Today's guest, a medical ethicist (in other words, a person who helps determine what is ethical in people's health), took my breath away with his eloquent words on stuff that impacts young children every day. Dr. Arthur Caplan, professor of bioethics in the Department of Population Health at NYU's Langone Medical Center, and I talk about everything from cloning mammoths to stopping malaria and the Zika virus… and also what the average person can do to improve their – our – lives. Dr. Caplan shar...
May 23, 2017•1 hr 5 min
Any graduations, weddings, vacations, or visits with family coming up in your life? If you're nervous about how your child will behave, hopefully we can help you feel better by the end of this episode! As I see it, there are three steps to getting our little kids to behave out in the world (at least – most of the time…) Click weturnedoutokay.com/157 for the show notes, including an outline of the 3 steps, for a picture of "the wedding where we do karate," and for key links that come up in this e...
May 16, 2017•33 min
Today, we're bringing you another great parent-coaching call with one of our Ninja Parenting Community members! Like many children, Sabrina's youngest daughter struggles with the family's morning routine. She likes to be independent, she doesn't like "to be told," and oftentimes she is not hungry for breakfast before school. Sabrina brings up a whole host of issues having to do with routine, following the rules, and the natural consequences of a child's actions. If you're experiencing any concer...
May 11, 2017•33 min
Today, Ashley Milne-Tyte of The Broad Experience podcast returns to We Turned Out Okay, and our conversation goes in a direction I hadn't anticipated: how women can take on too much, become overwhelmed, and end up unhappy and possibly even ill. Because Ashley's podcast focuses on "women in the workplace," our conversation starts out with the focus on women and moms. But somewhere in here, we stop talking just about women – and start talking about parents. Parental guilt is a thing, and not just ...
May 09, 2017•48 min
What if there was one question you could ask – and the result would be a more harmonious home? (I know, I don't love the word harmonious either, but it really fits here, so I'm sticking with it.) A harmonious home is one in which the people who live there enjoy each other's company, at least more often than not. Differences are worked out peacefully, everybody's needs are met, and it just feels like a good place to be. We're looking at how to make that home a reality in the first of a series I'm...
May 02, 2017•31 min
Today, a listener question about kids and bad language: "My four-year-old has picked up some bad language from other kids in her class. How should I deal with being called "dog face"!! This can seem like a puzzle to which we parents just don't have the answer. If you're feeling like that, listen in! In today's episode I share how to prepare for when your child throws something like this that you – and how to handle it in the moment. For full show notes, including an easy-to-remember plan in answ...
Apr 27, 2017•16 min
Rarely am I speechless – in life or podcasting – but today's guests took my breath away with their observations of real young adults who grew up without open-ended play in their lives. Lisa Daly and Miriam Beloglovsky, authors and professors, know a lot about how easy it is for a child growing up today to have zero practical knowledge. It's because their lives were spent preparing for, and taking, tests. Now as adults, these young people score really well on tests… But cannot accomplish simple t...
Apr 25, 2017•45 min
Recently I spoke with a mom to 2- and 4-year-old girls. Her youngest is just starting to push back (as all 2-year-olds do) – and she's pushing back some times really disrespectfully! Shouting "no!" Sometimes lashing out. Refusing, disrespectfully, to do what her mom needs her to do. Sound familiar? That's why we're including this subject in the Common Parenting Challenges series! Find out how to handle it when your child is disrespectful by clicking weturnedoutokay.com/151 , where you'll find sh...
Apr 18, 2017•17 min
We're going big-picture today, talking about Einstein's idea that "the most important question facing humanity is, "is the universe a friendly place?" Our answer to this question shapes how our children will answer this question; if we feel surrounded by enemies, so will our sons and daughters. Is that what we really want for them? Or, do we want our children to feel themselves surrounded by friends? For full show notes – and to sign up for next week's free, online, interactive class, Common Par...
Apr 13, 2017•28 min
Today's episode – which has some swears, please listen away from your kids or with headphones – is one I've been working on putting together for a really long time: in it, a corporate lawyer, a midwife, and I sit down in a roundtable and discuss 3 topics really relevant to you, one chosen by each of us. Corporate lawyer and mom-of-2 Angela Gregory lived down the street from us until just a few years ago, and has been a great role model for me about how to follow your passion as the family breadw...
Apr 11, 2017•1 hr 6 min
"When [my young daughter] is being impatient or persistent about doing something: at this age, how would I teach her to be patient?" When listener Sherif asked this question recently, I knew it had to be part of the Common Parenting Challenges series! Sherif asks some really pertinent follow-up questions: – Is that possible at this age? – Should I just distract her with something else? – Should I stand my ground which will make her upset? – If I give in to what she wants, is this teaching her ho...
Apr 04, 2017•40 min
Back in episode 140, parenting author KJ Dell'Antonia gave us many more great ideas than could be digested in one conversation… So for the first time in We Turned Out Okay history she's got 3 Your Child Explained episodes all to herself! In our conversation KJ commented: "after a month we get tired of nagging, "… it's easier just to load this dishwasher myself…" and then we do - and then we're back to square one." Today: the one thing you can do in your parenting that makes everything else eithe...
Mar 30, 2017•19 min
Today's episode – which has some swears, please listen away from your kids or with headphones – is one I've been working on putting together for a really long time: in it, a corporate lawyer, a midwife, and I sit down in a roundtable and discuss 3 topics really relevant to you, one chosen by each of us. Corporate lawyer and mom-of-2 Angela Gregory lived down the street from us until just a few years ago, and has been a great role model for me about how to follow your passion as the family breadw...
Mar 28, 2017•1 hr 5 min
"My four-year-old daughter is fine with our schedule a lot of the time. But sometimes she rejects it altogether! How can I make it so she's going along?" Recently I spoke with a mom who shared 3 key parenting struggles; I knew that you'd be struggling (most likely, anyway) with the same stuff, so I've put together a series of Common Parenting Challenges based on our conversation. Today, we dig into scheduling! Sometimes kids really rail against a schedule of any kind. How to help? Listen to toda...
Mar 21, 2017•16 min
A few weeks ago, in episode 140 , guest KJ Dell'Antonia dropped so many knowledge bombs that I knew we'd need more than one Your Child Explained to really comprehend them all. Here's part 2 of 3 – all about homework and how to intervene when your child can't take anymore! Click weturnedoutokay.com/144 for show notes, links to last fall's homework episode and conversation with the president of the American Academy of Pediatrics – and to sign up for the free, live NPC FAQ Q&A I'm hosting Thurs...
Mar 16, 2017•22 min
"How do I keep my kids safe online? How do I keep my devices safe from hackers?" If you've ever asked yourself either of these questions, you are going to love today's episode. Today's guest, Rich Stearman, president of the web design company Ashdown Technologies, addresses these issues and lots more on the show! Ben, our boys, and I have been really close with Rich, his wife Kathy, and their boys for decades – since before either of us couples had any kids, in fact. Rich is our go-to guy for te...
Mar 14, 2017•1 hr 36 min
You don't want your kids to have any more screen time – and your spouse plops them in front of the tube. You know that giving in to a temper tantrum is the fastest route to more, and longer, temper tantrums; yet your spouse gives in again and again. Sound familiar? Today we talk all about how to handle when your spouse isn't on the same page (and your page is the right page). Recently while talking with a mom of 2 young girls, some pretty major - and common - parenting issues came up. I knew tha...
Mar 07, 2017•21 min
During Tuesday's guest conversation , mom and author KJ Dell'Antonia shared the results of a pretty big (1000-person) survey of parents she commissioned as research for her upcoming book. The thing that parents worry about most? "Discipline," KJ shares. Discipline enters into many aspects of our parenting lives. It's firmness in enforcing rules; consistency in keeping routines established; being good models for our children. During our conversation, I share a lesson taught to me long ago, in my ...
Mar 02, 2017•20 min
Today's guest didn't set out to be a writer. But after getting her law degree and being a practicing attorney for six years, she made a discovery: law just wasn't her thing; instead, she found, she was a writer. In the spirit of finding stuff out through writing, KJ Dell'Antonia began freelancing about motherhood; she's written for Slate magazine, Parenting magazine, Parents magazine, and many others. She is now a contributing editor and columnist on the Well Family page at the New York Times, a...
Feb 28, 2017•1 hr 21 min
When listener Marcy wrote recently, asking for help with her son, whom "counselors and therapists believe may be suffering from depression and anxiety," and the decision to either keep him in school or pull him out to homeschool, I initially thought I'd answer her question in a Your Child Explained episode, and address the school-homeschool decision. On reflection, however, I saw something bigger in Marcy's question and decided to focus this Just You and Me episode on the bigger issue: how to he...
Feb 21, 2017•33 min
I've been really wanting to do a show on potty training, but I've held back for a few reasons: one biggie is that I just haven't found a great book on the subject, and another is that my experience potty training my oldest was really tough! But recently I heard from listener Erika, who had this to say: "I have to have the most stubborn child on the planet and have tried everything I can think of. Rewards, candy, bribes, consequences, charts, toys, reverse psychology. I am out of ideas and at my ...
Feb 16, 2017•26 min
Lots of things can happen over the course of a day to make us all feel anxious…How does your child handle anxiety? Today licensed mental health counselor, play expert, and mom-to-2 Janine Halloran gives us some wonderful – and very specific – tools to help our kids handle stress. True to the nature of We Turned Out Okay, my hour-long conversation with Janine covers lots more than this! Janine and her family are spending the year in California, clear across the country from their home in Massachu...
Feb 14, 2017•1 hr 5 min
As a podcaster who helps you advocate better for your young children, I meet and hear from an awful lot of you who are… Unhappy. Stuck. Sinking under all your worries and fears for your children – and awfully hard on yourselves. In January I did two episodes about goal-setting and affirmations, and I shared about one particular life-changing exercise I've done every night for more than a year: speaking to myself in the mirror. That idea resonated with a lot of you – but you had a hard time imagi...
Feb 09, 2017•9 min
Maybe you think that self-acceptance and self-forgiveness are fine for other people, but not for you (I know I used to feel this way.) I work with a lot of moms and dads who struggle with this – and the struggle 100% affects their parenting, and thus their kids . If you need a kick in the pants – or a guide into the world of not scowling in the mirror – then sign up for my free Friendly Mirror 10-day challenge ! The Challenge will be conducted via video modules and a live interactive training se...
Feb 07, 2017•44 min
Remember a few weeks ago, when I got emotional about talking to myself in the mirror every night? (Listen to that episode, We Turned Out Okay's second annual goal-setting episode, by clicking here .) If you struggle with self-acceptance and self-forgiveness – and if you also want to be a better example for your child – click this link to listen to today's episode! You can read the full text of listener Eri's question about how her struggle with self-acceptance could negatively impact her 14-mont...
Feb 02, 2017•37 min
Diving into the archives of We Turned Out Okay, and finding wonderful shows like this one which you may not have heard before (and will get something out of even if you have heard it already), seems like a fitting start to a new year. My guest today, Gift of Failure author Jessica Lahey, has helped me in so many ways: to be a better mom, to forgive myself when I screw up, to take the long view on mistakes, thinking not so much about epic fails but instead asking myself "how do I learn from this?...
Jan 31, 2017•1 hr 4 min
Just about a year ago, on the Flipped Lifestyle podcast, co-host Shane Sams asked me if what I do here at We Turned Out Okay is to teach people how to combat their kids' "evil Jedi mind tricks" – which I thought was such a great definition! In the last few weeks my family and I saw and loved Rogue 1, and also mourned the loss of Carrie Fisher; it seems fitting to talk about all that with you today, sharing two great ways to combat your child's Jedi mind tricks. Want a free copy of Positive Disci...
Jan 24, 2017•35 min
Today's show asks the question: how can I help you go to bat for your child? It's easier to think about standing up for our children that it is, oftentimes, for us to stand up for ourselves. But sometimes – especially when an authority figure like a doctor or a teacher is doing the pushing – it can be hard to know how to stand up for our children. Today's show is brought to you by the Ninja Parenting Community: Are you raising little kids and feeling overwhelmed? Could you use some accountabilit...
Jan 19, 2017•15 min
Diving into the archives of We Turned Out Okay, and finding wonderful shows like this one which you may not have heard before (and will get something out of even if you have heard it already), seems like a fitting start to a new year. Today's guest, along with his wife and children, have been special people in my family's life ever since we had the excellent luck of moving in across the street from them more than a decade ago. We've watched Steve Mirando and his wife Sue support each other throu...
Jan 17, 2017•52 min
This early in the new year, everyone is thinking about resolutions and how to keep them; today, I'm asking you to think a little bit differently about resolutions – in fact, I'm asking you to not even use the word "resolution!" I prefer the shorter, less-charged "goals." Goals can be short-term, medium-term, or long… And the goals we choose for ourselves today don't just help us; the goals we choose and start working toward today help our children as well. In our second-annual show about goals, ...
Jan 10, 2017•47 min
