TWO West Belfast mums of twins have come together to create a new video podcast celebrating the ups and downs of family life for parents of ‘multiples’.
Therapist Caroline Stratton and finance expert Cathy Brennan are the ‘Buggy Buddies’ steering parents through the challenges of life with multiples – two or more babies born at the same time – in Broods, Money and Moods, filmed in a specially created studio at Innovation Factory.
The podcast features the perfect mix of real-life experience combined with nuggets of essential information on financial matters and mental health issues.
Caroline, mum of a 16-year-old son, daughter aged 14 and twin boys who are eight, runs her own counselling practice focusing on positive mental health and wellbeing for individuals and in-group settings. She has a background in early intervention, family support and with pre-mature babies. She describes having twins at aged 40 as a 'bolt out of the blue' and a steep learning curve for the whole family.
Cathy, mum of twin girls aged 13 and a son aged 11, is an award-winning financial planner and founder of Resourceful Planner Limited as well as being on the advisory board of SENDA (Special Educational Need and Disability Alliance) where she supports families and vulnerable adults.
The video podcast was produced by Caroline’s husband Gerard Stratton, a partner in award-winning media company TripleVision Productions based at Innovation Factory in West Belfast. They transformed a conference room into a homely studio space replicating a living room so that their guests would feel comfortable and relaxed at Innovation Factory, a pioneering business hub supporting new and growing businesses.
Innovation Factory Centre Director Neil Allen said: “As a parent of two, I fully understand how all-encompassing family life can be. It’s part of our ethos to help businesses succeed. Business owners should not have to fight to get the balance right with their family life.
"We offer support and flexibility to help people succeed on their terms. We were delighted to facilitate this innovative podcast, which has the potential to reach families right across the world.”
There has been an increase in multiple births in the last 20 years both through IVF and also as parents hold off later to have children, so Cathy and Caroline decided to pool their talents to produce a programme that discusses some of the most important issues, including money matters and mental health.
“We created this podcast in the hope that parents would get a sense of community and a space to connect to stories of families experiencing similar challenges and joys,” Caroline explained.
Broods, Money and Moods is available on YouTube.
