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🎄 Part 2 of the Co-Parenting Through Christmas December series

Holiday gift-giving can bring joy — but for co-parents and blended families, it can also bring pressure, comparison, competition, and unnecessary stress.

In this episode of The CoCo Blend Podcast, Jamie Newton-Knight tackles one of the most common holiday challenges families face: navigating gift-giving between two households. From duplicate gifts and silent competition to financial strain and emotional guilt, Jamie breaks down why gift-giving can feel so triggering — and how to approach it with intention instead of tension.

Jamie shares practical guidance on harmonizing presents between homes, communicating with co-parents, and talking to children about gifts in ways that promote emotional security rather than favoritism. She also shares a powerful real-life moment involving her son that highlights what’s possible when families choose alignment over competition.

This episode is for every parent who wants Christmas to feel meaningful — not stressful.

✨ In this episode:
• Why gift-giving becomes triggering in blended families
• How to avoid duplicate gifts and gift competition
• Ways to set shared budgets or plans
• How to talk to kids about gifts without guilt
• What to do when co-parents won’t cooperate
• A grounding prayer and reflection for the season

Support the show

💌 Stay Connected:
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✅ Subscribe so you never miss an episode

✅ Leave a review — it helps other mamas find the show

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🔗 Connect with Jamie:
Instagram & TikTok: @blendedblackfamily
Website: www.thecocoblend.com

Send us a text

In this week’s episode of The CoCo Blend Podcast, Jamie Newton-Knight opens the December series: Co-Parenting Through Christmas: Creating Holiday Joy Without the Stress.
Today’s conversation centers on a powerful and honest truth — the holidays can activate emotional triggers we didn’t expect, especially when navigating co-parenting, blended families, or shifting traditions.

Jamie breaks down why Christmas triggers feel so intense, how childhood memories and present-day realities collide, and why co-parenting can magnify emotions during the holidays. From loneliness when the kids are away, to pressure to create “magic,” to unresolved family wounds, this episode reminds you that emotional triggers don’t make you weak… they make you human.

Inside the episode, Jamie shares four key strategies for managing emotional triggers with intention, compassion, and grace this season. (Tune in to hear the full breakdown.)

This week’s scripture comes from:

Philippians 4:7 (NIV)
“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

And here's your homework
📖 Scripture Reflection Exercise
Reflect on:

1. What is stealing your peace this season?


2. What boundaries do you need to protect your heart?


3. What expectations must be released so you can experience God’s peace?


🙏🏾As always, Jamie closes with a heartfelt prayer for peace, grounding, and emotional safety for every listener navigating the holiday season.

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✨ Special Invitation

Join us for Unspoken Wounds: A Safe Circle for Healing Conversations — a faith-centered online gathering for women healing from childhood sexual abuse.
🗓 Saturday, Decembe 20th at 7 PM EST
🔗https://www.eventbrite.com/e/unspoken-wounds-a-safe-circle-for-healing-conversations-tickets-1967601958424

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💛 If This Episode Spoke to You:

• Share it with another co-parent or bonus mom who may be carrying unspoken holiday pressure
• Leave a review on Apple Podcasts or whatever platform you're listening on
• Follow @blendedblackfamily on Instagram & TikTok
• Join The CoCo Crew email list for updates, workshops, and support

Let this be the holiday season where you choose peace over pressure.
You deserve it. 💛

Support the show

💌 Stay Connected:
Loved this episode? Here’s how you can support and stay in the loop:
✅ Subscribe so you never miss an episode

✅ Leave a review — it helps other mamas find the show

✅ Share this with a fellow mama who needs encouragement


🔗 Connect with Jamie:
Instagram & TikTok: @blendedblackfamily
Website: www.thecocoblend.com

Send us a text

This week on The CoCo Blend Podcast, Jamie Newton-Knight reflects on the hidden pressure so many of us carry during the holiday season — the pressure to overperform, overextend, and overdeliver… even when our bodies, hearts, and spirits are exhausted.

From staying up late to cook “traditional” meals for small families, to house-hopping out of obligation, to trying to recreate perfect holiday moments, Jamie shares the wake-up call she experienced this Thanksgiving.
This episode is a permission slip to release holiday expectations, honor your own emotional capacity, and choose rest over performance.

Jamie also speaks to those who struggle with visiting family members who don’t feel emotionally safe or peaceful — reminding listeners that protecting your mental health is not disrespect, it’s wisdom.

This gentle reflection is an invitation to create a holiday season grounded in intention, authenticity, and ease.

✨ What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why we feel pressured to “do it all” during the holidays
• How traditions can unintentionally drain us
• The emotional cost of holiday overperforming
• Permission to simplify, rest, and say “no”
• How to navigate unsafe or emotionally triggering family gatherings
• Why choosing peace is a valid holiday decision
• How to create new traditions that match your current life
• An honest reflection and scripture-based exercise to help you release overwhelm

🌟 Tips of the Week:
Inside the episode, Jamie offers four practical tips for creating a more peaceful and intentional holiday season — you’ll have to tune in to hear them.


📖 Scripture Reflection Exercise

Jamie guides listeners through Matthew 11:28–30 and invites them to reflect on:

1. What felt heavy or overwhelming this Thanksgiving

2. What expectations they need to release to God

3. What they want to trust Him with moving forward


**A gentle, grounding practice to reset before the next holiday arrives.

🙏🏾As always, Jamie closes with a heartfelt Prayer of the Week for the community🙏🏾


✨ Special Invitation

Join us for Unspoken Wounds: A Safe Circle for Healing Conversations — a faith-centered virtual gathering for women healing from childhood sexual abuse.
🗓 Saturday, December 20th at 7pm EST
🔗 https://www.eventbrite.com/e/unspoken-wounds-a-safe-circle-for-healing-conversations-tickets-1967601958424

🤎 If This Episode Spoke to You:

• Share it with someone who needs reassurance this season
• Leave a review
• Subscribe to my YouTube channel @blendedblackfamily & The CoCo Crew email list
• Follow @blendedblackfamily on Instagram

Let this be the year you choose peace, rest, and authenticity over expectation.
You deserve a gentle holiday. 💛

Support the show

💌 Stay Connected:
Loved this episode? Here’s how you can support and stay in the loop:
✅ Subscribe so you never miss an episode

✅ Leave a review — it helps other mamas find the show

✅ Share this with a fellow mama who needs encouragement


🔗 Connect with Jamie:
Instagram & TikTok: @blendedblackfamily
Website: www.thecocoblend.com

Send us a text

The holidays can be emotional for blended families-- but peace is possible. In this episode, Jamie shares 8 practical tips for creating a healthy, intentional, and drama-free co-parenting holiday.

From planning and compromise to harmonizing gifts and creating new traditions, this episode helps you enter the season with clarity, grace, and love.

Event Invitation
During this episode, Jamie invites listeners to Unspoken Wounds: A Safe Circle for Healing Conversations — a faith-centered online gathering for women healing from childhood sexual abuse.
🗓 Saturday, November 29th at 7 PM EST
A compassionate, judgment-free space to share, listen, and find support.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/unspoken-wounds-a-safe-circle-for-healing-conversations-tickets-1967601958424

🌟 If you're seeking support for your blended family, I would love to support you 🤝🏾 https://calendly.com/blendedblackfamily

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Affirmation for This Season:
A peaceful holiday is possible for your blended family.

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Let’s walk into this season with peace, clarity, and intention. 💛

Support the show

💌 Stay Connected:
Loved this episode? Here’s how you can support and stay in the loop:
✅ Subscribe so you never miss an episode

✅ Leave a review — it helps other mamas find the show

✅ Share this with a fellow mama who needs encouragement


🔗 Connect with Jamie:
Instagram & TikTok: @blendedblackfamily
Website: www.thecocoblend.com

Send us a text

In this week’s episode of The CoCo Blend Podcast, Jamie sits down with Vanessa Martindale for a powerful, spiritually grounded conversation about co-parenting, healing, and seeing difficult relationships through God’s eyes. Vanessa opens up about a season of her life that felt like “hell,” and how shifting her perspective helped her overcome fear, anger, and judgment.

She shares how God revealed that the real enemy wasn’t her ex-spouse, his new partner, or the conflict itself — but the spiritual forces working behind the scenes to create division. Vanessa explains how perfect love casts out fear and how choosing to see others through God’s love can radically transform blended family relationships.

This conversation is an invitation to release offense, recognize the spiritual battle at play, and embrace a healing, grace-centered approach to co-parenting and partnership.

Key Takeaways

Co-parenting conflict can feel like “hell,” but perspective can shift everything.

Your ex, their partner, or your co-parent is not the enemy.

Perfect love drives out fear — spiritually and emotionally.

There is a real enemy, and it’s not the people involved.

Seeing others through God’s eyes brings clarity, compassion, and healing.

About my guest:
Vanessa Martindale is the co-founder of Blended Kingdom Families, a wife, mother, speaker, ministry leader, and co-author of Blended and Redeemed. She is a registered nurse and a graduate student pursuing her master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy at The King’s University.

As a passionate follower of Jesus, Vanessa is committed to helping people discover their God-given purpose, walk in freedom, and deepen their intimacy with Christ.

Vanessa and her husband, Scott, are a blended family themselves and understand the challenges that come with the blending process. Their heart behind Blended and Redeemed is to provide encouragement, support, and biblical resources to help blended families experience healing, unity, and the redeeming love of God.

Follow Vanessa on Instagram at: @blendedkingdomfamilies and on
YouTube at: @BlendedKingdomFamilies

✅️Register for our Upcoming Virtual Event- "Unspoken Wounds: A Safe Circle for Healing Conversations," where we tackle the tough topic of childhood sexual abuse on Eventbrite!

Date: Sat, Nov 29, 7:00 PM

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/unspoken-wounds-a-safe-circle-for-healing-conversations-tickets-1967601958424

Support the show

💌 Stay Connected:
Loved this episode? Here’s how you can support and stay in the loop:
✅ Subscribe so you never miss an episode

✅ Leave a review — it helps other mamas find the show

✅ Share this with a fellow mama who needs encouragement


🔗 Connect with Jamie:
Instagram & TikTok: @blendedblackfamily
Website: www.thecocoblend.com

Send us a text

Today’s episode is tender and necessary. Jamie opens a faith-centered conversation about childhood sexual abuse and how keeping it a family secret only deepens the pain. This is not about blame — it’s about breaking silence, honoring truth, and making room for healing.

⚠️ Trigger Warning: This episode includes sensitive topics related to childhood sexual abuse. Please take care as you listen.

Support is available 24/7 at the National Sexual

Assault Hotline (1-800-656-4673) or hotline.rainn.org.

In this episode:

* How silence harms survivors

* The impact on children and adults

* Why truth brings freedom

* Scriptures for comfort and healing

* A prayer for survivors and their families

“Healing doesn’t always begin with a shout. Sometimes, it starts with a whisper.”

You are not alone. You are loved.

Follow Jamie on Instagram: @blendedblackfamily

Support the show

Send us a text

🎙️ Episode Title: The Power of Understanding: How One Mom’s Empathy Transformed Her Blended Family with Natasha Jones

In this week’s episode of The CoCo Blend Podcast, host Jamie Newton-Knight sits down with Natasha Jones, a proud mom of five and serial entrepreneur, to talk about what it really takes to create peace within a blended family.

Natasha opens up about her journey as both a biological and bonus mom — sharing how she and her husband built a loving home through communication, healing, and intentional parenting. From learning when to stay silent to understanding the power of empathy, Natasha’s story reminds us that blended doesn’t mean broken — it means choosing love again and again.

Key Takeaways:

• Discipline works best when rooted in love, not control.
• Boundaries protect peace and teach respect.
• Silence can be a powerful act of wisdom in family life.
• Healing from past pain makes space for healthier co-parenting.
• Leading with empathy keeps love at the center of every decision.

About my guest:
Tasha Jones, known online as Hairaddict, is a wife, mom of five in a blended family, and content creator sharing real conversations on marriage, motherhood, and family life. She also runs Hush Collectionz, her wig and beauty brand, and partners with lifestyle and family-focused brands to create relatable content that inspires and connects.

Follow Natasha on social media:
Instagram: Itsnatashanicole_
TikTok: hairaddict6

Support the show

💌 Stay Connected:
Loved this episode? Here’s how you can support and stay in the loop:
✅ Subscribe so you never miss an episode

✅ Leave a review — it helps other mamas find the show

✅ Share this with a fellow mama who needs encouragement


🔗 Connect with Jamie:
Instagram & TikTok: @blendedblackfamily
Website: www.thecocoblend.com

Send us a text

💫 Episode Description:

In this week’s episode of The CoCo Blend, Jamie Newton-Knight dives into two of the most sensitive and often overlooked co-parenting challenges — religion and parentage. She refers to an episode of Love & Hip Hop Atlanta involving Bambi, Scrappy and Momma Dee regarding religion and Lil Zane, his wife Ashley and his mom & dad regarding who is biological father is.

What happens when two parents come from different religious backgrounds and can’t agree on what to teach their child? And what about the truths we keep — the ones that can shape or shake a child’s identity, like hidden parentage or family secrets?

Jamie opens up the conversation about how to make decisions that center your child’s peace, not parental pride, and why honesty — even when it’s uncomfortable — is one of the deepest forms of love.

You’ll walk away with practical tools, heartfelt insight, and a prayer to anchor your week in grace and truth.

🕊️ In This Episode, We Talk About:
How to navigate religious differences in co-parenting.

What’s most important when deciding which faith tradition to follow.

What helps and what harms when introducing faith to your children.

The importance of honesty about parentage and family truths.

How secrecy can damage trust — and how transparency heals.

A powerful prayer to center your co-parenting journey in faith and truth.

🌱 Tip of the Week:

Choose one value — whether it’s honesty about family history or a shared faith practice — and reinforce it in both households this week. Small, consistent alignment can make a big difference in your child’s sense of peace and security.

💜 Prayer from the Episode:

As she does in every episode, Jamie prays for the listeners.


💬 Let’s Keep the Conversation Going:

How have you and your co-parent handled faith differences?

Have you ever struggled with how much truth to share with your child about their family story?

Share your thoughts in the comments or DM Jamie on Instagram @blendedblackfamily
.

🔗 Connect with Jamie:

🌐 Website: www.thecocoblend.com

📩 Email: jamienk@thecocoblend.com

📲 Instagram & TikTok: @blendedblackfamily

🎧 Subscribe to The CoCo Blend on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.

Support the show

💌 Stay Connected:
Loved this episode? Here’s how you can support and stay in the loop:
✅ Subscribe so you never miss an episode

✅ Leave a review — it helps other mamas find the show

✅ Share this with a fellow mama who needs encouragement


🔗 Connect with Jamie:
Instagram & TikTok: @blendedblackfamily
Website: www.thecocoblend.com