The Normal Mess is back for Season Two, and we have THOUGHTS. Specifically, we have thoughts about the ridiculous number of places we have both been since we were last on a mic together. We also have cute mugs, new hobbies, and podcast-changing announcements.

Spoiler alert: The Normal Mess is now a WEEKLY PODCAST. Are we podcasting every week until we die? Only time will tell, Messy Besties. Only time will tell.

This week, we are tackling a topic we circled in Season One but have not addressed head on until now: Tall Poppy Syndrome. Who is King Tarquin the Proud, and why are we still chopping down the tallest poppies in the field, centuries later? Girl on girl crime is still rampant, but we think (in a completely unbiased way, obviously) Millennials might just be the ones to save the world.

Tarquin and mean girls be damned, we prefer a garden with a slew of Tall Poppies, and we have the solution: HYPEWOMEN.

Cayce blesses us with Buddhist wisdom, Ashley gets feisty about body image, and our kids provide an occasional soundtrack to remind listeners that this is, in fact, still The Normal Mess.

We conclude with a new game we invented: Who is your inner celebrity weirdo? Cayce has a freak flag, and Ashley needs to remain clothed while playing bongos.

It's real and it's funny, and sometimes it's real funny. But also, it's no joke! Rate, review, comment, and follow us as we bring The Normal Mess to the masses! We'd love to hear from you:

Instagram & TikTok: @thenormalmess

Email: thenormalmess@gmail.com

Surprise! Despite our best efforts to take an actual break during this season break, we couldn't stay away from you, Messy Besties! So... we headed to New York and recorded our FIRST EVER LIVE EPISODE, WITH AN AUDIENCE, and it also happened to be our first podcast mashup. In this episode, we shamelessly ride the coattails of InsHER, one of the coolest podcasts that you can listen to now. I mean, wait until you listen to this episode, then go listen to it.

That's right: we sat down with THE Megan Bell, host of the InsHER Podcast (go follow and subscribe!), to discuss a topic that is as near and dear to our hearts as it is fitting: grabbing the mic.

What does it mean to "grab the mic"? Does it mean you're taking it from someone else? How do you grab the mic if your voice is shaking?

And... what is the Dunning Kruger effect?! Unsurprisingly, Ashley Googles. Surprisingly, we have a sponsor! We talk about leadership, confidence, pasta, and... Kate Winslet?!

In short, we grab the mic.

Thank you to our 100+ live audience members, our sponsors, and of course... our friend and fellow hype woman, Megan Bell. She's the host of the InsHER Podcast, in case we didn't mention that. :)

See you on May 7 for the start of Season 2!

It's the Season One Finale of The Normal Mess, and Ashley and Cayce saved the best for last. And by that we mean: we talked to an actual, human, real-life neuroscientist (instead of Google!) about all our messiest questions from the past nine episodes!

That's right: joining the pod for our first interview and the final episode of the season is... DR. EMILY CROSS! Cognitive neuroscientist, mom of two, all-around brilliant human, and self-proclaimed MESSY BESTIE (oh, did we not mention we finally have a name for you beautiful listeners?!), Dr. Cross is here to dole out neuroscience wisdom, a series of much-needed permission slips, and a swear word or two (we knew we loved her).

We talk busy traps, FOPO, full chalance, and more, and we confirm our suspicions that moms do, in fact, have an evolutionary edge. (We're basically the equivalent of the first human to walk on two feet. You heard it here first.)

Then, Ashley and Cayce reflect on the experience of bringing The Normal Mess to life, and we talk about what comes next. Hint: Netflix renewed us for a Season Two. JK. Netflix doesn't know we exist. But we are coming back! Follow our socials to keep up with us on our short break, and stay tuned for our Season Two Premiere!

And in the mean time, go hug your girlfriends. And consider yourselves hugged by us. We appreciate and love you, Messy Besties! See you soon!

It's real and it's funny, and sometimes it's real funny. But also, it's no joke! Rate, review, comment, and follow us as we bring The Normal mess to the masses! We'd love to hear from you:

Instagram & TikTok:

@thenormalmess

thenormalmess@gmail.com

Cayce has a groundbreaking, life-changing announcement, and she agonized over it for a YEAR. As the resident Leslie Knope on our show, that makes Ashley's brain fall out. Are you an agonizer or a gut-decider?! Ashley and Cayce love each other deeply, but we could not relate LESS to each other when it comes to decision-making. Speaking of which, can you please help us decide what TNM listeners are called?! No matter what we are, we're messy, and we wouldn't have it any other way.

...but, would other people?! We are dissecting our experience with OPOs: other people's opinions. Do you have FOPO, and are women more likely to consider other people's opinions than men? And, why do we give fewer Fs as we age?! We have a message for our inner voices, and for yours.

If you've ever felt judged, this one's for you! We laugh a lot, cry a little, and then we debate who would survive a Zombie apocalypse. Spoiler alert: Cayce thinks Ashley has hollow bones.

It's real and it's funny, and sometimes, it's real funny. But also, it's no joke! Rate, review, comment, and follow us as we bring The Normal Mess to the masses! We'd love to hear from you:

Instagram & TikTok: @thenormalmess

thenormalmess@gmail.com

Settle in, you poetic and noble land mermaids, it’s Galentine’s Day! Ashley and Cayce toast to the magic of gal pals, and you are cordially invited to join us for a day of ladies celebrating ladies, plus breakfast foods. Who’s the Ann and who’s the Leslie, and will we ever stop talking about Amy Poehler?!

Then, come with us on a brilliant and hilarious journey wherein we imagine what the world would look like if “power moves” were not so… gross. Ashley found an article that truly sucks, and we have a laundry list of new power moves we’re busting out. Forget the nunchucks and swole muscles, Cayce’s going to pull a real power move in her next high-stakes meeting: she’s going to cry.

Finally, Ashley’s daughter provides our final segment: Zero Friends. Why do people insist on taking their phone calls in public restrooms, and if anyone knows Cayce’s Amazon delivery driver, can you tell them to please stop chucking her packages on the grass and leaving them there to get rained on?! We laugh so hard we cry in this one, and that honestly might be the power move we needed all along.

It’s real and it’s funny, and sometimes, it’s real funny. But also, it’s no joke! Rate, review, comment, and follow us as we bring The Normal Mess to the masses! We’d love to hear from you:

Instagram & TikTok: @thenormalmess
thenormalmess@gmail.com

Ashley and Cayce are Poehleroids, and we send our congrats to our BFF-who-doesn't-know-she's-our-BFF, Amy, on her Golden Globe win. Speaking of which, what's our official listener nickname? Someone please tell us: if we were getting married, what's our hashtag? Next, we're really on TikTok, guys. We consulted some youths, but we still have some questions. Is it a reel? Are there DMs? Unclear. But we are doing a TikTok Challenge for February, and you are cordially invited to do it, too. It does not involve ice, water, or anything dangerous, and it WILL result in us immediately liking and resharing your post.

Cayce is well-hydrated, we love to laugh, and what does Instagram have to do with penguins?! As we dissect the power of laughter, we self-analyze our senses of humor, we talk bumper stickers, and Ashley urges everyone to turnip the beet.

We close it out with a rapid-fire round of "Unfortunately I Do Love." Spoiler alert: none of these things are unfortunate. So, tell us: are we Full Chalancers? Are we Normal Messians? Are we Mess Makers?! Oh, and if you have any knock-knock jokes to add to a 4-year-old's repertoire, please tell us. We can't handle any more "bananas."

It's real and it's funny, and sometimes it's real funny. But also, it's no joke! Rate, review, comment, and follow us as we bring The Normal Mess to the masses! We'd love to hear from you:

Instagram & TikTok:

@thenormalmess

thenormalmess@gmail.com

Ashley and Cayce are mind mouthing. Mind melding? Whatever, our brains are talking to each other. And they're trash talking opponents on game night. Speaking of games, Ashley loves them, Hasbro might want to sponsor us after this, and we have a new rallying cry for Normal Messians (Full Chalancers? Messers? TBD.) everywhere: IT'S SALAD TIME.

Then, we talk about balls. The glass and rubber kind, what were you thinking?! We need not carry it all, and we were never meant to. What's rubber, what's glass, and is it cement or CEment? We're taking inventory and dropping balls every which way. And honestly? No regrets. Finally, we wrap with a round of Flamingo Cards, and it's pretty clear who should never go on Survivor.

Oh, and we forgot to mention that we consulted some youths and decided to join the Tok after all. Please tell us if we're too old to be doing this, and add us (is that what one does on TikTok?): @thenormalmess

It's real and it's funny, and sometimes it's real funny. But also, it's no joke! Like, rate, review, and follow us as we bring The Normal Mess to the masses! We'd love to hear from you:

Instagram & TikTok: @thenormalmess

thenormalmess@gmail.com

It's the first day of 2026, and it's our VERY FIRST VIDEO EPISODE! Will our faces help or hurt our subscriber count? Only time (and your ability to follow Ashley's fiery instructions) will tell!

It's 2026, and we are coming in HOT. The reason for the explicit rating becomes abundantly clear right off the bat, and Cayce has a follow-up question for Ashley. How do you say "thank you" to a toddler who is screaming about red cups? Hint: we don't just embrace the full chalance. We embrace the full a**holery. Then, we are fully in the "dislike" camp when it comes to New Year's Resolutions, until a certain Pentagon-advising, TIME-magazine-writing neuroscientist converts us. Do you have a Word of the Year? And, perhaps more importantly, do you have tips to help us keep our resolution (ugh) to be healthy in 2026? Do we just need to bathe in hand sanitizer?!

Finally, Ashley's cooking and Cayce's anticipating miracles. 2026, we're here for you! Now, go share this episode with your 1,000 friends and amplify the sh*t out of us! Thanks, love you, bye!