What Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face...
When you're a parent, every day brings a "fresh hell" to deal with. In other words, there's always something. Think of us as your funny mom friends who are here to remind you: you're not alone, and it won't always be this hard.
We're Amy Wilson and Margaret Ables, both busy moms of three kids, but with completely different parenting styles. Margaret is a laid-back to the max; Amy never met a spreadsheet or an organizational system she didn't like.
In each episode of "What Fresh Hell" we offer lots of laughs, but also practical advice, parenting strategies, and tips to empower you in your role as a mom. We explore self-help techniques, as well as ways to prioritize your own needs, combat stress, and despite the invisible workload we all deal with, find joy amidst the chaos of motherhood.
If you've ever wondered "why is my kid..." then one of us has probably been there, and we're here to tell you what we've learned along the way.
We unpack the behaviors and developmental stages of toddlers, tweens, and teenagers, providing insights into their actions and equipping you with effective parenting strategies.
We offer our best parenting tips and skills we've learned. We debate the techniques and studies that are everywhere for parents these days, and get to the bottom of what works best to raise happy, healthy, fairly well-behaved kids, while fostering a positive parent-child relationship.
If you're the default parent in your household, whether you're a busy mom juggling multiple pickups and dropoffs, or a first-time parent seeking guidance, this podcast is your trusted resource. Join our community of supportive mom friends laughing in the face of motherhood!
801
Better Then or Better Now?
Anyone old enough to remember New Coke thinks things were better in the free-wheeling, “come home when it’s dark” days of our childhood. But were they really? We decide whether the things we loved are better then or better now- for kids AND for moms.
50 min
802
Changing the Invisible Workload (with guest Eve...
If you make a list of all the stuff you do that your spouse has no idea happens, it will probably be very long and rage-inducing. So don’t stop there! Here’s how to redistribute the household workload for good. Guest Eve Rodsky, author of FAIR PLAY.
45 min
803
When We Should (And Shouldn't) Rescue Our Kids
When kids need rescuing, they look to Mom. Whether we do so or not, we’re left second-guessing whatever it is we just did. Here’s when we should step in, and when we should hang back— and how to give our kids the gift of solving their own problems.
43 min
804
Parenting With An Audience
Have you ever felt coerced into parenting in a way you usually wouldn’t because you were in public? Is the disapproval of Aunt Joan even worse than eyerolls from strangers? Here’s how to stay focused even when it’s YOUR kid screaming on the airplane.
46 min
805
When Other Kids Are Bad Influences
What is it about the kid who throws sand that other kids find so irresistible? How do we keep our kids away from bad influences in their lives, especially as they get older? And why do parents sometimes peg exactly the wrong kids as good influences?
45 min
806
Hot Takes and Unpopular Opinions
We asked all of you for your hot takes and unpopular opinions. From athleisure to mayonnaise to french-fry consistency to the enduring fame of Coldplay, these are your extremely fervent feelings about things most of us hadn’t seriously considered.
51 min
807
When One of Our Kids Is Taking All Our Bandwidth
There are a lot of reasons that one kid might be hogging our bandwidth. Some are positive; some not so much. Sometimes it’s temporary; sometimes it's a “new normal” that can reshape family dynamics. Here’s how to keep our other relationships going.
45 min
808
Managing the Grandparent Relationship
What do we do when our parents overindulge our kids? Or undermine our parenting choices in front of them? What about when our parents don't seem interested in our kids at all? Here’s how to create grandparent relationships that work for everyone.
43 min
809
How To Prepare Our Kids Now to Be Grown and Flo...
Our kids are pretty happy being dependent on us. Doesn’t a grilled cheese taste so much better when Mom makes it? So how do we start the nest-leaving process early and often? Guest: Mary Dell Harrington, co-author of the new book GROWN AND FLOWN.
56 min
810
Parenting Styles: Which Ones Are We (And Should...
Helicopter moms, snowplow moms, tiger moms, free-range moms…these parenting types are usually defined in the negative: well, at least I’m not THAT. But might there be useful takeaways from any parenting style that we can custom-blend for ourselves?
45 min
811
Husband Crimes: Can This Marriage Be Saved?
We asked you to tell us your spouses’ most unacceptable- and also extremely minor- infractions. Whether it’s turning off the AC, creating a Sock Mountain, or pausing Netflix to point out plot holes, these husband (and wife) crimes deserve justice.
51 min
812
When Should Kids Tell?
Most little kids have an ironclad sense of right and wrong and are happy to report on whoever isn’t sharing in the dress-up corner. But as they get older, the stakes get higher- for them, for us, for the kid being "told on.” When should kids tell?
48 min
813
Imaginative Kids: Is It Ever Too Much of a Good...
Can a kid ever have TOO good of an imagination? Does there come a time when we need to lead kids back to reality? Will they take their imaginary friends to prom if we don’t? Here’s why an overly active imagination is almost always a wonderful thing.
50 min
814
When Kids Prefer the Other Parent Over You (Or ...
Why do kids prefer one parent over the other? Why do those allegiances shift as kids grow? Are we supposed to ignore our own hurt feelings because it’s developmentally appropriate? Or are there times when we should push back? Here’s how to know.
45 min
815
The Mom Gap: Getting Back Out There (with guest...
How do we own the time we've spent out of the workforce? How do we re-enter our former careers— or find new opportunities? Guest: Christina Geist, mom-gap survivor and author of the new children's book SORRY GROWNUPS, YOU CAN’T GO TO SCHOOL!
58 min
816
When Your Kids Take Everything Out On You
Parenting experts say we shouldn’t take our kids’ snarkiness towards us personally. But shouldn’t we insist on their respect? What happens when it really starts to wear us down? Here’s why kids take it all out on us, and how to lower our reactivity.
49 min
817
Teaching Kids Empathy
What is empathy, exactly? It’s not pity… or passive. Empathy involves both emotion and action. For our kids, it’s an acquired skill- one that needs our guidance and encouragement to be cultivated. Here’s how to model and teach empathetic behavior.
46 min
818
House Rules That Work
What are your house rules- the ones that keep your home life tolerable, the ones kids know so well they self-police? Whether it’s “no feet where we eat” or “ask Mom twice and it’s no forever,” here are our (and your) house rules to live by.
46 min
819
Finding Your Mom Tribe
How do we find a mom tribe? How can we get closer with the ones we already have? Do online tribes count? In an age when our family of origin is less likely than ever to live next door, here’s how to invest in the communities happening where we are.
45 min
820
Letting Our Kids Feel Unsafe (In a Safe Way) wi...
How can we allow ourselves to allow our kids to experience the exhilaration of feeling just a little unsafe? How does risky play create more confident adults? Guest: actress and author Evangeline Lilly, author of the book series The Squickerwonkers.
47 min
821
Making It Work for the Long Haul (with guest Be...
The familiarity of long-term relationships is the best thing about them- and the hardest. How do we make our marriages work for the long haul? Guest: Belinda Luscombe, author of the new book MARRIAGEOLOGY: THE ART AND SCIENCE OF STAYING TOGETHER.
51 min
822
Sleep Hacks (For All Ages and Stages)
Whether you’re a hard core cry-it-outer or a co-sleeper, here are the best sleep hacks (from both sleep experts and our listeners) for getting babies, toddlers, preschoolers, and even older kids napping, sleeping, and staying asleep. Get some rest!
47 min
823
Making Big Changes as a Family (with guest Jill...
Have you ever considered homeschooling the kids and traveling for a year? Has your job ever forced a cross-country move? We talk making big changes as a family with guest Jill Krause, who spent a year with 4 kids in an RV and lived to tell the tale.
49 min
824
Do We Really Have To Play With Our Kids? When P...
Parenting really is more demanding than it used to be. We spend three times as many hours playing with our kids as our mothers did. But why? Do we really need to curate kids’ every waking moment? Or might they be better off playing in a dirt pile?
46 min
825
Mom Wins! (and Mother's Day Fails)
Happy Mother’s Day Week! We are passing out some Mom Awards to our listeners to counteract the lukewarm eggs benedict, hastily-purchased cards, and kindergarten art projects proclaiming, in 3-inch crayoned letters, that your favorite food is “BEER.”
43 min