Summer trips are calling - so let’s get packing! Listen for our top tips for packing lightly with families and enjoying your trip more as a result - having just what you need and not being weighed down with extra baggage! Ask your local library for audio book devices like Playaway. Interconnecting headphones are great for kids sharing a backseat and an audio experience. I wasn’t aware of these when my kids were in boosters, but I love the idea of an inflatable booster for travel!...
Jun 23, 2025•34 min
Say that ten times fast! Click here for our Summer Essentials PDF - everything you need, all in one place, for ultimate summer planning! BONUS!! I've included some of our family's favorite ways to have fun - in case you need inspiration! Summer is such a wonderful time of year - let's fully embrace it by setting our intentions, creating a framework, building a bucket list, coming up with a repeatable meal plan and then... letting go to enjoy what is before us. No matter what ages and stages your...
Jun 09, 2025•26 min•Season 5Ep. 143
Whether you’re primarily an Upholder (loves a to-do list), Obliger (rises to the occasion for others), Rebel (desires freedom) or Questioner (loves to know how things work), we’ve got tips for maintaining systems - for you and the people living in your home with you! Home are ecosystems with many different tendencies in play. Understanding how everyone responds to expectations can help us set up and maintain systems that help us love each other, and love each other well! Resources: The Four Tend...
May 26, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Season 5Ep. 142
Last episode you cleaned out your closet, now its time to figure out what really "feels like you" by learning about your energy type and how you can best dress to support your natural flow in the world! Based on Carol Tuttle's Dress Your Truth program , this episode will walk you through 4 energy types and how to dress accordingly - colors, silhouettes, shapes, patterns and types of fabrics. Plus! Which Disney characters are which energy type - just for fun! Another episode on building a wardrob...
May 12, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Season 5Ep. 141
You Need a System - for figuring out your signature style and containing that closet chaos! Well, we've got one for you! Let's look at your current wardrobe as your many micro-attempts at defining your style. You've bought things here and there over years thinking, "Maybe this is me." Well, now we're going to look through all those choices and figure out what really is YOU! We've got a method for meaningfully sorting through your clothes, evaluating and understanding what you truly like and merc...
Apr 28, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Season 5Ep. 140
What is a Drop Zone - well, any place you tend to drop stuff in your house. We all have them, so let's solve them! We're figuring out how to tackle the ongoing clutter of Drop Zones - mail, sentimental items, kids' clutter, returns to be made, and ongoing projects. And a Go Zone - ideally helps you get out the door smoothly. This is a one-stop shop for your keys, wallet, backpack or diaper bag and snacks to get through the day! Drop Zone Organizers We Love How to unsubscribe from junk mail and c...
Apr 14, 2025•1 hr 11 min•Season 5Ep. 139
Michelle brings our editor (and her husband) to answer listener questions about Kitchen Systems. Tune in to find out how to tackle that kitchen mess at the end of a long day, how to zone your fridge and what to do about leftovers! Click here to learn how to preheat your stainless steel pans to make them nonstick! These Brightroom Organizers can be confined to keep the space under your sink from becoming a black hole! Or this one! I also like these clear bings for stacking storage!...
Mar 31, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Season 5Ep. 138
We're beginning a new Spring Cleaning series all about how systems help us tackle everything in the home that needs our time and attention. When we create a system for how things get used and maintained, we are give ourselves the gift of a smoothly operating home, as well as more free time to pursue our work, hobbies and dream lifestyle. We're starting with the kitchen - the heart of the home - with a few systems in place we can make this area run efficiently, making meal times, mornings and cle...
Mar 17, 2025•1 hr 21 min•Season 5Ep. 137
The countdown to competition day has begun! Jessica breaks down her decision to compete in the Mrs. Utah pageant and tells us all the things going into her preparation. Jessica also shares her platform: The Mom Refresh Movement - all about empowering overwhelmed moms to regain their sparkle through simple and doable habits centered around Fuel, Rest, Editing, Sparkle and Help. To subscribe to the MomLetter and get weekly tips and ideas for self-care in motherhood, click here !...
Mar 05, 2025•1 hr 18 min•Season 5Ep. 136
Today we're discussing Gretchen Rubin's The Four Tendencies - an idea she puts forth about how people tend to react to both inner and outer expectations, whether they readily meet them or tend to resist. As with any method of categorizing how people approach the world, we find this helpful for understanding how we (and the people we love) end up in the same situations over and over again. The Four Tendencies are The Upholder, who readily meets inner and outer expectations, but has a hard time le...
Feb 18, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Season 5Ep. 135
For Valentine’s Day, we’re talking all about connecting with our nearest and dearest, our broader communities and even perfect strangers. Michelle recommends “ Gratitude Journal for Teens Girls and Moms ” and this article: “ The problem with donating our dopamine to our phones, not our friends ” by Tonya Mosley.
Feb 03, 2025•1 hr 19 min•Season 5Ep. 134
We’re big fans of a family meeting: a once-a-week time set aside for discussing everything the family needs. It can be practical, philosophical and everything in between. Whether you start by lighting candles, making waffles or flopping on the couch, it’s a great place for the family to work through conflict in a less-emotional state, build character skills, set intentions and work out the kinks of daily life. It can be as formal or as informal as you’d like - and there’s only one prerequisite -...
Jan 20, 2025•56 min•Season 5Ep. 133
We're closing out 2024 with a look back at our favorite things: memories, challenges, rituals, lessons learned and mantras that go us through. Plus- how we invite our families to spend some time in reflection and setting intentions for the New Year. Michelle's Favorites: Primrosia Dual-Tip Markers for Writing, Journaling, Doodling Paperage Spiral Bound Notebooks (in different colors to keep track of what's inside) Facial Cupping with Sakina Di Pace Jessica's Favorites: Reusable Under-Eye Patches...
Jan 06, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Season 5Ep. 132
Have you ever heard of kin-keeping? It’s the emotional labor of maintaining and strengthening family ties and involves all the organizing of holiday events, wrapping of gifts and keeping of traditions. If you are the kin-keeper in your home this episode is for you: we’re talking about the power and joy of this role, as well as ideas for decreasing the burden it entails so we can enjoy all the keeping of the kin that we are so busy doing.
Dec 09, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 4Ep. 131
We're all about hosting for the holidays - and whether you've got big or small gatherings planned, we've got tips on how to save money, make the little things count, create meaningful conversation and welcome your guests with grace and calm. Plus, we dive into the difference between warm and cool hosts, our feelings about being a little bit extra, and how we know which of us is the older millennial.
Nov 25, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 4Ep. 130
On today's episode we propose an expansion on the best ideas of gentle parenting, but with the addition of some power for parents - moving past imposter syndrome so prevalent in our generation to compassionate, competent and confident parenting.
Nov 12, 2024•55 min•Season 4Ep. 129
We are re-airing this fan favorite episode all about the hyggely lifestyle: leaning into all things cozy, warm and intimate in this otherwise cold and crummy time of year. This episode is based on the book The Little Book of Hygge (which makes a great holiday gift, IMHO) and covers the ten tenets of hygge: atmosphere, presence, pleasure, equality, gratitude, harmony, comfort, truce, togetherness and shelter. Enjoy!...
Nov 05, 2024•53 min•Season 4Ep. 128
The play-based childhood, essential to thriving in adulthood, has been on a rapid decline in the past few decades, priming the way for a phone-based childhood. We discuss the reasons we as parents feel we have to overprotect kids and how to talk ourselves through that in order to bring back a real childhood for our kids: real connections, real play, real experiences and real goodness. We are not zero-screens families, but rather value giving our children the experiences they need over simulated ...
Oct 21, 2024•1 hr 25 min•Season 4Ep. 127
Today we've got seven ways to make your day better, and the science behind why they work. In our busy lives it can be easy to forget to make time to do the things that will actually make us feel alive, and happy about it - connecting with our communities, getting a breath of fresh air, creating, problem solving, and making room for serendipity.
Oct 07, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Season 4Ep. 126
Today Michelle interviews her friend, Marcela, a teacher on special assignment who is also pursuing her doctorate in education while raising her two young girls and juggling family life with grace alongside her husband. She shares her unique experience on raising a multi-lingual and multi-cultural family all while claiming a life of abundance and every day luxury for herself. She offers a great perspective on co-parenting while both parents work full-time, as well as insights on how she feeds he...
Sep 23, 2024•59 min•Season 4Ep. 125
After the first few weeks of a new school year shake out, we have the opportunity to sync up our schedules and iron out any wrinkles in our systems for a smooth school year. Whether you've got pre-k or high school students, we're bringing our best tips for calendar maintenance, meal prep, after-school activities and more. Plus, when to acknowledge it's too much and how to let go, so you can actually enjoy and embrace the chaos of this time of life.
Sep 09, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 4Ep. 124
Creating a signature style is a great way to show off your personality and passions before even speaking. Let’s dive into assessing and determining a personal, timeless style by first going through the building blocks we already own, then adding accessories and defining our style!
Aug 26, 2024•1 hr 18 min•Season 4Ep. 123
“Find out who you are, and do it on purpose.” We’re taking Dolly Parton’s words to heart and determining the first part of our personal brand - which develops over time to help inform us as to where and how to spend our limited time and energy. We’re diving into questions like: “What is your purpose and your passions (long term and short term).” “What are you known for?” “What do you want to be known for?” “How are your spending your time lately?” “What are you up to/listening to/ interested in/...
Aug 05, 2024•57 min•Season 4Ep. 122
Have you ever heard of a philosophical razor? It’s a rule of thumb or principle used to shave off unnecessary thoughts or explanations or to determine the next best course of action. There are a whole bunch of interesting razors we can use every day to let the little things go, seek simple solutions, give people the benefit of the doubt and build our own luck. Listen as we discuss razors high and low, as well as our own personal razors we’ve developed to help us make quick decisions and live acc...
Jul 22, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 4Ep. 121
Minimalism is a philosophy we’re all familiar with - but it’s tenets can be used far beyond household possessions. It’s not just about stripping down what is not worth keeping, but also about letting the things that matter most to us take up the majority of our time and attention. O In this episode we’re exploring what minimalism can teach us about our wardrobes, mindless consumption, constant influx of ideas, never-ending to-do lists, long-term storage and nighttime routines. Check out this epi...
Jul 08, 2024•59 min•Season 4Ep. 120
From sleep training to screen time, there are so many ideas out there for parents. We review some of the ideas that have worked well for us, as well as ideas we’ve changed our minds about. Parenting is a constant challenge to grow and learn alongside our kids, and learning means we don’t always do things right the first (or second or third) times. Thankfully, it’s a long term game, so we get to make adjustments as we go. Michelle recommends the book The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt for a...
Jun 24, 2024•1 hr 20 min•Season 4Ep. 119
Catch up with us as we share our favorite fiction and non-fiction reads for summer, podcasts and music we've had in our ears lately and what we're doing with our kids on the hottest day of summer. Jess's Favorites Books The Selection Series 12 Dancing Princesses Series You're the Girl for the Job Habits of the Household Podcasts A Secret Tool to Keep Your Kids Entertained This Summer Unpacking Panic Attacks and Emotional Wellness Michelle's Favorites Books Where'd You Go Bernadette...
Jun 10, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Season 4Ep. 118
Today we’re bringing you 7 tips for enjoying summer with the kids home - whether you’re a working or at-home parent during these months of freedom, and yes, some chaos. We’re all about setting our intentions for the season ahead so as to fully embrace the extra time we get with our little ones - and set flexible frameworks for everyone to enjoy. We chat about what to do about summer meals, snacks and slowing down!
May 28, 2024•55 min•Season 4Ep. 117
We’re back with part two of organizing with kids in mind: talking household routines, systems and schedules that keep us from drowning. We discuss how and when to purge without making your family hate you, plus how to get out of the endless cycle of accumulate/purge. We also talk about setting up routines that keep the home from getting out of hand, and how to get kids involved with chores and feeling like a part of how the house functions.
May 13, 2024•1 hr 14 min•Season 4Ep. 116
Organizing with kids in the home is a whole new ballgame - and the family’s needs change frequently through ages and stages. Today we tackle some of the common sticking points for young families: toys and laundry. We discuss how we are handling these in our own homes, as well as guiding principles for everyone. Finding solutions that work for our families begins with discovering what kind of maintainers we want to be, and what level of cleanliness or organización we desire. Let’s get started!...
Apr 29, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Season 4Ep. 115
