Support AND/BOTH: Help us offset production costs while we're growing

In today's episode, Ashley chats with Amy LeClaire, co-owner and president of franchising at Sit Still Kids, shares her journey from magazine publishing in NYC to scaling boutique fitness with Bar Method to revolutionizing the children's haircare industry. In this conversation, Amy discusses how she's built multiple franchise businesses while raising two kids, the importance of work-life integration over balance, and why she believes there's a huge untapped market in specialized services for children. She opens up about navigating the messy middle of parenting teens, the changing landscape of education and career paths, and how taking exceptional care of yourself isn't selfish—it's essential for showing up as your best self in all areas of life.

What You'll Learn

• How to identify and capitalize on underserved markets (like the 1:92,500 ratio of kids' salons to children under 12)

• The difference between building a business versus building a brand, and why that distinction matters for scalability

• How to navigate major career transitions while growing a family without sacrificing either

• Why work-life integration beats work-life balance, and how companies like Bar Method pioneered flexible work cultures long before it was trendy

• The reality of franchise development and what it takes to scale from one location to 150+ nationwide

• How to maintain your entrepreneurial edge while co-parenting teens who are figuring out their own paths

• Why the traditional college-to-career pipeline might not be the best option for every kid (and the alternatives worth considering)

• The importance of modeling resilience and showing your children that adults are still learning and growing too

• How to practice "exceptional self-care" as a busy parent and business owner without guilt

• Why intuition is an underrated but essential business skill, and how to develop your ability to spot trends before they become mainstream

Connect with Amy LeClaire

Website: sitstillkids.com

Instagram: @sitstillkids

Sit Still Kids is expanding to New England with locations opening in the Boston area and Providence!

Connect with Ashley:

Website: https://dovetaildesigns.co

Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/

AND/BOTH Community: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/andboth-community

Dovetail® App: https://airtable.com/appn6w6IWipJYIuA3/pagZys7UnECzM46iJ/form

Social:

Instagram: @dovetailapp

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dovetaildesigns.co

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

Support AND/BOTH: Help us offset production costs while we're growing

In this candid and eye-opening conversation, Ashley welcomes Angie Anger, a self intimacy and sex coach, to the And Both Podcast. Angie shares her non-linear journey from counseling and corporate marketing to becoming a coach who helps women and femmes reconnect with their bodies, pleasure, and self-worth—especially through the lens of motherhood and long-term partnership. With empathy, humor, and a refreshing dose of honesty, they discuss desire types, communication barriers, emotional labor, and how parenthood reshapes intimacy. Angie reminds us: you’re not broken, you’re just human.

What You’ll Hear:

• The difference between responsive vs. spontaneous desire (and why most women aren’t broken)
• Why connection and self-intimacy matter more than scheduled sex
• How shifting your mindset from performance to play can transform your relationship
• The sex spiral of doom that many moms fall into—and how to break it
• How motherhood, aging, and identity shifts influence desire and pleasure
• Why Angie only works with individuals and not couples (and how it helps)
• Real talk on body image, communication breakdowns, and the dishes fight
• Coaching insights that help moms reclaim their pleasure on their own terms
• Angie’s advice for the mom who feels unseen, unsexy, and unsure where to start
• A preview of part two: how to talk to your kids about sex, bodies, and consent

Connect with Angie:

IG: @angieengercoach

Connect with Ashley:

Website: https://dovetaildesigns.co

Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/

AND/BOTH Community: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/andboth-community

Dovetail® App: https://airtable.com/appn6w6IWipJYIuA3/pagZys7UnECzM46iJ/form

Social:

Instagram: @dovetailapp

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dovetaildesigns.co

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

Support AND/BOTH: Help us offset production costs while we're growing

Ashley Blackington welcomes Julie Cole, co-founder of Mabel’s Labels, for a rich conversation on motherhood, entrepreneurship, and building a life and business that actually works. Julie shares her journey from lawyer to mom of six to label mogul, and all the messy, meaningful moments in between. She opens up about flexible work, raising independent kids, and the unfiltered truth of growing a business out of a basement into a beloved international brand. Expect inspiration, humor, and hard-won wisdom from someone who’s done it all, with a label for literally everything.

What you’ll learn:

• What inspired Julie to leave law and launch Mabel’s Labels with her sisters
• How entrepreneurship evolved alongside raising six kids (yes, six!)
• The mental load of motherhood and how to protect your identity through it
• Real talk on flexibility, burnout, and the myth of #BossMom
• The role of community, visibility, and mentorship in building a sustainable business

Questions answered in this episode:

• How do you balance entrepreneurship with parenting, especially in the early years?
• What conversations and sacrifices are required when leaving a traditional career?
• How did Julie and her co-founders grow Mabel’s Labels without social media?
• What lessons does she share with new founders and mompreneurs today?
• How can women show up as leaders and still prioritize their families?

Connect with Julie Cole:

• Website: mabelslabels.com/juliecole
• Instagram: @juliecole
• LinkedIn: Julie Cole
• Book: Like a Mother: Birthing Businesses, Babies, and a Life Beyond Labels

Connect with Ashley:

Website: https://dovetaildesigns.co

Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/

AND/BOTH Community: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/andboth-community

Dovetail® App: https://airtable.com/appn6w6IWipJYIuA3/pagZys7UnECzM46iJ/form

Social:

Instagram: @dovetailapp

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dovetaildesigns.co

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

In this candid and insightful episode of AND/BOTH, host Ashley Blackington sits down with Tricia Mirchandani, founder and creative director of T Collective, to explore what it really looks like to build a business on your own terms. They dive into the realities of parenting in the digital age, the winding road of creative entrepreneurship, and how Tricia is using her career to build a better front door not just for herself, but for others. Together, they discuss how to raise social media-literate kids, manage work-life flexibility, and navigate the unglamorous but powerful side of growing in public.

You’ll hear in this episode:

• Why social media education is the new “driver’s ed” for kids
• How to model healthy digital habits at home
• What it means to re-launch your career after a “failed” freelance attempt
• How Tricia built T Collective after a corporate career in hospitality marketing
• The difference between great copywriting and strategic brand storytelling
• The power of LinkedIn to rebuild and rebrand
• Why Tricia believes in side doors, collective success, and paying it forward
• How family rhythms and business goals can support (not compete) with each other
• The impact of digital transparency on kids’ social awareness
• Why the ability to mute a group text might just be the ultimate life skill

Connect with Tricia Mirchandani:

• Website: https://triciamirchandani.com/
• Business site: https://www.withtcollective.com/
• Instagram: @with.t.collective
• LinkedIn: Tricia Mirchandani

Connect with Ashley:

Website: https://dovetaildesigns.co

Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/

AND/BOTH Community: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/andboth-community

Dovetail® App: https://airtable.com/appn6w6IWipJYIuA3/pagZys7UnECzM46iJ/form

Social:

Instagram: @dovetailapp

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dovetaildesigns.co

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

Support AND/BOTH: Help us offset production costs while we're growing

In today's roundtable episode, Ashley and Erin chat with two women building deeply human solutions for working moms: Kate Tovsen, founder of The Society of Working Moms and Kate Tovsen Media, and Alli Kushner, founder of BeeKyn, a soon-to-launch playdate matching and scheduling platform for modern families.

This honest, wide-ranging discussion explores why loneliness is a shared, but rarely talked about part of motherhood, especially for those balancing careers, businesses, and caregiving. Each guest offers a unique lens into how accessible community, supportive tools, and even digital innovation like asynchronous connection or curated online spaces can create more room for joy, help, and human connection in this messy middle of parenting.

Whether you’re raising toddlers or teens, running a company or running late to pickup, this conversation will help you feel seen, and remind you that building meaningful community is possible, even in a world that feels increasingly noisy and disconnected.

What you’ll learn:

• Why 70% of moms report feeling lonely—and what to do about it
• How motherhood changes your ability to connect (and what community can look like now)
• Why the “right” community for you will change over time
• The difference between joining a community and staying in one
• How tech can support, not replace, real-life connection
• Tips for building your own support network, even in small, siloed ways
• How parenting, business, and identity overlap in real-world community-building
• Why perfection isn’t the point—starting messy is often the key

Connect with Erin:

• Website: https://www.pgishparenting.com
• Instagram: @pgishparenting
• PG ish podcast

Connect with Kate:

• katetovsenmedia.com
• Society of Working Moms

Connect with Alli:

• allikushner.com
• BeeKyn

Connect with Ashley:

Website: https://dovetaildesigns.co

Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/

AND/BOTH Community: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/andboth-community

Dovetail® App: https://airtable.com/appn6w6IWipJYIuA3/pagZys7UnECzM46iJ/form

Social:

Instagram: @dovetailapp

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dovetaildesigns.co

LinkedIn:

Support AND/BOTH: Help us offset production costs while we're growing

In this episode, Ashley is joined by Joselyne Walter, a first-generation Latina business owner, marketing expert, and founder of The DIGG Agency. With a background in dispatching 36,000 truckloads a month and leading marketing efforts for some of the top companies on the Fortune 500 list, Joselyne shares her powerful journey from supply chain to C-suite to self-employment.

Their conversation dives into how she built a scalable agency rooted in sustainable growth, why she walked away from corporate leadership, and how AI is reshaping not just her work—but her parenting. From career pivots to teaching kids about tech to redefining success on your own terms, Joselyne’s story will resonate with anyone navigating ambition and real life at the same time.

What You’ll Learn:

• How Joselyne transitioned from dispatch supervisor to marketing director to agency founder
• The meaning of sustainable growth—and how to actually build a business around it
• How she’s using AI to increase efficiency and reduce overwhelm
• Ways to introduce AI tools to your kids (and have fun doing it!)
• Why giving yourself permission to grow slowly might be your smartest move
• The impact of being raised by immigrant parents on her entrepreneurial mindset
• How to work smarter (not harder) using tools and delegation

Questions Answered in This Episode:

• How do you pivot from a nontraditional career path into entrepreneurship?
• What does building a sustainable business as a mom really look like?
• How is AI changing the way marketers and entrepreneurs operate daily?
• Can AI actually support creativity, parenting, and project planning?
• What mindset shifts are needed when leaving a high-level corporate job?
• How can we teach our kids to be responsible and creative with AI?
• What does prioritization look like when you have limited time and big goals?
• What are the risks and opportunities AI brings to future generations?
• How does someone with limited formal education raise a child who leads at the highest level?

Connect with Joselyne Walter:

• Website: www.thediggagency.com

Connect with Ashley:

Website: https://dovetaildesigns.co

Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/

AND/BOTH Community: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/andboth-community

Dovetail® App: https://airtable.com/appn6w6IWipJYIuA3/pagZys7UnECzM46iJ/form

Social:

Instagram: @dovetailapp

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dovetaildesigns.co

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

Support AND/BOTH: Help us offset production costs while we're growing

In this episode of the AND/BOTH podcast, Ashley sits down with Mary D’Agostino, mother of five, grandmother of seven, intuitive healer, and author—to explore the evolving identity of motherhood across decades. As the show’s first grandmother guest, Mary brings a grounded, wisdom-filled perspective to the conversation, touching on everything from teen pregnancy and single motherhood to building a life that reflects your truest self. With warmth, candor, and a touch of humor, Mary invites listeners to pause, reflect, and trust their inner voice through every season of life.

What we discuss:

• What it means to create a life that truly belongs to you
• How motherhood evolves across generations—and what stays the same
• The importance of listening to your intuition, especially when the world gets loud
• Why the stories and support of those ahead of us matter so deeply
• How generational healing, grief, and caregiving shape identity
• The power of saying a firm “no” when something doesn’t resonate
• Ways to center yourself during life transitions—without “burning it all down”
• Why showing up for yourself is showing up for your family
• How Mary ended up sharing her story on Oprah (!)
• How modern motherhood can reclaim agency without the pressure to perform

Connect with Mary D’Agostino:

Website: www.marydagostino.com

Be a guest on the podcast!:

• Visit andbothpodcast.com to apply to be a guest

Connect with Ashley:

Website: https://dovetaildesigns.co

Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/

AND/BOTH Community: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/andboth-community

Dovetail® App: https://airtable.com/appn6w6IWipJYIuA3/pagZys7UnECzM46iJ/form

Social:

Instagram: @dovetailapp

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dovetaildesigns.co

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

Support AND/BOTH: Help us offset production costs while we're growing

In this behind-the-scenes solo episode, Ashley offers a much-needed update and peek into what’s happening on and off the mic. From wrapping up Season 7 and kicking off Season 8 with a brand-new roundtable series, to pressing pause on summer recording and launching a care logistics platform years in the making—this episode is full of transitions, clarity, and new beginnings. Ashley also shares the personal “why” behind Dovetail, her care coordination tool built from years of experience as an OT and caregiver advocate.

What you’ll learn:

• Why Season 8 is already shaping up to be the biggest yet
• The story behind the new Roundtable Series (and how it came to be)
• What summer looks like when you’re running a business and parenting
• Why the podcast recording calendar is going dark until September
• A peek into Ashley’s changing season of life—with all kids headed to school
• The origin story of Dovetail, a care logistics platform built for family caregivers
• How Ashley’s work as an occupational therapist shaped the platform’s mission
• Why care planning needs to start before crisis mode hits
• The demographic time bomb facing the caregiving system
• How Dovetail aims to make caregiving more collaborative, connected, and sustainable

Connect with Ashley:

Website: https://dovetaildesigns.co

Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/

AND/BOTH Community: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/andboth-community

Dovetail® App: https://airtable.com/appn6w6IWipJYIuA3/pagZys7UnECzM46iJ/form

Social:

Instagram: @dovetailapp

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dovetaildesigns.co

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/