April 9, 2025 • 26 mins
Caitlin Thielen, Vice President of the Thielen Foundation, joins Kristen to reflect on some of her most significant achievements as a female leader in the nonprofit world. They also discussed her family’s move from Minnesota and the experience of being married to an NFL player, all while balancing the responsibilities of motherhood.
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
Ad and I were both very blessed to grow up
in great households. We got to go to school, we
got to play sports, travel, sports, all the things, and
a lot of kids don't have that nowadays. They just
don't have the resources they're you know, the money. They
might drow up in different situations. Our mission statement's very broad.
It's helping you to reach their whole potential.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Welcome to the Inspire Her Podcast, presented by Atrium Help.
This is a podcast series for Panthers fans where we
highlight admirable women from across the Carolinas as they share
stories and lessons from their lives and careers. I'm your host,
Kristin Balboni, and today we have Caitlyn Thelen, vice president
of the Thelin Foundation. Now, Panthers fans may be a
little bit more familiar with her husband, Adam Thelen, but
(00:47):
this is the Thelin that dare I say runs things
behind the scenes. She has an Instagram account that you
should follow if you're not and to boot she is
a VP of a nonprofit. So, Caitlyn, thank you so
much for joining us. Weallypreciate it.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Yeah, thanks for having me and I'm excited.
Speaker 2 (01:03):
So I know you're busy, You've got a thousand things
going on. What is your typical day, Like, like, where
does this fall in your typical day? Because we appreciate
you taking time out.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
Yeah, so I just did drop off with my daughter Cora.
She goes to preschool a couple of days a week,
just actually right down the street, so I can walk
her there. But I usually drop her off and then
I usually, you know, either get a workout in or
do the laundry. And I just worked out, I ran,
and then I have laundry going, and I'm about to
(01:33):
make chili for tonight because my boys have sports, so
I'm always just running around and her class gets done
here at one, so it's not very much time. It
goes really fast. So then I grab her and then
she actually has soccer shots, so we go right to there.
So every day's a little different, but that's typically a
normal day. Sometimes I'll meet up with a friend and
(01:54):
go for a walk or just I'll have like a
meeting with someone. But yeah, it's definitely nicer now when
Adams has a little more free time, but he's still
training pretty hard, so it's.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Funny we are in I have a three year old
and a ten month old, and so it's kind of
the same preschool schedule where you're like, okay, as soon
as you get over there, you kind of have to
come back. But we are not in the sports phase
at all yet. And I was just talking to someone
about that, where you're in the thick of all of
it right now, all different ages.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
That is impressive.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
You'll have to give me some tips as my little
ones get a little crazy.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Our weekends are crazy right now, but it's fun. We
like love it.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
So yeah, I mean, and like you said, Adam has
a little bit more time at home, but then I
imagine their sports still continue in the fall as well
when football season is going on.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Yep, yeah, so's he's loving it. Right now, Adam loves it.
He's coaching Asher, our eight year old, in flags football,
which of course Asher just loves. And then he gets
to go to all their stuff on the weekends, which
is great. But yeah, comes fall, it's a lot harder.
He misses all their like Saturday Sunday stuff, which is
(03:03):
a bummer. But but he loves being around more in
the off season just so he can he can take
take them to their practices and games. And whatnot.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Of course, of course, and I bet the other parents
and the kids are very excited to have him as
a flag football.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Yeah, it was funny. One of my friends came over
to me this past Saturday. Adam was coaching, and the
I guess my friend said that the other parents from
the other team were like, that's not fair. They have
a ceiling coaching them. We want him to coach our team.
So it's just kind of funny, but it's sweet. They
(03:39):
love it and he loves it, So that's funny.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
I two former Panthers legends, LUKEI. Cley and Greg Olsen
coach a team where Greg Olsen's kid played, and it's
like you see the other team and they're just like
and Greg said that he was getting information from like
Sean McVay, like he's reaching out to other NFL coaches
and drawing up plays, and you're just like, you see
these other little kids come in and they're like, oh
my gosh, what we what do we do?
Speaker 1 (04:03):
How do we compete with that?
Speaker 2 (04:05):
So it seems like you guys have been here a
couple of years, and it sounds very much like you
have integrated seamlessly into the community. But as we were
saying before we started rolling, you and I met incredibly,
incredibly briefly for like one second the first day that
you and your kids came down and said hi to everyone.
There's just this for anyone who doesn't know, it's just
kind of this onslaught where the players and their families
(04:27):
come in for the day. You meet a thousand people,
you get pictures taken, you get videos taken, You guys
get to run around on the field a little bit.
And I remember asking Adam that day, I said, and
correct me if I'm wrong here. You two grew up
in Minnesota, and then obviously he played for the went
to school there, and then he played for the Vikings,
if if I'm correct, So this was the first time
(04:48):
that you had moved out of Minnesota?
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Am I right about that? Yep? Yes, first time?
Speaker 2 (04:53):
And how was that transition to leave everything that you know,
you've ever known essentially.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
Yeah, it was. It was definitely tough. Yeah, you are correct.
We both grew up there, both went to school there,
our kids were born there. My parents were right down
the road from us, So it was definitely bittersweet. We
were actually excited to like kind of leave and try
somewhere else. I think, like I talk to people now,
(05:20):
and honestly, I think it was a blessing because we've
fallen in love with Charlotte and the people here. But
it definitely is a big transition. And what most people
don't know is, like that's pretty normal for like NFL
families and other sport families, like professionally, so we have
been so blessed to be in the place where we
(05:40):
grew up for ten years, Like that's pretty unheard of
for the NFL. And then for me, especially as a wife,
like it was so amazing, like having my parents there
while my kids, my three kids were very little, which
you know is super hard, and especially with Adam's schedule
and his busyness, it was just such a blessing to
(06:01):
like have family and friends that I grew up with
and Adam grew up with, and we would have people
at every home game and it was just a really cool,
cool time just to be there for that long. So
it was it was a blessing, but it was definitely
definitely emotional leaving. But like I said, I think overall,
(06:22):
we're very glad that it happened because we've gotten to
experience a new place. Then who knows, we maybe never
would have left Minnesota if it wasn't for his career.
And so it's just awesome to be able to come
here and our kids to experience a new city, and
also to bring our foundation here and help out in
this area as well as Minnesota.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
Yeah, I want to get to the foundation because you
guys did so much in Minnesota and still do so
much in Minnesota, and then I know it was a
priority to bring those resources here and to help kids
in this area. And so can you tell us a
little bit about the Thelan Foundation and what its mission is.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Yeah, so it's been six years now since we started
the Field Foundation. When Adam kind of got into the NFL,
we knew within the first couple of years that we
wanted to do something and help in some way. We
looked up to his teammates and his older teammates on
the Vikings who had their own foundations and saw all
(07:23):
the work that they did in the community, and we
knew we wanted to do something. We just didn't know
exactly what. So long story shirt, we kind of were like, oh, well,
we have a passion for youth. We both love youth.
We both love sports, so we kind of just started
with that, and our mission statements very broad. It's helping
youth reach their full potential. So ad and I were
(07:45):
both very blessed to grow up in great households. We
got to go to school, we got to play sports,
grow up, travel sports, all the things, and a lot
of kids don't have that nowadays. They just don't have
the resources, they don't have the money. They might grow
up in different situations, so it's pretty broad. We do
(08:05):
a lot with different organizations. We have done a lot
over the years, but we started with mental health in
a local hospital in Minnesota, Maysonic Children's Hospital. We started
with the behavioral health unit there and we just loved it,
and the nurses and staff there were just so thankful
because it's such an underlooked topic and illness that a
(08:26):
lot of people don't put focus on. So that was
an amazing, amazing start for our foundation, and then from
there we kind of just kept going. We did we
did lights on a high school football field that didn't
have lights for years because Adam and I loved Friday
night lights growing up, so these kids didn't get to
(08:47):
experience that, so we're like, why not this is a great,
great situation for us to invest in and help these
kids enjoy Friday night lights with their class and their
parents get to go and whatnot. So we've done that.
We've done a lot of inner city youth. We do
a lot Thanksgiving time, Christmas time, so and now we've
(09:07):
done a project through sports. We work with different high
schools that don't have really great weight rooms. So we've
done six weight rooms at high school as. We did
four in Minnesota, two here so far in Charlotte, and
those have been really awesome to the kids and the
coaches and the staff at those schools just love it.
(09:28):
And it's for the whole community to use, not just
sports teams. So those have been awesome the last couple
of years as well. So, yeah, it's been There's a
lot more to it, but that's kind of long story
short of just how we've been able to help.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Yeah, So with all of that going on, and we
talked about what your typical day looks like and like
you said, running a nonprofit, you're a mom in the
thick of so many things. I was impressed that you
said I got to run in because that is not
on my that is not something that is on my
daily list, and you know, I struggle with, well, how
(10:02):
do I balance everything? And it feels like my attention
is being pulled in different directions. Like I said, I
only have two little ones, and I think there's a
lot of other women you know, and that's who listens
to this podcast that can feel that way too. So
how do you approach it all? And how do you
prioritize certain things on certain days?
Speaker 1 (10:20):
Yeah, it's a lot. I kind of like on Sunday nights,
I kind of like try to plan out the week,
especially depending on what sports are like each night we
maybe have like one night off or two. Maybe a
week of like no one having anything, So I tried
a meal plan. I try to do all that on
Sunday nights. But yeah, I really I really need to
(10:42):
get a workout in. I feel like for myself, for
my mental health and physical health, and just it kind
of starts my day on a good note, especially when
the rest of the day is so busy. And I
also am very I try to like be very present
with the kids when they are home, so I want
to get all things done. I try to get all
the things done when they're not here. But it can
(11:04):
be a lot. Yeah, I just suggest, you know, trying
to plan as much as you can. But also like
it does go by so fast, Like I feel like
I don't even remember when my oldest was like two
or three and now he's playing like travel based. It's
just crazy how fast it goes. So yeah, just really
trying to slow down. But also, like I said, I
(11:27):
need to plan thing so that helps me a lot,
and especially during football season, I need to be on
top of it.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
Yeah, I mean, goodness, gracious, I don't know that I
could handle all that. So aside from working out, is
there do you have time to do anything else for
yourself if you were gonna Like for me, it's like
I'm I'm gonna get a massage if I can. Do
you have a chance to and I know this is
a season, but do you have a chance to get
to do anything for yourself that you really enjoy?
Speaker 1 (11:55):
Yes? I do try to do some of that too.
And Adam's really good, especially in the off season about
like hey, go go for a walk, go get your
nails done. Go. He's really helpful with that because he
knows I need upbreak once in a while. But yeah,
especially like I said when my kids were younger, I
would even have, like we don't have a nanny or anything,
but I would have either my parents come over or
(12:16):
just hire a babysitter once or twice a week to
just like I said, go for a walk, or go
to a store, go get coffee with a friend, go
get your hair done, your nails done something. I think
that's so important to take time, especially with young kids,
take time for yourself. You need to put yourself first.
And that's kind of why for me, Like I do
(12:36):
love working out because it's just a stress relief for me.
A lot of mornings, honestly, I am. You'll ask Adam,
I'm up at like five forty five. I like to
just get it done by seven. I come upstairs, I
make all the kids breakfast, pack their lunches, Like I
just like to start my day like that, and it
just puts me in a good mood. But yeah, I
(12:57):
high like suggest getting like a babysitter for having your
family help. I mean, it really does take a village
like raising kids.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Yes, my mom lives nearby too, and we don't know
what we would do without her. And I remember, like
you said, just getting that babysitter or getting that person
to help. Like I remember when I was when my son,
my oldest, was really little, and I would get out.
I would go to Target and walk around Haylen. Let
me tell you, I felt like I was at the
spa all day long. I was like, this is the
most relaxing thing.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
It's the buzz ever. Ever, So tell.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
Me a little bit more about your Instagram account because
also I'm impressed that you keep it up as well.
You know, I feel like if I can take a
couple of pictures of my kid, I have one for
the day, and that feels like a little bit of
a creative outlet and something that you put time into.
Speaker 1 (13:45):
Yeah, so that's kind of a long story too. But
I started just an Instagram account like anyone. When Adam
first started, it kind of blew up because of who
Adam was, Like I said, we're both from there. Adam
was like mister Minnesota, Like everyone loved him. Everyone knew
who he was. He went to school college in Minnesota
(14:06):
Division two. So my Instagram cluse up who Adam was
kind of blew up, and I'm like, oh, this is
kind of weird. Like I just post mom things and
like whatever. But so a couple of years into him
playing in the NFL, I was like, I just I
really love I really loved cooking, I really love fitness.
I really like to share just real moments from our family,
(14:29):
especially having a husband who's, you know, a professional athlete.
I just like was like, we're honestly just such a
normal family. I feel like people loved to see inside
of our house a little bit and into our lives
because you can see it on TV and whatnot, but
it's it's not always like that, I feel like. So
(14:50):
I started a separate Instagram called like with missus T
and I actually started my own blog. So I was
on typing up like different recipes, I was being up
fitness routines, I was sharing vacations we went on that
like we really enjoyed as a family, So it kind
of was like an outlet for me. I feel like
(15:11):
also just because people knew who Adam was, but they
didn't really know who I was, which I'm not saying
like I needed them to know who I was. I
just wanted to showcase like this is this is my
these are my hobbies, like this is what I like
to do, and people like loved it. They were like,
share more recipes, blah blah, because I'm all about like easy,
healthy recipes, especially here with little ones. So I kind
(15:33):
of just did that for a couple of years and
I loved it. People loved it. And then when I
had my third, third baby, Korush, which life got a
lot crazier, I feel like, and I kind of didn't
have time to, you know, write things up anymore. So
I kept that Instagram account and I still share a
lot more personable stuff on there, and I keep my
(15:54):
missus T nineteen account more of just daily stuff and
lighthearted family stuff, football stuff, but I go pretty deep
into my life with missus T. I share recipes there,
I share workouts, I share supplements. I like stuff like that,
and honestly, it's really fun for me. It's kind of
a distraction, just like working out. It's kind of just
(16:14):
a nice little distraction for me to share some of
my hobbies and whatnot. But also, you got to be
careful because social media nowadays can kind of take over
your life. So I'm trying to make sure I have
a good balance with that. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:28):
Absolutely, Okay, give me a couple of your favorite recipes,
like you said, I know that. You're like, if you
were gonna give me a couple of suggestions, You're like, yes,
like this is a family winner.
Speaker 1 (16:38):
Yes. So the last couple of weeks, I've been on
this like healthy brownie kick. I love trying new like
recipes off Pinterest too. But there's this pumpkin peanut butter one.
And Adam does like not eat sweets, especially during football season.
He's so good, like, wow, I have such a big
sweet tooth safe. I love chocolate and I love like
the sour gummy type. So I'll make these healthy ones
(17:01):
and he eats, he pounds them. He loves them, and
it has protein in it, so it's like healthy. But
that would be one definitely the last couple of weeks.
My kids love them. They're the chili I'm making actually
for tonight is like five ingredients. It's you just throw
it all in the crock pot. That's like one of
my go tos because you're getting protein and being a
lot of beans in it. It's great. My boys love it.
(17:23):
Cora loves it. That's another one. Energy balls I make
probably weekly, so that has like, oh it's peanut butter,
flaxy chia seed, chocolate chips. Adam eats like three of
those a knight. That's like his night snack, which is great.
Those would probably be my top three right now. Patver
and I love like nachos, tacos, we make oven nachos, kalapinos, beans,
(17:49):
I don't know. Yeah, there's just a lot. There's a
lot of good ones I make, like rice bowls. Yea,
it's a week just throwing like corn, avocado, chicken rice.
I don't know, just easy things like that. But some nights,
I'm not saying my kids eat all of them. A
lot of nights honestly, I'm making two or three different meals,
which is not probably as they need to eat too.
(18:10):
And it's hard with sports because you either feed them
at like four o'clock or like seven after their sports.
So a lot of times I do like a hearty
snack on the way to like baseball, and then he'll
I'll have like food ready for him at like seven
when he gets solved.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Yeah, it's a lot, but I my stomach is already rumbling,
like I kids, you not all of that sounds so good?
Speaker 1 (18:33):
Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Okay, So we have been talking a lot about like
the reason you started your Instagram account your Life with
Missus T and and Missus T nineteen and then your
blog as well, is to kind of, you know, show
people that it's not all glitz and glamour all of
the time, and like you said, it's very relatable. So
I want to know what are the biggest misconceptions about
(18:54):
the spouse or the family of an NFL player, because
I'm sure you've run into that a lot as you
post these things.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Yeah, there's definitely a lot. Especially I think there's been
a couple TV shows just on like wags, which means
I think it's like wife of wives and girlfriends, I
think girlfriends, You're right, Yeah, I'm like, I don't even
know whives and girlfriends of professional athletes, and I've seen
them before, and honestly, some some families and relationships maybe
(19:24):
are like that. But I know a lot of other
families in the NFL that are very, very normal. So
I kind of wanted to just show that. And that's
why I feel like I do share a lot on
social media because I just want people to know we
struggle with some of the same things other families struggle with.
Our kids are not perfect, you know, it's hard. I've
(19:46):
been taking you know, our kids to NFL games since
they were one week old, and like I hold them
the whole time, like I don't have I mean, I'm
not saying that like nanny's are great, Like I just
never have had one my family by me that has helped.
I probably would have had a nanny if we were
on a different team or change teams multiple times. But
(20:08):
I just wanted to share that, like I'm a real mom,
Like this is my job, just like a lot of
others stay at home moms, and it's hard and you
need to you know, be present with your kids and
even during times when your husband's not there. Yeah. I
don't know. I just wanted to show show that we
struggle too and that, you know, I just wanted to
(20:29):
also share like some of just some of the insights
from like a professional athlete, wife or significant other. Yeah,
I don't know. That's kind of just why I share
share a lot about our life.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
Because I think we all find and I guess this
is why social media has become such a thing, and
certainly as women, but everyone you when you hear or
you see someone else and you go, oh, okay, like
I deal with that thing too, you know, I like
we were just talking about you know, like I have
heard from people that have started the sports thing and
this and that, and you know, I'm asking you for
recipes and so it's nice just to find whether not.
(21:08):
You know, you can find it whether in your own
close group of friends or you can reach out to
people on social media or see on social media. You go, oh, okay, like,
I'm not the only one that deals with guilt because
I have a thousand things going on or is trying
to figure out do I wake up early? Do I
all of that stuff? Do I have to stay up
late to get all of these things done? And that
is why I think your content is so relatable because
(21:29):
you go, oh okay, like, this is still something that
I struggle with, and sometimes people make it look so easy.
And you mentioned you mentioned the NFL Sundays, which I
know must just be a crazy time and taking your
kids from a very young age one week old, that
is amazing. So what does a typical NFL Sunday look
like for your family?
Speaker 1 (21:51):
Yeah? Just quickly going back to the real life thing too,
just I like to showcase like Adam too. I think
people love seen the professional athletes like outside of their element.
Like you can see Adam on Sunday, see him like
ball out on the field, and then he comes home
and he's still got three kids to attend to and
(22:11):
he's tired and he's limben around the house, but he
will put those kids to bed. And it's just funny
looking back because when he first started, we didn't have kids,
and it was he wishes he took a lot more
time on his body and mind where he sees all
these twenty two year olds now and they go home
and they can do whatever they want. But Adam comes
home every day after a long day, you know. So
(22:34):
I just wanted to I like to share one of
that side of it too. He's such a great dab.
But yeah, NFL Sundays are crazy at our house. Usually
we have people in town, which is something that most
people don't know as usually the players stay in the
hotel even if they have a home game, they stay
in hotel the night before, so hosting family and stuff
(22:55):
usually falls on the girls and the family.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
Are they staying at our house?
Speaker 1 (23:00):
Yes, usually family stays at our house and friends if
they come. If there's too many people, you know, someone
will get a hotel. But it's a lot. It's a
lot of meal planning and food, a lot of food.
But yeah, and I get pretty stressed on game days
as well, so I need to make sure that I'm
in a good mindset because I also have to get
(23:22):
my kids ready. Yeah, so it's just a lot. Game
days are a lot, you know, making breakfast. Honestly, this
last year I started even going to church on the
way to games, which I feel like it was good
honestly for me because the kids got to go in
their rooms and I got just some quiet time before
the games, which I liked. But yeah, usually it's busy.
(23:44):
We're making breakfast, getting dressed, maybe hanging out with cousins
if they're here, or family or friends, and then church
and then shape to the game. And then we're there
for a long time because we wait usually for Adam
after and then our tradition is getting pizzas right after
every Sunday. The last few years, we've been getting pizzas
(24:06):
after every game. So we come home, everyone watches like
Adam watched, Adam watches more football, but the kids will
watch a movie, shower, pizza, bed school. The next day,
it's a busy weekends are busy in the fall.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
And then do you, guys, I imagine traveling with three kids,
you stay home during the away games and I imagine
everyone gets in front of the TV and watch his dad.
Speaker 1 (24:28):
Yes, so most away games we stay home, especially now
that the kids have things on the weekends. But I
have tried over the last few years to go to
at least a couple away games. Either. Sometimes I do
a girls trip to like a fun away game, and
my parents will stay with my kids. I also the
last two years have done date like date games with
(24:51):
my boys now that they're older. So I took Asher
to where was the first game, New Orleans. I took
them on a day trip. We flew in and out
the same day, and he just loved that. He loves
doing that each year. And then I also took both
boys on a road trip to Atlanta for the last
game of this season and they loved that. So we
stayed in the hotel. And so I usually try to
(25:13):
make it to a few games. I'll probably try to
make it to a few more this year, just because
Adam's getting close to the end.
Speaker 2 (25:20):
I'm cover my ears. Yes, Panthers fans to listen to that.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
Yes, I know, so I'm gonna really try try to
get to it. Soak it in because it's pretty special,
especially bring the kids live in the moment.
Speaker 2 (25:33):
That the moment, Yeah, that seems to be your your mantra,
just living in the moment and being present for everything.
And by the way, I bet you sleep so good
at night. I just wanted to throw that in before
we end. I bet you sleep like a baby at
the end of the night with all yes.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
AV and I are early bedtimes. When the kids go
down at by eight, we are tired. I bet, I bet.
I know. Nothing is better.
Speaker 2 (25:56):
Like my husband used to stay up, like we'd watch
a movie, like we'd have a class, whe whatever. Now kids,
you're like, oh, nothing feels better than just like getting
in the bed and like turning on a show or
reading a book or something luxury.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
It's like two nights, watch an hour and a half movie.
Speaker 2 (26:10):
Oh I'm falling asleep all the time, There's no doubt
about that.
Speaker 1 (26:14):
And then I wake up.
Speaker 2 (26:14):
I'm like, I saw it.
Speaker 1 (26:15):
I saw it.
Speaker 2 (26:17):
Caitlin, thank you so so much for taking this time.
I have enjoyed this so much, and I know that
anyone listening has enjoyed it as well, but I really
appreciate you taking time out of your very busy schedule
to chat with me and to and to let us
in a little bit more.
Speaker 1 (26:32):
Yeah no, that was awesome. Thank you so much for
having me
Ad and I were both very blessed to grow up
in great households. We got to go to school, we
got to play sports, travel, sports, all the things, and
a lot of kids don't have that nowadays. They just
don't have the resources they're you know, the money. They
might drow up in different situations. Our mission statement's very broad.
It's helping you to reach their whole potential.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Welcome to the Inspire Her Podcast, presented by Atrium Help.
This is a podcast series for Panthers fans where we
highlight admirable women from across the Carolinas as they share
stories and lessons from their lives and careers. I'm your host,
Kristin Balboni, and today we have Caitlyn Thelen, vice president
of the Thelin Foundation. Now, Panthers fans may be a
little bit more familiar with her husband, Adam Thelen, but
(00:47):
this is the Thelin that dare I say runs things
behind the scenes. She has an Instagram account that you
should follow if you're not and to boot she is
a VP of a nonprofit. So, Caitlyn, thank you so
much for joining us. Weallypreciate it.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Yeah, thanks for having me and I'm excited.
Speaker 2 (01:03):
So I know you're busy, You've got a thousand things
going on. What is your typical day, Like, like, where
does this fall in your typical day? Because we appreciate
you taking time out.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
Yeah, so I just did drop off with my daughter Cora.
She goes to preschool a couple of days a week,
just actually right down the street, so I can walk
her there. But I usually drop her off and then
I usually, you know, either get a workout in or
do the laundry. And I just worked out, I ran,
and then I have laundry going, and I'm about to
(01:33):
make chili for tonight because my boys have sports, so
I'm always just running around and her class gets done
here at one, so it's not very much time. It
goes really fast. So then I grab her and then
she actually has soccer shots, so we go right to there.
So every day's a little different, but that's typically a
normal day. Sometimes I'll meet up with a friend and
(01:54):
go for a walk or just I'll have like a
meeting with someone. But yeah, it's definitely nicer now when
Adams has a little more free time, but he's still
training pretty hard, so it's.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Funny we are in I have a three year old
and a ten month old, and so it's kind of
the same preschool schedule where you're like, okay, as soon
as you get over there, you kind of have to
come back. But we are not in the sports phase
at all yet. And I was just talking to someone
about that, where you're in the thick of all of
it right now, all different ages.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
That is impressive.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
You'll have to give me some tips as my little
ones get a little crazy.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Our weekends are crazy right now, but it's fun. We
like love it.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
So yeah, I mean, and like you said, Adam has
a little bit more time at home, but then I
imagine their sports still continue in the fall as well
when football season is going on.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Yep, yeah, so's he's loving it. Right now, Adam loves it.
He's coaching Asher, our eight year old, in flags football,
which of course Asher just loves. And then he gets
to go to all their stuff on the weekends, which
is great. But yeah, comes fall, it's a lot harder.
He misses all their like Saturday Sunday stuff, which is
(03:03):
a bummer. But but he loves being around more in
the off season just so he can he can take
take them to their practices and games. And whatnot.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Of course, of course, and I bet the other parents
and the kids are very excited to have him as
a flag football.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Yeah, it was funny. One of my friends came over
to me this past Saturday. Adam was coaching, and the
I guess my friend said that the other parents from
the other team were like, that's not fair. They have
a ceiling coaching them. We want him to coach our team.
So it's just kind of funny, but it's sweet. They
(03:39):
love it and he loves it, So that's funny.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
I two former Panthers legends, LUKEI. Cley and Greg Olsen
coach a team where Greg Olsen's kid played, and it's
like you see the other team and they're just like
and Greg said that he was getting information from like
Sean McVay, like he's reaching out to other NFL coaches
and drawing up plays, and you're just like, you see
these other little kids come in and they're like, oh
my gosh, what we what do we do?
Speaker 1 (04:03):
How do we compete with that?
Speaker 2 (04:05):
So it seems like you guys have been here a
couple of years, and it sounds very much like you
have integrated seamlessly into the community. But as we were
saying before we started rolling, you and I met incredibly,
incredibly briefly for like one second the first day that
you and your kids came down and said hi to everyone.
There's just this for anyone who doesn't know, it's just
kind of this onslaught where the players and their families
(04:27):
come in for the day. You meet a thousand people,
you get pictures taken, you get videos taken, You guys
get to run around on the field a little bit.
And I remember asking Adam that day, I said, and
correct me if I'm wrong here. You two grew up
in Minnesota, and then obviously he played for the went
to school there, and then he played for the Vikings,
if if I'm correct, So this was the first time
(04:48):
that you had moved out of Minnesota?
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Am I right about that? Yep? Yes, first time?
Speaker 2 (04:53):
And how was that transition to leave everything that you know,
you've ever known essentially.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
Yeah, it was. It was definitely tough. Yeah, you are correct.
We both grew up there, both went to school there,
our kids were born there. My parents were right down
the road from us, So it was definitely bittersweet. We
were actually excited to like kind of leave and try
somewhere else. I think, like I talk to people now,
(05:20):
and honestly, I think it was a blessing because we've
fallen in love with Charlotte and the people here. But
it definitely is a big transition. And what most people
don't know is, like that's pretty normal for like NFL
families and other sport families, like professionally, so we have
been so blessed to be in the place where we
(05:40):
grew up for ten years, Like that's pretty unheard of
for the NFL. And then for me, especially as a wife,
like it was so amazing, like having my parents there
while my kids, my three kids were very little, which
you know is super hard, and especially with Adam's schedule
and his busyness, it was just such a blessing to
(06:01):
like have family and friends that I grew up with
and Adam grew up with, and we would have people
at every home game and it was just a really cool,
cool time just to be there for that long. So
it was it was a blessing, but it was definitely
definitely emotional leaving. But like I said, I think overall,
(06:22):
we're very glad that it happened because we've gotten to
experience a new place. Then who knows, we maybe never
would have left Minnesota if it wasn't for his career.
And so it's just awesome to be able to come
here and our kids to experience a new city, and
also to bring our foundation here and help out in
this area as well as Minnesota.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
Yeah, I want to get to the foundation because you
guys did so much in Minnesota and still do so
much in Minnesota, and then I know it was a
priority to bring those resources here and to help kids
in this area. And so can you tell us a
little bit about the Thelan Foundation and what its mission is.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Yeah, so it's been six years now since we started
the Field Foundation. When Adam kind of got into the NFL,
we knew within the first couple of years that we
wanted to do something and help in some way. We
looked up to his teammates and his older teammates on
the Vikings who had their own foundations and saw all
(07:23):
the work that they did in the community, and we
knew we wanted to do something. We just didn't know
exactly what. So long story shirt, we kind of were like, oh, well,
we have a passion for youth. We both love youth.
We both love sports, so we kind of just started
with that, and our mission statements very broad. It's helping
youth reach their full potential. So ad and I were
(07:45):
both very blessed to grow up in great households. We
got to go to school, we got to play sports,
grow up, travel sports, all the things, and a lot
of kids don't have that nowadays. They just don't have
the resources, they don't have the money. They might grow
up in different situations, so it's pretty broad. We do
(08:05):
a lot with different organizations. We have done a lot
over the years, but we started with mental health in
a local hospital in Minnesota, Maysonic Children's Hospital. We started
with the behavioral health unit there and we just loved it,
and the nurses and staff there were just so thankful
because it's such an underlooked topic and illness that a
(08:26):
lot of people don't put focus on. So that was
an amazing, amazing start for our foundation, and then from
there we kind of just kept going. We did we
did lights on a high school football field that didn't
have lights for years because Adam and I loved Friday
night lights growing up, so these kids didn't get to
(08:47):
experience that, so we're like, why not this is a great,
great situation for us to invest in and help these
kids enjoy Friday night lights with their class and their
parents get to go and whatnot. So we've done that.
We've done a lot of inner city youth. We do
a lot Thanksgiving time, Christmas time, so and now we've
(09:07):
done a project through sports. We work with different high
schools that don't have really great weight rooms. So we've
done six weight rooms at high school as. We did
four in Minnesota, two here so far in Charlotte, and
those have been really awesome to the kids and the
coaches and the staff at those schools just love it.
(09:28):
And it's for the whole community to use, not just
sports teams. So those have been awesome the last couple
of years as well. So, yeah, it's been There's a
lot more to it, but that's kind of long story
short of just how we've been able to help.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Yeah, So with all of that going on, and we
talked about what your typical day looks like and like
you said, running a nonprofit, you're a mom in the
thick of so many things. I was impressed that you
said I got to run in because that is not
on my that is not something that is on my
daily list, and you know, I struggle with, well, how
(10:02):
do I balance everything? And it feels like my attention
is being pulled in different directions. Like I said, I
only have two little ones, and I think there's a
lot of other women you know, and that's who listens
to this podcast that can feel that way too. So
how do you approach it all? And how do you
prioritize certain things on certain days?
Speaker 1 (10:20):
Yeah, it's a lot. I kind of like on Sunday nights,
I kind of like try to plan out the week,
especially depending on what sports are like each night we
maybe have like one night off or two. Maybe a
week of like no one having anything, So I tried
a meal plan. I try to do all that on
Sunday nights. But yeah, I really I really need to
(10:42):
get a workout in. I feel like for myself, for
my mental health and physical health, and just it kind
of starts my day on a good note, especially when
the rest of the day is so busy. And I
also am very I try to like be very present
with the kids when they are home, so I want
to get all things done. I try to get all
the things done when they're not here. But it can
(11:04):
be a lot. Yeah, I just suggest, you know, trying
to plan as much as you can. But also like
it does go by so fast, Like I feel like
I don't even remember when my oldest was like two
or three and now he's playing like travel based. It's
just crazy how fast it goes. So yeah, just really
trying to slow down. But also, like I said, I
(11:27):
need to plan thing so that helps me a lot,
and especially during football season, I need to be on
top of it.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
Yeah, I mean, goodness, gracious, I don't know that I
could handle all that. So aside from working out, is
there do you have time to do anything else for
yourself if you were gonna Like for me, it's like
I'm I'm gonna get a massage if I can. Do
you have a chance to and I know this is
a season, but do you have a chance to get
to do anything for yourself that you really enjoy?
Speaker 1 (11:55):
Yes? I do try to do some of that too.
And Adam's really good, especially in the off season about
like hey, go go for a walk, go get your
nails done. Go. He's really helpful with that because he
knows I need upbreak once in a while. But yeah,
especially like I said when my kids were younger, I
would even have, like we don't have a nanny or anything,
but I would have either my parents come over or
(12:16):
just hire a babysitter once or twice a week to
just like I said, go for a walk, or go
to a store, go get coffee with a friend, go
get your hair done, your nails done something. I think
that's so important to take time, especially with young kids,
take time for yourself. You need to put yourself first.
And that's kind of why for me, Like I do
(12:36):
love working out because it's just a stress relief for me.
A lot of mornings, honestly, I am. You'll ask Adam,
I'm up at like five forty five. I like to
just get it done by seven. I come upstairs, I
make all the kids breakfast, pack their lunches, Like I
just like to start my day like that, and it
just puts me in a good mood. But yeah, I
(12:57):
high like suggest getting like a babysitter for having your
family help. I mean, it really does take a village
like raising kids.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Yes, my mom lives nearby too, and we don't know
what we would do without her. And I remember, like
you said, just getting that babysitter or getting that person
to help. Like I remember when I was when my son,
my oldest, was really little, and I would get out.
I would go to Target and walk around Haylen. Let
me tell you, I felt like I was at the
spa all day long. I was like, this is the
most relaxing thing.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
It's the buzz ever. Ever, So tell.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
Me a little bit more about your Instagram account because
also I'm impressed that you keep it up as well.
You know, I feel like if I can take a
couple of pictures of my kid, I have one for
the day, and that feels like a little bit of
a creative outlet and something that you put time into.
Speaker 1 (13:45):
Yeah, so that's kind of a long story too. But
I started just an Instagram account like anyone. When Adam
first started, it kind of blew up because of who
Adam was, Like I said, we're both from there. Adam
was like mister Minnesota, Like everyone loved him. Everyone knew
who he was. He went to school college in Minnesota
(14:06):
Division two. So my Instagram cluse up who Adam was
kind of blew up, and I'm like, oh, this is
kind of weird. Like I just post mom things and
like whatever. But so a couple of years into him
playing in the NFL, I was like, I just I
really love I really loved cooking, I really love fitness.
I really like to share just real moments from our family,
(14:29):
especially having a husband who's, you know, a professional athlete.
I just like was like, we're honestly just such a
normal family. I feel like people loved to see inside
of our house a little bit and into our lives
because you can see it on TV and whatnot, but
it's it's not always like that, I feel like. So
(14:50):
I started a separate Instagram called like with missus T
and I actually started my own blog. So I was
on typing up like different recipes, I was being up
fitness routines, I was sharing vacations we went on that
like we really enjoyed as a family, So it kind
of was like an outlet for me. I feel like
(15:11):
also just because people knew who Adam was, but they
didn't really know who I was, which I'm not saying
like I needed them to know who I was. I
just wanted to showcase like this is this is my
these are my hobbies, like this is what I like
to do, and people like loved it. They were like,
share more recipes, blah blah, because I'm all about like easy,
healthy recipes, especially here with little ones. So I kind
(15:33):
of just did that for a couple of years and
I loved it. People loved it. And then when I
had my third, third baby, Korush, which life got a
lot crazier, I feel like, and I kind of didn't
have time to, you know, write things up anymore. So
I kept that Instagram account and I still share a
lot more personable stuff on there, and I keep my
(15:54):
missus T nineteen account more of just daily stuff and
lighthearted family stuff, football stuff, but I go pretty deep
into my life with missus T. I share recipes there,
I share workouts, I share supplements. I like stuff like that,
and honestly, it's really fun for me. It's kind of
a distraction, just like working out. It's kind of just
(16:14):
a nice little distraction for me to share some of
my hobbies and whatnot. But also, you got to be
careful because social media nowadays can kind of take over
your life. So I'm trying to make sure I have
a good balance with that. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:28):
Absolutely, Okay, give me a couple of your favorite recipes,
like you said, I know that. You're like, if you
were gonna give me a couple of suggestions, You're like, yes,
like this is a family winner.
Speaker 1 (16:38):
Yes. So the last couple of weeks, I've been on
this like healthy brownie kick. I love trying new like
recipes off Pinterest too. But there's this pumpkin peanut butter one.
And Adam does like not eat sweets, especially during football season.
He's so good, like, wow, I have such a big
sweet tooth safe. I love chocolate and I love like
the sour gummy type. So I'll make these healthy ones
(17:01):
and he eats, he pounds them. He loves them, and
it has protein in it, so it's like healthy. But
that would be one definitely the last couple of weeks.
My kids love them. They're the chili I'm making actually
for tonight is like five ingredients. It's you just throw
it all in the crock pot. That's like one of
my go tos because you're getting protein and being a
lot of beans in it. It's great. My boys love it.
(17:23):
Cora loves it. That's another one. Energy balls I make
probably weekly, so that has like, oh it's peanut butter,
flaxy chia seed, chocolate chips. Adam eats like three of
those a knight. That's like his night snack, which is great.
Those would probably be my top three right now. Patver
and I love like nachos, tacos, we make oven nachos, kalapinos, beans,
(17:49):
I don't know. Yeah, there's just a lot. There's a
lot of good ones I make, like rice bowls. Yea,
it's a week just throwing like corn, avocado, chicken rice.
I don't know, just easy things like that. But some nights,
I'm not saying my kids eat all of them. A
lot of nights honestly, I'm making two or three different meals,
which is not probably as they need to eat too.
(18:10):
And it's hard with sports because you either feed them
at like four o'clock or like seven after their sports.
So a lot of times I do like a hearty
snack on the way to like baseball, and then he'll
I'll have like food ready for him at like seven
when he gets solved.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Yeah, it's a lot, but I my stomach is already rumbling,
like I kids, you not all of that sounds so good?
Speaker 1 (18:33):
Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Okay, So we have been talking a lot about like
the reason you started your Instagram account your Life with
Missus T and and Missus T nineteen and then your
blog as well, is to kind of, you know, show
people that it's not all glitz and glamour all of
the time, and like you said, it's very relatable. So
I want to know what are the biggest misconceptions about
(18:54):
the spouse or the family of an NFL player, because
I'm sure you've run into that a lot as you
post these things.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Yeah, there's definitely a lot. Especially I think there's been
a couple TV shows just on like wags, which means
I think it's like wife of wives and girlfriends, I
think girlfriends, You're right, Yeah, I'm like, I don't even
know whives and girlfriends of professional athletes, and I've seen
them before, and honestly, some some families and relationships maybe
(19:24):
are like that. But I know a lot of other
families in the NFL that are very, very normal. So
I kind of wanted to just show that. And that's
why I feel like I do share a lot on
social media because I just want people to know we
struggle with some of the same things other families struggle with.
Our kids are not perfect, you know, it's hard. I've
(19:46):
been taking you know, our kids to NFL games since
they were one week old, and like I hold them
the whole time, like I don't have I mean, I'm
not saying that like nanny's are great, Like I just
never have had one my family by me that has helped.
I probably would have had a nanny if we were
on a different team or change teams multiple times. But
(20:08):
I just wanted to share that, like I'm a real mom,
Like this is my job, just like a lot of
others stay at home moms, and it's hard and you
need to you know, be present with your kids and
even during times when your husband's not there. Yeah. I
don't know. I just wanted to show show that we
struggle too and that, you know, I just wanted to
(20:29):
also share like some of just some of the insights
from like a professional athlete, wife or significant other. Yeah,
I don't know. That's kind of just why I share
share a lot about our life.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
Because I think we all find and I guess this
is why social media has become such a thing, and
certainly as women, but everyone you when you hear or
you see someone else and you go, oh, okay, like
I deal with that thing too, you know, I like
we were just talking about you know, like I have
heard from people that have started the sports thing and
this and that, and you know, I'm asking you for
recipes and so it's nice just to find whether not.
(21:08):
You know, you can find it whether in your own
close group of friends or you can reach out to
people on social media or see on social media. You go, oh, okay, like,
I'm not the only one that deals with guilt because
I have a thousand things going on or is trying
to figure out do I wake up early? Do I
all of that stuff? Do I have to stay up
late to get all of these things done? And that
is why I think your content is so relatable because
(21:29):
you go, oh okay, like, this is still something that
I struggle with, and sometimes people make it look so easy.
And you mentioned you mentioned the NFL Sundays, which I
know must just be a crazy time and taking your
kids from a very young age one week old, that
is amazing. So what does a typical NFL Sunday look
like for your family?
Speaker 1 (21:51):
Yeah? Just quickly going back to the real life thing too,
just I like to showcase like Adam too. I think
people love seen the professional athletes like outside of their element.
Like you can see Adam on Sunday, see him like
ball out on the field, and then he comes home
and he's still got three kids to attend to and
(22:11):
he's tired and he's limben around the house, but he
will put those kids to bed. And it's just funny
looking back because when he first started, we didn't have kids,
and it was he wishes he took a lot more
time on his body and mind where he sees all
these twenty two year olds now and they go home
and they can do whatever they want. But Adam comes
home every day after a long day, you know. So
(22:34):
I just wanted to I like to share one of
that side of it too. He's such a great dab.
But yeah, NFL Sundays are crazy at our house. Usually
we have people in town, which is something that most
people don't know as usually the players stay in the
hotel even if they have a home game, they stay
in hotel the night before, so hosting family and stuff
(22:55):
usually falls on the girls and the family.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
Are they staying at our house?
Speaker 1 (23:00):
Yes, usually family stays at our house and friends if
they come. If there's too many people, you know, someone
will get a hotel. But it's a lot. It's a
lot of meal planning and food, a lot of food.
But yeah, and I get pretty stressed on game days
as well, so I need to make sure that I'm
in a good mindset because I also have to get
(23:22):
my kids ready. Yeah, so it's just a lot. Game
days are a lot, you know, making breakfast. Honestly, this
last year I started even going to church on the
way to games, which I feel like it was good
honestly for me because the kids got to go in
their rooms and I got just some quiet time before
the games, which I liked. But yeah, usually it's busy.
(23:44):
We're making breakfast, getting dressed, maybe hanging out with cousins
if they're here, or family or friends, and then church
and then shape to the game. And then we're there
for a long time because we wait usually for Adam
after and then our tradition is getting pizzas right after
every Sunday. The last few years, we've been getting pizzas
(24:06):
after every game. So we come home, everyone watches like
Adam watched, Adam watches more football, but the kids will
watch a movie, shower, pizza, bed school. The next day,
it's a busy weekends are busy in the fall.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
And then do you, guys, I imagine traveling with three kids,
you stay home during the away games and I imagine
everyone gets in front of the TV and watch his dad.
Speaker 1 (24:28):
Yes, so most away games we stay home, especially now
that the kids have things on the weekends. But I
have tried over the last few years to go to
at least a couple away games. Either. Sometimes I do
a girls trip to like a fun away game, and
my parents will stay with my kids. I also the
last two years have done date like date games with
(24:51):
my boys now that they're older. So I took Asher
to where was the first game, New Orleans. I took
them on a day trip. We flew in and out
the same day, and he just loved that. He loves
doing that each year. And then I also took both
boys on a road trip to Atlanta for the last
game of this season and they loved that. So we
stayed in the hotel. And so I usually try to
(25:13):
make it to a few games. I'll probably try to
make it to a few more this year, just because
Adam's getting close to the end.
Speaker 2 (25:20):
I'm cover my ears. Yes, Panthers fans to listen to that.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
Yes, I know, so I'm gonna really try try to
get to it. Soak it in because it's pretty special,
especially bring the kids live in the moment.
Speaker 2 (25:33):
That the moment, Yeah, that seems to be your your mantra,
just living in the moment and being present for everything.
And by the way, I bet you sleep so good
at night. I just wanted to throw that in before
we end. I bet you sleep like a baby at
the end of the night with all yes.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
AV and I are early bedtimes. When the kids go
down at by eight, we are tired. I bet, I bet.
I know. Nothing is better.
Speaker 2 (25:56):
Like my husband used to stay up, like we'd watch
a movie, like we'd have a class, whe whatever. Now kids,
you're like, oh, nothing feels better than just like getting
in the bed and like turning on a show or
reading a book or something luxury.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
It's like two nights, watch an hour and a half movie.
Speaker 2 (26:10):
Oh I'm falling asleep all the time, There's no doubt
about that.
Speaker 1 (26:14):
And then I wake up.
Speaker 2 (26:14):
I'm like, I saw it.
Speaker 1 (26:15):
I saw it.
Speaker 2 (26:17):
Caitlin, thank you so so much for taking this time.
I have enjoyed this so much, and I know that
anyone listening has enjoyed it as well, but I really
appreciate you taking time out of your very busy schedule
to chat with me and to and to let us
in a little bit more.
Speaker 1 (26:32):
Yeah no, that was awesome. Thank you so much for
having me
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