Exceptional Parenting Podcast

So many of us start motherhood thinking we will be the perfect parent. We have an unrealistic view of what motherhood is supposed to be, so when we find ourselves getting angry, yelling, or threatening our kids, it feels horrible. We feel like a failure. We feel alone, and we feel like we are the only ones who struggle with those things. 

Desiree Fortin from "the perfect mom" on Instagram found that by opening up about her mom anger, she's been able to work through it in such powerful and purposeful ways. 

In this raw episode, you'll hear Desiree talk about her journey from wanting kids so badly, to having them and being faced with postpartum depression, and realizing there was an anger inside of her she never realized existed. She shares so openly here how any parent can work through those big emotions and how doing that for ourselves can also set a powerful example for our kids to do the same.

For full show notes visit https://exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/episode85

We talk a lot about our kids' big emotions, tantrums, and meltdowns, but what about our own? In a Facebook conversation the other day my friend opened up about her parenting frustrations and said: "please don't tell me to just take a deep breath". 

I didn't tell her to take a deep breath, and I won't tell you to take a deep breath either. 

In this episode, you'll learn the four simple things I do every time I notice big emotions in myself. Lately, I've had a LOT of big emotions, so I have had plenty of practice honing in on these habits. What I can say, though, is that they work...so much better than taking a deep breath.

For full show notes visit https://exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/episode84

"When my kid acts out, I wonder if I should be more stern or more patient? Nothing seems to work, what do I do?"

That question was posted on a discussion board and if you've been wondering the same thing, this episode is for you.

For full show notes head to https://exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/episode83

We all know that food can be the cause of our kid's behavior. We KNOW what it looks like for our kids to be hangry!

But can other food affect our kid's behavior too? Absolutely! In the podcast today Mya Metzel, a certified health coach talks about how food affects our kids and how to make super small changes towards better food choices.

Full show notes at exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/episode82

We've all heard the buzzwords of "growth mindset" and "resilience" but what do those really mean?

In this episode Alexandra Eidens, from Big Life Journal is diving deep into the science behind growth mindset, why it's important, and how to help our kids develop it in daily situations. 

Alexandra and I share about how we can make small changes to support even our most anxious, fearful, perfectionist kids to learn to have a growth mindset in daily situations.

Full show notes visit https://exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/episode81

Getting kids to do chores can be SO frustrating. It feels like we have to nag, yell, remind, or bribe them to do anything, and the process is so miserable, it almost doesn't feel worth it. 

That's how I felt for so long, but this past year I've shifted the way we do chores in our home. 

Since then I've noticed my kids don't need to be reminded as often, they whine less, and they actually are doing some things on their own.

It all happened by changing five simple things outlined here in the podcast.

For full show notes head to https://exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/episode80

Is there anything more difficult than having a whiny kid?

The noise can throw me into a tailspin faster than almost any other behavior. 

In this episode, I'm diving straight into how to address whining and complaining because in the past few months I've seen HUGE improvements in myself when my kids whine.

For full show notes visit https://exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/home/episode79

We hear it all the time "living their best life" but what does that really mean and how do we really help kids to live their best lives?

Laura Earnshaw of MyHappyMind is on the podcast today helping us to not just say the words, but truly help our kids understand and become their best selves.

In this episode you'll learn;

● How as parents we can retrain our own brains to focus on their character rather than their achievements ● How this builds their self-esteem and resilience ● How to help a child develop a new character trait ● How to decrease sibling rivalry by helping kids understand and celebrate the character differences within a family ● How to help our kids not be defined or bothered by society's measure of "success"

For Full show notes https://exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/home/episode78

I have changed a lot as a person, and as a parent, in the 15 years, I've been married. While I'd absolutely say the change has been for the best, it hasn't always been easy, especially when it came to explaining things to my husband. 

Having been raised in an authoritarian household, he had ideas about discipline, obedience, and his role as a dad. In this episode, my husband is joining us to talk about his perspective of that shift, what I did right...and also things I could've done better (hint: I learned SO much from hearing him speak honestly about this topic). I hope you get as much, or more, out it than I did.

For full show notes visit https://exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/home/episode77/

As parents, it's one thing to work to change our parenting style, but what about our parents? How do we get them to understand? Or maybe not even to understand, but not to interject into what we try so hard to do??

For this episode, I brought on someone special to me, my mom! 

She opened up about how parenting evolved for her, and how she feels about her role now as the mom to a mom, and how she supports myself and my siblings in all our different parenting styles. If you've ever wondered how to get your parents on board, or how to approach a parent whose supercritical, we lay it all out in this episode.

https://exceptionalparentingpodcast.com/home/episode76/