Latest / Twin Mom Life / From Burnout to Fulfillment: Large Family Life, Changing Careers & Personal Growth as a Twin Mom

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From Burnout to Fulfillment: Large Family Life, Changing Careers & Personal Growth as a Twin Mom · Twin Mom Life

• Jessielee Sittig: Thank you for taking the time out of your busy twin mom life to listen along. I hope this podcast shed some light on a topic that's been on your heart and gave you more confidence as a twin mama. If you know a twin mom, please send this her way. If you like what you heard today, please subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Check out the show notes to be connected with today's guest and get discount codes for brands I love. See you next Thursday. Until then. welcome to the Twin Mom Life podcast. I'm your host, Jess. I created this podcast to help build community, connection, and most importantly, friendships among moms of multiples. Being a twin mom can be amazing and magical. That twin bond is unlike anything I've ever witnessed, but it can also be isolating and overwhelming. I'll be chatting with other twin moms, diving deep into the twin experience. Jess Sittig: to the podcast. So today we have Brooke. How are you? ⁓ Brooke Miller: ⁓ I'm so well. Thank you, Jess. Jess Sittig: Yes, thank you for coming on today. So can you tell us a little bit about your family? Brooke Miller: ⁓ I'd love to. My family is one of my favorite topics. I have six children, and the oldest is 12. The youngest just turned five. And we have we ended up with three and three. The we have three girls and three boys, which is perfect. And we had them in seven years. You don't kind of do that math when you hear 12 to 5, but it's we had six kids in seven years. Jessielee Sittig: giving advice on what works for us so you don't have to learn the hard way. Juggling two babies at the same time is challenging, but I'm confident we can learn from each other and figure out how to raise these babies together. You are made for this. Brooke Miller: And we have one set of twins and it was our second pregnancy. So we literally went from one to three, which which you get. ⁓ but we didn't stop. We we then kept kept growing our family after that. So and they are my dream come true. I always wanted a house full of kids. Jess Sittig: Yes. I love that. And I think that's impressive to go from one to three and then to keep going. Like you have six kids. That's a big family. Brooke Miller: It takes a special, it is a special, ⁓ special breed of of crazy, I tell ya. Jess Sittig: Yeah. Well I can't wait to get into all of that But before we do, can you tell us a little bit about well, I know it's actually 7 30 there. So if you haven't, yeah, it's early. So if you haven't filled your cup already, do you have plans to do so today? Brooke Miller: It is. Well, I you sent me this question. I was like, okay, it's seven thirty in the morning. I have to I I have to be responsible today. And ⁓ so water, I know that's like a literal, a literal filling of the cup, but as I filled my water this morning, I was like, There are so many mothers that do not start their day hydrating. Yes. So I literally filled my cup and then I'm here with my big ol' cup. Jess Sittig: Yeah. Brooke Miller: But I have a podcast. Cheers. I love that. Here we go. ⁓ I have a podcast that I listen to every day. And usually it is on the way to the gym. It's 15 minutes and it's just my little, the gal is Terry Saval Foy. She sounds like a Barbie doll. And at first it kind of drove me nuts, but now I'm like, I can start my day without you. It's the perfect drive to the gym. Jess Sittig: Cheers. Brooke Miller: Today I did it while I was doing my makeup because I wanted to make sure I was back here, but she's just my little like she calls herself the cheerleader of dreams and that is exactly what her little voice does and it's it's what I do every morning. Jess Sittig: I love that. And what's her podcast called and what's it about? Just like motivational. Brooke Miller: Okay, it's called, ⁓ geez. She is the cheerleader of dreams. She's amazing. her podcast is about it's a faith-based podcast, and she believes that if ⁓ God has a dream your heart, it's there for a reason. You're like an example is she always wanted to be a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader, ⁓ and now she gets minister to Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders. And she's like, this was so silly. Like, ⁓ who would Jess Sittig: Okay. Mm. Brooke Miller: That would never be God's ministry for me that I was just obsessed with cheerleaders. But sure enough, like ⁓ time goes on and ⁓ yeah, she's just a great she talks about dreams, she talks about God's favor, she talks she just she takes a lot of the the things that the world talks about that, you know, speak affirmations over yourself, power of manifestation, power of positive thinking, law of attraction, and she's like, guys. This works because it's in the Bible. And then she shows you where it is and she breaks it into really manageable chunks. Again, just ten to fifteen minutes, which is always perfect for me first thing in the morning. I really, I really enjoy her and you know, she has YouTube, she has ⁓ a podcast and I don't remember what it's called. Jess Sittig: Hm. We can link it in the show notes later. No problem. I just am always curious. You know, I'm like a podcast girly. If I'm doing, if I'm folding laundry, I'm listening to a podcast. So I always love, yes, it's just such a good way to habit stack, grow your brain. I love music too, but sometimes I'm just in the mood to listen to a podcast. So I'm always loving to hear recommendations. And I feel like it's not super typical to find podcasts that are like short like that. Brooke Miller: Perfect. Yeah. ⁓ my gosh, me too. Jess Sittig: Quick 15 minutes. I feel like a lot of the podcasts I listen to are an hour, which takes me, I mean, sometimes days to get through, you know, mom life. Brooke Miller: No, I'm totally with you. Or like I'll wanna I'll wanna play one when my kids are around and I want them I like that they can actually hear the whole message instead of just like a snippet. So yeah, honestly the shortness is one of my favorite things about. Jess Sittig: Hmm, yes. Yeah. Yeah, I love that. And I love that you brought up like hydration. I so I have my big jug of electrolytes that I make sure I always have. I try to have all the time, but especially when I'm talking on a podcast, because you know, sometimes you get parched while you're talking so much. But I feel like it is always like if I'm getting snappy or just feel like icky, I'm like, ⁓ my gosh, I've only had coffee today. That's terrible. So I am trying really hard to start my day with water electrolytes before I drink coffee, which is so hard. But I'm really trying. So that's a good reminder. And I will we'll keep cheersing throughout the podcast. Brooke Miller: Yeah. Good for you. I love that. And I think it's important for our kids too. Like my I've I started that two years ago that just really di like, not diving into the water, but like kind of setting a line in our house of like this is what you drink. There is for for us, you don't need juice. I think sports drinks are not I I I don't think they're good. Jess Sittig: Yeah. Mm. Brooke Miller: This is what we drink. And so I literally will walk up to my kids and they're like, ⁓ mama, good, can I have a drink? Can I have a drink? I mean, we Brady's should not be in the car, but this is literally what's on the floor of our car. And it's just become, you know, I bring water with us places. And I think it drives my husband nuts. But once you s once kids start to realize how thirsty they are, you don't have to remind them. And they just Jess Sittig: Ha ha. Brooke Miller: want it and they drink it and they're starting to listen to their body and it's what their body needs. It's what we all need. Jess Sittig: Yes, absolutely. And it's crazy how much like being dehydrated can affect everything, like your brain, your body. So it's it's important. So yes, yeah. Brooke Miller: Your skin. I mean everything, being out in the sun, your energy, a hundred percent. Jess Sittig: Yeah, all of it. So I love that. It's such a good reminder. So if you're listening, go drink some water. Go drink some water right now. ⁓ okay. So the past five weeks have been challenging in my life, like with my kids and medical things. So I feel like I've really put exercise on the back burner. And last Tuesday I went to yoga, and this Tuesday evening I'm going to yoga. So that is how I'm going to fill my cup today and trying to be more intentional about actually going. Cause I feel like when you get really busy, it's very easy to put those things off when you actually need it the most. So I'm very excited to go to yoga this evening. Brooke Miller: Okay, can I ask you a question about that? Because I get in my head specifically about the word yoga and like a class. Because and there's there's a gym that opened here, and I think it's like women specific. It's not yoga, but it's one of those like, ⁓ my gosh, they have the machines. I've seen ⁓ online that not like Jess Sittig: Yes. ⁓ like Pilates? Brooke Miller: The wooden ones that my brain goes to like medieval torture chamber, where it's like the cables and the sliders, and I'm like, I I'm afraid to go to ⁓ like do you offer a one-on-one orientation where we could just watch what you're doing? And does anyone die or get tortured before I actually sign up to be around other people? So I'm really proud of you for going like 'cause in my head it's scary. Jess Sittig: That's so funny. Well, I will say I don't use like we we don't use any kind of machines. This is just like matte yoga. And they do offer Pilates also. It's just matte Pilates. They have no like reformers or machines or anything. And I feel like a lot of gyms will offer a free class. So if you go and you're like, ⁓ this is not my thing, then you can, you know, no harm, no foul. I will tell you, I'm the kind of person who needs to be told what to do to exercise. Like if I exercise at home. Brooke Miller: Okay. Okay. Jess Sittig: I'm like doo doo doo do do do I could be doing laundry or like I and it's nice to physically get to leave the house and like be with other, it's mainly women who take the course, like be with other women, take the class, leave the house. Cause if I try to do a workout from home, I just won't do it. Brooke Miller: Yeah. Or everybody you know, somebody needs something opened or can't reach the milk or yep, nope, I'm with ya. Jess Sittig: Yes. Yeah, it's hard. I feel like it's so funny. I feel like if my husband does a workout at home, like no one bothers him. And then if I try, it's like everyone's around my legs. So it's nice to actually be able to get a workout in. And the yoga place I go to is not scary. So I feel like you should do like a trial. ⁓ most gyms, like I was mentioning, will totally let you do that just to like see if it's your thing. ⁓ but I've really liked it. I feel like especially. Brooke Miller: Good. Yeah. Jess Sittig: I also think like it's good exercise and it just feels relaxing. Brooke Miller: Well, I noticed that I the yoga definitely clears the head. But so I'm training for a triathlon for the first time in my life. And it's coming up in like two it's like it's a short one. It's like the shortest one you can do. It's literally called the title is Why Not Try. So it just kinda like, you know, it builds your confidence just even with the title. ⁓ but I went Jess Sittig: That's amazing. Yeah, sure. Brooke Miller: swimming the other morning and I was surprised. I literally got in the car and like sent a voice memo to somebody that I like needed to respond to and it was like the swimming is what finally got it out. And it was like, okay, that felt really good. Like I had not done my like work I had let myself sleep in over Memorial Day. And Th it was like, ⁓ man, more people need to know about this. Like your wheels just start turning when you when you get that heart pumping. Jess Sittig: Yes, that's so true. Good for the mind, body, and soul. Okay, so I would love to learn more about Alaska. So you live in Alaska and are you from there or what brought your family to Alaska? Brooke Miller: Yeah. Ideal. We are not from Alaska. I grew up in Michigan. ⁓ huge, huge shout out to the Midwest. And my parents still live there. We're we're going back this summer. love Michigan. Beautiful place to grow up, you know, the hand. We were West Michigan. And then I I went to school in Virginia, did graduate school in Nashville at Vanderbilt, and then moved to Colorado because skiing, like Jess Sittig: Okay. Brooke Miller: I was very fortunate. I grew up skiing ⁓ in the mountains of That's where I learned to ski. That was where we did family. My parents believed in experiences, ⁓ were like overstuffed. And that was what we did. So I knew ⁓ as a child, like I needed to be the mountains. I wanted that's where that was calling me home. So ⁓ I ⁓ my parents graduated from graduate school and they knew I was gonna get a job in my field in the mountains or I was going to be a ski instructor. And they were like, please get a teaching job. Please get a job in your field. Please get a job in your field. Which I did. ⁓ and that's where I met my husband. And he was from Missouri, St. Louis, and he moved to the mountains to hunt, and I moved to the mountains to ski, and we were both first year teachers. Jess Sittig: Yeah. Brooke Miller: In the same school district the same year. And so we met in New Teacher Induction. And you have to go to New Teacher Induction once a month. And ⁓ by December we had our first date and he proposed a year later. And we were married six months after that. And actually, our fifteenth wedding anniversary is in a couple of weeks. So ⁓ yeah, that's Jess Sittig: Cool. Congrats. Brooke Miller: Thank you. ⁓ so we met and ⁓ we're married in Michigan, but met in Colorado. That's where we were teaching, had all of our children up in they call it the Western Slope, so Glenwood Springs, ⁓ the actual mountain part of Colorado. And we were there ⁓ about 12 years, and then we had always talked about Alaska. But I will be very honest, by the time we had our sixth, I thought that discussion was dead. Like we had six children, very close in age. We were very, you know, we didn't have family in Colorado, but that's where we had built our life. And it didn't feel that far from family. I mean, my parents would drive out. St. Louis is right along I 70, you just Jess Sittig: Hm. Brooke Miller: keep driving all through Kansas and then You know how you can look at it one of two ways. You can either say a lot of things went wrong or you can say a lot of things came together perfectly. But three years ago we moved to Alaska. And that all that is all what came together. And we have said ever since we got here, why didn't we do this sooner? This is where we belong as a family. It is far from from our Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: our blood family, but this is where we want to raise our kids. Jess Sittig: ⁓ so you think that you will be there indefinitely? Brooke Miller: That is the plan, but I always get nervous saying that because there were other times I thought we were gonna be somewhere and it's like, you know what, Lord? We you you've got us, so I won't get too attached. But no, we we really love it here. Jess Sittig: Things change. Sure. That's awesome. Yeah. I I have never been to Alaska, but I can imagine just especially like you're talking about. Your husband's really into hunting and outdoors and you love the mountains and skiing. I mean, it seems like such a perfect place and what a fun place to raise a family. And I would love to talk about that. So you have six kids and your twins are your second and third. So I'm impressed, like what Brooke Miller: Okay. I do. Yes. Jess Sittig: Did you always know that you wanted six kids? And then after you had twins, you were like, Yes, let's keep let's keep going. Brooke Miller: Keep going. ⁓ so I didn't I honestly six was the smallest number I ever entertained. No, seriously. I was one of those really weird kids. I thought everybody wanted kids. Like, I was the one at college who was talking about the six and seven and ten kids I was gonna have, and my friends were like, Nope, it's just you. It's it's Jess Sittig: Stop. Really? Brooke Miller: Nope, this is this is not nor like this is not something we talk about at sorority parties, Brooke. Like this is not This is just you. Yeah. Jess Sittig: That's hilarious. Do you come from a do you come from a big family? Brooke Miller: Only child. Jess Sittig: Really? Okay, that is very interesting because I am also an only child. And I always knew I wanted to be a mom. And I feel like maybe growing up that like I would want like two or three. And then when I became a mom and had my daughter, I was like, ⁓ I definitely want only one or two, which is funny because now I have three. I just, you know, postpartum was really hard. Yeah, like postpartum was hard with COVID. And my mom is one of seven. Brooke Miller: Okay. That's funny. ⁓ yeah. Jess Sittig: And she only had one. So I was like, ⁓ that's interesting. So yeah, that's how funny. Both only children. And then I mean, I have three and I couldn't imagine it any other way. Like it's always funny to me that I was okay with only having one or maybe having two because it I was meant to have twins and to have three kids. But yeah, six. And you so are you guys done, or do you guys think you will go for more? Brooke Miller: Okay. Yep. Mm. Yep. Yes. We are done. No, we are done. I was very fortunate that you know they I feel like sometimes people talk about generational curses, but I do feel like if you switch the way you look at it, there can be generational blessings as well. ⁓ And since we so husband, I wanna ⁓ make this concise. Jess Sittig: Okay. Hm, sure. Brooke Miller: But I do think it's important to share because it's it's not normal. I I'm just not normal. We just need to get that on the table. ⁓ so yep, that's what makes this so awesome. So my I I am an only child. I'm my mom's only child. My dad, my parents are 21 years apart. And my mom knew she needed that. She knew she needed to be a mom. And when she and my dad were dating. Jess Sittig: None of us are normal. We're all kinda weird. I love it. I love yes. Okay. Brooke Miller: He was a pediatrician, he was around kids, he had had kids, and I think my mom made kind of a flippant comment about like, well, and that chapter of your life is is done. Because she knew this wasn't serious. This guy was older, he was not she she could not have a baby with this man, and so it wasn't serious. And my dad took that little joke and looked at her so seriously. And said, I would never deny a woman the right to have a baby. And that was back in the late seventies, when I mean now we hear about women's rights. You don't hear about a woman's right to have a baby. And yet that was the story of my existence. That is why my mom invested in that relationship. That was why they got married. I'm not why they got married, but they she said, okay, this is the man, and I am a result of that promise, really, that he had said, and I am her only child. Jess Sittig: Hmm. Mm. Brooke Miller: And I married a man where I wanted more kids than he did. He thought four would be just perfect, but he knew I was not done with that. And we did, we did pause a brief sec. I mean, for us, we paused a year between our fourth and trying for our fifth. For us, that was a long time. It was an intentional pause. Jess Sittig: Mm. So Brooke Miller: Which we had never had before. But he knew I wanted and needed two more. And the fact we haven't talked about the gender and birth order, but we had girl, boy girl twins, another girl. Our last two are boys. And the fact that our last two was my husband, his gift to me. I am just so convinced the fact they're boys, which their own breed of crazy, that is very much God's blessing on my husband of saying, you did this for her. I am going to give you these last two boys. Which the boys are just different. Boys are different. But my husband is in heaven. Yeah. Jess Sittig: Hm. I understand that. ⁓ well that's very sweet. And were you not afraid to have a second set of twins? Or if it happened, that's something that you would have welcomed? Because that's something I mean, we we are done at three, but I was also terrified from to go from three to five. Like I I personally don't think I could have handled a second set of twins. Brooke Miller: You are. Okay. I wasn't I wasn't terrified. I obviously I wasn't terrified enough to stop having kids. Definitely knew it was a possibility. with our fourth, that was our briefest ⁓ age gap. Well, until we've intentionally had ⁓ really fast. But I mean I didn't I don't know what Jess Sittig: Sure. Brooke Miller: if you if you go into nursing timelines on on here, I don't wanna make people uncomfortable, nursed my twins Jess Sittig: No, that I I don't think there's any Brooke Miller: Okay, nothing's off limits here. We're all moms. Okay. Jess Sittig: I was gonna say I don't think there's I think moms wanna hear that. I think I think yes, if you feel comfortable then then please do share. Brooke Miller: So I did not have a period with my twins until they were almost a year old. I mean, I got to the point where I was like, is this ever going to come back? Not because I was thinking of our next child, but because I knew they were coming up on a year, and I had been nursing them, and then we were nursing less and less. and so Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. Brooke Miller: I think I had one period and then they turned a year and sud and then I suddenly couldn't really nurse them anymore and I was like, Okay, you guys are just you're not getting what you need and we switched to I think whole milk at that point. And then like two days later I took a pregnancy test and I couldn't believe it. And then I was like, Well, that explains why I didn't have any milk anymore. Like I'd been, you know, coming to the end and then Jess Sittig: Yeah. Brooke Miller: ⁓ didn't even know I was pregnant. But that my husband, that is all he talked about until we saw a doctor was w and then we our twins were barely a year old. And we had just found out, and our oldest was three, because they were born before she turned two. So that was all he talked about for a very long time. We found out it was Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: one child, but when I got pregnant with my fifth, I didn't tell him until I saw the doctor. Because I didn't want to listen to six weeks or eight weeks of him being like, What if it's twins? What if it's twins? What if it's twins? I just didn't say anything until I had been to that appointment. And then I was like, I'm pregnant, it's one, here's the proof. Like, yes, we can we can all breathe for a minute. So Jess Sittig: Really? Sure. It's just one. And how do you think you balanced all of that? That is, I mean, like you were saying, those are really short age gap. So you had a lot of little babies relying on you. I think it's still hard, but maybe different when there's more spaced out ages and then you're having a baby when like the oldest is like eight or nine. You know what I mean? I think that's different than having having six kids in such close ages. So how do you think you were able to balance all of that? Brooke Miller: I think I I didn't really think about it. In my head, it just made sense. I I never I I didn't overthink it. I guess is is what it was. I it ⁓ was what I to do and so I didn't see it as a ⁓ Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: Well, what could this be if I had spread them out? It was, you know, I was 30 when my first was born. I knew I wanted six. I remember, I never told my husband this, but I remember like opening my journal one night and being like, okay, it is 20 ⁓ 14, and if I have baby number one in this year and I have baby number and I like wrote it out and I was like, okay, can I have six kids before I'm 40? And at that point, I didn't know that I would have twins in there. And it did help me get there faster. Absolutely. so I mean, I liked the idea of hand-me-downs. ⁓ liked the idea that we were gonna I mean, and we when we registered for that first stroller, ⁓ I remember that was a point of contention with one of the sides of our family was Jess Sittig: Yeah, that helps you get there faster. Brooke Miller: How expensive this stroller was. Now, obviously, babies, I mean, baby stuff is so expensive, but we chose a stroller that we knew would expand with our family. And at that point, we only had one. But yeah, that was, and we like stuck to our guns and we were like, look, we are not asking anybody to buy this stroller for us. We are trying to look ahead. Jess Sittig: Right and last the test of time. Brooke Miller: But if I were thinking in terms of, okay, we're gonna have a baby and in five or six or eight years have another one, I would have made different decisions. ⁓ So ⁓ I think you just I think, and again, I we you and I think came from very different. Jess Sittig: Sure. Brooke Miller: Points of view of you were like, okay, I want one or two. I knew what I wanted. And so I wasn't looking for the like, ⁓ gosh, this is really hard. It would be nice if somebody could tie their shoes. No, this is nobody knows how to tie their shoes yet. Potty training, they did it all together. I mean, we just, there were things that like my oldest didn't learn maybe as early as other kids. Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. Brooke Miller: And my youngest learned earlier because they all four, those especially those four that were born in three years, they learned it at the same time. And they helped each other learning it. And now we almost have like these little two that come up after, and the older four are like, are you ready to ride a bike? Are you ready to are you ready to learn how to tie a shoe? Let's go. And it's like, ⁓ guys, you're you're wonderful. Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. Think that's one of my favorite things of watching sibling dynamics. So obviously, I have three. I have a daughter first, also. And then I have twin boys. They're three years apart. So I have never seen my daughter be a sibling to anyone other than twins. And just seeing her, like she just has this, even before she was a sister, she has this very like nurturing, teaching soul. she just graduated kindergarten and she got the Brooke Miller: Yeah. Jess Sittig: And the whole premise behind that is that she's a diligent learner who likes to teach others. And I was like, that is so perfect for her. And just watching, I love watching my boys bond. It's very special, but watching my daughters bond with them is so cool. And you get to see that in so many different personalities and dynamics. And I think that's something really special, especially coming from an only child where I didn't really. Brooke Miller: Yeah. Jess Sittig: I mean, of course I had close friends and I have a million cousins because my mom is one of seven and my husband's mom is one of eight. So, like we have a lot of cousins, but that's very different than having siblings in the home and things like that. So I think that's been really fun and challenging for me as an only child and like seeing those dynamics. So I think it's almost helpful to have twins because I feel like Brooke Miller: Right. It is. Jess Sittig: Those sibling dynamics are a lot stronger. Like they love really hard and then they also fight really hard. And I'm getting to the point where I'm like, it's fine. Like no one's a psychopath. This is like normal sibling dynamics, you know. But it's been, it's really fun to watch that. So I love that you were kind of going into that too of like everyone learning together. I feel the same thing. I feel like my boys have potty trained maybe a little bit later than my daughter, but they've done other things like ride scooters and like do artwork. way earlier than I than my daughter ever did because they're watching their sister do it. So it's Brooke Miller: So true. And if she just came home from kindergarten they she's teaching them the letters, I have no doubt, because she's she's this little teacher. Yes, the numbers, the letters, all the things. Jess Sittig: Yes. She will she will be like, let's play school. And she's like so serious. We have an easel in our playroom. So she'll like put chairs down. She's like, sit on these chairs. It's circle time. We're gonna go over the alphabet. Like she's so serious. It's hilarious. And they just follow her around like little ducklings. It's so precious. So that's really fun ⁓ to And I I bet your sibling dynamics are Brooke Miller: I love it Jess Sittig: are similar in that sense, but just like volumized because you get to see all these different interactions and relationships with all of the different personalities of your kids. Brooke Miller: It really is true. they will not admit this and it may be ⁓ decades before they would say it, maybe they never will. The greatest gift I'm giving them is each other. ⁓ And ⁓ I and do they do not feel that way at the moment. ⁓ and they probably won't for a very long time, but that ⁓ is my heart behind family is look, you guys will have each other forever. Jess Sittig: Yeah. Brooke Miller: And anything I can do to strengthen that early on I wanna be doing. Jess Sittig: That's I completely agree. I had someone else on the podcast a couple of weeks ago. I'm trying to remember the exact quote that she said, but it almost like made me cry. It was very sweet. It was something along the lines of, you know, you will you will meet friends as you get older. Your parents will always be there. Well, you know, to a certain point, right? But the one constant are your siblings, you know. Especially having our kids so close together. Like my daughter does not remember her life before her brothers were born. Like she does not remember being an only child for three years. She has no recollection of that. Like her only memory is like growing up with her brothers. And I think that's really special. Brooke Miller: Yeah. Yeah, I agree. Jess Sittig: So I know we weren't like planning to talk about this, but maybe for a couple minutes, I'd love to pick your brain. So what are you doing to encourage those sibling dynamics like within your twins and within the six of them? Brooke Miller: Uh-huh. So I think I don't encourage it in a strategic way, if that makes sense. But again, with six, I have come to learn and accept and allow that they are going to have their own little special friendships in different seasons, sometimes in different hours, and that's okay. Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: two of them are on the same cheerleading team. And sometimes that's like an amazing bond, and sometimes ⁓ they stand that they both are on that same team. ⁓ And think allowing there to be an ebb and a flow between the strengths of the older ones and the the y the interests of the younger ones, not always having to do everything together. I think maybe is what I d is what we do. Perhaps a good example, or I I hope it's a good example. This summer, for example, so our ten year olds, our our twins are our ten-year-olds and they're they're ten and a half. Our son is I mean, I know I'm his mom, but he's a really good wrestler. Like he's been wrestling since he was six. He would have started at five, but COVID didn't have little boy wrestling that year. And he just gets it. Like, he has not come upon a sport he hasn't loved, but wrestling, all that to say, we are headed to nationals this summer. In fact, when this podcast comes out, we will have already been there. And so he is competing tenu. He is undefeated in ten years almost his entire the past two years. But we're in Alaska. Jess Sittig: Yeah. That's incredible. Brooke Miller: And so, you know, he's gone to Vegas, he's gone to Idaho, he's done some stuff in the Western region, but this is, he's the oldest in his age group, you know, before you become the youngest in your group. So this is a big deal. And so we have, and we have family in the lower 48 that we haven't we have not been down, all eight of us, since we moved to Alaska. We've kind of gone in in ⁓ we've like taken numbers who's gonna go. Jess Sittig: Mm, okay. Yeah. Brooke Miller: ⁓ to which things. so what we've elected to do ⁓ is ⁓ our oldest, our is flying down for a camp and flying ⁓ where the ⁓ one of the competitions is gonna be. My husband is with two our kids with the twin sister and then our six-year-old boy. Because we we talked about the dynamics of the kids of who was going to do well at or better at a just with daddy in the car for that trip. ⁓ who could handle that time, was gonna be at a wrestling tournament, knows and enjoys or at least understands wrestling, can be trusted in that environment, and then they're driving. To Iowa, and then the three others, my 12-year-old daughter, my eight-year-old daughter, and the five-year-old boy, we're still gonna be in Alaska for another week, and then we're gonna fly to the Midwest, the four of us, and then we'll all reconnect. So my husband and I strategically ⁓ made that based on the strengths and the needs of our kids, based on the sibling relationships. And now coming into summer, they know this is coming. And so we can talk about that. ⁓ Cece is is getting excited. Is that the book you're gonna take on your road trip? What are you and Hunter gonna be doing in the car for that time? That it's it's just you guys and daddy. And then, of course, Brady, well, I'm not no, I'm not gonna be there. No, Brady, you're gonna be on an airplane. Are you gonna sit next to Lily or are you gonna sit next to Tracy? And we make it special for each of those things and, you know, the bond, the little experience they're gonna have before then they get to come together and will tell us the cool stuff about the the plane, we'll tell us about the animals you saw driving through Canada. I mean that's how we're trying to do it. Jess Sittig: Mm. love that. I think especially, I mean, I feel like I have a big family, you know, for compared to people who have one or two kids. And I do feel like you have to divide and conquer. And I love, especially as your kids getting older, you know, mine are still so little. My boys are two. So we're still learning their personalities and their strengths. And they'll be three in two weeks. ⁓ but you know there's still I know I can't believe it. But there's still like very little. Brooke Miller: ⁓ yeah. Whoa. Jess Sittig: But of course their personalities are starting to really shine. And as they get older, I'm excited to do things like that. I feel like we've done little things like that. Like my husband is a musician. He does not tour full time anymore. But occasionally when he's gone on a show, he has taken my daughter if it's next to family so that she can go to the show and then go stay with family, where the boys will stay home with me and we'll do something fun. Like, you know, going to like Chick-fil-A is a big deal for them. So like, okay, we're going to Brooke Miller: ⁓ yeah, for sure. Jess Sittig: We're going on a yeah, right? Like little little things. So obviously this is a a much smaller scale for our family since they're a little bit younger. But I love that. And I think I think that is really fun to have special time with certain siblings and mom. And you know, same thing with dad. And get you guys both get to do really neat experiences, just different. And I I think that's really cool and such a cool way to divide and conquer. And then you guys get to come together. Brooke Miller: That's a big big deal for us too. Yeah. Jess Sittig: at the end of it for like a family vacation. So I think that's such a brilliant way to handle it. And I know we were kind of talking about this off air. And I feel like, you know, having six kids, I I made the decision after the twins were born to become a full time stay-at-home mom. With my daughter, I was still working. It was more part time, but I was still working. And then once the twins were born, you know, I always wanted to be, to be there and be present. And also like financially, it did not make sense to pay for childcare for three under three with what I was bringing in. Like the math wasn't math and like it didn't make sense for me to to work any longer. It made more financial sense to stay home. And I wanted to. I know not everyone has like the the dreams to be a stay at home mom, but I did. And I know, yeah, that's that's what I wanted. And I think now it's fun that the boys are getting slightly older and turning three. Brooke Miller: You you that was what you wanted. Jess Sittig: That I want to have like a passion project. And it's been so fun to start this podcast and try to build a twin-specific community. And I'm excited to see where it goes, but I don't really think I had the brain capacity to do that before they turned two years old. And I know, like I'd love to hear about that and how you handled work. I know you were a teacher, and you know, when did you step away from that and and what did that look like? Brooke Miller: Yeah. yes, I was I was a teacher. I love hearing that your your little girl ⁓ her little classroom and and sits everybody down. I was not that child. I was the one playing mom. ⁓ I I was not pretending to have a classroom. I was pretending to have all the babies, which I then went on to do. ⁓ ⁓ ⁓ I was a teacher of the blind and visually impaired ⁓ Colorado and ⁓ Jess Sittig: Mm. Ha ha ha. Brooke Miller: I so it was it was unique. ⁓ and I covered five different school districts and I would drive to the kids who were in their home schools. So there was about half of my time that I was driving and half of the time that I was seeing kids, and I had a where we were and the time it was, you know, the the teens of the 2000s. ⁓ sounds weird to say, but Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: I just I had a ton of flexibility as long as I met those hours. had our kids in a Montessori school and I could coordinate with the drop off for that before seeing my students. ⁓ And and it was the school where we wanted them to be and I could work out my maternity leaves, even with kind of looking at the annual calendar of how many how much services kids need and then Taking a couple extra weeks. It just worked really well. And then COVID happened and I became completely virtual. And which it's that was its own beast of teaching students who were blind on the computer. But we figured it out. And that was that school year. It wasn't until ⁓ when our sixth, when Brady, ⁓ we ended up with three boys and three girls, so our youngest is Jess Sittig: ⁓ my gosh. Brooke Miller: Brady because we became the Brady bunch. And ⁓ yeah, just fun, fun trivia of our family. my husband took a different job and we moved, and I was in Colorado at the time, a lot of districts were four days a week. And where I'd been working were four days a week, and then we moved. It was still four days a week, but I was in. ⁓ Jess Sittig: I love that. Brooke Miller: the building those four days. There was no more travel time or like shifting my schedule if needed. And I definitely noticed a change in how I was able to to take care of everybody. And at that point, I mean our kids were between age one and eight. So Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: Still looking back, it's like, wow, I had no idea the busyness that was coming with the upper elementary middle school years. I probably still don't even know the business busyness that's coming. But that that was a start of realizing, ooh, I am really getting getting stretched here in what I'm able to do. And then at after that year, we moved to Alaska, and that was three years ago. And all of a sudden I was five days a week special ed in one building in a very big school district where I mean just to call a spade a spade, I was one of a number. ⁓ I was, you know, when you're in a really small town and you have your superintendent's number that you text, like there was one day, like Brady had a seizure and I he was okay, or then we weren't sure if it was a seizure, and I was kind of like Jess Sittig: Mm. Yeah. Brooke Miller: Do I go in the next day or do I not go in? And I got a text from the two superintendent who's like, Brooke, you're staying home tomorrow. Like, we will see you on Monday. But in this district, I am one of thousands of teachers. They don't know how hard I work. They are you there or are you not? We only really know who you are if there's a problem. I mean, that's that's the the bottom line. And all of a sudden. Jess Sittig: Hmm. Brooke Miller: I was, I mean what I think of is I became the absolute stereotypical average completely burnt out angry exhausted working mom. Is like that is in my head that that that is a stereotype in my head and that is what I turned into. Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: working five days a week in this in this school in this new town. We loved Alaska. Our family was doing amazing here. We had year-round wrestling. We had competitive cheerleading. We had drama. We had all these drama like a club. We had all these things that we wanted for our kids and I like Jess Sittig: Ha ha ha. Brooke Miller: Everybody was doing so well here and I was unraveling trying to make it all happen for us. And it became a it was a it was the start of a a pretty dark season for me. ⁓ I remember tell this was two and a half years ago, fall of 2023, yeah. Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: And I remember telling my husband, I I think I need I think I need to see a doctor because I I don't think I'm I don't think this is normal how I'm how I'm handling things, how I'm handling our kids, how I'm, you know that I can be so together for my students and my principal and the parents I deal with and then I I lose my temper on our kids. Jess Sittig: Hmm. Brooke Miller: ⁓ this is not this is not okay. This is not what I want to do. And I don't talk about it a lot, but it's it's true. I, you know, made that appointment and we talked about how how many life changes we'd have and how overwhelming things were and we just moved and I have six kids and I have a full time job and she said, well, we can we can talk about medication. Jess Sittig: That's a lot. Brooke Miller: Yeah, let's let's talk about some medication. Let's not talk about changing anything in your life. Let's not talk about maybe maybe making some adjustments. Yeah. She was like, let's let's make sure you have a pill to forget the fact that you really have a life you can't keep up with. And I think that's that is what a lot of women, if they actually ask for help, that's what a lot of them get. Jess Sittig: Right. Hmm. Like what something's gotta give. Yeah. Brooke Miller: is is a prescription ⁓ and probably a drug dependency ⁓ as a result or just a well and then it became a this is what i wanted this is i wanted every single one of these children i went to school for this degree i have a loving husband i chose to be here buck up this is This is the life you wanted. So whether you're gonna enjoy it or not, keep you know, keep going, because this nobody nobody made you do any of these things. So get up and do it again tomorrow. You'll just be really tired until all your kids are gone. So just keep going. And that's where. I probably would have stayed because I wasn't looking for solutions. It was like, okay, this is this is the way it is. but I came, it came upon my path, another another mom from wrestling had replaced her income as a dental hygienist with an online business. And it caught my husband and my attention because we knew we what. was going on, I could not keep going, but we didn't have, I wasn't going back to school. We weren't buying lotto tickets. Like this was this was what we had this this was our life. And so long story shorter, I ended up starting an online business ⁓ almost exactly two years ago. And simply with the hope of maybe I can pay for competitive cheer, maybe I can get us maybe I can pay for a laundry service. Maybe I can get a house cleaner or something to take something off my plate. And I ended up replacing my teaching income in within my first year, yeah, with the business. And I have now marked a year that I've been working from home. And that, ⁓ Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. ⁓ that's amazing. Brooke Miller: Let me tell ya, they say happy wife, happy life, you know, for the for the men. But when you can be a mom that can see beyond, see beyond what we're gonna have for dinner, you can start to see s you know, see beyond the end of your nose, it opens up a whole new I mean your family blossoms when you as a mom. become healthy and begin to just flourish. And it's it wasn't Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. Brooke Miller: I think for a long time I thought doing anything for myself would have been selfish, but it's it's ended up proving the exact opposite is the healthier and ⁓ fulfilled that I that I become, ⁓ the healthier and more fulfilled and more ⁓ my family becomes. I think for a long time I thought doing anything for myself would have been selfish, but it's it's ended up tr proving the exact opposite is the healthier and more fulfilled you said what what fills your cup that I that I become, the healthier and more fulfilled and more thriving my family becomes. Jess Sittig: Mm. Mm. Mm-hmm. Brooke Miller: And that I feel like we are just it's like our life just started. honestly as a family of like, okay, wow, what what is gonna happen from here? Because it's it's really good. It's not getting through the day. It's like, how are we gonna fill our day? Jess Sittig: Well, I'm proud of you. I think it's really hard to leave something that is stable and secure and you know you're gonna get X amount of income every month, and then to kind of go off on something and take maybe something make take a risk, so to speak. That can be scary. But I feel like when you're getting to your breaking point, there's kind of like two things, like you're teetering back and forth, and like you're either gonna crash and burn. Or something has to change. And I'm sorry that when you went to go get help, that you weren't received like where you were to change things. It's like there, there are so many things that need to change here to make life better and more enjoyable. So just so glad that you were able to do that and that it's been a success and that you were able to replace your teaching income and that you were able to get back that flexibility that you had when you first started your career. Brooke Miller: Yeah, it was it's been ⁓ it's been a huge blessing and just opened up ways that our family really needed. I mean, w six kids, we we needed some we need somebody at home. but we couldn't we we didn't have that before. So everybody just kinda I mean the house just became a tornado ground, ⁓ and it works much more smoothly. When it's not. Jess Sittig: Yeah, I bet. I absolutely can't imagine. so can you tell us a little bit about your business and how people can connect with you? Brooke Miller: ⁓ I'd love that. you can with me on social media. social media is linked here. That is probably the easiest for people. Instagram is f and Facebook are the the main ones that I pay attention to. ⁓ but I also have an email like everybody. I am launching a website of my own. And it is, I mean Days away from going live when you and I are recording this. So it will definitely be up by the time this podcast comes up. And that has been, I love when you talked about that that you were looking for this creative outlet and you found it was so healthy for you. Because when I started my business, I was not looking for a creative outlet, I was looking for income. Jess Sittig: Yay, that's exciting. Brooke Miller: And it has only been coming up on two years in my business, the last four months, that I realized the creativity I could put into my business. ⁓ I had a lot to learn because I didn't go to school for business. And so I was doing things a lot of ways that I was taught to do from the people I'm I'm with, from coaches, and and I would do all the things, but there was this Jess Sittig: Hm. Brooke Miller: Whole additional purpose, you know, back to the Thierry Savelle, additional vision, additional dream that I'm realizing I have, and this love to create and this love to coach that I am now just uncovering and creating. And it is all coming together in the form of this website as a launching place. Who knows where it could go from there? So. Jess Sittig: Hm. Brooke Miller: That I'll actually I'll even tell you the name because I haven't announced the name yet, but I it's one of those like when I realized the name it was the it's called At the Brook. Like a brook, but I'm Brook, yes. So find me at the Brook and the website will be here and gosh, who knows what it'll look like in in five weeks when we yeah. Jess Sittig: ⁓ I love that. Yes. That's perfect. That is that is so exciting. Yeah, I I feel like that's helpful for for people to know. I'm like five weeks ahead of recording. sometimes I'll refer to something and then when it comes out, I'm like, that was over a month ago. ⁓ but I will link all of that in the show notes. So your Instagram, your Facebook. Brooke Miller: Got it. Jess Sittig: your website, your email if you'd like, so people can connect with you and learn more about your online business and everything. ⁓ it has been so fun to chat and just learn about your family and how you balanced everything and how you're still balancing everything with motherhood and creating a business. And it's also exciting. So if you could have a heart to heart with a twin mom or give her a piece of advice, what would you tell her? Brooke Miller: I love this question, Jess, because I would definitely tell a twin mom that it gets easier. something husband would ask ⁓ almost compulsively, every time, you know, I have many memories from those I'd say first six months with the twins. I was very tired. ⁓ But ⁓ When we would go somewhere, we would have the two car seats, pediatrician, we'd have our two-year-old, we'd be trying to keep track of everything, two different diaper bags, all the things. And people would say to us, Are they twins? And we would say yes. And then, from my memory, I mean it it was not uncommon that then somebody would say, Well, I have twins, or I am a twin, or these are my twins, or whatever. And my husband would always say, does it get easier? And he was laughing, but he was also begging someone to tell him that it gets easier. And they would say, No, no, it doesn't. It just changes. And it does get easier. I don't know if they don't remember those first six months or that first year. It absolutely gets easier. Now, yeah, twins are always their own version of difficult. All of parenting is. But I remember as we were living it. Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. Brooke Miller: every six month milestone looking at my husband and saying this is so much easier now. They hit six months and they were able to sit up. I didn't I I didn't have to have the Bopi everywhere. They were starting to gnaw on solid foods. I had a second before I had to nurse them again. It was so much easier than those first six months. Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. Brooke Miller: Then we hit a year and like everybody was alive and they were eating even more and they could actually sit ⁓ in a place playpen for a minute while I went to the bathroom. It got easier. And 18 months. ⁓ They were yeah, were getting into everything, but they were they were happy. Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. Brooke Miller: They were less dependent on me in, you know, some ways. Again, I I nursed them and every and then potty training, potty training the twins was easier than potty training my older daughter because they had they would remind each other that they had to go. It gets easier 100%. You will get through that beginning. Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. Brooke Miller: when it is so exhausting and you d you're just trying to keep everybody alive, including yourself, including another child, including your marriage, it gets easier, I promise. And it it gets a lot of fun. So and I don't know what why these guys all had the perspective that it that it doesn't, because it absolutely does. Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. Mm. Hmm, I love that. And obviously I'm still in like the very like baby stages and like toddler stages still. And I already feel that way. And you know, twin toddlers like aren't for the week, but it's like significantly easier when they were newborns. We were up every two hours. I was so sleep deprived. I'm still tired, but I feel like you can handle a lot more things. Brooke Miller: Wow. ⁓ No. Jess Sittig: once you've slept. So and I love looking at things in six month time frames. I think that's very smart because from one week to one week you might be, it's kind of a roller coaster. Like, ⁓ this is hard. ⁓ this is easy. if you look at things in six month chunks, I think you're exactly right. From ⁓ one year to 18 months, 18 months to two. Yes. Brooke Miller: ⁓ yeah. Jess Sittig: Things absolutely do become more manageable. So I absolutely love that. And okay, I do have another question. Since your your twins are 10, what do you think was the hardest age? And what do you think has been not the easiest, but like the most fun age so far? I mean, they're only 10, but you know. Brooke Miller: Well, so again, as we established, I guess I am not normal. I love 18 months to age five. That is just my love language. So when you say your boys are about to be three, now my husband, he will die on the hill that three-year-olds are the worst. He's like, talk to me. Jess Sittig: I do too I do too. Brooke Miller: When they're four, they are yours for this year. And of course, then we have a self-fulfilling prophecy that, like he literally says that on their third birthday, do you think he enjoys that year with them? No, not so much. ⁓ so you have to keep in mind that I'm coming from that perspective. But I my favorite looking back. And I they're they're awesome now. I mean, I will say I think I think 10, I think fourth grade, they they're just so much fun. And what they their their creativity and their optimism and they don't have the attitude that my 12 year old has now developed. ⁓ I'm hoping that's just a personality thing. I hoping that's not an age, an age rite of passage. ⁓ but I love where they are now. I think, you know, third, fourth grade. They just where they find what they love and they want. Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: To work and get better at it. But personally, when they were 18 months, well, they were when they were 21 months, that's when my our our fourth was born. And that when they were no longer the center of the world that that started a beautiful season for them. our twins are Caroline and Howard. she goes by CeC, little ⁓ like the letter C's. Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: She always would watch her her other two siblings. Tracy was the oldest, she would do it first. Howard would watch Tracy and do it five seconds later. If Tracy could do it, he was gonna do it. And Cece would watch the two of them. You know, even as an 18-month-old, as a one-year-old, it was like she was saying, I'm gonna see if it kills the two of you. And then maybe. I will consider it. It really, she was her own little reserved kind of princess. And then her little sister was born. And it was like Caroline found her place in the world the moment she became a big sister. And it it was literally like you saw her identity take shape with this little sister. Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: And that I feel like became from twenty one months to probably three years of age, watching the two of them grow as older siblings and as not just in Tracy's shadow and not just the twins. Jess Sittig: Hmm. Brooke Miller: That was, and then of course it's just my favorite age of that everything's a lesson, everything's exciting. You can't take a walk to the mailbox without stopping and looking at every single ladybug. That that was a very precious time. But then I have to remind myself that every like then I have to look at today and say, no, today, today is also a really precious time because it all goes by. Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: so fast and you can spend your whole motherhood looking back and saying, Well, you were so cute when you were a baby. You were so cute when you were a toddler. You were so cute when you were in second grade. So ⁓ my wrestler, Howard, he has said he has these huge goals ⁓ of going kids nationals and I mean he's talking Olympics possibly and you know who who knows? But I don't want we don't we don't want to be the reason that doesn't happen. If that doesn't happen, it's because he didn't ⁓ we didn't didn't want that anymore. So I'm driving him to all these practices. We we ended up adjusting his school schedule leading up to state, like and he got in the car. Jess Sittig: It's amazing. Brooke Miller: I don't know, late April, and it smelled so bad. It smelled like feet. It smelled like the worst wrestling shoes. And I remember thinking, okay, this is, yes, you're a boy. Yes, you're 10. Yes, this is gonna get worse. And then I thought. Do you realize how soon it's gonna be that he drives himself to these practices? Do you know how lucky you are that you still get this time driving him to all these practices? Because this kid, this kid is going to be an athlete wherever he is. He's gonna be an athlete for the rest of his life. Do you know how brief this window is that? I get to smell the stinky shoes. That he still needs me to drive him to these practices. That he can't wait to get in the car and tell me what he learned. And it was like, whoo, I will. Jess Sittig: No. Brooke Miller: I will never take this for granted. Sorry. Jess Sittig: No, you're making me emotional too. That's so sweet. And it's I feel like before you were telling the story about his stinky shoes, I was actually getting emotional about like you saying when you're taking your toddlers out a walk and they're like stopping to look at all the bugs. I feel like sometimes in motherhood you feel like, ⁓ I just wish the stage was over. This stage is so frustrating. They're not sleeping through the night. ⁓ And then I feel like motherhood, especially to twins, at least in my opinion, is the perfect reminder to slow down because it isn't going to last forever. And your story made me think of something that my kids have done recently. So the way our house is set up, my daughter does not have a bathroom with a tub on like the side of the house where her room is. So we have always given her a bath. In our son's room, which used to be the guest room. And then I would carry her to the other side of the house and do her pajamas in her room. For years, this is what we did. Bath in the other room, carry it across the house. And then one day she just goes, I'll walk. I was a blubbering baby. And my husband was like, what just happened? And I was like, she doesn't want me to carry her to her room anymore. And liter, like literally, maybe, maybe three weeks ago, one of my sons said that. And I was like, no, let me hold you like a baby. Because all of those phases go by so fast. So yeah, that's so sweet. Brooke Miller: Do. And you don't you don't get them back. You don't, you can't just jump back for a day and say, okay, I'm just gonna push the time machine and go back to when CeCe was two years old and just for the day, you know, it's just fun for the moment. Then I can come back and they can all take care of themselves. It's just Jess Sittig: Yeah. Brooke Miller: It's time. Time is such a thief. But it is so precious if you can can acknowledge it, can see it. And you're not gonna, you know, now you can be like, okay, maybe every other day I get to carry you. Cause you won't physically you won't be able to carry her forever. Maybe it becomes a, you know, once a week you get to carry her. Just just special. Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. That is so true. Brooke Miller: Mommy gets security. She does it for you instead of you doing it for her until you can't. Jess Sittig: Mm-hmm. I know. It's so sweet. Have you seen? I feel like this is a little while ago. It's like a trend where a mom holds her son for the last time, like like almost like a straddle baby hold. And the mom's like struggling to do it. Her son's like, you know, nine or ten. And and the even some of the sons got emotional to be like carried and held by their moms like that again. Because yeah, at a certain point, like you physically are not gonna be able to carry your adult son. Brooke Miller: Yeah. Jess Sittig: Like, you know, so all of that is so sweet and makes me so emotional too. So Brooke Miller: Just cherish cherish those babies. I'm doing it right now with the I mean it's so stupid, but these ⁓ my kids are into the the boys, the little boys are into the Pokemon cards. I think they're so stupid. I don't like but there is going to be a day when I I mean They don't I I'm just I'm making myself stop right now and if they want to talk to me about a Pokemon card, it's like, okay, let's go. I what do you want to tell me? Because it will not it will not last. Jess Sittig: Okay. Mm-hmm. Well, and I think that's so important too. Like my mom and I have always been very close. And I feel like for the most part, I could talk to her about anything. And I think that starts very little, like about and about stupid things like Pokemon cards. Because one day when they're older and they want to talk to you about a girl or an issue at school, if you maybe didn't make time or space for those conversations that seemed trivial in the moment, like then they're not gonna come looking for that as they're older and they have more. Important issues. So I think that's a good reminder too. Even if you're like, I have work to do, dishes to do, like there's always a task to be done to take those five minutes and just listen when your kids want to talk about something that's important to them, even if it seems silly. So I love that. And I think that's a good reminder too. Brooke Miller: And I don't know if you ever asked this of your listeners, but if you're listening, write in the comments. What are your kids talking your ear off about right now that you could care less about? My twelve year old, it was the Percy Jackson. Now she just finished reading that she's into a book series. Jess Sittig: Mm. Brooke Miller: I need to go listen to her better. She's I'll comment. I'll comment when it comes out and write what the what the book series is. But tell us, what are your kids into? And it's like, okay, I don't really care, but I care about my child. So tell us what what they're into. Jess Sittig: Yes, yes. And yeah, exactly. I have had just such a good conversation ⁓ and it's always nice to ⁓ talk to other moms, especially twin moms, and reflect on everything and just feel like it's that was a really good conversation I'm so thankful for it. We got even got a little teary eyed at the end there. So thank you so much for coming on today. Brooke Miller: Yep, sure enough. Thanks so much, Jess. This is such a great space that you have for twin moms. So thank you for inviting me here and for for just serving for the just serving this this very unique special section of moms. Jess Sittig: Mm. Hmm. Well thank you so much.