The Work & Play Podcast Episodes

132 - Balancing Life as a Working Mom with Emily Ley (Ep. 30 Replay)

I am so excited to replay this episode with Emily Ley. If you’ve listened before or you haven’t, this episode is so good. I think that what I love most about her is how much she values the little things—the moments in between—and finding that kind of balance between work and play and what that looks like.

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Home, Parenting Nancy Ray Home, Parenting Nancy Ray

126 - My Home Birth Story

Hello! I am back after a two month break from this podcast! I'm happy to be back and today I'm so excited to share with you a huge life event that took place over the last two months for us—the birth of our fourth baby, a son, Benjamin Valor Ray. And today I'm going to be sharing his birth story with you.

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Books, Parenting Nancy Ray Books, Parenting Nancy Ray

122 - Book | Parenting

Today's book is Parenting by Paul David Tripp. He outlines 14 Gospel Principles that can radically change your family. This book isn't as much a practical book on how to handle a tantrum or discipline your child or what to feed your kid or how to raise teenagers. Instead, it's a book that speaks to the “why” of parenting the heart of parenting, and really how to view our role of parents as believers.

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116 - An Interview with my Mama

My mom is the kindest wisest, warmest, funniest woman I know. It is really an honor to have her as a mom. She's so trustworthy. She's the best listener in the world, and every time I ask for advice, it seems like she always has the exact words I need to hear. The world needs more people like my mom, and today I get to share her with you.

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Faith, Relationships, Parenting Nancy Ray Faith, Relationships, Parenting Nancy Ray

114 - BFFs, Infertility, and Miracles with Samantha Ray

Today we are diving into one of the most difficult seasons of our friendship, the season of five years where my best friend and sister-in-law, Sam, was walking through infertility and I had three babies. I'm just so honored to share today's podcast episode with you, because what it feels like for me is a precious gift that I'm giving to you, that you can hear Sam's heart and her story. And it feels like we are sharing this really vulnerable part of our journey together as friends and sisters with you.

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Home, Parenting Nancy Ray Home, Parenting Nancy Ray

113 - My Journey to Motherhood

This episode feels extra vulnerable for me because I don't feel like I got to this path of motherhood that I'm on like most women do, but I'm realizing that every story of motherhood is different and hard and beautiful and every unique way.

And so in hopes that I'm going to make someone who's listening feel a little less lonely and a little more normal, I am going to be vulnerable and share how I got here, how I got to being a mama of almost four kids.

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Home, Parenting, Photo Organization Nancy Ray Home, Parenting, Photo Organization Nancy Ray

111 - How to Keep Photos Organized with 4 Kids

Every mother is stuck in this paradox of wanting so badly to photograph and keep and preserve heir children's lives and childhoods with organized baby books and photos, but the very thing that keeps us from doing that are our children. They consume so much of our time and mental energy, it feels impossible to stay on top of our photos. Today, I'm going to tell you how I plan to keep my photos organized with four kids.

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Books, Parenting Nancy Ray Books, Parenting Nancy Ray

099 - Book | Parenting with Love and Logic

Today's episode is a recap of the very last book in our 2020 Book Club: Parenting with Love and Logic. We read it in December. It was highly recommended to me by so many friends, and it's already proven to be such a gift in our own family and my own parenting. I hope today's podcast will be super practical and helpful for any moms and dads listening.

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Faith, Home, Parenting, Guest Interviews Nancy Ray Faith, Home, Parenting, Guest Interviews Nancy Ray

080 - A Helpful Guide for Consistent Prayers with Chrystal Evans Hurst

Today I'm talking with my friend, Chrystal Evans Hurst, and let me just say, this woman, I love her. This is for you if you maybe feel stuck in a rut with your prayers, or, like she talks about in our conversation, if you want to activate the voice of the Holy Spirit in your life to be more real, and fresh, and conversational.

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Routines, Home, Parenting Nancy Ray Routines, Home, Parenting Nancy Ray

077 - Back to School Rhythms and Routines

School shopping as a parent. It's not always so pretty. There's a lot to manage. There's a lot to take hold of. And I've learned this: there's a lot of different correspondence and papers, a lot of different things going on.

I don't have a ton of years under my belt, but I am committed to putting systems, and rhythms, and routines into place as we go back to school that will allow us to flourish instead of being stressed out.

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Routines, Home, Parenting, Guest Interviews Nancy Ray Routines, Home, Parenting, Guest Interviews Nancy Ray

073 - Rhythms and Mindset with Allie Casazza

I'm chatting with Allie Casazza today, and she shares about her conviction about building a life that serves you, happening to your day, being the CEO of your own home, and stepping into the authority that you have as a believer.

Listen, this episode gets hype. It's inspiring. It's challenging, and it's full of practical advice that will help you in your actual life.

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Home, Faith, Parenting, Guest Interviews Nancy Ray Home, Faith, Parenting, Guest Interviews Nancy Ray

064 - Making Memories with Sally Clarkson

Today’s conversation with Sally Clarkson felt like a big hug from your mom—that you really needed. We talk all about making memories with our children, and to be honest I had this idea in my head that it would be all about planning these grand, extravagant trips and celebrations, but it wasn’t. It was about the day-to-day life, about the little things, and really, it’s all about your health and happiness as a mom.

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Parenting, Play Nancy Ray Parenting, Play Nancy Ray

063 - Joy-Filled Birthdays

Today I'm going to talk about birthdays in honor of sweet Milly turning five. I'm going to talk about putting some joy back into birthday celebrations and give you a few ideas and lessons that I've learned to make birthdays in your home perfect for your family.

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