Sisterly Advice

With more than 30 years of combined parenting experience, Steblay and Wagner have a first-hand understanding of the trials and tribulations facing moms in today's society. “First and foremost we are moms,” Wagner says. “We have the practical life experience of raising kids ourselves and we each have professional training in child development.”

Steblay’s children are 15  and 13 years old; Wagner’s are 16, 10 and 7 years old. Steblay has worked as a licensed parent educator in Eden Prairie and Wagner is a nurse with professional experience in pediatrics, OB/GYN, allergy and dermatology, family practice, internal medicine and occupational medicine.

But don't let their professional experience scare you. “It’s not our job to tell you what’s right for your family, but we’ll explore options for moms on our show. We’re like the neighbors you’d invite over for coffee,” says XXX. Their job is to act as a sounding board.

“Both of us continue to be enthusiastic lifelong learners,” Wagner says. “For example, right now I am studying the impact of traditional nutrition on disorders such as autism, ADD and ADHD.” The Mom on the Go Network team also speaks to a large number of MOMS clubs (aimed at at-home mothers) and PTOs on topics such as self-care and nutrition to educational engagement.

Of course, the jump to Web programming was a big leap for this small organization. “We weren’t sure how that was going to be received,” Wagner says. “The response really floored us. We got more e-mail from moms than we ever thought we’d get, saying things like, ‘When I listen to your show, it’s like my sisters are sitting in my kitchen.’ We also never anticipated that we’d gain listeners from around the world. I mean how does a mom in Thailand or Australia find the two of us entertaining? They often comment on our ‘Minn-e-sooo-tan’ accents.”

Approximately 1,000 individuals listen to the Web casts at any given time, the majority of them moms in the suburban Southwest.  Almost all the listeners tune in between 9 p.m. and 2 a.m. (after the kids have gone to bed) to hear about a wealth of topics, from whether a family can afford to have mom stay at home with the kids to how to keep the fire in your marriage after a baby arrive. “If a mom feels it and thinks it, we cover it,” Wagner says.

Wagner and Steblay would eventually like to make the next step to Web TV. “This has always been a show we’ve done out of passion,” Wagner says. “We both have day jobs that help fund this in its current form, but we’d love to be able to do this full time on a TV format. Like I always say, dream big, right?”

Maura Keller is a Plymouth-based freelance writer.

TO LEARN MORE
To listen to an upcoming or archived Mom on the Go Network Webcast, visit www.momonthego.net.