Blonde Ambition: Navigating the Foster Care System with Actress Laura Leigh Hughes

03/13/24 • 38 min

What an absolute *treat* this week as we chat with powerhouse Laura Leigh Hughes, LA-based actress and founder of The Unusual Suspects Theater Company, a non-profit serving youth. Laura is candid, funny, and shares her incredible journey of navigating the foster care system to adopt her now 15-year old daughter. And hot off the heels of her concert, Maria & Ann-Sophie share their lifelong love of another blonde performer and mom -- Madonna.

Join us as we talk:

How the foster care system impacts thousands of children each year
The ins and outs of adopting through LA’s foster care system
Systemic racism embedded in the system
Unexpected bonds formed between a foster child’s different caregivers
Assumptions people make about adoption, and the challenges and realities of interracial adoption

For more surprising and authentic conversations about family-forming, subscribe to Our Families, Ourselves:

Apple Podcasts | Spotify Podcasts | Google PodcastsJoin the conversation and follow us on Instagram:

@ourfamiliesourselves

Send us a text

Join us as we talk:

How the foster care system impacts thousands of children each year
The ins and outs of adopting through LA’s foster care system
Systemic racism embedded in the system
Unexpected bonds formed between a foster child’s different caregivers
Assumptions people make about adoption, and the challenges and realities of interracial adoption

For more surprising and authentic conversations about family-forming, subscribe to Our Families, Ourselves:

Apple Podcasts | Spotify Podcasts | Google PodcastsJoin the conversation and follow us on Instagram:

@ourfamiliesourselves

Previous Episode

An LGBTQ Family’s Surrogacy Journey with Corey Johnson & Meyer (7 months old!)

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It’s our youngest guest yet! Seven month-old Meyer and his dad, LA-based actor Corey, tell us their family’s experience with surrogacy. Maria and Ann-Sophie also get political this week as we rail against the dismantling of reproductive rights in the US. Tune in for our rant, stay for the delightful guest and adorable baby sounds.

Listen to learn about:

How surrogacy works from start to finish
The relationship between a surrogate and expectant parents
The ups and downs of a fertility journey
What goes into the decision-making process of how to form your family
How the definition of family can change after you have children
Maria & Ann-Sophie’s feelings on reproductive justice and the current political climate

For more surprising and authentic conversations about family-forming, subscribe to Our Families, Ourselves:

Apple Podcasts | Spotify Podcasts | Google Podcasts

Join the conversation and follow us on Instagram:

@ourfamiliesourselves

Next Episode

A Lifetime Original: How An Adoptee Found His Bio Parents with Mark Caffee

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It could be a Lifetime movie or a work of fiction, but it’s one of the most incredible stories we’ve heard. Mark Caffee, communications consultant (and Ann-Sophie’s former boss), shares the remarkable journey of meeting his bio mom and bio dad — 50 years after he was adopted. Grab a mug of warm tea and get out your tissues for this episode!

Listen as we chat about: