Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

Stacey Morgan kissed her husband goodbye before he donned his space suit and headed to his Soyuz rocket headed for the International Space Station. What's it like having a husband in space? Based on her new book, The Astronaut's Wife, Stacey will share how you can choose hope in the face of fear, and prepare for any mission or adventure life throws at your family. You'll laugh as she confesses that prior to her hubby becoming an astronaut, everything she knew about space she learned from Tom Hanks.

On the interview:

1:30 My husband never planned to be an astronaut...

5:00 Welcome to the Cosmodrone 

10:00 Countdown to space 

15:00 How to overcome that fear of losing your loved one 

18:00 Being the rookie mom - how to make new friends when you feel excluded 

22:00 An unusual and wonderful way to help single parents 

27:00 Keeping in touch when you’re physically separated (calls to the International Space Station) 

31:00 What have your kids picked up about faith and adventure?  

Learn more about Stacey Morgan and her book The Astronaut's Wife.

Interested in getting closer to your spouse this month (after all, he's probably not in space!)? Take the 7 Day Romance Challenge, download it for free at HappyHomeUniversity.com

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.

Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

Have your kids ever caught you...praying? What would happen if our children observed us day in and day out, regularly praying to God and reading our Bibles? This might be the beginning of revival in our homes. Arlene shares from her heart about the importance of prayer and Bible reading, not just at church, but in everyday life. How might we set a "spiritual trap" for our kids so they'll catch us praying? You have more influence and resources than you imagine as heaven is open and God is listening.

Find other moms to pray with at MomsinPrayer.org

The book mentioned on the podcast is The Prayer Code by O.S. Hawkins.

Interested in getting closer to your spouse this month? Take the 7 Day Romance Challenge, download it for free at HappyHomeUniversity.com

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.

Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

Maybe you have a teenager or you're going to have a teenager someday. The transition between childhood and adulthood can be a bumpy one. My friend Dr. Gary Chapman, beloved author of The 5 Love Languages, has raised two kids of his own and counseled countless families in his 40 plus years in ministry. Based on his new book, Things I Wish I'd Known Before My Child Became a Teenager, Dr. Chapman will share on this episode:

3:00 What if my teen is always arguing with me?

4:30 What if my teen doesn't want to go to church anymore?

6:20 Why isn't my teen as talkative as he or she used to be?

8:30 Raising teens who are responsible

10:30 What if my teen is totally unmotivated?

15:00 Talking about intimacy and relationships

18:00 How to deal with anger and your teen

28:00 Providing guidance for the future

Learn more about Dr. Chapman and his book Things I Wish I'd Known Before My Child Became a Teenager at his website, 5lovelanguages.com

And remember this month...Arlene's Screen Kids Masterclass is $125 off, just use the promo code RESTART22 at HappyHomeUniversity.com

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.

Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

Today's guest Bonnie Gray endured panic attacks, anxiety, and depression for years – all rooted in her traumatic childhood. As an adult, Bonnie embraced her identity as God’s beloved child, and healing began. How did she do it? In today's conversation you'll learn about:

3:30 Bonnie's birth to a mail order bride from Hong Kong and a bus boy in San Francisco's Chinatown

8:00 When I told my kids about my family secrets

10:30 My dad never came back

12:00 This journey was for me, going back to what the little girl went through

14:00 I chose the hardest story to tell my boys first

19:30 Panic attacks and faith

24:00 How do you explain PTSD to your spouse?

25:00 How to use ten minutes to lessen your anxiety

28:00 Meeting my dad again

Bonnie Gray is a soul care expert and host of a wellness podcast entitled Breathe: The Stress Less Podcast. Her latest and most personal book is Sweet Like Jasmine: Finding Identity in a Culture of Loneliness. 

And remember this month...Arlene's Screen Kids Masterclass is $125 off, just use the promo code RESTART22 at HappyHomeUniversity.com

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.

Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

Are you tired of being the "mean parent" because of your screen rules? Do you ever wonder if you are being too strict? 

Today's special podcast is going to show you that delaying devices is not only possible - it's good for your kids! My special guests today are my husband James and our kids Ethan (17), Noelle (15) and Lucy (12). The kids are going to tell you - in their own words - what it's like going to school without a phone, social media, or video game experience.  

This is a conversation you can listen to in the car with your older kids and teens. You're about to listen to the audio of our documentary Screen Kids: In Their Own Words. You can watch the video at HappyHomeUniversity.com/film

And remember this month...Arlene's Screen Kids Masterclass is $125 off, just use the promo code RESTART22 at HappyHomeUniversity.com

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.

Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

So excited to welcome bestselling author Mitch Albom (Tuesdays with Morrie) to kick off 2022! 

As parents, we can easily slip into complaining or a martyr complex (look at me and all the sacrifices I have to make for these kids!!!). Talking to Mitch Albom about his daughter Chika really helps to put it all into perspective. In Mitch's book Finding Chika, you'll learn of his unusual journey to parenting - beginning with an orphanage in Haiti that would change his life forever.  

In today's conversation, you'll hear about:  

5:00 Taking Chika to Disneyland for the first time

8:00 How children are curious and full of wonder before given screens

11:30 The unexpected making of a family

14:00 How parenting enhances a marriage 

15:45 How to handle conflict in the marriage when your child is seriously ill

18:30 Everything you do is an example to your children

19:30. Carrying Chika when she could no longer walk

21:50. Morrie's profound sentence

24:30 Chika singing "I am a Child of God"

26:00 About the Stranger in the Lifeboat

29:30. Why did you take away this person God? Here's a better question to ask...

Mitch Albom has sold over 40 million copies of his books including the bestselling memoir of all time Tuesdays with Morrie. He and his wife Janine direct the Have Faith Orphanage in Haiti. His newest books (the subjects of our interview) are Finding Chika and The Stranger in the Lifeboat.  

And remember this month...

Arlene's Screen Kids Masterclass is $125 off, just use the promo code RESTART22. HappyHomeUniversity.com

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.

Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

Have you been touched by the 5 Love Languages? Creator Dr. Gary Chapman is here to share the story behind the 5 Love Languages along with the major life lessons he's learned along the way. From his memoir, Life Lessons and Love Languages, you'll be inspired to live and love well, and you'll get practical ideas for building a marriage that your kids will want to imitate. It wasn't always a loving place for Gary and his new bride - you'll find out how they stopped having a miserable marriage.  

In this conversation, you'll learn:  

4:00 How Gary came to know Christ 

7:00 Lesson from a childhood bully 

9:30 When Gary decided he would never become an alcoholic 

12:30 The good and bad of technology 

15:30 Getting married

18:00 The message from God that changed my marriage 

21:40 How Gary created the 5 Love Languages 

30:00 What loving a child is and isn't     

Learn more about Dr. Gary Chapman at 5lovelanguages.com. 

Learn more about Arlene's Happy Home University and Screen Kids at happyhomeuniversity.com

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.

Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

It's the final week of the 25 Days of Christmas! It's not too late to download your free eBook of devotions, family activities, and ways to serve (you can do them over the holiday still). Accessmore.com

How can you enjoy more Christ this week and less crisis? Maybe you've tried doing a devotion but no one seemed to be listening. You're too busy planning the party to actually feel like celebrating anything. Bible teacher Melissa Spoelstra is here to connect the celebrations of the Old Testament to today, share ideas that will work in your home to mark the holiday in a spiritual and joyful way, and find some rest (even this busy week!).  

We'll talk about:

5:20 Moving from duty to delight 

8:20 Epic fail with family devotions.

9:50 How to get your high schoolers involved at Christmas

15:50 What are elements of Biblical celebration?

21:00 The value of Sabbath.

Learn more about Melissa Spoelstra and her Bible studies at melissaspoelstra.com

Learn more Arlene and her Happy Home University here: happyhomeuniversity.com

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.

Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

Welcome to the 25 Days of Christmas!

We are counting down to Christmas in festive fashion. Get your free 25 Days of Christmas guide with 10 devotions (for mom and for kids), 10 easy and fun family activities, and 5 ways to serve your community. 

Week 3 is all about creating a FUN HOME. How can we create a home that our kids want to return home to year after year?

My guest Sandra Stanley has three grown kids who love coming home. She's here to help us understand the seasons of parenting better (and leverage them to get closer to our kids). She explains what it means to have a north star as a family (and what hers is).

On today's episode, we'll talk about:

3:50 Navigating Christmas with grown kids 

7:10 What was your family’s north star? 

10:20 What are the seasons of parenting?

11:40 The two rules we had at home 

15:20 Natural consequences 

19:20 How we use our phones to laugh together 

24:10 How you talk to adult kids who are not making good decisions.

More resources from Sandra Stanley and Arlene Pellicane. 

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.

Discover the way ahead at Indiana Wesleyan University. Learn more here.

Welcome to the 25 Days of Christmas here at the Happy Home podcast!

We are counting down to Christmas in festive fashion. Get your free 25 Days of Christmas guide with 10 devotions (for mom and for kids), 10 easy and fun family activities, and 5 ways to serve your community. 

Week 2 is all about GIVING. How can we help our kids to be giving kids, and not gimme kids? Kristen Welch, founder of Mercy House Global, is here to spark the joy of giving in our homes. You'll learn practical ways to reach out to your community, how to love others from different countries, and experience the supernatural high that comes from giving.  

Purchase the Storyteller’s Bible HERE.