Jackie Leonard is a mom of 2, a Southern California Native, a writer, and a curious person. She is also the founder and editor of Motherscope, an online and in-print zine featuring stories about motherhood and stories written by moms from all over the World.

During our conversation, Jackie shares about her current exploration of her history and the concept of home, her radical experience receiving midwifery care during her pregnancy and birth, and the power of telling truth and stories.

We Discuss:

• Jackie shares about her current curiosity: exploring her history - she currently working on a “Generations” issue for Motherscope; she is also exploring the concept of home
• Jackie and Julia discuss the idea of “truth” and memory and Jackie’s plan to write a book
• Jackie’s thoughts on writing about your own experiences: “lean more into what you remember… validate your own reality and your own truth and how it felt to you...and that’s really hard”
• Julia shares about her challenges as they relate to publicly talking about her relationship with her mom
• Julia asks Jackie: What would be different in your life if you could put your truth out there?
• Jackie explains how she processes and shares in a healthy, empowered way
• Jackie shares the story of how her motherhood journey began when she was in college - with a book called Homebirth - and her incredible experience working with midwives many years later
• Jackie said the following about midwifery care: “my experience with midwifery and having a midwife that cared for me in pregnancy… the amount of care and the way that I was prioritized and given attention during my pregnancy was something that stayed with me and that I’ve applied to my life since then…as a mom it’s helped me realize that I am important and that focusing on me will help everyone around me. And that wasn't something that was modeled for me…”
• Jackie shares about her pregnancy experiences and both of her births
• Jackie speaks to the boundaries she established and the support system she created before the birth of her second child
• Jackie shares what's going well and what she is currently challenged by as a mom; and how her challenges relate to things she struggled with as a child
• Jackie defines Radical Motherhood as centering the mother - she said, “Normalizing the centering of mothers is radical.”
• Jackie shares about Motherscope, an online and in-print zine featuring stories about motherhood and stories written by moms
• Motherscope also offers workshops, writing prompts, and community events
• Jackie and Julia talk about how motherhood has reshaped some of their memories and created a new lens for how they perceived things that have happened in their past

Resources:

Website:

https://motherscope.com/

Instagram:

@Motherscope