Jyl & Kathy are back after a quick break because...life.

This month, we explore our feral childhoods and why today's generations could benefit from a more free-range approach while being raised.

Signs of a Feral Childhood? Well, for one, you were probably born in the 70's.

• We left the house after breakfast and didn’t return home until someone’s mom rang a bell (or the streetlights went on).

• We rode our bikes to the corner store, but we didn’t always clarify which corner.

• We walked a mile to the local pool with a dollar in change for lunch from the vending machine, which was located further down the street.

• We had no need for bus notes. We just got on a different bus if we decided to go somewhere else after school. Later, we'd ring our mothers to let them know where we were.

• Our main source of hydration was the water hose.

• Our parents had no way to contact us once we were out of their sight. We typically had to be out of their sight within ten minutes of finishing breakfast.

• Televisions broadcast a message at 10:00 pm asking, “Do you know where your kids are?” 

• Latchkey kids wasn't a term; it was just how we lived.

We were free-range children, and we are better because of it. Why? 

• We can solve any problem at any time.

• We rarely have to ask for seventeen different opinions in order to make a decision.

• We left the nest with confidence and zero thoughts of returning.

• We had more life skills before grade school than today’s baby adults have coming out of college

• We can get blood out of anything.  

Our Nonsor this week was Carpool Karaoke. We also talked about Jyl's amazing Ninja Thirst, our Holland America Cruise Tour, the Jefferson Hotel, and more.

Spotify:

Can’t get enough of us? Well, you’re one of very few.

Get to know us! 

• ⁠⁠Jyl Barlow⁠⁠ has all things Jyl! Also, it’s pronounced, “jill.”

• ⁠⁠Which Way's Up⁠⁠ is Jyl’s blog, home of weekly epiphanies and often overshares

• ⁠⁠What to Expect When You Weren't Expecting⁠⁠ is Jyl's best-selling memoir about her hilarious struggles as a (step)mother. Buy it online at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, and Target!

• ⁠⁠Kathy Crowley⁠⁠'s Thought for the Day (accessorized with a favorite timepiece and signature scent) can be found on ⁠Instagram⁠. Watch videos of all our Nonsor products on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠TikTok⁠⁠!

Wine & Whine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created Jyl Barlow and Kathy Crowley.

We are kicking off Season Three with a little help for your 2025 verbiage. Let's face it, there is a long list of phrases that we are so tired of hearing.

In this month's episode of Whine & Wine, Kathy and Jyl share their least favorite phrases and suggest some new ones to add to our vocabulary in 2025.

What are your least favorite phrases? What are your new faves?

Phrases we'd like to leave in 2024:

Everything happens for a reason

Those feelings are valid

I’ll pray for you

New Year, New Me!

It's going to be my year

Thoughts and Prayers

You knew what you signed up for

Phrases we'd like to add to 2025

I’m proud of you

Are you okay

How can I help?

Do you need a taco?

I like your shoes

No need to apologize

And a late but important add: Want to go get a tattoo?

Our Nonsor for this episode is Kohl's! Specifically, the Kohl's gift card Jyl's child used and how he turned that into her favorite crypto cash.

Also mentioned:

Taco Bell

Louis Vuitton

Five Guys

Can’t get enough of us? Well, you’re one of very few.

Get to know us! 

⁠⁠Jyl Barlow⁠⁠ has all things Jyl! Also, it’s pronounced, “jill.”

⁠⁠Which Way's Up⁠⁠ is Jyl’s blog, home of weekly epiphanies and often overshares

⁠⁠What to Expect When You Weren't Expecting⁠⁠ is Jyl's best-selling memoir about her hilarious struggles as a (step)mother. Buy it on Amazon in your preferred format today! Jyl's next book, Sparent, will be out soon!

⁠⁠Kathy Crowley⁠⁠'s Thought for the Day (accessorized with a favorite timepiece and signature scent) can be found on ⁠Instagram⁠. Watch videos of all our Nonsor products on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠TikTok⁠⁠!

Wine & Whine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created Jyl Barlow and Kathy Crowley.

Happy Holidays!

Our gift to you was discovering how few clips I had in our "not for the public" file. I guess that's good.

Our gift to us was skipping a formal recording this month.

As we head into 2025, look for some tweaks to Whine & Wine! Want to come hang out? Drop us a line!

Spotify:

Can’t get enough of us? Well, you’re one of very few.

Get to know us! 

Wine & Whine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created Jyl Barlow and Kathy Crowley. 

Recordings: 

Nonsor Break:

Let’s take a break and hear a word from our sponsor. I’m kidding. Nobody would pay for this.

Nonsor Return:

There you have it! Something else you didn’t even know you needed. You’re welcome. If there’s a link to be found, we’ll put it in the episode notes. Now, back to Whine & Wine.

End of Show:

Whine & Wine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created by Kathy Crowley and me, Jyl Barlow.

Check out Kathy’s thought for the day on all the socials under at Kathy Crowley one. Head over to her YouTube channel for videos related to our nonsors and more! That’s kathycrowleyone, Kathy with a Kay, Crowley with a Sea, and the number one.

Learn more about me, Jyl, at JylBarlow.com. That’s “Jyl” with a “Y”

Follow my blog at whichwaysup.com and grab a copy of my best-selling memoir, What to Expect When You Weren’t Expecting, at your favorite online bookstore.

All these details can also be found in our show notes.

Until next time, that’s Whine & Wine.

In this month's episode, we talk about bullying and, while doing so, we mention suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling, please reach out to a friend, family member, or dial/text 988 for help. You are not alone and I mean that. This is something that I have struggled with in the past. Feel free to reach out. - Jyl

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This month, Kathy and Jyl discuss bullying as we unravel our truth. Our truth? Our truth is that today's bullying is not the same that we grew up with. Today, it is much more cutting and dangerous.

Bullying is defined as seeking to hurt, intimidate, or coerce and there are far too many avenues for bullying to live on in 2024.

Types of bullying are physical, verbal, relational, and cyberbullying. While physical bullying is the easiest to spot, the others are often much more harmful. Bullying is typically repeated over and over as many feel unsure of how to stop it.

We encourage you to be part of the change. You can make a difference. You can be a part of the solution. You can help change the narrative. Some numbers:

How you can help:

What if you're the bully?

Nonsor: ⁠Kind Lips⁠

Joshua Neumann first dreamed up Kind Lips lip balm but found his mother was not quite as enthusiastic about entering the lip balm business. Days after first suggesting developing his own lip balm, his mother had a dream in which the words "The Law of Kindness Is On My Lips" came to her. Check out the ⁠Kind Lips⁠ website for the rest of the story and, while you're there, add a whole lot of Kind Lips to your cart.

Kind Lips donates 20% of every product purchased to anti-bullying organizations devoted to promoting kindness and creating a world without bullying.

There is power in our words and Kind Lips is on a mission to remind us of that.

Other Episode Mentions:

⁠Very Well Family⁠

⁠Stop Bullying⁠

⁠Mrs. Frazzled⁠

***

Can’t get enough of us? Well, you’re one of very few.

Get to know us! 

Wine & Whine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created Jyl Barlow and Kathy Crowley. 

Wrapping up someone’s life is one of the strangest things we’ve ever done and no one made it more strange than the cable company.

This shouldn’t have been a surprise. 

This month, we dive into the process of wrapping up someone’s life after they have moved onto their next playing field. This isn’t about funerals or last wishes – this is about removing someone’s footprint from the planet.

We also talk about ways we can aid those who will be tasked with wrapping up our lives.

This is not something any of us want to think about, but it turns out we are not jinxing ourselves by staying silent about our inevitable demise.

***

Nonsor:

⁠I’m Dead, Now What ⁠Use this book's comprehensive pre-printed prompts to record the information on your dependents, beneficiaries, pets, insurance, active accounts and memberships, passwords, location of documents, and other more.

***

Mentions:

⁠Wrapping Up Someone’s Life⁠ Jyl’s blog on the same topic.

⁠Smoke Gets In Your Eyes⁠ by Caitlin Doughty. 

⁠The Order of the Good Death⁠ Caitlin Doughty’s podcast.

⁠Keepsake Ornaments⁠ These are the ones Jyl used for those who wanted a portion of ashes.

⁠Nordpass⁠ Keep all your passwords in one digital place. Kathy does…her login is…

⁠EbidLocal⁠ An estate sale option that doesn’t involve watching people rifle through your loved one’s home.

***

Can’t get enough of us? Well, you’re one of very few.

Get to know us! 

Wine & Whine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created Jyl Barlow and Kathy Crowley. 

Listen along as Jyl and Kathy visit the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Well, not visit so much as recap. As total sports nerds, there was no way to avoid talking about the best games ever. Yes, we know…you were expecting something else this month. We'll do that next month instead.

Things we loved about the Olympics?

***

Can’t get enough of us? Well, you’re one of very few.

Get to know us! 

Wine & Whine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created Jyl Barlow and Kathy Crowley. 

This month on Whine & Wine, we had the pleasure of interviewing Ashley Maria and Lea-Ann Berst. This dynamic, daughter-mother duo is behind the short film, Super Human Anxiety, which will premiere on July 28, 2024, at LA Shorts, the longest-running film festival in Los Angeles. LA Shorts is a qualifying event for the Academy Awards, BAFTA, the Canadian Screen Awards, and the Goya Awards. 

In other words…LA Shorts is kind of a big deal.

Super Human Anxiety’s focus is on Whitney–a teenager navigating strong emotions and how a teacher is able to teach Whitney how to redirect those strong emotions into superpowers. Anxiety is rising among teens and this impact film will serve as a much-needed tool for those affected, whether personally or as someone who simply wants to help. 

Super Human Anxiety comes on the heels of their insightful documentary Pioneers in Skirts which dives into the roadblocks many girls and women encounter when chasing their aspirations. Pioneers in Skirts⁠ is another very personal story for Ashley, giving an insider's view of the challenges faced by females in the film industry.  

To reach as many people as possible, Super Human Anxiety will be offered at no cost to those who work closely with teens navigating mental health challenges.

This episode was so interesting to record (so much so that my note-taking was weak). The bonus? We’ll have a continuation of our conversation in our next episode when we do a deep dive into Pioneers in Skirts.

**

Interested in following Ashley Maria and Lea-Ann Berst's work? Good, you should be. To do so, head here:

Ashley Maria Productions

Facebook: facebook.com/ashleymariaproductions

Instagram: instagram.com/ashleymariaproductions

YouTube: youtube.com/@ashleymakesmovies

IMDb: imdb.com/name/nm3594673/

Recent Accolades:

2023 SXSW Edu Featured Filmmaker

2023 Emmy Nominated Producers

2022 Black Magic Collective Directing Fellow

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Additional mentions in this episode:

Give an Hour

Norman Lear

Penn Holderness

Raleigh Little Theatre

Screen Actors Guild

Sharon Lawrence

Writers Guild of America

****

Can’t get enough of us? Well, you’re one of very few.

Get to know us! 

Wine & Whine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created Jyl Barlow and Kathy Crowley. 

If you follow the show (and you should), you may remember our holiday gift to you: Ask a Gen Z, an episode on which Kathy and I grilled our friend, Sydney, on all things that don't translate from generation to generation. It was so enlightening that we invited that Gen Z pal back to turn the tables on us.

We absolutely should have expected Sydney to show ready to...well, okay, not really ready...but to show ready to wing it. Very on-brand for Gen Z. It was another great episode in which we proved how important it is for women to keep those cross-generational lines of communication open.

Listen along as we discuss:

Our Nonsor this month is also a sneak peek to next month's episode in which we will chat with the producer/directors of the film Pioneers in Skirts. This is a must-see feature film that showcases how women and girls identify and address the obstacles their

***

Can’t get enough of us? Well, you’re one of very few.

Get to know us! 

Wine & Whine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created Jyl Barlow and Kathy Crowley. 

Wow. That's (almost) all I can say.

In this final episode of our current stepmom series, it's a threesome!

A three-way.

Wait, what now?

It's Kathy, Jyl, AND Rich as Kathy wraps up her fabulous round of interviews regarding Jyl's book, What to Expect When You Weren't Expecting.

This was another amazing block of time well spent as we talked together about:

This was the first time Rich & Kathy met in person and the first time he experienced the Kathy & Jyl show live. Deer in headlights? Table for one.

This episode's nonsor is the Angus Barn. The Angus Barn tells the story of Jyl & Rich's relationship and is where What to Expect When You Weren't Expecting was born. If you're heading to the Raleigh area, do not miss a stop at the globally known, family-owned restaurant. Make your reservation early as seats are hard to come by! And make sure you tell Van, Jim, Henk, and Kevin that we said hello!

Can’t get enough of us? Well, you’re one of very few.

Get to know us! 

Wine & Whine is part of Bearlow Productions and is created Jyl Barlow and Kathy Crowley.