plans - Motherhood and Business

Taking a Leap of Faith & Building a Postpartum Fitness Business with Hannah Dewaar

• Emilia Coto • Season 1 • Episode 10

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Hannah Dewar shares her journey from full-time employment to entrepreneurship, describing how she created a flexible business model centered around her family priorities. She walks us through the faith and practical decisions that led her to launch Lovely Nine Months, her fitness and nutrition coaching business for pregnant and postpartum women.

• Working as a chiropractic assistant provided valuable experience but created logistical challenges after having her daughter
• Commuting between home, childcare, and work sometimes took two hours of her day
• Felt convicted about not prioritizing her highest calling as a mother and disciple
• Made the courageous decision to step away from her job before seeing financial provision
• Downsized their home and moved in with in-laws to create financial flexibility
• Built her business slowly and intentionally, focused on word-of-mouth growth
• Approaches business decisions by discerning between "striving" and "grace"
• Creates a welcoming environment for moms by allowing children at training sessions
• Recommends 100g of protein daily during pregnancy and weightlifting 2-3 times weekly
• Suggests putting workout times on the calendar "like a business meeting" for postpartum recovery
• Values the small, everyday moments with her daughter that became possible through her career shift

If you want to work with Hannah, follow her on Instagram and Facebook at Lovely Nine Months for pregnancy and postpartum fitness and nutrition coaching, available both remotely and in-person.


If this episode resonated with you, please share it with another mom who needs encouragement. Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me on LinkedIn.

For other episodes and resources, visit our website at https://littlehandsbigplans.co/pages/podcast

Speaker 1:

Today's guest is Hannah DeWaar. Hannah is the owner of Lovely Nine Months, which is a fitness and nutrition coaching company, and she specializes in helping moms through pregnancy and postpartum. As a current client of Hannah's, I can attest to how amazing she is in that role. But today we're going to be talking about the shift that happened before she started her company and how she made certain sacrifices and decisions in order to get there and prioritize motherhood.

Speaker 1:

Welcome to Little Hands Bake Plans, the podcast for moms who want to reimagine work after kids and build a life where family comes first, without giving up your dreams. I'm Emilia and I know firsthand how much motherhood shifts our careers, our priorities and our pace. But instead of seeing it as a setback, what if we saw it as an invitation, an opportunity to design a life with a little more freedom, a little more presence and a little more fulfillment? Each week, we'll have honest conversations with moms who've shaped their work and business around what truly matters.

Speaker 1:

Whether you're considering a career pivot, dreaming of a slower pace or just wondering what's possible, you're in the right place. So grab a little something warm, settle in and let's explore the possibilities together. Okay, hannah, so let's talk a little bit about what your career looked before you had babies, and we're going to be talking about a career shift that happened after your first baby, so tell me about what it was like before yeah, so I was working for a chiropractor as a chiropractic assistant doing some front desk work for them, but really they helped me get launched into more of the career of nutrition, super supportive of that journey.

Speaker 2:

So I just I thank God for them all the time, just for really getting me into this field of nutrition coaching and just preventative wellness really, but it just wasn't super conducive to my family's schedule and whatnot. So that's what kind of set us up for the bigger shift. But, yeah, that space was such a beautiful launch pad for me and I got to work with patients right from the get-go so I had a lot of learning experience that I probably wouldn't have gotten if I had just started out on my own, because I was able to do some like advanced nutrition testing with patients and that was just a huge learning experience for me, really setting me up today for the knowledge that I have now. So I'm really thankful for that.

Speaker 1:

What would your day typically look like?

Speaker 2:

Before we had my daughter we were living about 35 40 minutes away, so we moved our whole life out closer to that place of work. So my commute was only about 15 minutes, but our child care was still out 35 40 minutes away. So once we had Thea it got a little bit hairy, especially on the days where my husband wasn't able to drop her off because our schedules were so different and my start time was often later than his, so I would drive her out for childcare and then back to my place of work. That could be the better part of two hours. Just dropping her off for childcare could be the better part of two hours just dropping her off for child care. So that's where it added quite a bit of strain to the schedule, on top of already working full time.

Speaker 1:

And you kept your job after she was born. So how did you plan for maternity leave after Thea? How young was she when she went back? And then what eventually prompted you to say I'm just gonna change a little bit?

Speaker 2:

yeah, that's another thing about my job that I was super thankful for when I was pregnant with Thea and planning to be a mom. They were so supportive and they were very supportive of even breastfeeding journey and just making sure I was set up for success in that regard. So that was really nice. They allowed me to take a good maternity leave as well. But going back to work, you just don't know what you don't know, and I always tell moms pregnant with their first just be prepared for your priorities to shift. Things that seemed really important before or things that you were expecting to juggle before all of a sudden don't have as big of importance, and that doesn't mean that they were bad in the previous season, but for the new season ahead you might have to shift some things.

Speaker 2:

I took about eight weeks of maternity leave and then, coming back to work, I was still probably around 32 hours, so I was still working full-time.

Speaker 1:

And then, what kind of things did you do to keep the breastfeeding relationship going as you returned to work? Did you pump every three hours, or how did you juggle that?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I was thankful because, again, they were super supportive of that and they're really well known in the community for helping be a supportive role in a mom's journey if she decides to breastfeed. I did have opportunity to pump as much as I needed to and that was really helpful. And then any waking hour that I was with her, we were together.

Speaker 1:

So our attachment was still pretty strong, I would say, granted for the amount of time that we were apart, usually during the day, and I know that eventually you made the courageous choice to step back from your previous career a little bit, and I know a lot of that was motivated because you wanted to spend more time with them and be able to lean into your motherhood journey a little bit more. How did you go about planning that? What gave you the courage to actually take that leap without knowing exactly what was next? Or many moms have financial fears in terms of, okay, I'm leaving a career, I need my income to also provide for my family. How do I go about doing that? How did you mentally come up with that choice and what practical steps did you take to be able to prepare for that leap?

Speaker 2:

Yeah. So those are good questions. There's a lot to unpack there. I guess I will say this I can't speak highly enough of where I came from prior to becoming a mom. They did everything they absolutely could to set me up for success and to be able to hopefully continue working there, but logistically it just didn't work. For our family it was. I love them to death.

Speaker 2:

But ultimately I had to decide logistically if I'm spending two hours in a car just to drop my child off at child care and then going to work a job, that I'm just paying for the child care and we're not actually getting ahead financially as a family just to say that I can go to work and work a schedule that was really demanding for me mentally and physically demanding for my daughter. It's just that the pros weren't weighing out the cons anymore. For my daughter, it's just that the pros weren't weighing out the cons anymore. And then I think too, as a person of faith the longer you go in your journey with the Lord, the more you realize how costly it is to live in disobedience. My life wouldn't have been disobedient if I had continued working that schedule and continued arranging child care for my daughter and living that family rhythm. As long as I was healthy and glorifying the Lord, then that would have been fine.

Speaker 2:

But for our family, I started to realize that I was living in disobedience because I wasn't honoring my highest calling, which was, first and foremost, to nurture my family and disciple my child as a disciple of Jesus. We had to ask ourselves some tough questions the finances more important than being obedient to God? And when God asks you to be obedient to him, he knows what our needs are. So that was the thing that we had to tell ourselves is, if he's asking us to do this, then he knows that we have a young mouth to feed. He knows that right. He doesn't show you how he's going to provide until you say yes and start taking that first step. So I think that's just what we had to decide is are we going to be obedient or are we going to play it safe? Wow.

Speaker 1:

I have so many more questions to follow up on that. Up on that. I know that you took some pretty bold steps in terms of not knowing really what was coming next when you made the decision of following in obedience and deciding that you were going to step back from your job in your personal life. What other steps did you take from there once you decided, okay, I'm going to do this and for someone that might be listening and wondering, okay, I want to do this too. What came next?

Speaker 2:

Yeah. So I think my natural inclination when God asked me to step back from my job was okay, you have to give my husband a raise. When that didn't happen right away, I was like, okay, god's not a liar and he's asking me to do this and he claims he's going to sustain me in it, but what do I need to do to be an active participant in what he's asking me to do? And I realized he was asking me to start developing certain skills that I was sitting on just because I was going to my job and checking off the boxes and being a good employee. But there were things that God had been stirring in me for years of being a business owner and really being able to cast my own vision in the wellness space. Cast my own vision in the wellness space. I think that was another layer of obedience that God was asking of me was.

Speaker 2:

There's that story in the Bible where, like, a wealthy man gives one person like five talents, and then one person ten talents and then one person one, and the people with five and ten talents they go and invest the money and do something with it and then the one person who had this one little piece of money, just buried it, basically.

Speaker 2:

And I felt so convicted that I had basically just been sitting on these gifts that God had given me, but I wasn't developing them.

Speaker 2:

And God was like, hello, I've given you this dream and now you're being a bad steward with it, like I created you before the dawn of time with this specific skill set that I want you to develop. And if you don't do it, then who else? So I was very convicted by that, and when I said yes and started developing these skills and starting to build this business, kind of one brick at a time, I realized oh my word, god's going to provide the income that we need, but also give me this abundance of time to spend with my daughter, right? So that was the big wake-up call for me, was I don't need to just throw my giftings to the wind for the long season of motherhood, but God is going to give me some strategies on how I can use them creatively so that I can have ability to contribute to the family income but also not sacrifice the health of my daughter and the health of my family.

Speaker 1:

I'm so excited because I think it'll be fun to talk about your business and what you're doing now and some postpartum nutrition tips, which will be really fun. But in the meantime, I also want to step back and go through your huge decision to downsize your home, to have that sort of financial freedom to be able to pursue and start your business. Can you walk us through that process and what that meant for you?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, that was a big logistical mountain was having this home in an area that we were shifting away from career wise. We moved out there because my husband was working out there at the time and I was working out there at the time, and now that both of those jobs were done or ending, we're like, wait, why are we up so far away from our family and all of our support? And then we realized that we were basically living in a house, that we didn't need that much space, and so we just decided you know what? It's? Just a house. It was a lovely house, we loved that house, but it just logistically was a bit of a mountain in the way.

Speaker 2:

So I think we can get attached to things that are really, in the grand scheme of things, just things. So we currently are living with my in-laws, as we've been just in this huge, basically year-long transition of shifting and changing paths and restructuring our family model. But even that has been a blessing because we've been able to parent multi-generationally. Our culture is such a rarity where you don't have more than two generations living in a home. Where you don't have more than two generations living in a home, usually there's three and there's so much wisdom and support and just wealth that comes from relational wealth, that comes from having the grandparents having a healthy say in the family rhythms and then the parenting of the children. So that has just been an indescribable gift to us, because our daughter gets to get all this wisdom from not just me and my limited young mom perspective, but from a woman who's raised five children. So that's been such a huge gift.

Speaker 1:

My little lovely newborn will be giving commentary throughout as well. Tell us a little bit more about your business, and something that I've loved in following your business journey is how intentional you've been about growing it slowly, like, I think. A lot of the times you hear about fast growth and how do you grow and get more clients and I just love how you have been just so intentional in terms of that growth.

Speaker 2:

So, yeah, yeah oh man, I am not really speaking from a place of arrival, but very much in a season of journeying through it, because I'm such a control freak and if this was any other thing any other season, I know just I know myself I know that I would have taken it and run way too fast.

Speaker 2:

But I think because it was such an obedience move and from the beginning God was calling me out on it like hey, what are you doing that he's allowed me this grace to walk with it, so open hand.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I really haven't even been doing much marketing on it until recently, so all of my clientele has basically been word of mouth and then divine connections on being able to use a facility for training my clients and whatnot. I would say what I'm learning through that is when you are walking with a God dream in your hands. Just keep your hands open and really let the Lord grow it for you, Just one day at a time. It's okay if it doesn't fit traditional marketing strategies or business strategies. If you have a peace and you know that you're walking in obedience to the Lord, it will be blessed. And I think the whole purpose of scaling back and deciding to work for myself was rooted in wanting to spend more time with my daughter, so it would be silly to rush back into something that would immediately cause all the same problems that I was trying to fix in the first place.

Speaker 1:

So that's been hopeful too, because you mentioned, your natural tendency would be to go. Do you ever have days when you have to fight that? Or how do you stay grounded in that all the time, when there is sometimes, maybe, opportunities that you have to say no, or getting to a spot where you might be struggling with the same time struggles that you were having for?

Speaker 2:

yeah, I feel, wow, it's such a question, I think, just gauging, really taking inventory of my heart. Whenever I'm making a decision or deciding to expand and try to find a couple new clients, I've asked myself am I doing this because I feel like I need to, or am I doing this because God is asking me to? And basically boiling that down even more would be am I doing this from a spirit of striving or am I doing this from a place of grace? I think you can feel, and as a fellow business owner, when you go through seasons where you just feel like you're pushing a boulder uphill for months and months at a time and then in hindsight you realize that wasn't even it. Like I thought I was in a growth season, but I was really in an infrastructure season.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and God is outside of space and time. He knows if it's a growth season or an infrastructure season or whatever the season might be. So, just spending quality time we pray for things like provisions and whatnot, but I think praying for divine strategies and wisdom. God is so faithful to provide that and really help you decide what kind of a season your business is in and then if what you're trying to accomplish doesn't align with the season that God has established for your business, then you know it's a no-go, like maybe we'll do that next quarter or next year, or five years, 10 years.

Speaker 1:

But just being conscious and faithful to staying in your lane and staying in the season you're in is crucial, or else you're burnout right yeah, and I think a lot of the times, the hardest thing is taking that first step, when fear, I think, just keeps so many dreams and so many potential relationships stuck because we're so afraid of the change and we can get so comfortable where we're at. If someone was to reach out to you and be in a similar situation, what advice would you give in terms of getting over that fear, but also the practical steps like having had downsized? Do you feel that gave you more room for motherhood? If you were to go back into the position you were before, and perhaps someone that might not be as advanced in terms of, I think, trusting God, someone that might not be in that journey yet? What do they do? How do they get started?

Speaker 2:

someone that might not be in that journey yet. What do they do? How do they get started? Yeah, I think, make sure you and your partner. If you're a single mother or single parent listening to this, then that's a different conversation. But if you are, praise the lord, partnered with somebody in your parenting journey, make sure you're on the same page with them. Figure out what your financial goals are. Figure out what your spiritual goals are. Figure out what your spiritual goals are.

Speaker 2:

For us, that was the number one ticket thing for making this whole shift. In the first place was God completely turned the table over on what our model of a biblical family looked like, and it has reached its arms and its fingers into every aspect of our lives. Like nothing has been off limits and it's all lit. Here's yet another thing that we're learning and relearning. So definitely be on the same page with your spouse. Figure out what do you want your family to look like, because if you don't have an idea of what it looks to win, then you're not going to know what you're aiming for right. And then start developing your skill set. If you you're creative, get a Canva membership and start building content that only lives inside of your brain and just get really good at creating content and sell it. Or if you've got a specific skill set or you've got this degree that seems super random, figure out how you can develop those skill sets a little bit more and then market them to be beneficial for your family.

Speaker 2:

You read about the Proverbs 31 woman in the Bible, and she's not idle by any means. She's so valuable to her family. She's like the COO of her house. She's not just sitting at home like eating bonbons. She's got this amazing skill set. She's creative, she's good with money. She's such a blessing to the community, even to the people who work in her household. She gets up before it's light out and prepares food for even her servants. So even the people that are underneath her, the people that are eventually maybe going to be working for you, are blessed by you. So by no means does it mean that as a mom, you should be sitting on your skill set, but there's a way to partner with the Lord and get really strategic with it, so that way you don't have to choose your skill set or your kid.

Speaker 1:

Yes, and that I think because I'm in so many Facebook mom groups and I always see this question asked of people that want to spend more time with their kids.

Speaker 1:

Because even the really amazing jobs that like it sounds like you were in such a supportive environment but there's still limits in terms of what you can get in a job, versus when you're building a business, where you're literally building it around motherhood and around your kids.

Speaker 1:

It's nothing against employers, it's just there's so only so much they can do because they're still also running a business. So I feel like if a mom can start a business, it's the ultimate flexibility because you're building it around your priorities. And it's amazing because, as a fellow believer, I know that God gives gifts to everyone and everyone has gifts that they could contribute to not only their family but the world, and so often it feels if it's not something really traditional, then we just sit on it. A lot of people sit on it and I love that. I really think that's such a good, encouraging thing to think about. Even if you have a job and you're on maternity leave and wondering if it might change, pregnancy is like a wonderful time to expand on that and improve and I feel like too, moms who have contemplated anything of this topic.

Speaker 2:

they are going to be your best marketers.

Speaker 2:

Yes, there is nothing that makes me happier than seeing another mom just go after something that makes them happy but also allows them to be at home with their child. And those are the moms that get it. I'm in the wellness space, I'm a personal trainer, I'm a nutrition coach. I don't care if you bring your child to your workout because I get it. I'm in the wellness space, I'm a personal trainer, I'm a nutrition coach. I don't care if you bring your child to your workout because I get it. I wouldn't want to leave my kid at home either or say you don't even have the option.

Speaker 2:

So I think more and more moms who are supporting other moms that are just figuring this out and using their skill set to bless other people and bless their family. And sure, just join the party, we'll get creative. Well, you can hold the little one pound weight and do little bicep curls with it while we do our workout. It's fine. And you just don't get that from the traditional nine to five. You're going to have to account for who's watching the child and then you're going to have to likely pay for that child care.

Speaker 1:

Most people don't have family who can full-time watch your child for free and, as your current client, that has been such a blessing because I do and have very velcro like kids that just stick to me at all times and I haven't been able to go back to a gym. I didn't feel like I could, I didn't necessarily feel welcome. A lot of places have the child care but the child care is far so I would not be able to concentrate on my workout and just going to work out with you and knowing that I can bring them there is actually huge in getting me there. So I'm a current client of Hannah's. She does nutrition coaching and personal fitness and she has been really amazing in terms of my recovery, I'm gonna say, from my second child birth and I will share more about my birth story on a different day.

Speaker 1:

But I had a c-section, felt super broken and just I'm so happy. It's amazing how we were friends before but we hadn't talked about if I would become your client or anything like that, and if you hadn't done that, I probably wouldn't even I wouldn't have looked for it, I don't think because I was just in such a broken space that I had to have that connection with you, like I had to have that from before to feel like I could be vulnerable and be able to even get to a space where I felt okay, training and just all the, all my struggles man, so the most humbling time just pregnancy and childbirth.

Speaker 1:

It's so vulnerable, yeah, and you don't know what you vulnerable.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and you don't know what you don't know, and you also don't know what kind of cards you're going to get.

Speaker 1:

What are some easy things that moms can do during their pregnancy and postpartum journey to help their bodies prepare for childbirth and then recover after?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, super good questions. Really loaded questions too. I'll try to just pick the most practical things. I think getting started with a fitness regimen of some kind during pregnancy is huge. Your body will be so thankful for the birth experience that you'll have. It dramatically increases your chance of a vaginal birth and then decreases your likelihood of gestational diabetes. Hypertension decreases chances of a c-section. Of course, there's a lot of other variables in play, but if you're getting yourself as healthy as possible for birth and for the postpartum recovery process, your body will only be thankful for it. You're only doing yourself a favor. Something as simple as lifting weights two to three times a week and then maybe doing some walking, just very light cardiovascular exercise in there as well Huge, very huge.

Speaker 2:

I think it's important to work with somebody who is like a personal trainer or knowledgeable with fitness, especially since the pregnant body poses some different needs and certain risks.

Speaker 2:

To work with a fitness professional is definitely wise, even just to get some good basics of your training, but your body will only thank you for it. And then, from a nutritional aspect, just having some like minimum standards of what lives in your house from a food standpoint, making sure you're getting servings of fruits and vegetables every single day in your diet, and then high protein throughout your pregnancy. It's recommended probably around 100 grams of protein a day, but everybody's protein needs are super different from person to person. So you can work with a registered dietitian to figure out exactly what your needs are. But your body needs protein to build the little human that you're creating and then also to build new tissue and recover afterwards for yourself. So making sure that protein is a priority. I think that's one of the hardest nutritional shifts that moms make, because usually the grab and go stuff is pretty processed and low in protein. So that would be my bigger recommendation for that.

Speaker 1:

And if someone is like me in terms of like the struggle after, perhaps, an unexpected or traumatic birth, what first step or what advice would you give for someone that's just still in survival mode, just trying to get started?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, yeah, that's really. It's a hard place to be in. I think we've all just felt like we're in the woods those first few weeks of motherhood and even if it's your second, third, fourth child, again, there's so many variables at birth that can sometimes be out of your control and you just have to surrender and move forward. But I think, having a conversation with your partner and painting some solid yellow lines in your schedule as to where you can get some time for your fitness Once you're clear for exercise postpartum, put it in the calendar like it's a business meeting. I go to the gym on these three days and the sky better be falling for me to move it around, because it would be what? Like three hours out of your week. But you can.

Speaker 2:

If you have to do the workouts from home, like to be around your child, that's fine. But just really creating boundaries and the schedule and the craziness when every day feels like just one long day all strung together. Setting some time aside for yourself to start creating those rhythms again. And I'm not talking about going in and power lifting on day one or going out and running a mile. I'm talking about, even if it's just three times a week, you get out for a nice long walk, just starting with what your body can handle, again, working with a fitness professional to try and build a program that is tailoring to your needs. But put it on the calendar Make time for yourself. Nobody else is going to do it, but you'll be so thankful that you did and I think even your family, like your partner, will be thankful too because, there's a healthier mom, there's a healthier spouse that they get to see every day, knowing that they've had time to refill their cup.

Speaker 1:

I also, like with our program, how it was incremental. It wasn't all at once, because that would have felt really overwhelming, but now, like now, we started, I think, with one day and then we added another day and another day, and that made it seem so much more doable. I want to shift gears a little bit and talk about the relationship with Bea and how that changed when you were spending more time together, and one story that really sticks in my head about this is that I remember you saying that after a while that you had spent time with her, she started crying when you left again, and it wasn't like that always. So can you share a little bit more about that and why you think that was?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, super good question. I have a sciencey brain so whenever I hear statistics that actually wakes me up a bit. But I heard this statistic that the first three years of a child's life are critical for developing healthy attachment to adult figures in their life. And having a primary attachment figure for that first three years of life usually it's the mom or the primary parent it dramatically decreases their risk for mental illness and dramatically increases their ability to be an emotionally healthy person as an adult and have confidence and just all these key skills that actually get laid down in infancy of a child's life.

Speaker 2:

I started realizing, probably about a year into being back to work, that when I would drop her off for child care she would not cry. Sometimes she would actually wave. And then when she started saying where she would just go bye and I was like hold on, this feels a little odd. I know you're a pretty versatile kid, but this seems a little too mellow. And it was right after I started noticing that that I heard that statistic about the first three years of their life. And so we're going on like almost 18 months with our child and she doesn't even realize, in my opinion, that I was her primary attachment figure I was supposed to be so that was that scared me. I was like whoa OK.

Speaker 2:

Once I made the shift to being at home with her more, I noticed that when I would leave she would start crying and most people would think, oh man, you went backward. But actually that was a huge win and like redeeming moment for me Because I realized God had saved that attachment, that healthy attachment between me and her. Yeah, she's definitely an attached little girl, but she's also extremely independent. She was an early walker, early talker. She has very intense, fine motor skills for her age and I think that just comes with a child's confidence in their safety and that they know that their needs are going to be provided for so they can develop their milestones much more confidently.

Speaker 1:

One of the other things that I remember you mentioning is that you were really happy with the child care, similar to your job. It's a family member and someone that loves her, that's providing care for her, but you still had this desire in your heart for it to be you more. Even if it's someone that you love and care about and that loves and cares for your child, sometimes there's still that pull from you to want to be the one that gets to see all the little moments. Can you share, maybe something that was really meaningful, that you were able to now witness, that you wouldn't have perhaps witnessed?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, one story jumps out immediately to me. This is just a couple months ago actually, but I took my friend's parents to the airport and I'm home with Thea, so Thea's coming with us. So we went out to the airport and it was like an hour drive. And so after we'd gotten to the airport, Faye was like over her car seat. She's like get me out of this car. So I decided to just go to the Starbucks near the airport and we went and we got a hot chocolate and I got my little latte and we just sat there next to the windows and watched all the airplanes fly right over the parking lot and she was just like having the absolute time of her life. We're literally sitting in I don't know a seedy Starbucks drinking overpriced hot chocolate.

Speaker 2:

But it was just such a tender moment to me that on a random Tuesday morning I'm watching these airplanes with my daughter and she's just so excited to be in my presence. I'm so excited to be in her presence and those so excited to be in her presence, and those are the things that I was missing, Like my sister-in-law who was watching her and my mother-in-law who was watching her while I was at work. They would document the milestones, no problem. If she said a new word, I'd be getting the text message almost in real time. But it's those little moments that, honestly, that's what motherhood is all about. You just don't realize how much those little moments of sitting in starbucks with a little hot chocolate watching the airplanes.

Speaker 2:

You just don't realize how much that's gonna mean to you I totally agree.

Speaker 1:

When I think about my favorite moments of my kids, that's exactly what comes to mind, just the really small moments that just happen in everyday life that I think I was so close to giving it up. Yeah, because of all the pressures that people give it up and it's no judgment to someone that right now is in that space I just want this podcast to be really encouraging. Not about okay, if I don't get to spend those moments with my child, it means I'm giving up motherhood or not being a good enough mom, because that's not the purpose of it. It's just an encouragement if you do want it.

Speaker 1:

How do we get there and how? What changes do we have to make? What sacrifices do you have to make? And you have to make many sacrifices before knowing the full picture, like I was there with house selling and that was in a walk in the park. That's a whole other thing. I so appreciate you being willing to share. Is there anything else that comes to you that you want to share or any encouragement that you want to give someone that is really struggling with this decision, might want to do something similar but just doesn't know what's coming next or maybe doesn't have ideas for how to start a business, yeah yeah, no, I think it's.

Speaker 2:

If it's on your heart again, just that statistic of those first three years and that I had already lost like half of that was the wake-up call that I needed to really put some things in motion and light a fire under me to develop that skill set that I have. And I would just encourage, like anybody who feels that they want that freedom, that it's so worth the sacrifices. It's worth not getting that new car. It's worth downsizing your home. You can do so much with a small space but with more time to be actually in that space with your children, it's just immeasurably more important, in my opinion. With your children, it's just immeasurably more important, in my opinion. And that doesn't mean that for the mom who's the neurosurgeon that has to be at the hospital for X amount of hours, that doesn't mean that your motherhood calling is any less valuable in the way that you're doing it. It's just a different style.

Speaker 2:

So I think there's a lot of women who are looking for this kind of style of working for yourself and setting your own schedule and calling the shots on how much you want to grow or not. Yeah, there needs to be more of a conversation of how do we make this happen? And so, yeah, I would say develop your skill set. Find a of someone who can mentor you, who's started their own business before, and then just get really creative with it. Find ways to include your children in the whole process. Don't be afraid of bringing your kids to things. It's a training moment for them as much as it is for even the other people around you, who will be so inspired that your children are there learning from you, learning in real time what it means to be a helpful member of society. I think it's really beautiful.

Speaker 1:

What dreams are you holding space for in this next season, as you continue to grow your business, grow your family?

Speaker 2:

So dreams that I'm holding space for such a good question.

Speaker 2:

I would say there are very few things that get me excited and light my soul on fire like seeing women come into their birth space confidently. So really just being able to flesh that out and I'm excited to hear the testimonies of women that I continue to work with just sharing birth experience with me and just excited to see how God uses us to help them hopefully have a birth of their dreams and then, if it didn't go quite as planned, how to get back on track and just feel more like themselves again. But now, with this beautiful part of themselves that has now come alive, and being a mom and learning how to juggle all of it, it's a really fun space to be a part of. I love it. So, I think, just being able to meet more women and see where this business goes again, I'm just committed to holding it so open-handed and see where God wants to take it. It's up to him. He's in the driver's seat and I'm just along for the ride, but so far it's been great.

Speaker 1:

And a funny story that I think speaks to how passionate you are about this, the space that you're in and what you do is. I remember the first time I met you it was at a mutual friend's birthday party their child's birthday party. So this was the first time I was meeting Hannah formally because we found out we had met, but this was the first time that we actually had our first conversation, I would say, and I was telling her that I was considering a home birth for my next I wasn't pregnant or anything, but just mentioned that and she invited me for coffee to hear all about her mid story and we were complete strangers mostly at that time. So I think that just goes to show just how passionate you are about that and just how you genuinely care and you're so into that space and you want to see moms succeed and be able to get to their goals. So if people want to work with you, what's the best way to reach you or just to follow along in your journey?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, so I'm officially on social media now. So my business name is Lovely Nine Months I think the title goes without saying, but follow me on social media on Instagram and Facebook now. So, very proud of myself, I finally got that done and checked off that box but it's been fun, Amazing.

Speaker 1:

And what right now? What kind of ways can moms work?

Speaker 2:

with you. Yeah, so I do personal training. I can do it in person or remote, but I prefer in person. I want to see you and hug you and hang out with your babies, if you want, and then I do nutrition coaching as, and hug you and hang out with your babies if you want, and then I do nutrition coaching as well, and that can most certainly be remote if it needs to be, but, yeah, amazing.

Speaker 1:

Well, hannah, thank you once again for sharing. I have loved, as your friend, watching all of this unfold and I'm so, so excited to see what comes next and all the amazing things that come in your motherhood journey and in your business journey. For today's episode takeaways, I have six. One obedience often comes before the provision. Hannah's decision to leave her job was a step of faith and models, trusting that God will provide when we walk in obedience. Two downsizing can lead to more room for the things that matter. By letting go of a home that no longer served their season, hannah gained time, support and a multi-generational village.

Speaker 1:

Three slow business growth is a powerful act of intentionality. Hannah's wellness and coaching business grew through word of mouth, rooted in faith and alignment with her family. Rhythm, not hustle. Sometimes moms are hesitant to start businesses because of the fear of being overwhelmed on an already busy season. Hannah provides an example of how a business can be grown slowly and controlled with intentionality. Four postpartum fitness and nutrition is essential and practical. Hannah shares that one of the most effective and realistic fitness strategies for postpartum moms is to build in gentle movement during the day, such as walking or floor exercises with your baby nearby. She also emphasizes the importance of rebuilding protein intake, aiming for around 30 grams of protein per meal to support postpartum recovery, energy levels and hormone balance.

Speaker 1:

Five little moments matter. From hot chocolate dates to watching airplanes with her toddler, hannah reminds us that some of the most precious moments of motherhood happen in the margins. Sometimes, starting a business is the best way to make sure we are not missing these moments. Six you don't have to bury your gifts. Motherhood doesn't mean abandoning your talents. It might be the exact time to develop them in a way that works for your family. That's it for today's episode. Thank you for spending this time with me. I know how valuable your time is and I hope you're walking away feeling encouraged to dream a little bigger about what's possible for your work and family life. If this episode spoke to you, it would mean so much if you shared it with another mom who needs this kind of encouragement. Make sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode, and if you want to keep the conversation going, connect with me on LinkedIn. Just search Emilia Cotto. That's E-M-I-L-I-A, c-o-t-o. Until next time, remember, motherhood isn't the end of your dreams. It's just the beginning.