When we’re asked what we want for our kids, parents say we want them to be happy. The thing we don’t think about is the role finances play in that. There are money lessons teens must know in order to live life on their terms, meet their goals, and follow their dreams. What do they need to know? What lessons should we teach them? Mighty Parenting podcast host Sandy Fowler interviews Brian Ursu to answer these questions. They look at what our kids need to know besides budgeting and how we can help them.

Our Guest: Brian Ursu 

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 151

Our Sponsor: 

Brian Ursu, author of Now What: A Practical Guide to Figuring Out Your Financial Future. Brian shares real-life financial advice to help our teens and twenty somethings live happy with a sound fiscal future.

Have you ever felt like you just couldn’t get along with your teen? Are they exhibiting a behavior that you just can’t get them to change? Teen behavior problems are one of the top reasons parents listen to the Mighty Parenting podcast. What if that behavior isn’t really a problem? What if that difficult temperament in your teenager could get much better with a simple reframing and common understanding? Parenting coach Wendy Gossett uses parenting by personality to help parents and teens get past behavior issues, increase self-esteem, and improve their relationship. She’s talking to Sandy Fowler about the various temperaments and their impact on us, our teens, the family dynamic, and our relationships.

Our Guest: Wendy Gossett 

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 150

Our Sponsors: 

iBme — A Shelter in the Storm: post-election online mindfulness retreat for all ages

Sandy Fowler—The Art and Science of Saying No: Ditch Guilt, Find Time, and Enjoy Your Life More

Kids in larger bodies often have to deal with weight stigma and bullying. This is heart breaking for parents to see. We want to step in and make things better for our child. But how do we do that? Adolescent eating disorder psychotherapists Zoë Bisbing and Leslie Bloch help parents and teens with this every day. They join Mighty Parenting podcast host Sandy Fowler to talk about parents’ initial reaction, the best way to support our kids in larger bodies, and how to manage a conversation with your doctor.

Our Guests: Zoë Bisbing and Leslie Bloch 

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 149 

Our Sponsors: 

A Shelter in the Storm: Post-Election Refuge -- A mindfulness retreat for teens and adults put on by iBme 

Sandy Fowler—Struggling to work, volunteer or follow another passion while still loving your family? Sandy Fowler shows you how you can follow your passion while loving your family, and do it without guilt and stress. Click here for the free video.

Parents often talk about behavior problems or strained relationships with their teenager. While there are many potential contributing factors for those issues, if your teen is stressed, tired, or worn out then anything they are struggling with will be exacerbated. If you are stressed, tired, or worn out then it can strain your relationship with your child. On the Mighty Parenting podcast, Sandy repeatedly shares how important it is to be curious and listen well but how patient will you be if you’re not well rested? How well will you listen without interjecting your opinions and advice? Rest impacts our lives in so many ways and today’s episode brings a whole new perspective to the idea of rest. Sandy Fowler interviews Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith to find out why sleep isn’t enough and how different types of rest can impact our sleep and our entire lives.

Our Guest: Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith 

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 148

Our Sponsor: 

iBme — Mindfulness courses and retreats for teens and adults view fall courses and retreats here

Sandy Fowler—Struggling to work or volunteer or follow another passion while still loving your family? Sandy Fowler shows you how you can follow your passion while loving your family and do it without guilt and stress. Click here for the free video.

Everything is going along fine then our kids hit middle school and girl drama happens. Now there’s a daily report on who said what to whom. The big news of the day is who is mad, who is their friend, and who they sat with at lunch. While relationships are always important, the teen years are a time when girls’ friendships are essential and yet they seem to be a battleground. When teen drama shows up, parents don’t know what to do. We want to comfort our child, make pain go away, and walk them through this. Unfortunately, we tend to make mistakes. Teen coach Sheri Gazitt talks to Mighty Parenting podcast host Sandy Fowler about teen girl drama. They discuss what’s happening and why. They cover the mistakes parents make and what to do instead.

Our Guest: Sheri Gazitt 

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 147

Our Sponsors: 

The Great Courses Plus—try it out! Get free access to their entire library of quality, educational streaming videos.

iBme — Mindfulness courses and retreats for teens and adults register for A Shelter in the Storm: Post-election Refuge online mindfulness retreat for all ages by clicking here

Do you have an unmotivated teenager? An unhappy one? It turns out motivation and happiness go hand-in-hand with purpose. But we don't focus on purpose with our teens. It starts when they’re little and we ask our kids what they want to be when they grow up. As they enter high school we start asking about colleges and careers. But it turns out we’re focusing on the wrong question if we want our children to be happy and motivated. What we need to help our teenagers focus on is purpose.  But what does that mean and why is it important? Mighty Parenting podcast host Sandy Fowler interviews Tim Klein, director of the True North Program at Boston College about purpose in life. Tim will help parents understand what purpose is, why it’s important for teens and young adults, and how to cultivate it in them.

Our Guest: Tim Klein 

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 146

Our Sponsors: 

The Great Courses Plus—try it out! Get free access to their entire library of quality, educational streaming videos.

iBme — Mindfulness courses and retreats for teens and adults view fall courses and retreats here

(This is a re-posting of Monday's episode as the audio file was cutting off the last 12 minutes of the interview. If you already listened and were cut off you can skip ahead. I apologize for any confusion or inconvenience.)

Teens can be difficult, withdrawn, or moody during the best of times and these are not the best of times. Our teens and twenty somethings are dealing with a lot and it’s taking a toll. John MacPhee from the JED Foundation and Janis Whitlock of Cornell University join Mighty Parenting podcast host Sandy Fowler to understand what’s happening to our teens during Covid. They are shining a light on the issues and showing us how we can support our teenagers during Covid. These experts have it covered from how to tell if your teen is struggling to tips for creating emotional wellness.

Our Guests: John MacPhee and Janis Whitlock

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com

Our Sponsor: iBme — Mindfulness courses and retreats for teens and adults

Teens can be difficult, withdrawn, or moody during the best of times and these are not the best of times. Our teens and twenty somethings are dealing with a lot and it’s taking a toll. John MacPhee from the JED Foundation and Janis Whitlock of Cornell University join Mighty Parenting podcast host Sandy Fowler to understand what’s happening to our teens during Covid. They are shining a light on the issues and showing us how we can support our teenagers during Covid. These experts have it covered from how to tell if your teen is struggling to tips for creating emotional wellness.

Our Guests: John MacPhee and Janis Whitlock

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 145

Our Sponsor: iBme — Mindfulness courses and retreats for teens and adults

Talking to our kids about sex and sexuality can be difficult or uncomfortable, and it doesn't end with "The Talk". You aren't broken if you don't know how to talk to your kid about puberty, bodies and sex. Feeling awkward and unsure just means you haven't been shown how to talk or given the right information to talk about. When that conversation moves into consent, sexuality, or gender identity many parents are at a total loss. What if my child tells me they’re LBGTQ? What do I do? How to I traverse this conversation? How do I support them properly? What if we don’t see eye-to-eye on this? Find out how to talk to your teenager about sexuality, especially when it involves gender identity and LGBTQ concerns. Mighty Parenting podcast host Sandy Fowler has a very candid conversation with sexuality expert Sarah Sproule. They cover everything from when to have conversations about sexuality to navigating the conversation when your child’s views differ from your own.

Our Guest: Sarah Sproule 

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 144

Our Sponsors: 

The Great Courses Plus—try it out! Get free access to their entire library of quality, educational streaming videos at TheGreatCoursesPlus.com/MightyParenting

Today’s show is about parenting a teen who is addicted to drugs. Not someone who’s in recovery or has moved through recovery, but a child who is actively abusing drugs. It’s not a pretty topic and many would say it’s not an uplifting one but this show is uplifting because we are all here to understand; to understand what other parents are going through, to understand how we can support another family who may be living through this, to understand what our teens are going through and to understand what we can do if it happens to us. Addiction is not selective. It isn’t governed by geographic, economic, or ethnic boundaries. Brenda Zane joins Mighty Parenting podcast host Sandy Fowler to share her story of parenting an addicted child. Brenda shares her story along with support, direction, and hope

Our Guest: Brenda Zane 

Detailed Show Notes and Support at MightyParenting.com episode 143

Our Sponsor: 

The Great Courses Plus—try it with free access to their entire library of quality, educational streaming videos

She Can STEM shows girls how cool science, technology, engineering, and math can be. Visit shecanstem.com