Our Story
Our Story
Hi mamas. We’re Adrienne and Cait. We should probably start with a shout out to Craigslist. Sharing a house (and an awesome front porch) in Washington, D.C., we became close friends. And we grew A LOT closer when our first babies were born hours apart. Adrienne had Evelyn and Cait became a mom to twins Mary Eileen and Benjamin.
We became witnesses to each other’s journey into Motherhood; witnesses to the shift in identity, to the shock of how hard it was, and to the beauty of it all. We learned from day one the importance of that witness, that support and community reflecting back at you what can be so hard to see in early Motherhood.
With the birth of Evelyn, Adrienne, a former hard-charging BigLaw attorney turned coach and doula, mourned her former self, unsure how Motherhood would fit into her identity. She later met the heartbreak of Motherhood when she experienced a pregnancy loss along and the accompanying grief, shame and anxiety.
With the birth of Evelyn, Adrienne, a former hard-charging BigLaw attorney turned coach and doula, mourned her former self, unsure how Motherhood would fit into her identity. She later met the heartbreak of Motherhood when she experienced a pregnancy loss along and the accompanying grief, shame and anxiety.
After spending years in the perinatal world professionally as a perinatal social worker, parent coach and infant feeding specialist, Cait became a mom to twins, Mary Eileen and Benjamin. Cait’s journey to Motherhood would not have been possible without her wife and the team at Shady Grove K St. Perhaps knowing too much, Cait grappled with the realities of twins born at 33 weeks, the NICU, and postpartum depression.
After spending years in the perinatal world professionally as a perinatal social worker, parent coach and infant feeding specialist, Cait became a mom to twins, Mary Eileen and Benjamin. Cait’s journey to Motherhood would not have been possible without her wife and the team at Shady Grove K St. Perhaps knowing too much, Cait grappled with the realities of twins born at 33 weeks, the NICU, and postpartum depression.
Thankfully, we had each other. We got through the early stages of Motherhood by seeking support and sanity. We were both amazed at the very common struggles moms endure silently and the joys left unshared. And questions emerged:
Why aren’t Mothers talking to each other?
Why are resources related to pregnancy and parenting so scattered and skewed?
Why do we constantly feel judged?
Why are there only a few perceived “right” ways to parent?
Why is it so hard to make mom friends?
We set out to answer these questions and do better by other Mothers. We wanted to make a space for Mothers to explore what Motherhood looks like for them. We wanted to bring Mothers together to exercise collective action and create the nation of Mothers we deserve.
Through personalized Circles, supported by an online community and designed with compassionate values, MotherNation was founded to do just that. The pandemic and accompanying isolation and anxiety of the last year has only deepened our mission.
In short: we believe every Mother deserves a MotherNation and the tools to claim their Motherhood their way. We hope you’ll join us.
What’s your story, mama?
If you are reading this, you are a part of the MotherNation story and we know you have a story of your own. We want to hear your story, share it, and root you on.
Ready to share?
What’s your story, mama?
If you are reading this, you are a part of the MotherNation story and we know you have a story of your own. We want to hear your story, share it, and root you on.
Ready to share?
The MotherNation Council
The MotherNation Council is comprised of a diverse group of Mothers willing to contribute their voices, their time and their expertise to fulfill the MotherNation mission: create spaces for Mothers to care for themselves and each other. The Council is the internal brain trust of MotherNation–the gut check, the accountability partners and fuel for this Motherhood movement. With their impressive expertise, seamless collaboration and creative decision-making, we tackle big and small questions together.
Interested in joining the Council next year? Shoot us a note.
Educator/operations specialist turned social worker/researcher, focusing on perinatal social work and maternal mental health. Local parent community leader and advocate. Mother of 1 with 1 on the way.
Catholic feminist theologian who engages issues of racism and sexism in the church in the US. California native, DC transplant, Mystics superfan, and mother. Strong opinions on snacks.
Proud Mexican American woman and new mother. Developmental specialist that works supporting 0-3 year olds with special needs and their families. Loves cheese.
Driven by love of family (mom 4 year old & 19 mo boy/girl twins; a wife, daughter & sister), friends and the law (government contracts attorney); faith; and connecting with others
Marketer by classical training. Mama dream made reality through fertility treatment. Fiercely devoted to family, friends & the advocacy of women. Recovering Workaholic. Amateur Yogi. HomeGoods Junkie.
Working mom, wife, traveler, new to the recruiting field, trapeze artist and runner. Value relationships and helping others. Striving to continuously improve.
Advocate for those who need their voices amplified, as well as an expert herder of soapy, wet, cats. Spends her free time keeping tiny humans alive and feeding those who wander through her life.
A minimalist art nerd with an active 16 mth old. Brand strategist, designer & website-builder by day, baking show enthusiast by night. Therapy advocate, naturalist treehugger and #sobasic plant lady.
A global community developer and local community seeker, always working toward a kinder, healthier world. A runner: over hills, around tracks, and after two boundless daughters.
Self-employed marketing consultant. Mom of a busy toddler with another on the way (due Feb 26). Passionate about personal development, chocolate, and helping moms build lives they love.
Single mom of two, Chase and Harper. Accountant, creative, and entrepreneur. Passionate about purpose and leaving the world better than I found it. Travel addicted.
Passionate about the intersection of early childhood mental health and population health; wife, mother (of a rising three year old and dog), friend. Mental health advocate. Recovery supporter.
Mommy of Luke (2 years) and Brooke (3 weeks). Public health nerd, certified holistic health coach, pilates instructor. World traveler turned domestic goddess.
Empowering undergraduate women by day, Momma to a toddler and wife all the time. Enthralled by finding creative solutions, spending quality time with loved ones and supporting others.
Day job: Health researcher and policy analyst. Passion job: Birth and postpartum doula. Mama to a one-year old little girl. Wife to my best friend. Avid gardener, adventurer, and traveler.
Recently “retired” software manager. Now shifting gears to focus on the needs of my family. Passionate about supporting families, making connections, and paid FMLA.
Life: wife + mom x 3 amazing humans (g/b/g) Professional life: Director, Product Development at NCQA. Passion: improving healthcare outcomes for moms and babies + holistic medicine + exercise.
Heads the regional client services division for an adtech industry leader. Passionate about social justice, animal rescue, her family, and good eats.
Wife to Arnold & mom to Minnie. Proudly call the U.S. & Zimbabwe home. Attorney, motivational speaker and author. Dreams are for chasing & life is for living.
![🚨*President Biden is meeting with Sen. Joe Manchin TODAY*. This is the moment to use your voice. @potus, Manchin, and @senschumer need know that Paid Leave is not a disposable negotiation point. It MUST stay in the Build Back Better Act. Instructions for how you can help are below.
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Cait here. We don't often pop into our own feed but it's important to show up when we're needed. Here's one of the people I have stayed up through the night to care for, my son Ben. When Ben was 6 weeks old, he was admitted to the hospital for a cold. He weighed 5lbs and was 0 days adjusted. We were admitted on his due date, just 3 weeks after he came home from the NICU. We were able to afford for my wife to lose a weeks worth of income in order to stay home to care for Ben's twin sister (and me while I cared for Ben 6 weeks postpartum) and we were so grateful for that week. The financial stress came on Day 6 and we agreed my wife should go back to work. No family should have to shift their attention from an emergency to stress about money so I'm urging you to join me in today's Paid Leave Day of Action.
📢Here's how:
1) Post a picture of yourself or a family member you care for...someone whose breathing you'd listen to all night long if needed. Any loved one, even yourself if you've ever needed to count slowly in and out from 1 to 5 and back again (paid leave is for your *own* phys/mental health too).
2) Include this message and call to action: "I want Congress and @POTUS to #PassPaidLeave for my [person pictured]. No one should have to choose between their family and a paycheck. Text “wecare” to 747464 today to tell your Senator that you want #PaidLeave passed in #BuildBackBetter." It's easy and takes literally two minutes to connect from text to call. The average call takes 1.5 mins from start to end.
80% of voters in senate battleground states support paid medical leave and 76% support paid family leave. Congress, @POTUS, we can't #BuildBackBetter without it.
#PaidLeaveForAll, #PassPaidLeave, #BBBwithPaidLeave @chamberofmothers @paidleaveus @paidleaveforall @momsrising](https://mothernation.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)