In July 2018, April Robson and her husband received the news their middle daughter, Charlotte, had a genetic terminal illness. At the time, they had an 8 week old son and a toddler (Charlotte's big sis). With grace and strength, April has poured into her family for the last 18 months, creating special memories for her family and encouraging them - and those of us watching their story unfold - to choose joy. 

Today April is sharing her family's story and how they navigate the holiday season with a chronically ill child and make memories for the whole family, including their two other children. 

Follow April online at @smidgeofthis and @charlottesjoy to learn more about their story and support them in their journey. 

Be sure to connect with Melissa online at @influentialmotherhood - come say hello! 

Whitney Meade is a mom of two (her girls have royal names, btw!) and is based in Charleston, South Carolina. With her husband, Whitney manages a Christian pop rock FM radio station, a DAILY YouTube channel, a speaking ministry, and so much more. This week, I'm chatting with Whitney about her journey through Lyme Disease and other autoimmune disorders, how she manages daily videos on her Daily Devo YouTube channel, and what she loves about working with her husband full-time.

Check out Whitney's YouTube channel here and follow her on Instagram at @whitneymeade. You can find Whitney's free 21-day devotional series, Fitness & the Father, here!

Don't forget to follow Melissa on Instagram at @influentialmotherhood and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/influentialmotherhood.

Heather Brooker is the entertainment reporter at NBC-LA, and is an Emmy award winning journalist who has also had scenes in shows like The Office, The Mindy Project, Grey's Anatomy, and The Middle. 

Heather is taking us through the major career shifts she's experienced and her thoughts on risk-taking, having a backup plan, the good and bad parts of being a journalist, and how her husband has been her encourager through her career. She's taken some major risks but has blossomed every step of the way.

You can listen to Heather's podcast at Motherhood in Hollywood, and follow her on Instagram at @theheatherbrooker. 

Don't forget to follow Melissa on Instagram at @influentialmotherhood and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/influentialmotherhood. 

My long-time friend Lauren Palmer is on the show today to share her family's incredible story. In 2017, she announced her twin pregnancy with her husband Joel. Big sister Caroline and big brother Jennings were thrilled to be welcoming two Christmas blessings to their busy household.

But everything came to a screeching halt when 2.5 year old Jennings was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) when Lauren was 36 weeks pregnant with the twins. 

Lauren is sharing the story of a twin pregnancy, Jennings' diagnosis and fight against cancer, how big sister Caroline saved Jennings' life, and what life - and Lauren's faith - is like at this point in their journey. 

Be sure to follow Melissa on instagram at @influentialmotherhood and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/influentialmotherhood.

Check out www.influentialmotherhood.com for more inspiring stories and podcast episodes.

My husband Damon is joining us this week to share his perspective as a dad and as my husband on all things fatherhood, husbandhood, and working motherhood. He thinks the Melissa Duncan experience is just as great as the Joe Rogan experience, and is giving us insight on the dad's perspective - and turning the tables on me to ask me some questions, too.

You'll learn why going to Costco will remain in our children's fondest memories and what he thinks about this whole podcasting thing. He's also sharing his biggest challenges and surprises about fatherhood and what he loves most about being a dad. And we're answering some listener questions!

Don't forget to follow me on Instagram at @influentialmotherhood and on Facebook at @influentialmotherhood, too. Check out more episodes at www.influentialmotherhood.com.

Lindsey Paoli is a Marriage & Family Therapist Intern and recently opened her own practice where she meets with individuals, couples, and families to talk through some of life's biggest challenges. In this episode, I'm asking her what we've always wanted to know about therapy - who should go, when they should go, and what happens when you go to therapy!

In addition to her work, Lindsey is a mom of two little ones (18 months and 6 months) - and she had both kiddos while she was in graduate school. She's also talking about her own experiences with therapy, her amazingly supportive husband, and how she left a career working on the Las Vegas strip to pursue her dream of supporting individuals and families through marriage and family therapy. 

Check out more from Lindsey on Instagram at @lindsey_paoli and Facebook at @fundamentalhealthLV.

Don't forget to follow Melissa on Instagram at @influentialmotherhood! For more inspiring stories and episodes with moms making a difference, visit www.influentialmotherhood.com.

Hillary Wilkinson is a mom and former teacher who realized we have a problem with screen time. She joined forces with moms in her community to educate families on the importance of healthy screen habits. Together they created the nonprofit organization Healthy Screen Habits, and are on a mission to educate and empower families to get control over screen time and use our devices in a healthy way.

In this episode, Hillary is sharing tips and resources to manage our devices in the home, in the car, and at school. We're talking about the benefits of screen time and the scary dangers that happen when we have too much of a good thing. Hillary is sharing resources (links below!) and you won't believe how early we should be talking to our kids about what they might see online.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Tristan Harris TED Talks
• Wait Until 8th Campaign
• Better Screen Time
• Gabb Wireless phone
• Protect Young Minds

Don't forget to follow Melissa on Instagram at @influentialmotherhood! For more inspiring stories and episodes with moms making a difference, visit www.influentialmotherhood.com.

Alyssa Daniel, M.D. is a mom of two, wife, and a dermatologist in Charlotte, NC. She's sharing her story of deciding to go to medical school, why she's passionate about helping women with skin and hair issues, and what it was like to have a baby while she was Chief Resident. She's also sharing her goals, her favorite mom hack, and how mentors made a difference for her as a working mom in the medical field.

Plus, she's breaking down "skincare over 30" for busy moms and giving us what we need to know about wrinkles (from creams to Botox!), sun prevention, whether vitamins can help our skin, and a good reminder for us about drinking plenty of water. 

Keep learning from Alyssa by following her on Instagram at @remedy.skin.hair.wellness and at www.remedyskinandhair.com. 

Don't forget to follow Melissa on Instagram at @influetialmotherhood! For more inspiring stories and episodes with moms making a difference, visit www.influentialmotherhood.com.

We remember Shannon Miller as a teenager on the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Team (you know, the Magnificent Seven?) - but these days, she's a wife, mom of two, lawyer, women's health advocate... and cancer survivor.

In the time that has passed since those moments when we all held our breaths as we watched our televisions with anticipation, Shannon Miller has had some defining moments in her life. Her company, Shannon Miller Worldwide, advocates for women to prioritize their health - and to not feel selfish for doing so. But you'll be surprised to hear the story of her cancer diagnosis and how she navigated her cancer treatment with a 14 month old at home.

In this episode of the Influential Motherhood podcast, Shannon is giving us an update on her life since the Olympic games, what it was like to be a teenage athlete under pressure, why she went to law school, and how she used her training in sport to beat cancer. Shannon is every bit as lovely as you might guess, and I'm grateful that she's sharing her story.

For more inspiring stories and episodes with moms making a difference, visit www.influentialmotherhood.com.

Photographer Laura Foote is married to high school sweetheart and lives in Tampa FL with her husband, an actor, and cute daughter Mac. She's sharing her story of working at Disney World, working in the non-profit and higher ed worlds, and then unexpectedly becoming an entrepreneur and full-time photographer.

Laura was working in nonprofits when she started using a point-and-shoot camera to take pictures. Eventually, she had clients and bought an SLR camera. As she moved around the country for jobs and education, business kept ballooning as she moved. She thought it was fun to do as a side gig, and didn't realize how it was ballooning.

"I just never really had my head around being an entrepreneur. I liked that I had walls, and an office, and a title and a nametag and letters behind my name."

In this episode, Laura also shares her knowledge of the StrengthsFinder personality inventory. The StrengthsFinder inventory looks at 34 talents, which we all carry, and breaks them into your top 5 and top 10. Each of the 34 talents fits into a category: influencing, executing, strategic thinking, and relationship building. To take the assessment, you can purchase a book, which comes with an access code, or you can just buy the inventory online. Laura shared that she is a certified facilitator and provides StrengthsFinder education to businesses and grops (visit Laurafoote.com/education)

As a full-time photographer, Laura has learned a lot about making the "magic" happen for the people in front of the camera. Here is some of our Q&A about taking great family photos:

When is the best time of day for photos?

Golden hour is the best time of day; it is the 1.5 before sunset. However, morning can also be a great time and is sometimes better for families because the children are fresh. 

Would a photographer prefer to change locations or let the family change outfits?

Often, it may be easier to change locations rather than change outfits for everyone in the family - most photographers fully support changing locations. 

Give us a "what not to wear during family photos" rundown. 

No logos, loud patterns, color, and anything with words. No tennis shoes, even on the kids. Think about the colors in your home and that you like generally, and those are the colors you should have in your photo. Pick a color palette so you don't have to be matchy-matchy; everyone can wear colors from within the palette. 

How can we make it easier on the kids so it is less stressful for everyone?

Hire a photographer that is really going to make it fun for the kids. Create a family experience out of it. Get ice cream afterwards or even spend the night at a hotel! Snacks and water are hugely helpful. Gummy bears and fruit snacks are great because they are things they can chew individually and quickly.

What other tips do you have for moms?

Give yourself grace. Get a village. even if it is paid!

Where can we find Laura?

Find Laura's photography business online at www.laurafoote.com, and follow Laura on Instagram at @laurafoote.

When her kindergartener died of the flu in October 2009, former environmental scientist Serese Marotta knew she had to do something about it. Eventually she connected with the nonprofit organization Families Fighting Flu and now serves as the COO, directing the organization's efforts to spread information and awareness about the severity of influenza. 

According to Serese, around 50% of kids who lose their lives to flu are otherwise healthy. She says there is no replacement for the flu vaccine, and it provides both individual and community immunity. 

Her son, Joseph, had received the vaccine but the pandemic (H1N1) was not in the vaccine that year, so he had no protection against the pandemic strain. At the time of his illness, the monovalent (1 strain) vaccine became available to help prevent the h1n1 strain but was not available where the Marotta family lived until two weeks after Joseph had died.

In this episode, Serese address common misconceptions about the flu and the flu vaccine, including whether you can get the flu from the vaccine.

The vaccine isn't perfect - but if you get it you probably won't get hospitalized or die. But the flu virus knows no calendar, and the only thing we can predict about flu is that it will be unpredictable.

According to Serese, everyone 6 months or older should be vaccinated against the flu annually. 

Flu is the deadliest vaccine-preventable disease: 650,000 people globally every year lose their lives to flu. Serese also says the flu costs the US economy 87 billion every year.

80% of the children who lose their lives to flu are not vaccinated.

"Sometimes i feel like i have the weight of the world on my shoulders because if I stop, people are going to die." - Serese Marotta, COO of Families Fighting Flu

To learn more about Families Fighting Flu and the statistics and information for preventing the flu, visit www.familiesfightingflu.org. 

For more inspiring stories of moms making a difference, visit www.influentialmotherhood.com.