Episodes

Heather Chauvin was dying to be a good mother. - Her determination to get it *just right* was fueled by a sense of failure - and societal norms that define "good moms" as self-sacrificing. . - 18 years old and single when her first child was born,

Humans are hard-wired to connect with other species, says Richard Louv, author of Our Wild Calling: How Connecting with Animals Can Transform Our Lives -- and Save Theirs and Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder. The loneliness that so many of us (& our boys) are feeling right due is certainly due to pandemic-related restrictions and lockdowns, but also due to our increasing disconnection from the natural world. "The farther we get from the natural world, th...

The "man box" doesn't leave much room for sensitive boys. - Photo by Debra Brown via Flickr - Society prefers rough-and-tumble boys and men -- the strong, stoic types who lift heavy loads and "buck up," rather than cry, when injured or down.

About 1 in 54 children has autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The key word in that sentence is "spectrum." Some people with ASD are nonverbal; some are highly verbal. Some avoid physical contact; some enjoy it. As one popular saying puts it, "Once you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism." Meet Sam Mitchell, a teenager with autism. Sam is created and hosts the podcast Autism Rocks and Rolls; he's also an...

What's your family personality? - Don't know? You're not alone. - Most people don't think of families as having personalities, but when you understand your personality, your partner's personality and your kids' personalities, life gets easier.

One of our favorite musicals is Les Miserables, which is a story about the French revolution. It's also the story of love and transformation. What does that have to do with raising boys? Today's guest is Dr. Charles Corprew, a psychologist and host of the podcast "What's Your Revolution?" Charles is passionate about revolution -- not the bloody riots that mar cities and countries, but the opportunities we all have for personal and global transformation. "I think I've always known that revoluti...

Do you worry about keeping your boys safe online? - Thanks to the pandemic, we're all spending more time online. And unlike in years past, porn is now ubiquitous and easily accessible. Boys today don't even have to go looking for porn; it finds them....

We don't always like our boys. - It's a bit taboo to admit that. We parents -- moms especially! -- are somehow expected to always have lovey feelings for our children. And we do love them. But sometimes, we don't want to be around them. Sometimes,

The phrase "best of 2020" is a bit laughable. - Using the term "best" to describe a year that's included a global pandemic, remote schooling and massive disruptions to work and socialization seems almost...inappropriate. And yet,

Dr. Cara Natterson’s book, Decoding Boys: New Science Behind the Subtle Art of Raising Sons, came out in February 2020 & made a big splash. Kirkus Reviews calls it, "A common-sensical, gently humorous exploration of male puberty’s many trials" and a New York Times article declared, "...for rational, evidence-based advice on how to talk to your son about every internal and external force he’ll experience from fourth grade through college, Cara Natterson’s zippy, bighearted 'Decoding Boys' is the ...

Dr. Adam Cox helped Janet crack the boy code, way back when she was a first grade teacher who didn't know what to do with a class full of boys. His book, Cracking the Boy Code: How to Understand and Talk with Boys, is a seminal text that contains valuable insights for parents and teachers of boys. More than 25 years ago, Dr. Cox, a psychologist, recognized that boys in his community were looking for a place where they'd be accepted and welcomed. His boy-friendly approach developed over the year...

How do you help boys become resilient? - It's easy enough to say that resiliency is important, and we know that the ability to bounce back in spite of obstacles is essential for success and happiness in life.

Most of us know what consent means. But knowing what it MEANS doesn’t necessarily guarantee that we - or our BOYS - will actually be prepared in the moment…. Acroyoga, or partnered yoga, helped Sarah Casper understand boundaries & consent. "In this practice, instead of using an apparatus like trapeze or aerial silks, we're using our bodies. So there has to be a lot of conversation about our comfort levels, what we want to explore, where our limits are, what we maybe want to work towards and bow...

How much do you know about boys & anxiety? - According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 7% of American children between ages 3-17 have a diagnosed anxiety disorder. Likely,

Esports -- competitive videogaming -- is quickly becoming a very big deal. - In 2017, 106.2 million people watched the League of Legend esports championship. In 2020, 99.9 million watched the Super Bowl on TV, according to Reuters. -

What words come to mind when you hear the phrase "teenage boys"? - Messy? Stinky? Frustrating? Lazy? Moody? Dangerous? - Teen boys can be all of those things. (So can teen girls!) But there's also a lot more beneath the surface,

How’s school going? - That’s a fraught question even when there’s NOT a pandemic going on. Now, it seems almost crazy to ask, given that most of us are dealing w less-than-ideal educational situations. -

Family meetings can you help adapt your parenting to fit the changing needs of your family. - Photo by August de Richelieu from Pexels - One of the most challenging (and demoralizing) aspects of parenting is realizing that you must constantly revise...

How are you managing screen time during the pandemic? - According to at least one survey, kids' time online has more than doubled since the pandemic began, and many kids now spend more than 6 hours per day online, in front of screens.

Parenting teen boys is not easy. - They're bigger than us. Stronger than us. They speak in a language we don't necessarily understand -- if they choose to speak at all. Their focus is turning outward, just as we parents realize how little time we have...

One of our most important jobs as parents is preparing our boys for the world of work. - The work world, though, has changed dramatically over the last few decades. "There's been a shift from the competitive dog-eat-dog/rat race to a flatter,

How do you teach boys money management? - 34% of American teenagers don't have bank accounts and rely predominantly on cash, according to a 2019 Junior Achievement USA survey. In fact, 1 in 5 teens have never been into a physical bank and nearly a thi...

Parenting outside the lines frees us up to connect with our children in an authentic way. - It allows us to skip over the "must do's" and simply, instead, do the next right thing in any given moment. And if the "right thing" ultimately takes us a dire...

Are your boys close to their grandparents? - Not physically close -- physical distance is often more a matter of necessity or practicality than choice -- but emotionally close. Studies have found that close grandparent/grandchildren relationships pro...