Why Making Mom Friends Feels Impossible & What Actually Works with Baily Hancock Artwork

The Sparkle Project

(Formerly Worthy Mother Podcast)

The Sparkle Project is a feminist podcast for moms who are done carrying the weight of motherhood alone and are ready to connect with who they truly are - their sparkle, if you will.

So many of us feel overwhelmed not because we’re failing, but because we’re mothering inside a patriarchal system that expects us to give endlessly, stay quiet, and lose ourselves in the process. This space challenges those outdated expectations and embraces a more empowered, more supported, more self-honoring version of motherhood.

Hosted by Emily Rose MacDonald, a divorced mom of two on her own journey to shine a little brighter, each episode explores the realities of modern motherhood through a feminist lens that values equity, autonomy, mental health, and the humanity of moms.

You’ll hear conversations about identity, mental health, self-care, healing, and the many ways we can reclaim ourselves in a world that often overlooks the needs of mothers.

If you’re a mom who believes we deserve more than survival, and that our culture has to evolve for moms to truly thrive, you’re in the right place.

Welcome to The Sparkle Project.

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All Episodes

The Sparkle Project

Why Making Mom Friends Feels Impossible & What Actually Works with Baily Hancock

January 13, 2026 • Episode 178

Making mom friends can feel surprisingly lonely, awkward, and exhausting - especially when you're already stretched thin by motherhood. In this episode of The Sparkle Project, Emily is joined by Baily Hancock, connection strategist, mom of two, and creator of the Overlap Method, to talk about why building friendships as a mom feels so hard and what actually helps.

They explore why perfectionism blocks connection, how vulnerability changes everything, and what it really takes to move from surface-level mom friends to relationships that feel supportive and energizing. And it all starts with connecting inward.

The episode covers: