What it REALLY Means to be a Mommy Blogger with Rachel Sobel
The term “mommy blogger” is almost as bad as the word “influencer.” How do we take the negative vibes out of these words and own what we do? On this week’s episode of Dope Ass Podcast, Rachel Sobel of Whine and Cheez(Its) joins Andrea for a candid conversation about mommy blogging, protecting kids on social media, divorce, and why mom guilt is a motherfucker. Tune in!
Even on a good day, motherhood is really hard. Case in point: for today’s episode of Dope Ass Podcast, both Andrea and her special guest Rachel Sobel of Whine and Cheez(Its) recorded in their closets. C’est la vie when you’re both a mom and a brand.
Andrea and Rachel unpack the negative association they both have with the term “mommy blogger” and then launch into a candid conversation about everything from protecting kids on social media to coming to terms with the crushing mom guilt that comes along with divorce. Rachel also shares her favorite songs that immediately make her turn into a stripper, why twerking is just another incarnation of booty dancing, and how her kids have become the trendsetters in her life.
Finally, Rachel shares her biggest advice: motherhood is personal, so stop caring about other people’s advice. Listen in!
[00:19] - This week: Rachel Sobel
[02:11] - Mommy bloggers
[07:18] - Daughters on social media
[10:01] - Hoochie mamas
[11:24] - Unleashing the beast
[14:56] - Letting it flow
[17:02] - Healthy resolution
[19:55] - Mom guilt
[24:14] - Writing catharsis
[25:30] - The rise of memes
[28:34] - Sex through pancakes
[32:10] - Dancing on The Grind
[35:17] - Advice for a dope ass life
[37:55] - Favorite wine & Cheez-Its
Rachel Sobel is the heart and mind behind Whine and Cheez(Its). After working many years in public relations and communications, she decided she had enough after one particularly bad experience that made her question what the eff she was doing. She stopped with the “what ifs” and hatched a plan to leave the confines of a cubicle and live her dream as a full-time writer. (In her dream she was thinner, richer and had much more clothing without spatterings of spit-up and breast milk, but beggars can’t be choosers.)
Mommy Bloggers for Booty Dancing
Hey y’all it’s Andrea again. Coming at ya live with all the hot takes from this week’s Dope Ass Podcast. I had the privilege and honor of interviewing my dear friend Rachel Sobel (you might recognize her from our critically acclaimed work on The Real Housewives of Instagram), the genius mastermind behind @whineandcheezits on everything from mommy blogging to kids on social media to MTV’s “The Grind.” Let’s hit it!
First off, you already know how I feel about the term “influencer.” It’s a loaded word with good and not so good connotations, many of which I don’t totally align to. Well, meet influencer’s ugly twin sister because Rachel and I feel the same way about “mommy blogger.” While the phrase perfectly describes what we do, the associations people have formed around it really don’t, and we’re kind of not about it. Not to mention, there’s something weirdly dehumanizing about only being known as mom or mommy. We’re Rachel and Andrea — we’re writers and brands and businesswomen and friends, wives, daughters...the list goes on. That’s our stance and we’re sticking to it.
But, while we’re on the topic of mommy blogging, we absolutely have to dive into the amazing platform Rachel has developed. When her career in PR and communications stopped lighting her up, she transitioned to creating content that did. She now writes about everything from divorce and having a blended family to keeping her kiddos safe on social media. And while I can definitely relate to the constant struggle between not wanting your kids to be social pariahs but also wanting to protect them from all the...unsavory aspects of social media, what Rachel and I leveled on the most was our shared Hoochie Mama identity.
You can take the girl out of Miami, or in my case Texas, but you can’t take the need to booty-pop out of the girl. And while this is one of the many reasons we’re so thankful social media wasn’t around when we were in our (early) clubbing days, it’s not a part of our identity that we’re trying to hide. Because,
1. We’re so much more than just moms and
2. Lying to our kids just isn’t the name of our game.
Don’t ask me how talking about meme accounts that we love got us here, but I will in fact be teaching my kids about S-E-X through an anatomical pancake making lesson. And in the meantime, neither of us are going to waste energy lying to our kids about the human body because TBH we can’t even remember when we learned everything we know, so it can’t be that traumatizing, right?
The whole conversation is truly a wild ride, folks. So tune in if you want to hear how we seamlessly covered all of the above and still made time for Rachel to share her most favorite, most profane songs of both the moment and of all time. Her attempt at singing as really worth the listen.
On the Dope Ass Podcast, Andrea Levoff and her roster of hilarious, inspirational, and always-opinionated guests are tackling everything from motherhood to fashion to travel and spirituality---with a seriously dope ass lens. But don’t take our word for it. Learn more about your dope ass host and her mission to make everyone see the world through hot pink-colored glasses at https://www.andrealevoff.com/.
This podcast episode was produced by Dante32.