Milk Money | The Podcast for Moms Building Businesses

Stephanie Lemes
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Entrepreneurship

Serving short stacks and big dreams 🥞☕ Welcome to Milk Money, a podcast for moms who love their kids fiercely AND have dreams, ambitions, identities, and lives of their own. Because motherhood is already a full-time job, but for a lot of us, it isn't the only thing we want to be. Milk Money is where we talk about the part of motherhood that doesn't always make it into the polished Instagram posts: building a business while raising kids, wanting an identity outside of motherhood, navigating mom guilt, protecting your time and energy, and figuring out how to build a life that actually works for the woman living it. Whether you call yourself a mompreneur, mom entrepreneur, working mom, business owner, founder, or just a mom who has a little voice saying there has to be more, we saved you a seat. Meet Your Hostess I'm Stephanie Lemes — mom, wife, business owner, creative, and the woman behind the mic. I started Milk Money because I was searching for the podcast I needed in this season of my life and couldn't find it. There were plenty of business podcasts for women. Plenty of motherhood podcasts. But I wanted the conversations that lived in the messy middle — what happens when you're building a business, raising tiny humans, figuring out who you are, and trying not to lose yourself somewhere along the way. So I decided to create the booth I couldn't find. Milk Money is for the mom who loves being a mom and still wants something that's hers, is building a business between school drop-off, nap time and bedtime, has big dreams but limited time and energy, or simply wants honest conversations about motherhood and entrepreneurship instead of another highlight reel. You don't need a six-figure business. You don't need to have it all figured out. You just need to know there's more to your story. Every week, we're pulling up a chair for honest, unfiltered conversations about motherhood, ambition, business, identity, relationships, health, money, and all the messy bits in between. You'll hear from moms building businesses in all kinds of seasons and stages — and hopefully leave each episode feeling a little less alone. Because sometimes the best thing another mom can give you isn't advice. It's proof that you're not the only one. Welcome to the Diner. Picture a retro roadside diner — checkered floors, coffee refills, chrome, cherry-red booths, jukeboxes, and a bell letting everyone know your order is up. Why a diner? Because diners are open 24/7, just like motherhood. There is no clocking out. No true off-shift. So at Milk Money, we're flipping the script: the women doing all the serving finally get to sit down. Pull up a seat. Stay awhile. Pour it all out. We'll talk about the wins, the doubts, the pivots, the guilt, the ambition, the chaos, and the dreams that didn't disappear when you became a mom. Expect guest conversations, solo episodes, listener questions, and eventually a phone line where you can call in, ask a question, vent, or just say the thing you haven't been able to say anywhere else. Because this booth is yours, too. Milk Money: Serving short stacks and big dreams. Welcome in, we saved you a seat.

Episodes

  1. 3d ago

    Guest Check 004: Grieving Who You Were, Becoming Who You Are with Caroline Kapke

    Motherhood changes you. But what happens when part of becoming a mother means grieving the woman you were before? In this episode of Milk Money, Stephanie sits down with Caroline Kapke for an honest conversation about identity, motherhood, ambition, postpartum anxiety, infertility, and the complicated space between who you were and who you're becoming. Caroline opens up about the experience of becoming a mother after years of praying and hoping for it, only to find herself struggling emotionally once she finally got there. She shares her experience with postpartum anxiety, the guilt that can come with struggling after getting something you desperately wanted, and what it looked like to navigate a changing relationship with her career and sense of self. Stephanie and Caroline talk about the parts of motherhood that don't always make it into the highlight reel - losing yourself, wondering whether you're doing enough, slowing down professionally, and trying to figure out which parts of your old identity you want to bring with you into this new chapter. They also get into a question that sits at the heart of so much of the Milk Money conversation: Does motherhood change who we are, or does it reveal parts of ourselves we hadn't met yet? This is a conversation about motherhood, identity, postpartum anxiety, infertility, career, ambition, mom guilt, and becoming someone new without completely losing who you were. Because maybe you aren't supposed to “find yourself” again. Maybe you're supposed to meet the version of you that's being created now. Today's Special A few takeaways from the booth:  You can deeply love motherhood and still grieve parts of your old life.  Struggling after getting something you've desperately wanted doesn't make you ungrateful.  Motherhood can change your definition of success — personally and professionally.  You don't have to rush to become the “old you” again.  Sometimes motherhood doesn't erase your identity; it introduces you to parts of yourself you hadn't met yet. On the Menu In this episode, we talk about:  The identity shift that comes with motherhood  Grieving who you were before becoming a mom  Postpartum anxiety  The emotional complexity of infertility and finally becoming a mother  Mom guilt  Wanting an identity outside of motherhood  Navigating changes in your career after having children  Redefining success  The pressure to “do it all”  Learning to recognize yourself in a new season  The difference between losing yourself and becoming someone new  What Caroline wishes more moms talked about  Meet Our Guest Caroline Kapke Caroline is a mom, entrepreneur, and advocate for honest conversations around motherhood, identity, and the realities of building a life and career after becoming a parent. Stephanie first met Caroline at a women in business conference, where Caroline was speaking on a panel about motherhood and entrepreneurship. Her perspective immediately resonated with Stephanie — and she knew she needed to invite her to the booth. 📱 Instagram: @carolinekapkerealtor   From the Booth: “I don't think we talk enough about that in-between space where you're grieving who you were while also becoming someone new.”   Pull Up a Seat Enjoyed the conversation? Subscribe to Milk Money and pull up a seat at the booth for more honest conversations about motherhood, ambition, business, identity, and all the messy bits in between. You can also find Milk Money here: @themilkmoneypodcast  Meet me behind the counter:  @milkmademedia_ Serving short stacks and big dreams 🥞☕

    Guest Check 004: Grieving Who You Were, Becoming Who You Are with Caroline Kapke

  2. Aug 28

    Guest Check 003: Motherhood, Creativity & Just Starting with Bec Thexton

    What happens when becoming a mom doesn't quiet your ambition - it makes you want to create even more? In this episode of Milk Money, Stephanie sits down with Bec Thexton, a new mom, creative builder, product designer, and founder of Fleurac Fragrance, a fragrance brand she launched while on maternity leave. Bec shares the unexpected journey behind Fleurac, which began during her experience with infertility and IVF and her desire to create a fragrance she could feel confident wearing during that season. What started as something she made for herself eventually became a business - one she launched while caring for a six-month-old baby. Stephanie and Bec talk about what it's actually like to build a business during maternity leave, including contact naps, working from your phone with one hand, launching a business while your baby has their first cold, and learning to accept that sometimes done really is better than perfect.  They also get into the mom guilt that comes with wanting something outside of motherhood, why creativity can actually be a form of rest, and the reminder that being a mom and being an ambitious, creative woman aren't mutually exclusive. This is a conversation about motherhood, entrepreneurship, creativity, mom guilt, identity, infertility, IVF, maternity leave, and building something of your own in the margins of motherhood. And Bec has one simple message for the mom sitting on an idea right now: Just start. Today's Special A few takeaways from the booth:  You don't have to wait for the “perfect” season to start creating.  Creativity can be part of your identity and part of your motherhood.  Your business doesn't have to move at the same pace it did before kids.  Done is better than perfect, especially when you're building around a tiny human.  Sometimes the constraints of motherhood can actually give your creativity more focus.On the Menu In this episode, we talk about:  Bec's journey through infertility and IVF  How motherhood inspired the creation of Fleurac Fragrance  Building a business during maternity leave  Navigating the reality of contact naps and limited work time  Working on a business one-handed  Launching a business while raising a baby  Mom guilt and wanting an identity outside of motherhood  Why women can be more than one thing  Creativity as a form of rest  Building a business around the season you're actually in  Letting go of perfectionism  The power of consistency and showing up  Supporting other women and mom-owned businesses  Why sometimes you just need to startMeet Our Guest Bec Thexton Bec Thexton is a creative builder, product designer, new mom, and founder of Fleurac Fragrance, an elevated fragrance brand born from her own journey through infertility, IVF, and motherhood. After years working in tech and design, Bec used her maternity leave to explore a creative idea that eventually became a business. She now shares her experience of building a business while becoming a mother, along with her creative pursuits and life as a new mom. 📱 Instagram: @becthexton 🌸 Fleurac Fragrance: @fleurac_fragrance 🌐 fleuracfragrance.com Bec also writes about building a business while becoming a mother on Substack.   From the Booth:  “I think if you have an idea or a burning desire to create something, build something, make something for yourself, just start.”  Pull Up a Seat Enjoyed the conversation? Subscribe to Milk Money and pull up a seat at the booth for more honest conversations about motherhood, ambition, business, identity, and all the messy bits in between. You can also find Milk Money here: @themilkmoneypodcast  Meet me behind the counter:  @milkmademedia_ Serving short stacks and big dreams 🥞☕

    Guest Check 003: Motherhood, Creativity & Just Starting with Bec Thexton

  3. Aug 21

    Guest Check 002: Building Your Support System - Without a Village with Sabre Black

    What if your support system doesn't have to be made up of people? In this episode of Milk Money, Stephanie sits down with Sabre Black - mom of three, former military HR professional, and systems wizard - for a conversation about one of the biggest challenges facing moms who are also building businesses: the mental load. Sabre shares how becoming a mom while living far away from family forced her to rethink what “building a support system” actually meant. Instead of waiting for a traditional village to appear, she started looking for ways to take things off her plate through grocery delivery, meal planning systems, automation, and technology. Together, Stephanie and Sabre talk about treating your home a little more like a business - creating systems and SOPs that allow other people to step in without you having to manage every detail yourself. Because sometimes support isn't another person. Sometimes it's the thing that saves you 30 minutes, eliminates a decision, or keeps you from starting from scratch. They also get real about postpartum anxiety, postpartum rage, breastfeeding, the mental and physical demands of motherhood, mom guilt, and why moms shouldn't have to earn their rest. And, of course, Sabre has some strong opinions on what moms should outsource, what's overrated, and where she'd spend an extra $50 a month to buy back some precious time. This is a conversation about motherhood, entrepreneurship, systems, mental load, support, postpartum, breastfeeding, burnout, outsourcing, and giving yourself permission to make life easier. Because maybe you don't need a bigger village, you just need a better system. Today's Special A few takeaways from the booth:  Your support system doesn't always have to be a person.  Build your systems around your worst days, not your best ones.  Moms shouldn't have to earn their rest.  If something repeatedly takes time and energy you don't have, it's worth asking whether it can be outsourced, automated, or eliminated.  Your kids don't have to stop your life - they can come along for the journey. Sabre's philosophy really comes down to this: stop starting from scratch. If you're doing something repeatedly, find a way to make it easier for the next time.  On the Menu In this episode, we talk about:  Building a support system when you don't have a traditional village  The mental load of motherhood  Using technology as part of your support system  Grocery delivery and outsourcing household tasks  Creating a “meal bank” for your family  Treating your home like a business  Creating household SOPs  Building systems for your worst days  Postpartum anxiety and postpartum rage  The realities of breastfeeding  Mom guilt and the pressure to do everything  What moms should outsource  Why “just get childcare” isn't always the answer  The best way to spend an extra $50 a month  Learning to take rest without earning it first  Letting your kids see you pursue your own dreams Meet Our Guest Sabre Black Sabre Black is a mom of three, former military HR professional, and systems-focused entrepreneur who helps moms, particularly default-parent moms building businesses, use systems, automation, and their limited time more intentionally. After becoming a mom while living far from family, Sabre learned firsthand that building a support system doesn't always mean finding more people. Sometimes it means finding better systems that take things off your plate. She's also a YouTube creator and self-proclaimed yapper, so naturally, we love her. 😂 Connect with Sabre: Instagram: @sabreoreyana YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SabreOreyana Threads: @sabreoreyana  A Little Something From the Booth: “If you keep basing everything off your best day, it's never gonna work out.”  Pull Up a Seat Enjoyed the conversation? Subscribe to Milk Money and pull up a seat at the booth for more honest conversations about motherhood, ambition, business, identity, and all the messy bits in between. You can also find Milk Money here: @themilkmoneypodcast  Meet me behind the counter:  @milkmademedia_ Serving short stacks and big dreams 🥞☕

    Guest Check 002: Building Your Support System - Without a Village with Sabre Black

  4. Aug 21

    Guest Check 001: Motherhood Meets Ambition - Redefining Success with Dana Foster

    What happens when the version of success you worked so hard for no longer fits the life you actually want? In the first-ever Guest Check, Stephanie sits down with Dana Foster, a pharmacist-turned-coach and mom of two kids less than a year apart, to talk about building a sustainable business alongside motherhood. Dana shares her journey from working in ICU pharmacy during COVID, experiencing burnout and postpartum anxiety, and moving into an administrative role for more flexibility, to starting a gut health coaching business and eventually pivoting into business support for mom founders. Together, Stephanie and Dana unpack what it actually looks like to build a business when you don't have unlimited time, energy, childcare, or control over your schedule. They talk about redefining success around flexibility and being a present parent, why Dana thinks of work and motherhood as a blend rather than a balance, and how to communicate with clients when motherhood inevitably throws an imperfect week your way. They also get into meal routines, Dana's 555 grocery method, solo parenting while her husband works 48-hour firefighter shifts, perfectionism, and the pressure to stop rushing through every season. This is a conversation about motherhood, entrepreneurship, mom guilt, burnout, ambition, flexibility, and letting go of perfectionism - and a reminder that building a successful business doesn't have to mean building one that consumes your life. Today's Special A few takeaways from the booth:  Success can look different after becoming a mom — and that's not settling.  Flexibility can be a legitimate measure of business success.  “Balance” may not be the goal; finding a sustainable blend might be.  An imperfect week doesn't mean you're failing at motherhood or business.  You don't have to rush every season of your life.On the Menu In this episode, we talk about:  Burnout from working in ICU pharmacy during COVID  Postpartum anxiety and the transition into motherhood  Leaving clinical pharmacy for more flexibility  Dana's journey into entrepreneurship  Pivoting from gut health coaching to supporting mom founders  Building a business around the realities of parenting  Redefining success after becoming a mom  The difference between work-life balance and work-life blend  Communicating with clients when life gets messy  The 555 grocery method  Solo parenting with a spouse who works 48-hour shifts  Perfectionism, slowing down, and letting go of the rushMeet Our Guest Dana Foster Dana Foster is a pharmacist-turned-coach, mom of two, and business support expert who helps mom founders build businesses that actually work within the realities of their lives. After experiencing burnout in ICU pharmacy during COVID and navigating postpartum anxiety, Dana began rethinking what she wanted her career and motherhood to look like. Her own journey eventually led her to supporting other mom entrepreneurs who want to build sustainable businesses without ignoring the constraints of parenting. Instagram: @danafosterco YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DanaFosterCo Pull Up a Seat Enjoyed the conversation? Subscribe to Milk Money and pull up a seat at the booth for more honest conversations about motherhood, ambition, business, identity, and all the messy bits in between. You can also find Milk Money here: @themilkmoneypodcast  Meet me behind the counter:  @milkmademedia_ Serving short stacks and big dreams 🥞☕

    Guest Check 001: Motherhood Meets Ambition - Redefining Success with Dana Foster

  5. Aug 21

    The Conversation I Couldn't Find: Why I Created Milk Money

    What happens when you love being a mom but still want a life, identity, and ambition of your own? In the very first episode of Milk Money, Stephanie Lemes pulls up a chair and shares the story behind the podcast she never expected to create. After becoming a mom and launching her own business, Stephanie found herself searching for conversations about the messy middle of motherhood and entrepreneurship - the mom guilt, identity shifts, loneliness, ambition, and constant question of “Am I doing the right thing?” There were plenty of podcasts for women in business and plenty of podcasts about motherhood. But Stephanie couldn't find the conversations that went deep enough into what it actually feels like to build a business while raising kids and figuring out who you are after motherhood changes everything. So she created the conversation she couldn't find. In this episode, Stephanie shares where the idea for Milk Money came from, why she believes moms deserve a space to talk about more than motherhood alone, and her vision for the diner we're building together — a place where ambitious moms, mompreneurs, working moms, and women building businesses can pull up a seat, pour it all out, and feel a little less alone. Welcome to Milk Money, the coffee is hot, the booth is open, and we saved you a seat 🥞☕🍒 Pull Up a Seat Enjoyed the conversation? Subscribe to Milk Money and pull up a seat at the booth for more honest conversations about motherhood, ambition, business, identity, and all the messy bits in between. You can also find Milk Money here: @themilkmoneypodcast  Meet me behind the counter:  @milkmademedia_ Serving short stacks and big dreams 🥞☕

  6. Trailer

    Milk Money Trailer

    Welcome to Milk Money, a podcast for moms who love their kids fiercely AND have dreams, ambitions, identities, and lives of their own.  Pull up a seat for honest conversations about motherhood, business, ambition, identity, mom guilt, and all the messy bits in between. We're serving up the conversations moms don't always get to have - with women building businesses, chasing big dreams, and figuring it out along the way. The coffee is hot, the booth is open 24/7, and yes .. we'll probably ask what's for dinner tonight? Milk Money opens August 21, 2026. We saved you a seat! Pull Up a Seat Enjoyed the conversation? Subscribe to Milk Money and pull up a seat at the booth for more honest conversations about motherhood, ambition, business, identity, and all the messy bits in between. You can also find Milk Money here: @themilkmoneypodcast  Meet me behind the counter:  @milkmademedia_ Serving short stacks and big dreams 🥞☕

Trailer

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About

Serving short stacks and big dreams 🥞☕ Welcome to Milk Money, a podcast for moms who love their kids fiercely AND have dreams, ambitions, identities, and lives of their own. Because motherhood is already a full-time job, but for a lot of us, it isn't the only thing we want to be. Milk Money is where we talk about the part of motherhood that doesn't always make it into the polished Instagram posts: building a business while raising kids, wanting an identity outside of motherhood, navigating mom guilt, protecting your time and energy, and figuring out how to build a life that actually works for the woman living it. Whether you call yourself a mompreneur, mom entrepreneur, working mom, business owner, founder, or just a mom who has a little voice saying there has to be more, we saved you a seat. Meet Your Hostess I'm Stephanie Lemes — mom, wife, business owner, creative, and the woman behind the mic. I started Milk Money because I was searching for the podcast I needed in this season of my life and couldn't find it. There were plenty of business podcasts for women. Plenty of motherhood podcasts. But I wanted the conversations that lived in the messy middle — what happens when you're building a business, raising tiny humans, figuring out who you are, and trying not to lose yourself somewhere along the way. So I decided to create the booth I couldn't find. Milk Money is for the mom who loves being a mom and still wants something that's hers, is building a business between school drop-off, nap time and bedtime, has big dreams but limited time and energy, or simply wants honest conversations about motherhood and entrepreneurship instead of another highlight reel. You don't need a six-figure business. You don't need to have it all figured out. You just need to know there's more to your story. Every week, we're pulling up a chair for honest, unfiltered conversations about motherhood, ambition, business, identity, relationships, health, money, and all the messy bits in between. You'll hear from moms building businesses in all kinds of seasons and stages — and hopefully leave each episode feeling a little less alone. Because sometimes the best thing another mom can give you isn't advice. It's proof that you're not the only one. Welcome to the Diner. Picture a retro roadside diner — checkered floors, coffee refills, chrome, cherry-red booths, jukeboxes, and a bell letting everyone know your order is up. Why a diner? Because diners are open 24/7, just like motherhood. There is no clocking out. No true off-shift. So at Milk Money, we're flipping the script: the women doing all the serving finally get to sit down. Pull up a seat. Stay awhile. Pour it all out. We'll talk about the wins, the doubts, the pivots, the guilt, the ambition, the chaos, and the dreams that didn't disappear when you became a mom. Expect guest conversations, solo episodes, listener questions, and eventually a phone line where you can call in, ask a question, vent, or just say the thing you haven't been able to say anywhere else. Because this booth is yours, too. Milk Money: Serving short stacks and big dreams. Welcome in, we saved you a seat.

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