Carmen Jose + 8 kids

Carmen met Jose while he was at work, and he loves to tell people that everything that’s happened since is *completely* her fault. Why? Because, according to him, he was just minding his business, working, and she came in and turned his whole life upside down! "I was just trying to do my job, and now look at me—8 kids, an RV, house and a podcast!"

How it started

A special note from Carmen

In December 2021, I took a trip to Harrisburg, PA, for a hands-on skills class to further my birth knowledge. Little did I know, life had other plans! When I checked into my hotel, guess who was working the front desk? Yep, Jose. At that time, I was freshly separated after 15 years with the father of five of my kids, and the *last* thing I wanted was to meet someone new. My focus was all on me and my kids, but sometimes life throws you a curveball, and you just have to go with the flow.

Fast forward, we moved in together, but life decided to take another twist. In June 2022, Jose was incarcerated, and boom—we became a long-distance couple. Oh, and here’s the icing on the cake: two weeks later, I found out I was pregnant with our daughter, Kylian (and yes, you’ll need to watch our TikTok videos to figure out how to pronounce that one—that’s your invitation to check us out).

After 13 months of weekly prison visits, six video chats a month, and lots of waiting, Jose finally came home, and our long-distance saga ended. Fast forward to now: we’re living in Southern Illinois in an RV, have a new baby (born late July, just a year after Jose came home), and we even bought a house.

We can’t wait to share our journey with you, so make sure to join our mailing list to stay updated on all the craziness!