Welcome to our third Q & A episode! As always, we're grateful for the opportunity to journey with you. Thank you for submitting your questions. In this episode, we address questions specifically related to parenting teenagers, dealing with respect, the reasons for increasing anxiety and depression in teens, and managing technology in the home. Here’s a review of the questions we discuss in this episode: * What to do with a teen who is rude and disrespectful when spending too much time on tec...
Apr 25, 2018•43 min
Entitlement, according to Dr. John Townsend, is "a belief that I am exempt from responsibility and that I am owed special treatment." Unfortunately, you don't have to look too far today to find entitled kids--and adults! As Dr. Townsend states, "This isn't a generational problem; it's a human problem." In this episode, Dr. Townsend helps parents learn how to not raise entitled kids. An incredibly practical discussion, you'll learn the three antidotes to entitlement and hear Dr. Townsend explain ...
Apr 18, 2018•39 min
With Mother's Day just around the corner, we wanted to do something special for moms, so I (Christi) decided to host an online Bible study! The study is called Mom Set Free by our friend Jeannie Cunnion, it begins May 17, and it's good news for moms who are tired of trying to be good enough. We love Jeannie and wanted you to have a special opportunity to get to know and learn from her! This episode describes the details of the upcoming online Bible study and also includes our original interview ...
Apr 16, 2018•56 min
Does parenting sometimes feel complicated to you? You can't even leave the hospital before having to make a decision on whether or not you're going to immunize your child. Think about some of the other choices we have to make as parents in the twenty-first century. ~ “Is it okay that our baby sleep in bed with us?” ~ “Should we let our baby cry it out?” ~ “Is spanking okay? Or should we do time-outs?" ~ “How do I respond to a temper tantrum?” ~ “Wait, we're supposed to do time-ins? What's a time...
Apr 11, 2018•47 min
In the spirit of interviewing people who influence us personally, this episode features marriage mentors of our own, David and Claudia Arp. Married for 55 years, their insights on marriage have influenced the types of conversations we have in our marriage today. In this episode, David and Claudia share the secrets that have kept them enjoying their marriage for more than five decades. In addition, they introduce us to their research based marriage program, 10 Great Dates! Here are some insights ...
Apr 04, 2018•48 min
Welcome to our second Q & A episode! Thank you for submitting your questions. In this episode, we address questions specifically related to marriage, sex, and what to do when you and your spouse are not on the same page. Here’s a review of the questions we discuss in this episode: * How can I stop from feeling wrong and dirty about sex with my spouse? * What do I do when my spouse isn't "on the same page." * How can I encourage godliness in my son when his dad isn't actively growing in his f...
Mar 28, 2018•41 min
The resurrection of Jesus changed everything. But how do we help our kids understand the resurrection in a concrete way? How can we communicate to our kids the power that Christ has in our life? Don't get us wrong, we love chocolate and Easter eggs, but how can we make sure Easter isn't just another holiday for our kids. In this episode, we clarify four ways we can turn the abstract message of the resurrection into a concrete message our kids can begin to understand. * Live out the resurrection ...
Mar 21, 2018•36 min
If you love stories that lead to practical truths, this episode is for you! Frank Tate is one of Josh's closest friends on the planet. Even more, his insights as a dad have revolutionized the way we parent our kids. Growing up as a foster kid, Frank came to know "invisible Jesus" as his dad. During that time, Frank began asking Him what good dads do. Then, in Sunday School as a little boy, Frank remembers learning that wisdom cries aloud in the streets (Proverbs 1:20). With this newfound truth, ...
Mar 14, 2018•59 min
Jonathan and Wynter Pitts have four beautiful girls. At one point, three of them were in diapers at the same time. As you can imagine, Wynter was overwhelmed. But in the middle of the exhaustion and discontentment, she found purpose and contentment. During this time, the Lord revealed to her a need he wanted her to fill for girls in today’s culture. Today, she leads a ministry called For Girls Like You, a magazine for girls that unravels the heart of God for them. Her passion for raising girls w...
Mar 07, 2018•47 min
This is our first Q & A episode! Thank you for submitting your questions. In this episode, we address questions specifically related to parenting young children. Here's a review of the questions we discuss in this episode: * What are good, practical survival tips for our marriage? * How do I hit the reset button after blowing up at my kids? * I struggle with setting limits on technology. * I'm a single mom and I'm all alone. The questions: From Jody: In September, we will be welcoming into t...
Feb 28, 2018•40 min
Jamie Ivey's Happy Hour podcast was Christi's gateway drug into the podcastosphere. So you can imagine what a joy it was to have Jamie, and her husband Aaron, join us on our podcast. We love these two human souls because they embody healthy authenticity. Jamie's new book is called If You Only Knew: My Unlikely, Unavoidable Story of Becoming Free. The title itself is a fitting description of our conversation. As parents to four children, Jamie and Aaron have navigated ministry, marriage, and adop...
Feb 21, 2018•1 hr
Why is it that our natural tendency is to become hard and insensitive toward the person we love the most? Rather than being quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry (James 1:19), we're quick to defend ourselves, quick to cast blame, and slow to understand—a recipe that keeps us enslaved to self-righteousness, and too often, unable to forgive. In this episode, we talk about 5 ways you can create a culture of forgiveness in your marriage: * Forgive from the heart but set boundaries...
Feb 14, 2018•45 min
We asked families in our 22:6 Parenting audience this one question: What’s your #1 struggle as a parent? We had over 700 responses. Last week we covered struggles 6-10. In part 2, we talk about the top 5 struggles of today's parents. We also offer some practical insights on how we can overcome these struggles. In this episode, we talk about the top 5 struggles: 5. How do I disciple my kids? 4. I lose my patience. 3. I feel inadequate. 2. How can I get my kids to obey? (Discipline) 1. There's not...
Feb 07, 2018•54 min
Welcome to season 3! Last month, we asked families in our 22:6 Parenting audience this one question: What’s your #1 struggle as a parent? We had over 700 responses. Trust us when we say, you’re not alone. In the first two episodes of season 3 we talk about the top 10 struggles of today's parents. We also offer some practical insights on how we can overcome these struggles. In this episode, we talk about struggles 6-10: 10. Single parenting 9. Technology 8. Raising kids to be independent 7. Commu...
Jan 31, 2018•53 min
Welcome to our 40th episode! What an incredible and fun year it's been for the podcast. Having not yet been at this a year, we have learned a lot from each of you. Thank you for becoming a part of our family and making this journey so enjoyable. We thought it would be fitting to close out season 2 by talking about ways we can prioritize our family in the New Year. As the saying goes, "The days are long, but the years are short." In this episode, we light-heartedly go behind our own crooked pictu...
Dec 13, 2017•48 min
When is the last time you and your spouse argued about being too busy? Or maybe you didn't argue. Perhaps the busyness meant you just passed one another by, like ships in the night. That's how overcommitment usually begins in our home. It's not until we feel the stress of trying to manage it all that we begin to argue. That's when we "see" one another floating by. Let's face it, overcommitment is plaguing today's families. Unfortunately, the first casualty is usually our marriage. Whether it's f...
Dec 06, 2017•30 min
There is nothing we want more than to experience the joy of Christmas. Unfortunately, Christmas can leave our time feeling pressed and our wallets stressed. In addition, the holiday also brings along with it some baggage, especially when it comes to our children and the traditions we hold dear. In this episode, we go behind the lens of our own crooked picture frame to discuss some Christmas hot topics. We tell stories about how we were raised and what we implement today in our own family. We als...
Nov 29, 2017•47 min
Over one-third of Americans live in, or are a part of, a blended family. So many questions abound for stepparents. Fortunately, in this week's episode, our dear friend and expert on blended families, Ron Deal, answers many of these questions. Ron serves as Director of Family Life Blended and is the author of The Smart Stepfamily, The Smart Stepmom, The Smart Stepfamily Marriage, and The Smart Stepdad. After listening to this episode, you'll realize he's smart too. What's even better, his approac...
Nov 22, 2017•53 min
Cooler weather. Peppermint mochas. Hallmark movies. The holidays. For many, it’s wonderful. For others, this time of year can be quite chaotic. The pressure of figuring out what to buy. Making travel arrangements. Deciding which family members to spend the holidays with. We try—emphasis on “try”—to talk about the upcoming holidays ahead of time. We pray and think through how we can make the most of it as a family. Having little kids can make it a bit more chaotic for us, but it can also make it ...
Nov 19, 2017•39 min
Do you sometimes feel like you live in a fishbowl? Especially as a parent of young kids, your every move feeling scrutinized by glaring eyes in the grocery store. Or your teenager's every post on social media a reflection of how you parent? For many of us, the peanut gallery just adds insult to injury. We don't need the added pressure of the critics or the perfect family on social media to feel like we're not living up to the expectations we have of ourselves. One person who lives with these fee...
Nov 08, 2017•49 min
Nobody can really prepare us for the chaos, unpredictability, and self-imposed guilt that accompany becoming a parent. Well-intentioned people may try to prepare you for the sleepless nights, colic, and grocery store tantrums, but let’s be honest, you can’t really be prepared until you encounter them. Instead, it was something subtler, yet much deeper, that nearly took me (Christi) out as a momma. Something nobody else warned me about—I lost my identity. In this episode, we talk about what takin...
Nov 01, 2017•51 min
Education is one of the most challenging topics for many parents. Do we homeschool our kids? Is it okay to send them to public school? Or should we invest in private school? What about a parent's role in their child's education? How much responsibility should we shoulder versus the school itself? These are questions we tackle in this episode with Mr. Stuart Tutler, the Headmaster of New Hope Academy in Franklin, TN. We describe Mr. Tutler as a student of pedagogy. He has a passion for learning a...
Oct 25, 2017•46 min
For parents in the trenches of the early years, this interview is for you. The heart of our conversation with Christy and Nathan Nockels is the story behind their new lullaby album. The reason we were drawn to the story is because we have played Scripture lullabies in our children's bedrooms from the time they were infants. Ironically, as you'll learn, this album was birthed in the early years of Christy and Nathan's journey as parents. Christy Nockels is a worship leader / singer-songwriter. He...
Oct 18, 2017•47 min
Our affectionally labeled "resident child therapists," David Thomas and Sissy Goff are back on the podcast! In season 1, David and Sissy joined us to talk about the emotional milestones of boys and girls. Now that school is in full session, we talk with them about social milestones. Respectively, Sissy eloquently describes how girls can develop socially, and David describes what it takes to help boys do the same. The four core social milestones include: awareness, reciprocity, ownership, and bou...
Oct 11, 2017•52 min
We want to ask an honest question: Are you the master of your screen, or is your screen the master of you? Nobody doubts the pervasiveness of screens in our culture today, especially among kids and teens. But when was the last time you stopped and truly asked yourself, "What, about my screen, do I accept without question?" Don't misunderstand us, we don't believe screens are all bad. We just want to be honest with ourselves. And after listening to our conversation in this episode, we hope you'll...
Oct 04, 2017•37 min
Our guest this week is singer and songwriter, Matthew West. Matthew just released a brand new album called "All In." When we heard about Matthew's heart behind the album, we knew we had to interview him. Most noteworthy, our conversation centers around a song on the album called, "The Beautiful Things We Miss." If you listen to our podcast, you can already tell where this is going. As a self-described "professional Christian," West knows how easy it can be to coast, to pretend his spiritual life...
Sep 27, 2017•51 min
Don't let the title of this episode fool you. Yes, Jeannie Cunnion's message is helping moms find relief from the pressure to get it all right (i.e. be perfect). But this conversation is for all parents. If you need to experience the grace and gentleness of Jesus today as a mom or dad, this episode is for you. Jeannie's words are salve to the exhausted parent. You don't need to listen long before you realize Jeannie really "wrestles with the wild grace of God." We had the privilege of meeting Je...
Sep 21, 2017•48 min
Our guest this week is Ian Morgan Cron. We invited him on the podcast because nothing has been as significant as the Enneagram in taking our marriage to the next level. What is the Enneagram? Personally, we have been busting at the seams to introduce you to it. But nobody can explain the Enneagram the way Ian can. In this episode, Ian graciously joins us to explain all nine types. As you'll learn, and unlike all other personality tools, the beauty of the Enneagram is that it doesn't just show wh...
Sep 13, 2017•51 min
Have you given thought to what it means to be human? Think about what makes you--and your kids--truly come alive. Perhaps not surprisingly, those moments rarely happen on a screen. This summer we challenged ourselves to embrace more of what it means to be human. We took our kids camping. Gave away items to those in need. Went on adventures. Completed projects with our hands. And in so doing, we discovered five ways we can teach our kids to be human. In this episode, we tell stories from behind o...
Sep 06, 2017•37 min
Do you struggle finding time for those you love most? Does busyness tend to disconnect you from the heart of your spouse? In this episode, we affectionately adopt new "podcast parents," Rodney + Selma Wilson. They join us to explain the secret behind how they can still look at one another like teenagers in love, after 40+ years. Now grandparents, they talk about how they see parenting differently today than when they were raising their daughters. The wisdom and encouragement Rodney and Selma sha...
Aug 30, 2017•39 min
