episodes

Why do we believe daycare is fundamentally different than education? Dr. Dan Wuori, author of the new book THE DAYCARE MYTH, explains why this line of thinking is harmful to children, their caregivers, and the country as a whole.

In this episode, we’ll explore some age-old principles that can help us make better decisions. These principles, often referred to as “razors,” can cut through the clutter of complexity and help us see the forest for the trees.

Have you ever figured out a thing and thought: EVERYONE must know about this? Here are some things some of us have really figured out: how to always know what’s for dinner, how to pack for a trip just once, and how to clean a messy room in 10 minutes.

Why is it important for our kids to establish a secure attachment with us? Eli Harwood, author of the new book RAISING SECURELY ATTACHED KIDS, offers practical tips and strategies for fostering stronger relationships with our kids.

Disappointment is simply a fact of life, but we naturally want to soothe our children when they're in pain. So how can we teach them to move through these uncomfortable feelings in a healthy way? Here are some helpful parenting strategies.

What did you grow up believing would be a consistent presence in your adult life? Quicksand? Dinner parties? The Bermuda Triangle? Movies, TV, and certain bubble bath ads definitely led us astray when it came to the realities of adult life.

When kids get dysregulated, it can be really upsetting to us too. So how can we help them work through it? Carla Naumburg, author of the new book HOW TO STOP FREAKING OUT, discusses why kids are wired for freaking out and how we can help them.

Nowadays, it's completely possible to load our kids up on activities to the point of exhaustion—theirs and ours. Why do we do it, how is it really affecting our kids, and what questions should we be asking when adding a new activity to the lineup?

Pacifiers in the crib. Juice in the sippy cup. Popsicles in the bathtub. We all have exceptions that we make to the so-called parenting “rules” in the interest of our own sanity. Our listeners share which parenting rules they break and why.

How should we prepare our daughters for the sexism and bias they will encounter out there in the world? Dr. Jo-Ann Finkelstein, author of SEXISM AND SENSIBILITY, tells us how to give our girls a sense of agency.

What happened to your formerly sweet and agreeable child, who woke up on the wrong side of the bed one day and never stopped whining? How does one try to restore equilibrium?

It's back to school, back to morning insanity, back to seventeen different after-school activities per kid! We asked our listeners for their best back-to-school tips - or their biggest complaints.

What does it mean to “escape poverty” in the U.S.? In his new book HOW FAR TO THE PROMISED LAND, Esau McCaulley questions the narrative of exceptionalism that he, and other Black survivors, are conditioned to give when they “make it” in America.

Kids have a knack for asking questions that are tricky, painful, or impossible to answer. How can we answer our kids' tough questions effectively, especially when the answers are hard—or don't exist?

From packing the laundry to eating the same lunch every day for five years to toothbrushes in the kitchen, these are our listeners' ideas that don't sound so crazy, come to think of it.

How do we set our kids up to have a healthy relationship with food and with their bodies, no matter what they look like? Jill Castle, author of KIDS THRIVE AT EVERY SIZE, tells us how to raise kids that eat healthy and love who they are.

What celebrity-in-waiting did you once hang out with at summer camp? What state fair championships did you achieve as a 10-year-old? We asked our audience about their various claims to minor fame—here's what they said.

Are you a rule breaker or a rule follower? Are you married to your opposite? In this episode we discuss how these two kinds of people bump up against each other– especially in our own families– and how we try to find a little balance.

Judith Warner’s book AND THEN THEY STOPPED TALKING TO ME: MAKING SENSE OF MIDDLE SCHOOL investigates what can be a truly painful period. Our parenting of tweens can also be affected by our memories of that time, and Warner explains why that matters.

Fear is an uncomfortable, but healthy—and necessary—human emotion. How can we help our kids face their fears in healthy and age-appropriate ways?

As soon as you become a mother, unsolicited advice-givers are everywhere, telling you to “sleep when the baby sleeps.” Or “it gets easier.” Or “enjoy every moment.” Out of all the advice that we and our listeners have received, here is the very worst.

How do we stay close to our teens as they grow more independent? Amy Betters-Midtvedt, author of the new book YOU'LL MAKE IT (AND THEY WILL TOO), offers some practical parenting tips for navigating our relationships with our adolescents.

Competitive parenting is a trap—and one it can be hard to avoid. But if "mompetition" isn't the answer, and comparing is despairing, are there ways we can compare our parenting and our kids' progress that are actually useful?

It's hard to admit things aren't perfect. It's especially hard for moms. "Socially mediated" perfectionism happens when a culture has unrealistic demands for a person or group, then punishes them when they fall short. Sound familiar? Here’s what to do.