Gaines for Girls with Riley Gaines - February 13, 2026


Motherhood Shifted Everything： Faith, Family & Perspective ｜ The Riley Gaines Show


Episode Stats

Length

30 minutes

Words per Minute

198.82874

Word Count

5,998

Sentence Count

407

Misogynist Sentences

31

Hate Speech Sentences

2


Summary

In this episode of The R.I.P. Show, Rylee talks about her experience being pregnant with her daughter, Margo, and what it's like being a mom. She talks about the joys and struggles of labor and delivery, and how she's come to terms with her new role as a mother.


Transcript

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00:00:30.000 We have officially made it through the fourth trimester.
00:00:37.000 Welcome back to the Riley Gaines Show. I am Riley Gaines.
00:00:40.000 If you've been following me for a while, maybe here on the show,
00:00:43.000 maybe back when it was the Gaines for Girls podcast, maybe on X or Instagram or TikTok,
00:00:48.000 then you know that I was pretty open about my pregnancy and labor and delivery,
00:00:53.000 how I loved really every single stage thus far.
00:00:56.000 But I don't think I have done a recap, a comprehensive recap of motherhood
00:01:02.000 and what that has been like for me and for Louie.
00:01:05.000 Well, Louie, of course, he's not a mom, but what parenthood has been like for us
00:01:09.000 and for our beautiful baby girl, Margo.
00:01:11.000 I wanted to make sure that this isn't just a show where people come to get their political takes
00:01:16.000 or to hear my political takes. Because honestly, what I have found to be true is number one,
00:01:21.000 that can just be really, really draining, right? It's exhausting.
00:01:25.000 I feel like at least speaking for myself, I consume so much political content throughout the week.
00:01:30.000 I actually appreciate listening to shows or podcasts where that's not necessarily what you're getting.
00:01:35.000 Yes, certainly. I still want my conservative values and more importantly, my Christian beliefs to shine through the content that I'm delivering,
00:01:44.000 the things that we're talking about. But the show doesn't necessarily have to be political in its nature.
00:01:50.000 And secondly, I think a lot of the audience that follows the show or maybe follows me,
00:01:54.000 yes, appreciates the political takes. And the second thing I have found to be true.
00:01:58.000 I think a lot of the audience that follows the show that follows me and my personal accounts,
00:02:03.000 yes, again, probably appreciate the political takes, probably have the same viewpoints that I do.
00:02:09.000 But what I found is a lot of you are in a similar stage of life as me as well.
00:02:14.000 So young women who either have kids or want to start families or curious about motherhood
00:02:20.000 or how we make it work with our crazy, hectic schedules.
00:02:23.000 And so I want to be able to deliver to you guys in a raw and authentic way.
00:02:28.000 So the fourth trimester, as I said, we have now surpassed it.
00:02:32.000 Margo is four months old.
00:02:34.000 And truthfully, like I would roll my eyes when people would tell me prior to having a baby.
00:02:39.000 Honestly, even when I was pregnant, I would roll my eyes when people say time flies.
00:02:43.000 Uh, it's like the most cliche thing you've ever heard, but they're absolutely right.
00:02:50.000 Uh, these past four months, they really have just flown by.
00:02:53.000 And it's bizarre because again, I don't know if you necessarily can grasp this fully,
00:02:58.000 unless it's something that you've been through.
00:03:00.000 So maybe the other moms out there who are listening to this or watching this,
00:03:04.000 like maybe you probably understand what I'm saying, but I don't even remember life before her.
00:03:09.000 I don't even really remember being pregnant, which I know that sounds insane because
00:03:16.000 you're pregnant for like 10 months, which women, they lie to you, by the way,
00:03:20.000 they say pregnancy last nine months.
00:03:22.000 No, that is baloney.
00:03:23.000 I was pregnant for 10 months, which I never had horrible symptoms.
00:03:27.000 I never had nausea or insomnia.
00:03:29.000 I didn't have much acid reflux.
00:03:31.000 My pelvic pain was very minimal.
00:03:34.000 So I definitely made it out relatively easy.
00:03:38.000 But I look back at pictures of me pregnant and I do look like my body is retaining fluid.
00:03:44.000 If you know what I'm saying, I didn't gain a ton of weight, but I can tell my face is fuller
00:03:48.000 and my arms were holding on to fluid.
00:03:51.000 But I look back at those pictures now and I don't even really remember feeling like that.
00:03:56.000 I know I did at the time, but I don't remember it.
00:03:58.000 And it was only really a few weeks ago that I had this revelation that I didn't really remember
00:04:03.000 being pregnant, at least not for 10 months, maybe the last few weeks.
00:04:06.000 Sure. You kind of remember, which I know is crazy given that Margo is only four months old.
00:04:11.000 How can I not remember it?
00:04:12.000 But I started to like read up on it.
00:04:14.000 And I was reading how oxytocin and estrogen and progesterone and these other endorphins
00:04:20.000 that our body has naturally produces after giving birth, how it ultimately affects how
00:04:26.000 our memories are stored, which is crazy.
00:04:29.000 Like our brain, it's kind of like nature's little survival hack.
00:04:33.000 If you will, our brain prioritizes bonding over remembering any sort of discomfort or pain
00:04:39.000 that we had, which kind of makes sense because if we were, if women since the beginning of time
00:04:46.000 were to vividly remember every single miserable detail about pregnancy,
00:04:51.000 then, I mean, you have to imagine that fewer women would sign up for round two.
00:04:56.000 So that was interesting to me, how oxytocin especially, how it spikes when you hold
00:05:01.000 or feed or care for or nurture your baby and how it strengthens attachment
00:05:06.000 and basically dampens any sort of negative emotional memories, which from a biological perspective
00:05:11.000 is kind of genius.
00:05:13.000 We had Isabel Brown on the show a few weeks ago.
00:05:15.000 If you didn't watch that episode, I highly encourage you to go back and watch it.
00:05:18.000 But we talked about the declining birth rate.
00:05:21.000 If women had this crystal clear recall of nine months, 10 months of physical strain and labor
00:05:27.000 pain and postpartum recovery, then the population growth might be even less than it is right now.
00:05:33.000 All that to say, the past four months have flown by.
00:05:37.000 They have been a joy.
00:05:39.000 I am ready for the next baby.
00:05:41.000 My husband is too, which it's so funny because a year ago,
00:05:45.000 I mean, literally a year ago to the day nearly, we had kind of just found out that we were pregnant.
00:05:51.000 And my husband was petrified, which I think I think is what a lot of men go through.
00:05:55.000 Not as much women.
00:05:57.000 I think the maternal instinct kicks in sooner for women.
00:06:00.000 Obviously your body is the one that is changing.
00:06:02.000 You feel the baby sooner.
00:06:03.000 So I think that's relatively standard, but my husband was petrified.
00:06:07.000 But now watching him grow into the amazing dad that he is, has been really special.
00:06:13.000 And you love your husband prior to having a baby,
00:06:15.000 but the love that you have for your husband and watching him become a dad is like next level.
00:06:19.000 It's a kind of love that you didn't even know you were capable of having for another human.
00:06:24.000 So that's been, been really cool.
00:06:26.000 Ms. Margo at four months, she has been to the White House.
00:06:29.000 She's been to Mar-a-Lago.
00:06:31.000 She's met the president.
00:06:32.000 She's met Secretary Kennedy.
00:06:34.000 Maybe you guys watched the Maha vlog that we did.
00:06:37.000 If you did, you saw Secretary Kennedy holding her.
00:06:41.000 She has met Secretary Hegsheath.
00:06:44.000 She's met the amazing press secretary, Caroline Levitt,
00:06:47.000 and a slew of other cabinet members and just really incredible people.
00:06:52.000 She's going to be super dangerous at two truths and a lie one day.
00:06:56.000 And now she's at the point where she's just much more alert and attentive and curious.
00:07:02.000 And she's reaching for things like we have this little rattle thing on her car seat,
00:07:06.000 and she reaches for it now.
00:07:07.000 And so that's really sweet.
00:07:09.000 It's not sweet when she reaches for my hair or my earrings or my necklaces.
00:07:14.000 She's already broken a few of my necklaces.
00:07:17.000 We've talked about in the podcast before how we co-sleep,
00:07:19.000 meaning she sleeps in the bed with my husband and I,
00:07:22.000 which isn't obviously a long-term plan, but it's definitely easier for us now.
00:07:28.000 She likes it.
00:07:29.000 I think, truthfully, I like it.
00:07:30.000 Like if I'm going to be totally honest with you,
00:07:32.000 I find enjoyment with her being close.
00:07:34.000 I don't know if it's primal or like this maternal thing,
00:07:37.000 but I enjoy her sleeping in the bed with us.
00:07:39.000 And she's now reached this point where like in the middle of the night,
00:07:42.000 you'll just feel her kind of reach up and grab your face or your nose or kind of like pull your lip down.
00:07:47.000 But it's the cutest thing ever.
00:07:48.000 And it seems so far that every single stage is better than the last,
00:07:51.000 which other moms have told me, more experienced moms,
00:07:55.000 moms who have been doing this longer than myself and my husband have.
00:07:59.000 But it seems to be that way thus far.
00:08:01.000 Like now she's rolling over.
00:08:03.000 I swear to you, she's about to crawl.
00:08:05.000 Like she will lift herself up so high, kind of like into that Cobra yoga position,
00:08:11.000 if you know what I'm talking about.
00:08:12.000 I swear to you, she's so close to crawling, which maybe sounds crazy.
00:08:15.000 I don't really know the timeline of when babies really do things,
00:08:18.000 but she's kind of like shuffling a little bit, maybe like military crawling,
00:08:23.000 if that's what you want to call it.
00:08:24.000 Um, so I don't think it will be long before she's much more mobile.
00:08:28.000 So I figured for the structure of this show, this episode,
00:08:31.000 I would kind of go through a couple of the things that you guys have asked me
00:08:35.000 in my messages on Instagram or some of the things that you all have inquired about.
00:08:39.000 First one being travel tips.
00:08:41.000 And truthfully, Margo has been a very good traveler.
00:08:44.000 Um, I don't know if that's as much what Louie and I are doing,
00:08:48.000 or if that's more so her just kind of being a good baby.
00:08:51.000 And I think it speaks to how God kind of just knows,
00:08:54.000 he knows what you need and he provides as a good and just and righteous heavenly father.
00:08:59.000 One of the things that I remember recalling prior to taking that first flight with her,
00:09:04.000 which we took her on the first, her first airplane at like four weeks old.
00:09:07.000 So pretty young, um, which I'll get into in a minute.
00:09:11.000 I've had a lot of you reach out to like,
00:09:13.000 how do you feel comfortable taking your baby in public places like airports or airplanes or out of state while not vaccinated?
00:09:20.000 I'll talk about that in a minute.
00:09:21.000 But one of the things I was curious about prior to taking her was if we bring the stroller,
00:09:25.000 uh, like the logistics of it, right?
00:09:28.000 It's pretty big.
00:09:29.000 Like the strollers aren't small.
00:09:30.000 How do you go through security?
00:09:31.000 Does it get gate checked?
00:09:32.000 Does it go on the plane with you?
00:09:34.000 We didn't know the answer to these things and we didn't really know how to find out the answer to these things.
00:09:39.000 So I'm going to tell you what we did, what we continue to do, do with it as you will.
00:09:44.000 Again, I'm not saying that this is a one size fits all, but it works for us.
00:09:48.000 We do bring the stroller with us to the airport.
00:09:50.000 One, it makes it easier to carry and push Margo around in the airport.
00:09:54.000 Uh, she's getting heavy.
00:09:56.000 Now that car seat just lifting it on its own with her in it is not light by any means.
00:10:00.000 And it's pretty easy to get through TSA.
00:10:02.000 We have had zero issues.
00:10:05.000 Uh, lots of you have asked me which stroller we have as well.
00:10:09.000 It's the Nuna something.
00:10:11.000 I don't remember exactly which one it is, but I'm going to put a picture on screen and post.
00:10:16.000 So if you're watching at youtube.com, then you can see it.
00:10:19.000 And oh my gosh, I love our stroller.
00:10:20.000 We have like the car seat stroller combo, meaning the car seat that buckles into the stroller is the car seat.
00:10:25.000 That she uses in the car, which is fantastic.
00:10:28.000 Highly recommend the stroller that you see on screen.
00:10:31.000 It is like from our experience, the Cadillac of all strollers.
00:10:35.000 My husband really likes it too, because he's tall.
00:10:37.000 Uh, he's six foot four.
00:10:38.000 So you can like make the, the handlebar higher so he can push it easier too, which that was definitely a preference that he had in buying our stroller.
00:10:47.000 The turn radius is incredible.
00:10:49.000 The car seat again, it buckles into every single car.
00:10:51.000 So you don't need one of those big bulky bases, which I have found to be key, especially for traveling.
00:10:58.000 Uh, when you're renting a car or you have an Uber, it's really easy.
00:11:01.000 But a lot of moms have reached out and asked me if we have had any sort of damage in putting our car seat or stroller under the plane, which that's how that works.
00:11:10.000 They gate, gate, check your stroller and give it back to you when you get off the plane.
00:11:14.000 So they put it under the plane.
00:11:16.000 We have had zero problems.
00:11:18.000 Uh, we don't have like one of those bags that you put over your car seat.
00:11:22.000 Um, but even so we've had zero issues and we travel all the time.
00:11:26.000 So it appears that they have been relatively careful in handling this, which is never a given.
00:11:31.000 So again, stroller is on screen.
00:11:33.000 If you're watching at youtube.com and I'm not gonna lie to you, it's expensive.
00:11:37.000 Like, I don't know how much I think like around 1200, maybe even more than that for like the combo stroller and car seat, which I put it on my registry.
00:11:47.000 Uh, honestly, kind of just for a way for me to remember which one that my husband and I liked in the early stages of kind of picking out some of the things that we knew we needed for Margo and someone bought it really quick.
00:11:59.000 Uh, so moms out there don't think that it's crazy to put something that expensive on your registry because someone just might buy it for you.
00:12:07.000 Second thing, uh, if you are a mom who is pumping and you bring bottles with you, which we have been very fortunate to where Margo does take bottles.
00:12:17.000 Uh, I would love to have an exclusively breastfed baby, but with the lifestyle that we live and the travel and the here and there, I just don't feel overly comfortable myself breastfeeding in public.
00:12:30.000 Um, I don't think anything if I see other moms doing it in public, I don't think anything of it.
00:12:34.000 I don't shame the moms who do, I have seen some crazy stuff like moms literally just whipping out a tit.
00:12:40.000 I just could never be that comfortable in breastfeeding in public.
00:12:45.000 So we use bottles, which again, praise God, Margo takes a bottle.
00:12:49.000 But with that, it means that I pump some, uh, which when we're home, she eats off the boob.
00:12:55.000 So mornings when we wake up, uh, she gets it straight from the tap at night when she goes to sleep.
00:13:01.000 Um, but on planes and in public again, just not comfortable with it.
00:13:04.000 So we bring a little cooler with us.
00:13:06.000 Uh, it's like a little bottle bottle cooler.
00:13:08.000 That way I can pump, put the bottles in the cooler.
00:13:11.000 Uh, so they don't go bad if we're on a plane for more than four hours, which we find ourselves doing often.
00:13:16.000 Like if we're going from Washington DC to California, that's a long flight.
00:13:20.000 Um, I've also had moms ask me if we bring like a pack and play or a travel bassinet, which we don't, we co-sleep.
00:13:27.000 Uh, we've had zero problems with that.
00:13:29.000 And I will say Margo with her rolling over now, we will put her on her back to go to sleep.
00:13:34.000 Uh, but within like 60 seconds, she has rolled over onto her stomach.
00:13:39.000 And I try to prevent that just for my own ease, but it's impossible.
00:13:43.000 She's determined to sleep like face down on her stomach.
00:13:46.000 Last thing I feel like I have for travel tips is the timing in which we do things to keep Margo happy, satisfied and sleeping on airplanes.
00:13:53.000 Which truthfully, I feel like I need to like knock on wood or something.
00:13:57.000 I feel like we've mastered this.
00:13:59.000 Let me like say a prayer, cross my fingers, because I'm going to tell you guys this as if we're some sort of professional travelers with a baby, which I know we're not there yet.
00:14:07.000 I think we're getting close.
00:14:09.000 Uh, I'm going to say this and then she's going to turn into this like terror on airplanes, but it's worked thus far.
00:14:14.000 Timing is key.
00:14:15.000 Here's what we do.
00:14:16.000 So typically, uh, it doesn't really matter what time we're flying at either.
00:14:19.000 If it's morning, midday, afternoon, evening, red eyes.
00:14:22.000 Margo has been on several red eyes at this point.
00:14:24.000 We will typically try and get to the airport, which what we do before that doesn't really matter too much.
00:14:29.000 Uh, we'll get to the airport.
00:14:30.000 We'll have a few minutes to board, which I will say Louie and I tend to cut it pretty close, but we'll have a few minutes.
00:14:36.000 And we will go and change her diaper in the bathroom, family bathroom, uh, wherever change your diaper that way going onto the plane.
00:14:43.000 It's done. It's kind of funny.
00:14:44.000 We really do have like a checklist if she's being fussy, uh, or if she's upset or if she's crying, there's a checklist that we go through, uh, to try and like deduce the problem at hand.
00:14:54.000 Number one, has she been fed?
00:14:56.000 Number two, does she need to be burped?
00:14:58.000 And number three is her diaper clean.
00:15:00.000 And if we're good on all three of those things, then typically she's just fussy because she's tired and she doesn't really want to go to sleep.
00:15:07.000 I feel like now we're kind of out of the burping phase and maybe we're not supposed to be, but we don't really burp anymore because she doesn't really typically have any sort of gassy problems.
00:15:16.000 Anyways, diaper's been changed. We're on the plane at this point. If she's being good, which normally she is, we will wait until takeoff until we put the bottle in her mouth.
00:15:26.000 Even if she's not really hungry or if she had eaten not long prior to this, I think this is a good thing because the suckling motion that they're doing with their mouth, it helps with their ears once the plane reaches altitude, right?
00:15:39.000 You think about the times that you've traveled or you've been on an airplane and your ears pop when you're ascending or descending back down to land.
00:15:48.000 It's the same thing for babies, right? They don't know how to pop their ears.
00:15:52.000 Their ears, so that suckling motion, I think it helps aid the discomfort of that.
00:15:58.000 And if you're a mom who doesn't use bottles and you have an exclusively breastfed baby, then I would suggest maybe trying a pacifier.
00:16:06.000 It's kind of like the same suckling motion.
00:16:08.000 Then normally at this point, Margo passes out. She sleeps, which she loves the car too.
00:16:13.000 So anytime we leave our house and we have to drive somewhere within like 60 seconds, she is passed out in the backseat, which is really cute.
00:16:20.000 We have the little mirror on the back of the seat and we can see her and she's like conked.
00:16:24.000 So I wonder if the plane is like a similar feeling for her. I don't know.
00:16:29.000 So typically she will be asleep at this point.
00:16:31.000 And I swore we were not going to have a screen kid, but it has become very apparent that this little girl loves dancing fruit.
00:16:39.000 If you don't know what I'm talking about, good for you.
00:16:42.000 I lose brain cells watching it while also kind of simultaneously enjoying it, if I'm going to be like totally real.
00:16:48.000 If you have a baby, maybe around the same age as Margo, even younger, really, she loved these stupid dancing fruit.
00:16:53.000 If you go on YouTube and you type in dancing fruit, I think it's by like Hay Bear is the account.
00:17:00.000 Um, it's a black screen with fruit, like animated fruit, watermelons and pineapples and bananas.
00:17:07.000 And sometimes there's vegetables like a broccoli or a little radish thing.
00:17:11.000 That's actually kind of cute.
00:17:12.000 They dance across the screen.
00:17:14.000 That's it.
00:17:15.000 She loves these fruits.
00:17:16.000 So we actually have like a few minute long screen recording on our phone of the dancing fruit because sometimes on a plane, you can't access the Wi-Fi.
00:17:24.000 Uh, so we have the dancing fruit on our phone.
00:17:27.000 If she's being fussy, we'll put the phone in front of her, which I know I'm ashamed, but you do what you got to do, especially when you're in a public setting with other people.
00:17:37.000 I don't mind letting her cry at home, which I thought I was going to be more of a cried out mom.
00:17:43.000 I don't love when she's crying.
00:17:45.000 Uh, no mom, no parent really does, but the whole cried out method, I just can't get behind it.
00:17:51.000 I can't let sweet baby Margo cry.
00:17:54.000 It breaks my heart when she cries, but in public too, especially, uh, you're concerned for your baby, but you don't want the people around you to get upset or frustrated.
00:18:03.000 So you do what you got to do.
00:18:04.000 And honestly, I think the contrast of the colors is actually good for their development at this stage.
00:18:11.000 At least that's what I'm telling myself.
00:18:13.000 But like I said, Margo really has been a little champ.
00:18:16.000 She's been a trooper on all of these flights.
00:18:18.000 Uh, she hadn't yet had a tantrum on a plane.
00:18:22.000 And I say hadn't until our last trip, most recent trip to California.
00:18:27.000 It was a long flight to be fair.
00:18:29.000 And there's only so much dancing fruit that you can watch.
00:18:32.000 And I think really what was happening was our pilot was decreasing in altitude and then like he was about to land and then would come back up.
00:18:40.000 And he did this like three or four times.
00:18:41.000 I don't really know what was happening, but I think it was messing with her like equilibrium.
00:18:46.000 So anyways, she starts raising hell.
00:18:49.000 I'm not even talking crying.
00:18:50.000 She's only done this like two or three times in her entire life.
00:18:53.000 It wasn't even just crying.
00:18:55.000 It was like raging, screaming and praise God.
00:18:59.000 It was only the last 10, 15 minutes of the flight.
00:19:02.000 And yes, you feel awful in those settings for the people who are sat around you, the person in the seat next to you.
00:19:09.000 But what can you really do?
00:19:11.000 And I'm of the mind that especially the people who are parents around us, you have to imagine they understand like the moms, especially they get it.
00:19:21.000 I had so many moms, women kind of give me like the sympathy look and soft smiles directed at me during Margo's like tantrum women offering to help.
00:19:31.000 Like, can I hold her?
00:19:32.000 What do you need?
00:19:33.000 A flight attendant came by.
00:19:34.000 She was super sweet.
00:19:35.000 The man in front of me even was, you know, trying to give me advice.
00:19:38.000 He's like, look, here I am giving you guys travel tips.
00:19:41.000 This man was giving me travel tips.
00:19:42.000 He was like, when my kid was a baby, we'd bring this little pillow anyways.
00:19:46.000 But I wasn't overly stressed about her crying.
00:19:49.000 We're about to land, right?
00:19:51.000 Louie, on the other hand, he was just not vibing with this experience at all.
00:19:59.000 He was so stressed, like the veins in his forehead and neck were popping out.
00:20:05.000 His face was getting red.
00:20:06.000 I had to like reach over and remind him like, Louie, she's a baby.
00:20:10.000 And we have been so blessed up until this point.
00:20:12.000 She's been a fantastic baby.
00:20:13.000 Like she doesn't know how to communicate.
00:20:15.000 Patience is a virtue.
00:20:16.000 Give me the best you got for the next like 10, 15 minutes.
00:20:19.000 But honestly, that didn't really work.
00:20:21.000 He was still very stressed.
00:20:22.000 So that was on the way to California.
00:20:24.000 On the way home from California, we were pushing our flight time.
00:20:27.000 Like we were barely going to make it if we were going to make it at all.
00:20:31.000 So much so that I think by the time we got to the airport to make it through security, like they'd already been boarding for 10 or 15 minutes.
00:20:37.000 We barely made it through security.
00:20:39.000 Like the gate agent from American Airlines was calling Louie like, hey, are y'all coming?
00:20:44.000 We're about to shut the door.
00:20:45.000 We were the last people on the plane.
00:20:47.000 So kind of frantically make it on, you know, diaper bag slung over my shoulder.
00:20:51.000 I've got the baby too.
00:20:52.000 Louie's putting the suitcases over top.
00:20:54.000 We were the window seat and the middle seat.
00:20:57.000 So there was a woman in the aisle of the row that we were sat on.
00:21:00.000 And so she stands up to let us into our seats.
00:21:02.000 And she just looked annoyed.
00:21:03.000 You know how you can tell.
00:21:05.000 I file in first.
00:21:06.000 I sit in the window seat.
00:21:07.000 Louie actually sat in the middle seat.
00:21:08.000 The woman sits back down.
00:21:11.000 I understand her looking annoyed.
00:21:13.000 You think you're about to have this whole row to yourself.
00:21:16.000 And suddenly this like young couple walks in and I have this baby and they barely make the flight.
00:21:20.000 I kind of understand that.
00:21:22.000 Not ideal circumstances, but she pulls out her phone.
00:21:26.000 And it was one of those where you couldn't even help but look at what she was typing on her phone.
00:21:32.000 Full brightness.
00:21:33.000 Her like font was like 128 point font.
00:21:37.000 So very big writing.
00:21:39.000 You can't help to see what she's typing.
00:21:41.000 It's not like you're actively looking over her shoulder, but you happen to see.
00:21:46.000 Louie at least did.
00:21:47.000 Her typing on her phone or she sends to the person to some random person.
00:21:51.000 I don't know who.
00:21:52.000 Actually, I do know who.
00:21:53.000 Diana and Mike.
00:21:54.000 She sent it to two people.
00:21:55.000 I remember their names.
00:21:56.000 I don't know who they are.
00:21:57.000 She says, unbelievable.
00:21:59.000 The last two people on the plane sit next to me and they have a baby.
00:22:03.000 And I don't care who you are.
00:22:05.000 I don't care how valid her angst was.
00:22:09.000 Because when you're a mom to what you believe to be the most perfect little angelic baby to ever exist.
00:22:16.000 It really makes you mad when someone says that.
00:22:19.000 And I've really tried to work on how quick I am to react to something more than anything, because it's biblically fruitful to be slow to anger.
00:22:28.000 And I think it's natural for me to react like, you know, when you take the top off of a shaken up soda, but I'm trying to be what happens when you take the top off of a shaken up water bottle.
00:22:40.000 Okay.
00:22:41.000 That's what I'm working on.
00:22:42.000 New Year's resolution of mine.
00:22:43.000 And it's been going great.
00:22:44.000 Louie, on the other hand, that is not one of his resolutions.
00:22:49.000 I think he was willing to let the first text slide that first text to Diane.
00:22:54.000 But it was when she sent the text to Mike.
00:22:57.000 No idea who these people are.
00:22:58.000 But in this text, she says, I'm sat next to Riley Gaines.
00:23:03.000 And she was expressing how upset she was by this.
00:23:06.000 I have actually, despite how, like.
00:23:10.000 Heated things get online.
00:23:12.000 I have never had an ill interaction in public beyond, like, protesters at an event.
00:23:18.000 Okay.
00:23:19.000 Which, that's totally different.
00:23:21.000 Actually, there was one time in the mall in Sephora, of all places, which.
00:23:26.000 Got PC Optimum points?
00:23:28.000 Visit Shoppers Drug Mart for the bonus redemption event.
00:23:30.000 And get more for your points.
00:23:32.000 Friday, February 13th to Wednesday, February 18th.
00:23:35.000 Valid in store and online.
00:23:40.000 It kind of isn't really that shocking.
00:23:42.000 Where there was a person standing in the checkout line ahead of me and my mom.
00:23:46.000 I was with my mom.
00:23:47.000 And the person is how you would imagine they would look, right?
00:23:50.000 Like the colored hair.
00:23:51.000 I don't really know if it was a woman or a man.
00:23:54.000 But they turn around in line and say, are you Riley Gaines?
00:23:58.000 And I said, yes.
00:23:59.000 And this person says, interesting.
00:24:01.000 And then just turns around and that was it.
00:24:04.000 So that's like outside of events and protesters who do want to kill me.
00:24:09.000 That was probably the most unpleasant interaction I've ever had.
00:24:12.000 So I've made it out pretty good.
00:24:14.000 And it speaks to how online is just simply not real life.
00:24:17.000 I hope you guys find encouragement in that.
00:24:19.000 I've had tons of people come up to me and like smiling ear to ear and like grown men truthfully in tears who just thank me.
00:24:26.000 You know, I have a daughter or a granddaughter.
00:24:29.000 Thank you for what you do.
00:24:30.000 I'm so grateful.
00:24:31.000 Yada, yada, yada.
00:24:32.000 This was like my second interaction that was less than pleasant.
00:24:35.000 That was not overly positive in real life.
00:24:37.000 And Louie just was not willing to let this one slide.
00:24:41.000 Now, there were a couple rows open at the back of the plane, which we could see.
00:24:45.000 And so Louie taps her on her shoulder and says, hey, we're actually going to sit on the back of the plane because we know some people like you just don't like babies.
00:24:55.000 And you don't really like my wife, who's a hero to many.
00:24:58.000 She looked like she had seen a literal ghost, which was kind of hilarious.
00:25:03.000 I don't care if she doesn't like me because the reality is there's tons of people in this world who don't like me.
00:25:09.000 There's probably tons of people in this world who don't like you for the policies that you support, the people that you vote for.
00:25:15.000 So I have learned to not let that bother me at all.
00:25:18.000 But Louie, he is always in my corner, and that is something that I really appreciate and value.
00:25:25.000 Last thing I want to leave you guys with is some pieces of advice.
00:25:29.000 First one being, put your phone down.
00:25:33.000 I promise you, whatever is on your phone, it does not matter nearly as much as the little baby that you're holding in your arms.
00:25:40.000 You as a parent, like I think about this often, like me and my husband and like my family, my mom, so her grandma, that's all that baby knows.
00:25:50.000 Those are the only bonds that she has.
00:25:53.000 That baby is dependent.
00:25:54.000 She is reliant on you.
00:25:57.000 So the thing on the phone, it can wait, which I didn't really think that I was going to be this way, to be totally honest with you.
00:26:04.000 But there are days when I will leave my phone plugged up, charging in the bedroom, or maybe I'm cleaning and I'm putting things away and I put my phone down and I don't find it for hours because I don't go looking for it.
00:26:18.000 And it's not even in like intentional in doing that.
00:26:22.000 It's just that I'm so consumed with the baby and not because she's taking up a lot of my time because she will literally just be sitting there sleeping and I will find myself staring at her.
00:26:31.000 Like my entire camera roll are pictures of her sleeping and the photo is no different than the one from before.
00:26:37.000 But even still, like you find yourself totally in awe and amazed at this miraculous being how amazing life is.
00:26:46.000 So I realized the things that at one point I cared very deeply about, I just don't care as much about now or some of the things that at one point I believe to be kind of mundane, I think are critical now, if that makes sense.
00:27:02.000 So being a mom has shifted my perspective on virtually everything, certainly for the better.
00:27:07.000 Last thing, and I alluded to this in the beginning of this podcast, was I've had so many moms reach out asking, you know, how do you feel comfortable taking your baby out in public knowing that you didn't vaccinate her?
00:27:17.000 Which I've been very upfront and honest and transparent about that as well, the vaccine situation for newborns and what we did and how we came to the conclusions that we did, which maybe that's a different episode.
00:27:28.000 But of course, her safety and her health being the most important thing.
00:27:33.000 Here's what I will tell you about traveling with an infant that is vaccinated or isn't vaccinated for that matter, is that they're resilient.
00:27:41.000 You as a parent, you're allowed to breathe a little bit.
00:27:44.000 Again, I'm not a doctor, but it seems to be that for healthy, full-term babies, which is what I'm speaking to, I'm not speaking to babies that have medical conditions or are premature or maybe you're in a high outbreak area.
00:27:58.000 I can't speak to that.
00:27:59.000 But what we have found, if you have a healthy, full-term baby, outings, while being mindful, are a normal and generally safe part of early life.
00:28:08.000 And you as a parent, you have more control over these circumstances and situations than you realize.
00:28:14.000 You can ask people to wash their hands or sanitize their hands prior to holding the baby.
00:28:19.000 You can skip visits with people who don't really feel that great or feeling under the weather.
00:28:24.000 You can get a stroller cover or baby carrier in crowded indoor places, which isn't airtight, but kind of like this light barrier between the outside world and your baby.
00:28:33.000 You can keep your baby close to you instead of letting others hold the baby.
00:28:37.000 There are precautions and practical risk reductions that you can take.
00:28:42.000 But I think for me and the type of person that I am, total isolation and being kind of locked up in your home with you and your baby, that would be really hard on me.
00:28:52.000 Take away the baby from this equation.
00:28:54.000 That would be hard on me as the mom and my mental health.
00:28:57.000 I would feel like I would be anxious and truthfully depressed in this sort of environment.
00:29:04.000 So what we have found that works for Margo is that she benefits, as well as me as a mom, we benefit from safe social exposure.
00:29:13.000 And if you are a breastfeeding mom, know that your immune factors are going to the baby through the milk.
00:29:20.000 That helps line the baby's gut and respiratory tract.
00:29:23.000 And it's not saying your baby is necessarily bulletproof, but it is support for your baby.
00:29:28.000 Humans weren't made to be injected with copious amounts of mercury and aluminum, which we did just see some exciting news from Secretary Kennedy about removing mercury from vaccines.
00:29:38.000 Anyways, besides the point, our bodies were made for this.
00:29:41.000 We know how to react.
00:29:42.000 Again, I'm speaking to healthy babies and parents who live a healthy lifestyle.
00:29:47.000 I appreciate you guys, as always.
00:29:49.000 So thank you for tuning in to the Riley Gaines show and we will see you later this week.
00:29:53.000 And in the meantime, if you guys ever have any sort of questions that you have for me, things you're curious about, I highly encourage you guys to reach out.
00:30:01.000 You can do that over Instagram at the Riley Gaines show or you can reach out to my personal page, Riley G Barker.
00:30:08.000 Appreciate you guys.
00:30:09.000 See you next week.