Inspired by a Facebook post [ https://www.facebook.com/grownandflown/posts/1498189386947803 ], we dream up fantasy vacations. It turns out we care very little about luxury accommodations or exotic destinations. What we really need is a cozy bed and a Worry Concierge. Mentioned: Family reading weekend at Design Mom [ https://designmom.com/how-to-host-a-family-reading-marathon/ ]....
On this week’s Roundabout Roundup: Terri has a powerful new phone charger that solves the problem of missing and decomposing charger cords [ https://www.apple.com/shop/product/HNZ82ZM/A/mophie-powerstation-wireless-xl-portable-battery-10000-mah?cid=aos-us-seo-pla ]. Nicole is sparing her cat from the plastic cone of shame with a soft fabric neck pillow [ https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07X6J88MC/ref =ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1]. And Catherine is enjoying ready-made meals...
Terri's birthday was yesterday, and Catherine's is next week. But don't rely on these idea lists from New York magazine [ https://nymag.com/strategist/article/best-birthday-gifts-for-mom.html ], Etsy] [ https://www.etsy.com/market/gifts_for_mom_birthday , and Cosmo [ https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/fashion/g26765913/gifts-for-mom-from-daughter/ ] when you're shopping....
Today we're complaining about that fine line between showing our kids compassion and unconditional love, and teaching them that it's not okay to hurt our feelings just because we're moms. Because being passive-aggressive about it doesn't seem to be working.
On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, we welcome the return of Making It, the crafty, punny competition show hosted by Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman. While episode 1 of season 3 contained maybe more crying than we had expected, it still had plenty of very cool crafts to admire. Next: Episode 2, now with even more makers. But on Veronica Mars, there wasn't much to admire except the return of Leo (now an FBI agent with a jacket full of snacks!) and his uncomfortable hang-out with Logan. The...
With graduation season wrapping up, we talk about how things went for the class of 2021, and how the class of 2020 might be feeling about that. Plus, three of our students head back-to-college/med school in person.
Terri's ongoing war with coffee-dive-bombing gnats led to a chat about satisfying homemade fixes for everyday annoyances ... like apple-cider-vinegar traps for GNATS GNATS GNATS! (Mentioned: our Tupperware abundance [ https://www.spreaker.com/episode/45189997 ].)
We take a look at our LinkedIn profiles and wonder whether we should add positions like "life coach," "chauffeur," "employment counselor," and even "zookeeper."
On this week’s Roundabout Roundup, Nicole has upgraded her robot vacuum [ https://www.parentingroundaboutpodcast.com/blog/roundabout-roundup-majestic-pure-hair-mask-eufy-robovac-and-celestial-seasonings-fruit-tea-sampler ] to a combo vac/mop (that unfortunately does not kill giant scary spiders) [ https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07RQC1GHZ/ref =ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1]. Catherine recommends checking out your city's offerings, which you're paying for anyway so take adva...
What is the protocol for reaching out to your kid's significant other's parents... during/after a pandemic? We don't think Miss Manners has an entry on this.
Spiders and mice and bunnies, oh my! Nicole has a traumatic tale to share, and then we discuss our criteria for gently escorting critters outside vs. declaring war.
On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, we took a soothing voyage on the Queen Mary with the Steven Soderbergh movie Let Them All Talk. Nothing really happened, but we still enjoyed watching the ocean go by with Meryl Streep, Candice Bergen, and Dianne Wiest. Mentioned: Tim Brayton's review of the film at Alternate Ending. Over in not-at-all soothing Neptune, California, the Veronica Mars writers tried to make us believe the bomber had been identified. But we've been watching for four seaso...
According to this Wall Street Journal article [ https://www.wsj.com/articles/tent-sleepovers-the-extravagant-party-kids-are-craving-in-2021-11622059882 ], fancy tent sleepovers are all the rage right now. So the way we bring our kids back together after isolation is to... separate them into individual tents in the same room? Okay, sure.
How is it we have so many Tupperware items? They multiply, don't you think? And why can we never find the right lid? We compare notes on plastic-food-storage-container overload in a speed round that turns into a mini-rant.
We're away this week, but bringing you some of our past chats all about vacations and traveling--now that that's becoming a thing we can do again. Today, two speed rounds on the places we'd go. From February 2020: When you return home after a vacation or some other disruption to your routine, do you unpack and re-combobulate immediately? Do you shove your suitcase in a corner and ignore it for a week? Or do you freeze, overwhelmed and unable to decide what to tackle first?
We're away this week, but bringing you some of our past chats all about vacations and traveling--now that that's becoming a thing we can do again. Today, two speed rounds on the places we'd go. From June 2019: Hey, airlines: We have some brilliant ideas! There are so many ways you could make the air-travel experience easier and happier for families, and this whole episode is a brainstorming session just for you.
We're away this week, but bringing you some of our past chats all about vacations and traveling--now that that's becoming a thing we can do again. Today, two speed rounds on the places we'd go. From June 2018: "If someone paid you to travel the world for the next three years, would you go?" We're not so interested in the offer, unless Nicole's demands are met, anyway. And from March 2018: We're dreaming about an all-expenses-paid trip to whatever world monument we'd like to see. Special guest ...
We're away this week, but bringing you some of our past chats all about vacations and traveling--now that that's becoming a thing we can do again. Wednesdays are complaint day on Parenting Roundabout, and this week's subject is car trips with kids. So much to not like: arguments over the stereo system, bringing way too much stuff, the entire state of Indiana.
We're away this week, but bringing you some of our past chats all about vacations and traveling--now that that's becoming a thing we can do again. From June 2019: Summer brings travel, and travel brings us such a lengthy list of to-dos and don't-forgets that maybe it's easier to just stay home.
We're away this week, but bringing you some of our past chats all about vacations and traveling--now that that's becoming a thing we can do again. In May 2019, we obsessed about online travel booking. Instead of being convenient, we find it's usually far more trouble than it's worth. Cross your fingers that Terri's family isn't sleeping in the car on their next trip.
We've previously gone on record with our dessert decisions (or indecisiveness). Today, we play "this or that" with hard candy vs. gummy, chocolate pure vs. with stuff in, fake grape vs. fake cherry, minty vs. spicy, and Tootsie Pop vs. Blow Pop vs. throwing them both in the trash.
New parents today have access to tons of cool gear we never got to use, and we’re sad about that. But we're also complaining about what our own parents had that we didn't.
On this week’s Roundabout Roundup, Terri's enjoying an innovation in school band concerts that cuts an interminable evening down to a crisp 3 minutes[ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7g-w-ycY5QE ]. Nicole's trying a bubble wrap-style sensory toy [ https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B092QGRT45/ref =ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1], and Catherine is admiring the peonies in her yard [ https://www.thespruce.com/peony-plants-perennials-2132560 ]....
Last month, we shouted out our moms [ https://www.parentingroundaboutpodcast.com/blog/happy-mothers-day-mom ]. So with Father's Day approaching, it's our dads' turn, as we tell you a little bit about the fathers who raised us. (Father's Day isn't until June 20, so you still have time to pick up your golf- or barbecue-themed card.)
We'd like to share some of the movies and TV shows we used to love with our kids. But some of it hasn't aged well, and some of it was scary then and is scary now. But the biggest problem is that it's associated with us. So embarrassing!!!
On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, we caught up with the Friends reunion show and got a case of whiplash in the process. It was quite a grab bag of segments, emotions, guest stars, costumes, and other miscellany. On Veronica Mars, the concern is not whiplash but decapitation, as episode 2 of season 4 brought us our second severed head. We're hoping that's it, although we wouldn't be opposed to Alonzo and Dodie teaming up with Clyde and Nicole to take out some Fitzpatricks. Round 2 will...
Schools often teach teens important life skills like cooking and how to manage money. But we think they should also teach "How to advocate for yourself when your insurance company pulls a fast one" and "how to tell which YouTube fix-it video is legit."
Recently, we talked seriously about some possible additions to valedictorian in honoring high-school seniors [ https://www.parentingroundaboutpodcast.com/blog/speed-round-sunday-beyond-valedictorians ]. Today, we take a lighter look, prompted by former teacher Nicole who has been making her list.
We had to comment on an article in which a mom claims not to miss even a minute of her kids' baby and toddler days [ https://www.scarymommy.com/why-i-dont-miss-having-little-kids/ ]. Mentioned: Our speed round on revisiting our younger selves.
On this week’s Roundabout Roundup, Catherine is shouting out a company that was an early adopter of podcast advertising: Third Love and its very comfy bras and lounge wear [ https://www.thirdlove.com/ ]. Terri finds the iOS app Scrap Paper super useful [ https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scrap-paper/id1449110504 ], and Nicole's been converted to the wonder of cord organization with cable clips by her techie daughter [ https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NVKHLP8/ref =ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?i...
