Midlife Cry, Sis (Formerly known as The Bettys Podcast)

117 - Beliefs

Greetings, Queens! It’s still Feral February, and Lex is a little bitter about it, because she lives in “blizzard land” (February and March are not her favorite months). We talk a little about difficult stories, history, and failures.
 
Today, Alexis talks a bit about beliefs–what they create and destroy. And what you believe leads to the actions you are going to take. She refers to a post she made a while ago on Murano glass. You can read her post here on Instagram.
 
Please look critically at your beliefs. Are they true, or are they actually opinions, supported by confirmation biases? Are they hindering you, or launching you forward? This is HARD WORK, but we believe it’s worth it. When you actively decide what you believe, then you need to fuel that fire of belief constantly.
 
Lexy quotes Tony Robbins, who says: “Good times create weak people. Weak people create bad times. Bad times create strong people. Strong people create good times.” Listen to this on YouTube. And if you have a few minutes, please watch this motivational video as well.
 
Mary refers to a classic poem by Robert Frost, called “The Road Not Taken.” Read it here (and read the excellent commentary on it here).
 
And remember these truth bombs from Alexis herself: “The path of least resistance will never make you proud and it will never make you happy.” And “This is what my best looks like right now.”
 
If you like what you hear, please visit our Patreon page! Support starts at just $5/month.
 
Please subscribe to our YouTube channel, if you’d like to see a more interactive and entertaining version of this episode! Check it out here! 
 
Please get in touch! Send us an email at midlifecrysispodcast@gmail.com  and please follow us on Instagram @midlifecrysis_podcast, or join our Facebook group here.  We’re also on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast and on Twitter @bettys_podcast. 
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for listening today, Queens. Remember that YOU ARE LOVED. This is YOUR road, and we hope you will learn to accept it, to love it and to appreciate how far you’ve come. And if you can’t, then you MUST. We love you!
 

116 - Intentions (I.S.S.)

Welcome to FERAL February, Queens! Is the Groundhog on your blacklist? Lexy and Mary are both very ready for Spring and ready to “unleash the animal inside,” but Punxsutawney Phil tends to be wrong every year, and Lex is entering her “Feral Femme Fatale” (Triple-F, baby!) era. So here’s hoping for an early Spring and minimal swass. . . for Phil’s sake!
 
Mary has started reading the Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) series by Sarah J. Maas, and it has definitely been added to our list of recommended books. Check it out here on Amazon!
 
Mary saw the I.S.S. movie in the theater last week, and talks a little about it. She also references the song “What About Us” by P!nk. Check out the lyric video here on YouTube.
 
We also talk about gaslighting, and mention the We Can Do Hard Things podcast, particularly episodes 263 and 264 with Dr. Lindsay C. Gibson, about emotional immaturity. Listen here on Apple or here on Spotify.
 
If you like what you hear, please visit our Patreon page! Support starts at just $5/month.
 
Remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel, if you’d like to see a more interactive and entertaining version of this episode! Check it out here! Also, please check out marycoxphoto.com for your family photography needs!
 
Please get in touch! Send us an email at midlifecrysispodcast@gmail.com  and please follow us on Instagram @midlifecrysis_podcast, or join our Facebook group here.  We’re also on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast and on Twitter @bettys_podcast. 
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for listening today, Queens. Remember that YOU hold the bag of gold. Stop begging for pennies! We love you!

115 - Do You Need an Alignment?

Welcome to the ‘padcast,’ Queens! We encourage all terrible accents around here. Have you listened to That Midwestern Mom on Instagram? She’s hilarious, and her Minnesota accent is so great; Mary’s a little jealous. Today’s Mama Ximena tip was a great one: “For a better future, you’ve gotta make today your best.” Even if you have to fight with technology, which Alexis and Mary have to do frequently. 
 
Mary goes back to Harry Potter (it is “Harry January,” after all!) and talks about how the movies tend to create a montage, or slip past the hard stuff. Watch a terrible copy of the scene from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire here on YouTube, or better yet, stream the whole film (and/or series!) here on Max.
 
We often want to skip the hard, everyday things, and get to the “good parts” as soon as possible, but we can’t just make a montage of the hard times, like they do in movies. Lexy reads this quote from Steve Maraboli:
 
“A lot of the conflict you have in your life exists simply because you’re not living in alignment; you’re not be being true to yourself.”
 
Are we always in crisis mode? How much tolerance do we have for risk and change? We need to understand ourselves well enough to understand who we are. Lexy also shares this quote from Karen Whitten, author of The 25 Mindsets: Understand Anyone, Even Yourself
 
“To find out who you are, you must also see who you are not.”
 
Our storms and our difficult times are happening for us, and refine us. We can use them as excuses, or we can let them help us align, and to become better people in the future. And when we are aligned, we feel a lot more peace–even in the midst of those storms.
 
So how do we know if we’re living in alignment? Listen to find out more!
 
If you like what you hear, please visit our Patreon page! Support starts at just $5/month.
 
Remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel, if you’d like to see a more interactive and entertaining version of this episode! Check it out here! Also, please check out marycoxphoto.com for your family photography needs!
Please get in touch! Send us an email at midlifecrysispodcast@gmail.com  and please follow us on Instagram @midlifecrysis_podcast, or join our Facebook group here.  We’re also on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast and on Twitter @bettys_podcast. 
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for listening today, Queens. We love you!
 

114 - Have You Seen This?

Yasss, Queens! Welcome back to the Midlife Cry, Sis podcast! We recorded this episode live (in Mary’s car, with not great clip-on microphones), and fought a little with the technology (“always and forever”), so please excuse the audio quality. If you’d like to watch us on YouTube, check it out here! 
 
Mary and Alexis went to see Six the musical at the Eccles Theater in Salt Lake City and we LOVED IT. It’s a retelling of the story of Henry VIII from the perspective of his wives, as a “historemix.”
 
Mary is also in the middle of Harry January (her annual re-reading/watching of Harry Potter). Check out our list of Midlife Cry, Sis Book Recommendations here on Amazon.
 
We talk a little about competition, and how we are often comparing our traumas and difficulties to those of other people. We also have to talk about The Other Boleyn Girl movie and The Tudors dramatized series (TV-MA) (stream it here on Amazon Prime).
 
Here's a little sample of this conversation:
 
M: “Have you watched the Tudors?”
L: “I want to. I want to so bad.”
M: “Oooh. It’s a little bit spicy.”
L: “Oh good.”
M: “Tell you what. Henry Cavill . . .”
L: “I do not know who that is.”
M: “Superman.”
L: “I still don’t know who that is.” 
 
Mary also talks about a gorgeous pen set that was gifted to her from a friend. You can find them here on Amazon. And if you’d like to see our special shirts from Austin, please visit our Patreon page! Support starts at just $5/month.
 
Remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel, if you’d like to see a more interactive and entertaining version of this episode! Check it out here! Also, please check out marycoxphoto.com for your family photography needs!
 
If you have any suggestions for what to call ourselves instead of the Bettys, let us know. We kind-of like the “Cry-Sisters” or “Cry-Queens,” but we are definitely open to feedback. And thank you for bearing with us as we figure out this whole rebranding thing!
 
Please get in touch! Send us an email at midlifecrysispodcast@gmail.com  and please follow us on Instagram @midlifecrysis_podcast, or join our Facebook group here.  We’re also on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast and on Twitter @bettys_podcast. 
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for listening today, Queens. We love you!
 

113 - WWOD? (What Would Oprah Do?)

Welcome to the Cry Me A River Bitch-Fest! Or rather, the Midlife Cry, Sis podcast! We’re starting off talking about our very disappointing holidays, and how Alexis and Mary are attempting to tackle 2024. We’re “a little on the dark side now,” so we’re actually trying to figure out what we want to be when we grow up. In case you were wondering, neither of us are going to be computer programmers. Good thing we have other strengths! 
 
Mary went to see The Color Purple (2023) in a movie theater last week, and she realized it was because Oprah told her to. According to Phil Donahue, “she makes people care because she cares” (read about Oprah here on Wikipedia). Watch part of Bono’s 2002 interview with Oprah here on YouTube, and watch Oprah talk with her audience about going to dinner with Bono afterward. It’s a great insight into who she is and how she lives.
 
Our YouTube channel is live, if you want to see us talk to each other (it’s pretty entertaining). Check it out here! Also, please check out marycoxphoto.com for your family photography needs!
 
If you have any suggestions for what to call ourselves instead of the Bettys, let us know. We kind-of like the “Cry-Sisters,” but we are definitely open to feedback. And thank you for bearing with us as we figure out this whole rebranding thing! We love you!
 
Please get in touch! Send us an email at midlifecrysispodcast@gmail.com  and please follow us on Instagram @midlifecrysis_podcast, or join our Facebook group here.  We’re also on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for listening today, friends. We love you!

112 - Do You Have 5 Minutes?

Oh hey . . . this wasn’t actually supposed to be a podcast episode; it’s Alexis and Mary just talking, so we could figure out if the whole video thing worked. But it was pretty funny, so we UPLOADED IT TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL! Check it out here!
 
If you have any suggestions for good (and cheap) webcams, let us know. And thank you for bearing with us as we figure out this whole rebranding thing. It's definitely going to be a process.
 
Please get in touch! Send us an email at midlifecrysispodcast@gmail.com  and please follow us on Instagram @midlifecrysis_podcast, or join our Facebook group here.  We’re also on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast and on Twitter @bettys_podcast. 
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for listening today, friends. We love you!
 

111 - Year-in-Review 2023 (Part 2)

Happy New Year, everybody! This is part 2 of our annual (well, we did it last year, so I guess we can call it “annual” now?) year-in-review episodes! It will make more sense if you listen to part 1 (episode 110 here on Apple or here on Spotify). We jump right back in at question 21. Check out the list of questions for free here on our Patreon page! 
 
Who were your best friends? What have you done that’s been meaningful for others, and what is something that someone else did that is meaningful to you? What are some of your favorite TV programs? Mary has several she recommends, but Lexy can’t remember any for 2023. We talk a little about our favorite books, which we’ve added to our list of recommendations here on Amazon. We’re shipping Taylor and Travis, we miss our grandparents, and we’ve got a lot more to say about 2023.
 
Alexis mentions a podcast episode of We Can Do Hard Things with special guest Brené Brown (read the transcript here).
 
If you’d like to hear more from us, please consider joining our Patreon! We’ll include this list for you to create your own journal/blog/vlog entry available for everyone on our Patreon homepage. Check it out here! We’ll keep bringing you free episodes every week in your podcast feed, but If you would like to hear/read/see more from Mary and Lexy, and you feel inclined to support us financially, please join us here! We’ll be including lots of awesome bonus content, some behind-the-scenes, group coaching, extra photos, and more! Starting at just $5/month. We really appreciate your support.
 
Please get in touch! Send us an email at thebettyspodcast@gmail.com, and please follow us on Instagram @thebettyspodcast, on Facebook as The Bettys Podcast, on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast and on Twitter @bettys_podcast. 
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for listening today, friends. Have a wonderful look back, and an exciting look forward to 2024. And please remember that we love you more.
 

110 - Year-in-Review 2023 (Part 1)

Welcome to our annual (well, we did it last year, so I guess we can call it “annual” now?) year-in-review episodes! This is part 1 of 2. Check out our Year-in-Review for 2022 here on Apple and here on Spotify). Mary talks a little about her *non-existent* “23 for 23 list,” but she is planning on doing a 24 for 24 list. Check out some New Year’s Resolution resources from the inimitable Gretchen Rubin here.
 
Who do you know who gave birth? Who passed away? Where did you travel in 2023? Lexy stayed pretty grounded, but Mary is quite proud of hitting 18 states this year. If you find yourself in Wisconsin, be sure to visit the Mars Cheese Castle!
 
Alexis talks a little bit about excommunication. If you’d like to know more about the process of excommunication within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you can read more here (see section 32.11.4, Withdrawal of Membership).
 
Our best purchases centered on self-development, we’ve seen quite a few musicals and concerts, and we talk a bit about the highs and lows of this monumental year.
 
If you’d like to hear more from us, please consider joining our Patreon! We’ll include this list for you to create your own journal/blog/vlog entry available for everyone on our Patreon homepage. Check it out here! We’ll keep bringing you free episodes every week in your podcast feed, but If you would like to hear/read/see more from Mary and Lexy, and you feel inclined to support us financially, please join us here! We’ll be including lots of awesome bonus content, some behind-the-scenes, group coaching, extra photos, and more! Starting at just $5/month. We really appreciate your support.
 
Please get in touch! Send us an email at thebettyspodcast@gmail.com, and please follow us on Instagram @thebettyspodcast, on Facebook as The Bettys Podcast, on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast and on Twitter @bettys_podcast. 
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for listening today, friends. Let’s look back fondly on 2023 and look forward to the new year with faith. And remember that we love you more.

109 - Christmas Squirrels

“Stop effing with my life, stars!” Friends, we’re not sure we can blame the insanity of 2023 on celestial events and planetary alignments, but we’d sure like to! Today Alexis and Mary are talking about this Christmas season, and how we’ve been handling it. There’s a lot of people-pleasing on Mary’s side, and more introspection on Lexy’s side. It’s been challenging for lots of people, yet in very different ways.
 
There’s quite a lot of talk about Christmas cookies and Spice Girls in this episode. Also, how you feel about your pets may be a good indicator of your state of mind. We should all probably chill the F out over Christmas. Just saying.
 
Lexy talks a bit about “Camp Nowhere” (which you can stream on Hulu) and Five Nights at Freddie’s. Mary also talks about Fourth Wing, which she read all in one night, and which she recommends if you don’t mind language, fantasy, violence, and some spicy/sensual scenes. And there is mention of some Doctor Who as well (watch the new David Tennant special here on Disney+ or watch the “Spice Up Your Life” scene here on YouTube).
If you’d like to hear more from us, please consider joining our Patreon! We’ll keep bringing you free episodes every week in your podcast feed, but If you would like to hear/read/see more from Mary and Lexy, and you feel inclined to support us financially, please join us here! We’ll be including lots of awesome bonus content, some behind-the-scenes, group coaching, extra photos, and more! Starting at just $5/month. We really appreciate your support.
 
Please get in touch! Send us an email at thebettyspodcast@gmail.com, and please follow us on Instagram @thebettyspodcast, on Facebook as The Bettys Podcast, on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast and on Twitter @bettys_podcast. 
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for coming today, friends. Channel your Master Oogway, and don’t feel like you need to prove yourself to anyone. You probably shouldn’t euthanize your mischievous dogs this season, either. And please remember that we love you more.
 
Music is courtesy of Pleasant Pictures Music Club. Check them out!

108 - Sharing Your Trauma is a Gift. Interview with Cindy (Part 2)

108 - Cindy, Part 2
CW: suicide ideation 
 
This is part two of our interview with Mary’s friend Cindy. They live in the same neighborhood/ward, and Cindy has been an inspiration to Mary for several years now. We hope you enjoy hearing more from this remarkable woman! You’ll hear a few background street sounds, but this was really a heartfelt, vulnerable conversation between friends. It is very church/Utah centric, and we talk about sexual assault, abuse, and suicidality, so if any of these things are triggering for you, please proceed with caution. Cindy has such a valuable perspective and has been through so many difficult experiences and can still manage to be a light for others.
 
If you are thinking about leaving an abusive relationship, please make sure you have someplace to go, and know that you deserve better. The domestic abuse hotline in the United States is 800-799-7233, or you can text START to 88788. The suicide hotline in the United States is 988 (call or text), or text HOME to 741741 for the crisis text line. 
 
One thing that has helped Cindy get through all of the difficulties in her life is that she always knew that she was a daughter of God, and that He loved her. One of her favorite quotes is, “There is no strength where there is no struggle” (probably a version of this quote from Oprah). Cindy also talks about learning to love the will of God, not just accept it. 
 
“There’s better ahead. There’s better around the corner. We can’t see it, but it’s there. It’s there. And it’s gonna be better than we thought would be possible.”
 
Lexy also dropped a nice truth bomb: “It’s not being brave unless you’re scared.” 
 
Cindy refers to a General Conference talk by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland given in October 2013. Read it here. Mary references a scene from Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix. Watch the scene here on YouTube. Cindy talks a bit about taking part in iftar, which is part of the religious observance of Ramadan for Muslims, as part of her outreach calling within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She also mentions President Nelson and his collaboration and friendship with the NAACP, and the Genesis group within the church.
 
If you’d like to hear more from us, please consider joining our Patreon! We’ll keep bringing you free episodes every week in your podcast feed, but If you would like to hear/read/see more from Mary and Lexy, and you feel inclined to support us financially, please join us here! We’ll be including lots of awesome bonus content, some behind-the-scenes, group coaching, extra photos, and more! Starting at just $5/month. We really appreciate your support.
 
Please get in touch! Send us an email at thebettyspodcast@gmail.com, and please follow us on Instagram @thebettyspodcast, on Facebook as The Bettys Podcast, on TikTok as TheBettysPodcast and on Twitter @bettys_podcast. 
 
We want to hear from you! Your comments and messages really help us know what you want to hear and how we can improve. If this show resonates with you, please make sure to share & subscribe, and give us a rating & review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 
Thank you for listening today, friends. Let’s be the kind of people who can call (and answer those calls) in the middle of the night. Sharing your trauma is a gift, because it can help others feel less alone. Remember that, and we love you more.