Better Off Dad

Why is child care such an acute problem in this country and what can we do to solve it?

If you're a new parent or planning to be soon, no doubt you've found yourself asking some form of this question. Wait lists, long drives across town to child care centers, begging and borrowing time from grandparents and neighbors to stitch together something that works.

Matt & Tim interview Laura Johnston, the content director for the Plain Dealer and Cleveland.com about the Rethinking Child Care series she's spearheaded that deals with these questions and more.

Plus, horror movie or real life parenting horror story - can you tell the difference? We've got a new spooky season game. And the guys have their first big on air disagreement - about poop - and the dirty details of dealing with it.

Who will ascend to the porcelain in throne? Matt and Tim share the dirty truth of potty training toddlers. Scare yourself with horror stories, steal their tips and tricks, and be sure to bring some wipes - things are about to get messy. Plus, what happens when kids start kindergarten? Matt shares his experiences. And headlines including death rays at the playground and the alarming pediatric mental health crisis.

The boys are back with some timely advice on how to survive summer travel season with kids and throw in some recent experiences out on the road for good measure. Plus, the nine rudest things to say to a stay-at-home dad. Find out which irks us the most. And Matt & Tim take on the latest challenges to being a parent whether it's Canadian wildfires or worse.

As parents, we all have memories that will be entirely irrelevant to our children - let's face it, it's probably most of them. But - there are some in particular we hold dear and without further ado, here's our list!

We're back (and apologize for it being so long)! Matt and Tim catch you up on what's happening in their kids lives. Plus, our interview with Peter and Julie Rea, authors of the book Better Humans, Better Performance: Driving Leadership, Teamwork, and Culture with Intentionality. And Matt learns to be a #GirlDad.

Parenting full-time is a fulfilling, exhausting job - but the pay, honestly it's not great. Matt & Tim revisit the topic of money and share more sense on dollars and cents when it comes to family, kids and keeping up with the Jones's. Plus, is social media destroying our children's lives? And the guys casually discuss preparing for the armageddon (kind of).

Kid sleep! Parent sleep! The tips, the tricks, the things Dad's really do when they're desperate to put children to sleep that they would never tell their partners. Matt & Tim discuss it all on an episode that definitely won't put you to bed. Plus, a Hogwarts grad goes full Dad of the Year. And Tim struggles with sharing in a new two-child household while Matt introduces his son to the lottery.

Dead hard drives and new living, breathing babies can't stop Matt & Tim from crawling back into the basement and returning to the airwaves. There's a new baby in the BOD Pod family, Tim shares stories from the frontlines of new parenting. Plus, could you raise children in a totally different environment? Matt reflects on a recent trip to New York and whether his Midwest parenting could cut it on the coast. All that plus headlines and more as the guys knock off rust and get back to business.

We all know making friends as adults can be - weird? Difficult? Choose your adjective, but remember you're going to need a worse one when it comes to making friends while parenting. Matt & Tim share their views on the topic. Plus, we quarantined with our kids and lived to tell the tale. A story from the front lines of the waning pandemic. Plus, Matt gets asked some hard questions about where babies come from and what you do with a person's leg after they die.

Matt & Tim share a major announcement affecting the future of the pod and their lives as they know it. Then we tackle the headlines, from viral stories about Dads putting their kids on a leash to the CDC proclaiming splash pads 'fecal fountain disease spreaders'...we may be editorializing there a bit. Plus, do older friends make our kids more mature or more likely to get in trouble? And going to war with our kids obsession with snacks.