Episodes

The topic of contraception and women’s rights can be so emotionally charged, it often leads to to yelling and judgment. But our listener, Charles, left us a respectful and informative message sharing his viewpoint. Can we disagree but still listen to each other in a respectful manner? It takes awareness and compassion, but it’s always possible. We also talk about listening with an “Empty Cup”: Nan-in, a Japanese master during the Meiji era, received a university professor who came to inquire a...

Have you ever heard of Kawasaki Disease? Chris and Monisha Lozier’s daughter Mae was a healthy and happy 4 year old until she got swollen glands and a fever. They found themselves living in a hospital for the next 9 days and eventually discovered their daughter had Kawasaki Disease. This is is an immune disease in which the medium-sized blood vessels throughout the body become inflamed. It’s cause is unknown, and it’s largely seen in children under five years of age. It affects many organ system...

We discuss a blog by Gayle Allen and Deborah Farmer Kris called “Why It’s Important To Teach Empathy To Boys”. They define empathy as the ability to sense other people’s emotions coupled with the ability to imagine what someone else might be thinking or feeling. How does this relate to parenting? We discuss three benefits of raising an empathetic child: It breeds courage- this will help your child stand up for those in need of help. It breeds happiness- it gives our children the ability to hav...

We discuss Hobby Lobby and the supreme court decision affecting contraception and women’s rights. Cathy gets all riled up, so watch out! We also remind you to put that bathing suit on and get in the pool – your children are watching you! Cathy explains what it means to be an empath, and we also answer a listener question about bossiness and bullying. At the end we have a conversation with The Joyful Mother Sigrid Kjeldsen. We discuss a blog called “Moms, Put on that swimsuit” Many moms out the...

We discuss Dr. Daniel Siegel’s new book titled “Brainstorm- The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain”. Dr. Siegel explains that adolescence has an ESSENCE that is often overlooked. ESSENCE stands for: ES: An Emotional Spark is revealed in the enhanced way emotion generated from sub-cortical areas washes over the cortical circuits of reasoning. The downsides are emotional storms and moodiness; the upside is a powerful passion to live life fully, to capture life being on fire. SE: Social Engag...

Casserly had always been on the top tier soccer team only to find out from her coach that she was being moved down to the next level. Her reaction to this gut punch might surprise you. Casserly is going into 6th grade and graduated from our first “Be U Girls Club” in the fall of 2013. We asked Casserly and her mom Rita to share this story in an effort to remind us that children are here to teach us as much as we are here to teach them. From a parent’s perspective – how would have handled this s...

How do we introduce cell phones to our kids? It’s a big step into an adult world, and concerns such as these are common: Will they abuse it?, Will they turn into “phoneheads”?, What kind of phone is appropriate?, What are the expectations around use of the phone? A few years ago Janelle Hoffman wrote a blog about phone expectations that went viral. We used her blog as “bones” for a list we created called “Jacey’s Phone Smarts”: We own the phone, but it’s yours to use. We will know all phone p...

In the second half of this 2 part interview, we continue the conversation between Aaron Krueger and Erin Kuhn-Krueger about their experience with multiple miscarriages and stillbirth. In this moving and inspiring interview they share their challenges, coping tools, and their strength and determination to become parents. This show is a must if you have experienced pregnancy or infant loss, or if you know someone who is trying to navigate the grief associated with baby loss. This is Part 2 of a tw...

Of course there are plenty of men who are not misogynists, but that doesn’t mean that women are not subjected to misognystic behavior. We have to take responsibility for ourselves and also recognize what we tolerate- our friends inappropriate jokes or behavior, the song lyrics we listen to, the movies we love, the people we idolize. And it’s not just men, women need to recognize how they contribute – gossiping, judging, and disrespecting other women can add to the overall problem. Todd gets on ...

We speak with Aaron Krueger and Erin Kuhn-Krueger about their experience with multiple miscarriages and stillbirth. In this moving and inspiring interview they share their challenges, coping tools, and their strength and determination to become parents. This show is a must if you have experienced pregnancy or infant loss, or if you know someone who is trying to navigate the grief associated with baby loss. This is Part 1 of a two part interview with the Krueger family – Part 2 will air Friday, J...

Of course you are the parent and your role is important, but can you sometimes just drop the role and relate to your child as an individual? We break down the the role of parent to redefine what it means to support your child. When your child comes to you with a problem, do you deal with the internal or the external? Most of us deal with the external – focus on how it looks and how to fix it. But do we consider what our child is feeling and experiencing? Instead of trying to “fix” the problem i...

Do you want to be happy? Guess what, you’ve got the tools to do it! Happiness can be cultivated regardless of your childhood or genes – you just need to make it a daily priority! Shawn Achor is a Harvard Professor who teaches a class on how to be happy – research shows it comes from the INSIDE and has little to do with the external experiences. It’s not about waiting to be happy until you find success, it’s about being happy and then achieving success due to your happiness. Happiness comes from ...

Did you know that May is Williams Syndrome Awareness Month? Williams syndrome is a genetic condition characterized by medical problems, including cardiovascular disease, developmental delays, and learning disabilities. People with Williams Syndrome also tend to have enhanced verbal abilities, highly social personalities and an affinity for music. It effects 1 in 10,000 people worldwide – an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 people in the United States. We interview Amy Connell-Donohue, the mother of ...

Todd and Cathy discuss their disagreement over how “active” their kids should be in extracurricular activities. Keeping kids “busy” is connected to our past experiences and our need for constant productivity. It is essential that we see ourselves and our motives clearly when creating expectations for our children. We also talk about some conscious parent foundational elements including self-awareness, mindfulness, and kindness. Conscious parenting is not a “technique”, it’s actually a way of li...

Mother do you think they’ll drop the bomb? That’s the first line in this epic song. We disect the lyrics and use it to help understand conscious parenting. Roger Water’s song (on the show we use the Natalie Maines version) points out that parents can have the best intentions when “protecting” their children, but if done unconsciously, or with lack of self awareness, it can backfire. Full Lyrics to Mother: Mother do you think they’ll drop the bomb Mother do you think they’ll like the song Mother...

In honor of Mother’s Day, we invited our moms to talk about what we were like as kids. We also talk about the changes that have taken place from the time they were kids (a.k.a. the olden days) to raising us in the 70’s – we also discuss how their grandchildren are being raised. We get nostalgic and we have a lot of laughs. We love our moms! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUkE9qaVgmo&list=PLyfsVoKpa6Y3LqyDbc04-6M6V9rJETgt- Our guest Dr. Shefali Tsabary is about to rocket into the Oprah stratos...

What’s the difference between punishment, discipline, and natural consequences? We discuss a few different events that happened in our house that allowed for natural consequences. Rather than using fear to punish, natural consequences help children understand and integrate a teaching. We also discuss cell phone usage – specifically: What is the correct age to give your access to a phone? What conditions should be put on it? Are we telling our children that we don’t trust them if we ask them ...

Most of us do. Why do we sometimes feel like fakes at work, at home, in the world? Why are we afraid that someone is going to figure out that we really don’t know what we are doing? We discuss how this feeling plays into our parenting and how we can practice feeling as “real” as possible. We play a clip (below) from Amy Cudder’s Ted Talk on self doubt and how to deal with it. We also discuss our upcoming “The Good Life Virtual Retreat” . What does it mean to live a good life? It means to “shed t...

Do we want our kids to be popular? How important is this? What makes our kids popular? Is it athletic ability and physical stature or is it physical attractiveness and attention from the opposite sex? We share our perspective and discuss why parents play a role in how their children are perceived. We also use great 80’s movies like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, & Revenge of the Nerds to make our “popular” points. We are facilitating our next virtual retreat! It’s ...

Typically pessimists respond to problems by believing these three things: It’s Personal– They blame themselves for an event that has occurred. It’s Permanent– They think it will never get better. It’s Pervasive– They assume failure in one area of life means failure in life as a whole and that failure is happening everywhere and can’t be stopped. Do we carry some of these traits? Does it affect our parenting? We discuss this and offer options for turning these thoughts around. We also discuss a...

In this compelling interview, our friend Katie Weiss shares her breast cancer experience, starting with the fact that she was diagnosed at 35. Due to her age she is told her lump is probably nothing, but she walks us through the series of incidents that lead to the mind-numbing news that she indeed had breast cancer. Recently separated and with a three-year-old daughter at home, Katie takes us from diagnosis, to chemotherapy and finally recovery. Katie’s storytelling is vulnerable, raw, and full...

Is it manly to take paternity leave? When Daniel Murphy’s (a player on the New York Mets) wife had a baby, he utilized the paternity leave that is allowed under the collective bargaining agreement set forth by Major League Baseball. But why is he being criticized? Is it “man code” to get back to work as soon as the birth is over? If we are a nation of family values, why do we place work over family? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbMFHX5iq We also discuss Todd’s blod titled, Am I a Bad Dad? A...

We discuss 8 different ways to help your children be more mindful: 1. Mindful breathing 2. Past/present/future 3. Take in the joy 4. Quiet time 5. Practice listening 6. Emotional awareness – feeling – asking questions about feelings 7. Gratitude – don’t judge what they are grateful for – role model 8. Do it yourself We also discuss the idea of creeping separateness. This is when we “ignore the cracks” in a marriage. The little things that are done (or sometimes not done) which create di...

Our friends and neighbors Jeanne and Jeff Plaisted walk the walk. They decided that on their 15th anniversary they were going to do something special. Massages on the beach in Hawaii? Nope. A cruise through the Caribbean? Try again. They decided to make a difference. They stepped away from their day to day life and packed up for a two-week trip to Nicaragua. They were inspired by Spark Ventures, a Chicago-based nonprofit that partners with grassroots organizations to help children in developing ...