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In today's episode, my friend and neighbor Maura Flaherty, shares the secrets of her longstanding Cookbook Club. For the last 4-5 years, she and 6 other women have been meeting and sharing recipes from a rotating cast of cookbooks and (sometimes) celebrity chefs. 

And while the recipes have had their moments (see below for some of the faves!), they aren’t the true stars of these evenings. That honor belongs to the friends, and to the friendships they’ve built, nurtured, and deepened across all the courses life has served. (and life has served them some gristle, as you'll hear). 

I'm so happy to share the tips from Maura about how you might consider creating one of these clubs yourself. And before you turn up your nose because you don't consider yourself a foodie - there's always room at the table for a cocktail or a mocktail! So don't let your skills in the kitchen be a deciding (or limiting!) factor. 

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Today on the podcast, I'm reflecting on the last four episodes of the podcast, where I've talked at great length about screens. It's a conversation that isn't going anywhere anytime soon, so it's important that we keep talking about it. But if this conversation about screen time brings up feelings of shame or embarrassment, guilt or discomfort, then today's bite-sized episode might leave you feeling a little better. 

YOU ARE NOT ALONE. And in this screen-obsessed, screen-addicted culture we find ourselves in, IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT. We've been given these pocket-sized slot machines without an instruction manual. We're all learning this together. 

Plus I end with a beautiful poem from Laura Grace Weldon 

Instead of Clicking on ChatGPT. 

Enjoy! 

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Cream City Dreams is now Gather Connect Create!

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Join me weekly for inspiration, interviews and simple ideas you can use in your own community to create more connections IN REAL LIFE, no matter where you find yourself!

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Today on the podcast, I'm excited to introduce you to my niece, Sophia and my sister, Molly. 

In less than a week, Sophia will turn 13 and I wanted to bring her on the podcast so that - for this last episode of the February series on screens - I could stop talking about teenagers in the hypothetical and start talking to teenagers in real life. 

Molly texted me after our conversation and asked if there were anything I wanted her to redo, or elaborate on or otherwise say to make it better. But I think this episode is beautiful just as it is. 

I hope you hear that too. 

Initially I set out to review the book The Amazing Generation, written by Jonathan Haidt and Catherine Price, released earlier this year. Jonathan Haidt also wrote The Anxious Generation and he's been making the rounds promoting screen-and-social-media-free-childhoods for the last few years. (No doubt, you've heard of him). This book is written for kids, tweens and teens, calling itself "a handbook for living a happy and exciting life that isn’t hijacked by a smartphone."  

But what you also get (consider it my two-fer to you) ... is an insightful, raw and honest conversation between a mother and daughter (and auntie!). You hear what a conversation about screens can sound like, and a template for sharing the vulnerabilities that come with wanting to move beyond the 'do as I say, not as I do' parenting model. 

You'll hear why I didn't want to change a thing when my sister asked if there were anything she could have said to make it better. 

Maybe this will inspire you to have a similar conversation if you've got kids. And if you don't, surely you know someone who might benefit from a conversation like this? I'd be grateful if you'd share it! 

Links: 

Book: The Amazing Generation

Authors' websites: Jonathan Haidt, Catherine Price

Wait until 8th pledge 

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Or NEW (!) even more fun, drop me a voice memo HERE!

Cream City Dreams is now Gather Connect Create!

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Join me weekly for inspiration, interviews and simple ideas you can use in your own community to create more connections IN REAL LIFE, no matter where you find yourself!

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A few weeks ago, Thekla Brumder Ross and I hosted a live panel with last week's guest, Kat Zilka, Founder and Executive Director of Dis/Connect, and two of the high schoolers who are a part of the Dis/Connect movement. 

It was eye-opening, to say the very least! 

Today on the podcast, Thekla and I breakdown our three most inspirational takeaways from this conversation. You need not have been present to understand the profundity of what the students had to teach us. 

Plus, we catch up on what has been happening since our deep dive on attention last May and some exciting news in Thekla's world. (cough, cough, BOOK DEAL, cough, cough, COMING SOON!) Hear more about what this is about and when you can expect to see it on shelves near you! 

And if you are inspired to reach out to Thekla to connect or share a personal story with her that *could* be included in her book, you can find her on LinkedIn. 

Also - I would love love LOVE to hear tiny steps YOU'VE been taking (if you have) to notice your own screen time use, or to check yourself, or to keep yourself accountable. I hope to have a short and sweet episode sharing fun ideas we can ALL try to be more present and connected with ourselves! Would you leave me a voice memo HERE? (or just reply to this email if that feels more comfortable!)

Support the show

I'd love to hear what you think. Drop me a text (linked above) or an email: [email protected]

Or NEW (!) even more fun, drop me a voice memo HERE!

Cream City Dreams is now Gather Connect Create!

New name, same host 👋🏼 Bite-sized episodes with big connection!

Join me weekly for inspiration, interviews and simple ideas you can use in your own community to create more connections IN REAL LIFE, no matter where you find yourself!

➡ CLICK HERE to send me a text, I'd love to hear what you thought about this episode! Leave your name in the text so I know who it's from!

Today's guest is the founder and Executive Director of Dis/Connect, a local non-profit attempting to create screen-free spaces for teens and young adults in our community. But let this conversation inspire you, wherever you live, to look for those spaces in your neighborhood.

If you’re in the mood for a how-I-found-my-calling-and-dropped-everything-to-follow-it story, this week’s episode is for you.

And it's incredibly powerful.

Kat was a high school English teacher during the pandemic and saw first-hand the havoc that that screens and social media (and doomscrolling, comparisons, FOMO and dangerous algorithms) had on her students. She had a front row seat to the mental health crisis of this generation of teens. 

So what did she do? 

She got the teens to talk about it. She asked them questions. She listened. 

"We need help," they begged. 

She heard that call, left her job at her high school and set out to create the spaces these teens needed to have the difficult conversations and find the support and off-screen accountability with their peers. 

Whether you’re a parent or not, this is a vital conversation we all need to be having. I hope you’ll listen and join in. 

I also invited my friend (and friend-of-the-pod), psychologist and addiction-medicine specialist, Thekla Brumder Ross. Longtime listeners will remember my series with Thekla last spring all about attention, mindfulness and how we can change our relationships with our screens. If you haven't listened to that, it's worth going back to listen! Thekla really is an expert here! (start HERE!) 

Support the show

I'd love to hear what you think. Drop me a text (linked above) or an email: [email protected]

Or NEW (!) even more fun, drop me a voice memo HERE!

Cream City Dreams is now Gather Connect Create!

New name, same host 👋🏼 Bite-sized episodes with big connection!

Join me weekly for inspiration, interviews and simple ideas you can use in your own community to create more connections IN REAL LIFE, no matter where you find yourself!

➡ CLICK HERE to send me a text, I'd love to hear what you thought about this episode! Leave your name in the text so I know who it's from!

In today's episode, Christina Dinur and Amanda Metropolus from RECONNECT MILWAUKEE talk about how and why they founded this group and what they hope to offer kids instead of endless (and mindless) screen time. 

A screen free childhood movement is growing (see links below) and it's powered by local folks who are trying to offer other ways for kids to connect, play, and experience the world IRL instead of behind a screen. 

There are so many ways to tap into the movement, but here are a few links, and we talk about more in this episode. And it's so much more helpful to navigate this journey with screens (and kids) together. 

Links from the show: 

RECONNECT MILWAUKEE

Wait until 8th Pledge

Smartphone Free Childhood US

Off February (global) 

Off February (Milwaukee) 

Support the show

I'd love to hear what you think. Drop me a text (linked above) or an email: [email protected]

Or NEW (!) even more fun, drop me a voice memo HERE!

Cream City Dreams is now Gather Connect Create!

New name, same host 👋🏼 Bite-sized episodes with big connection!

Join me weekly for inspiration, interviews and simple ideas you can use in your own community to create more connections IN REAL LIFE, no matter where you find yourself!

➡ CLICK HERE to send me a text, I'd love to hear what you thought about this episode! Leave your name in the text so I know who it's from!

If you've ever met someone and thought 'GAH I wish we lived closer, I'd love to be friends.' This episode is for you! 

It's also for you if you are tired of texting or emailing and want to put more emotion (and less emojis) into your friendships. 

Today, meet my dear friend Angie, who lives in Canada. We hardly ever talk in real time, and we've only ever met in person for less than a week. But we call ourselves soul sisters, voice friends, die-hard voice memo devotees! 

That's how we communicate. Hundreds and hundreds of memos later, we have a deeply connected friendship. 

And today we're talking about how to start up your own  friendship via voice memo, what it takes to keep it going, why it's worth it, and what it's meant to us. 

Short and sweet - and if you give it a try, I'd love to hear! 

Support the show

I'd love to hear what you think. Drop me a text (linked above) or an email: [email protected]

Or NEW (!) even more fun, drop me a voice memo HERE!

Cream City Dreams is now Gather Connect Create!

New name, same host 👋🏼 Bite-sized episodes with big connection!

Join me weekly for inspiration, interviews and simple ideas you can use in your own community to create more connections IN REAL LIFE, no matter where you find yourself!

➡ CLICK HERE to send me a text, I'd love to hear what you thought about this episode! Leave your name in the text so I know who it's from!

Another week, another way to gather and connect! 

Join me today as I talk with Rebecca Jankowski and Theresa Kopak of Interwovxn who alongside professional Event Planner Grace Fuhr are organizing quarterly dance parties for midlife women that promise to have attendees home at a reasonable hour! (my DREAM! yours too?) 

We talk about their upcoming dance in Milwaukee, of course, but also - the logistics and behind-the-scenes work that goes into these events. It's a movement!  Women around the world are organizing these events for each other, and if you aren't in Milwaukee, maybe you'll want to bring one to your community? Today's episode might help. 

LINKS: 

If you are local, here's the link for tickets for the next dance on Friday, January 30. 

Find out more about Interwovxn HERE or join their substack HERE. 

Listen to my episode with Grace Fuhr HERE.

And info about the Hmong American Women's Association that this dance will support HERE.

And lastly, grab a ticket for the Gather for Good Yoga and Recipe Tasting class I talked about HERE. 

Support the show

I'd love to hear what you think. Drop me a text (linked above) or an email: [email protected]

Or NEW (!) even more fun, drop me a voice memo HERE!

Cream City Dreams is now Gather Connect Create!

New name, same host 👋🏼 Bite-sized episodes with big connection!

Join me weekly for inspiration, interviews and simple ideas you can use in your own community to create more connections IN REAL LIFE, no matter where you find yourself!

➡ CLICK HERE to send me a text, I'd love to hear what you thought about this episode! Leave your name in the text so I know who it's from!

I love this story of my friend Dorthy and her family, who share a meal, week after week, with the same family. They rotate houses, they cook the food, they share the meal, they put away the dishes and then they go home. It's simple. It's no fuss. No cleaning beforehand. NO guests to impress. 

Just one meal each week that they can count on together. And they've been doing this for years. 

In this conversation, we dive into what it's like to build community and deep connection in this way, what it means for their children, and tips for setting something like this up for yourself. 

Do you do something like this? I'd love to hear about it if you do! 

Support the show

I'd love to hear what you think. Drop me a text (linked above) or an email: [email protected]

Or NEW (!) even more fun, drop me a voice memo HERE!

Cream City Dreams is now Gather Connect Create!

New name, same host 👋🏼 Bite-sized episodes with big connection!

Join me weekly for inspiration, interviews and simple ideas you can use in your own community to create more connections IN REAL LIFE, no matter where you find yourself!

➡ CLICK HERE to send me a text, I'd love to hear what you thought about this episode! Leave your name in the text so I know who it's from!

It's been over seven months since I've been on the socials! And it feels GREAT. 

AND ... also slightly disconnected from reality, from my community and from my creativity. So I'm back in a new way. Or, really, an old-school way. A blog! 

Sharing this experience and a few other thoughts I have about creativity online in today's bite-sized episode. 

What are you doing in 2026 to stay creative, connected and present? I'd love to hear about it! 

Support the show

I'd love to hear what you think. Drop me a text (linked above) or an email: [email protected]

Or NEW (!) even more fun, drop me a voice memo HERE!

Cream City Dreams is now Gather Connect Create!

New name, same host 👋🏼 Bite-sized episodes with big connection!

Join me weekly for inspiration, interviews and simple ideas you can use in your own community to create more connections IN REAL LIFE, no matter where you find yourself!