AND/BOTH Podcast - Real Conversations, Shared Experiences, and the Community You've Been Missing

What does it look like to make a huge life pivot in the middle of raising small kids—and during a global pandemic?
In this episode, Ashley talks with Danielle Alvarez, a mom of three who walked away from the business she’d spent years building and went to law school with a six-, five-, and one-year-old at home. Now a corporate attorney with her own small business-focused firm, Danielle shares what it really looked like to start over, and how she made room for ambition without sacrificing everything else.
This is a conversation about redefining success, letting go of timelines, and figuring out what actually feels right—instead of chasing what’s expected.
Whether you’re in the middle of a pivot, thinking about one, or just trying to hold your own dreams alongside your real life, this one’s for you.
We talk about:
– Making a big life change when the timing isn’t ideal
– Doing things differently than the “traditional” path
– Ambition, burnout, and the pressure to do it all
– Parenting while building something new
– Starting a business that reflects your values
– Letting go of old expectations (and other people’s opinions)
Connect with DanielleLinks + Resources:
Website: sblslaw.com
LinkedIn: Danielle Alvarez, Esq., MBA
Email: [email protected]

Connect with Ashley:
Website: https://www.ashleyblackington.com
Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/
Dovetail® App: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dovetail-app/id6744341822
Instagram: @mydovetail.app
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

Burnout doesn’t always show up as falling apart.
Sometimes it looks like holding everything together for too long.
In this episode of AND/BOTH, Ashley sits down with Sarah Smith — founder of Iconoclast Innovations, mom of two, and self-described iconoclast — for a deeply honest conversation about motherhood, mental health, and rebuilding yourself after burnout.

Sarah shares her experience navigating postpartum anxiety and depression during the pandemic, being laid off multiple times, starting a business while pregnant, and learning how to advocate for herself in a system that often loses sight of mothers after birth.

Together, Ashley and Sarah talk about identity shifts after becoming a parent, why burnout is information (not failure), how community and support can be lifesaving, and what it really means to choose yourself and your family — even when it’s messy.

This episode is for anyone who has ever wondered: Why does this feel so hard — and am I the only one struggling?
You’re not alone. And you’re not doing it wrong.

Connect with Sarah:
Website: https://iconoclastinnovationsllc.com/

Connect with Ashley:
Website: https://www.ashleyblackington.com
Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/
Dovetail® App: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dovetail-app/id6744341822
Instagram: @mydovetail.app
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

What do you get when you mix startup experience, mother-of-a-newborn energy, and a deeply broken system for working parents?
You get Recess.

Amy Kiska is the co-founder and CEO of Recess, a platform parents are calling “the Booking.com of kids’ activities.” In this episode, she joins Ashley to talk about building a tech company while parenting a newborn, the invisible mental load of managing care coverage, and the bold decision to solve a problem most people don't recognize until they’re drowning in it.

Amy shares what it took to launch Recess, including fundraising 10 days postpartum, and how she’s designing a business that helps families and providers thrive.

This conversation covers:
The truth about camp registration (and why it feels like the Hunger Games)
How Recess supports both parents and activity providers
The underestimated power of mom-founders
Building a company without pretending you’re doing it alone
And why some of the best ideas are born in the bath 🛁

Connect with Amy:
Website: hello-recess.com
Social media @hellorecess on Instagram and TikTok

Connect with Ashley:
Website: https://www.ashleyblackington.com
Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/
Dovetail® App: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dovetail-app/id6744341822
Instagram: @mydovetail.app
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

What if fertility and reproductive health were treated like skincare or mental health, something we talked about before it became a crisis?
In this episode of AND/BOTH, Ashley sits down with Sam Diamond, co‑founder of Bird & Be, to talk about building a clinically‑backed fertility company in the middle of a global pandemic, and why proactive, inclusive fertility care matters more than ever.

Sam shares the deeply personal experiences that shaped Bird & Be’s mission, including miscarriage, fertility treatment, and the gaps she saw in education, access, and support for both women and men. Together, Ashley and Sam explore why fertility conversations are still too reactive, how male fertility remains stigmatized, and what it looks like to build a company rooted in science, ethics, and care.

They also talk about:
Launching a startup during COVID — and why at‑home testing was harder than expected
Why male fertility must be part of every fertility conversation
The shift from “cute” branding to clarity as Bird & Be entered retail
What it took to land Bird & Be in Ulta — and why placement mattered
How early education and testing can shorten or even prevent long fertility journeys
Why women are not “small men” — and how research still fails women’s bodies
Blending motherhood and entrepreneurship without pretending it’s balanced

This is a conversation about health, agency, science, and building systems that actually support people, not just sell to them.

Connect with Sam:
Bird&Be site: https://birdandbe.com/

Connect with Ashley:
Website: https://www.ashleyblackington.com
Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/
Dovetail® App: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dovetail-app/id6744341822
Instagram: @mydovetail.app
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/

This week on AND/BOTH, I’m joined by Nomiki Petrolla, founder of Theanna and a mother of four who is reshaping what early-stage entrepreneurship can look like for women in tech.
Nomiki has spent 15 years in the tech world, sitting beside founders, engineers, and venture-backed teams, often as the only woman in the room. That experience eventually led her to build Theanna: a platform designed to support women tech founders from idea to launch.
In this episode, we talk about:
Why women are turning to entrepreneurship not out of ambition alone, but out of a desire for agency
The realities of building a startup with four young kids
How AI is completely changing what’s possible for early-stage founders
Why venture capital isn’t the only — or even the most aligned — path for most entrepreneurs
The difference between building your first business for money and your later ones for meaning
How motherhood sharpens clarity, decision-making, and boundaries
What Nomiki is noticing about the next wave of women building tech
Sustainable entrepreneurship vs. the unicorn mythology we’ve all absorbed

It’s a conversation about choosing your own path, understanding your season, and building something that fits your actual life, not a version of life you’re supposed to pretend you have.
Connect with Nomiki:
Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn: @nomikipetrolla
Theanna: @theannaio

Connect with Ashley:
Website: https://www.ashleyblackington.com
Podcast website: https://www.andbothpodcast.com/
Dovetail® App: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dovetail-app/id6744341822
Instagram: @mydovetail.app
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyblackington/