Oh Crap with Jamie

After my recent Instagram post on the arc of a tantrum received such an overwhelming response, I decided to devote an entire podcast to dissecting all things tantrums, meltdowns, and big feelings. Tantrums are the most intense and send your child into an altered state where you’ll actually wonder if you’ve encountered the devil, whereas meltdowns will make you feel more sad for your poor little on...

Welcome to July’s Q&A episode! Today I dive right in with some excellent questions about whether to allow “sexy” dolls like L.O.L Surprise Dolls in imaginary play, being aware of which franchises and marketing campaigns your children are exposed to, and how to encourage your child to play independently. I break down the relatively recent phenomenon of children expecting their parents to play with...

This month’s Q&A episode begins with a question about Redshirting (postponing entrance into kindergarten to allow extra time for social, emotional, intellectual, and physical growth). This is a controversial topic because parents can be accused of using it to give their kids an advantage, but I explain why it might actually be best to hold a child back, particularly if their birthday is close to t...

Today’s Q&A begins with a topic so many of you have asked about - positive reinforcement. Somehow along the way, parents confused positive reinforcement with offering bribes and rewards for everyday behaviors. But before you find yourself promising a trip to Disneyland for a single poop in the potty, I break down how you can recognize good behaviour without setting your kids up to feel entitled. I...

It’s that time again to open up the digital mailbag, and respond to some of your questions, which I absolutely love, love, love. While some of today’s questions offer new twists on previous topics, all of them are, of course, excellent ones which I know so many are wondering about as well, so let’s dig in, shall we?   Today, we’ll look at ways to handle the constant ‘I want’ requests from your kid...

This week, we’re going to move on from our trauma series, but before we do, I want to thank you all for your fantastic feedback during it. I always love our dialogue, and especially during such an important topic, so once again, thank you. As we move on today, it’s time for another Q & A to look at all the questions that have been piling up over the past month, so let’s get started. The questions...

I’m very excited to bring this episode to you today since it’s about one of my favorite topics – Seasonal Affective Disorder, the winter blues, and how to beat them. Winter was not always my favorite season, and if that’s true for you as well, today I’m going to share with you how I flipped it so it is now number one on my list. With everything that is still going on these days, this winter is bou...

It’s that time of year again when we start thinking about gifts for the upcoming holiday season (if you haven’t already), so welcome to this year’s Gift Guide as curated by Jenn and myself. You know that I’m all about gifts that inspire learning and using the whole brain and the whole body, and that’s precisely the type of gifts you’ll find on our list here today. In addition to the list, I’ll als...

Today, I am so excited to have Quiara Smith, MOT OTR/L, join me on the podcast . As a pediatric pelvic health occupational therapist, Quiara specializes in treating pelvic floor dysfunction, toileting/elimination disorders, and bowel and bladder dysfunction in children between the ages of 4-18 years old both through her Aloha Integrative Therapy Clinic and telehealth services. She has a lot to sha...

Jamie discusses options available to parents who are gearing up to send their children back to school Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The prospect of schools reopening is gradually dawning on us all, and with it comes the news of the potential restrictions which will be in place. As so many of the restrictions seem to greatly impact the level of socializing that children will be able to enjoy upon their return, I am currently fielding a large number of questions regarding homeschooling. In today’s episode, my aim is to address t...

Jamie is back after a bit of a hiatus, and she hits the ground running by delving into the complexity of parenting during these uncertain times. There is so much going on out there these days, and Jamie is here to offer some strategies which can be implemented immediately to help parents and children alike, and to also remind everyone to be gentle with themselves.   Comparing the response to this...

Jamie’s addressing one of the most frequently asked questions listeners and followers have for her: how does she balance everything and keep her life in order, especially as a single mom? Her answer is simple and two-fold: 1. it’s HARD, and 2. it’s a fool’s game to try to do everything at once. The parental balancing act is an art of setting a schedule and picking your battles.   In this episode,...

You’ve got to face the facts: try as hard as you might, your kid is going to swear at some point, and when they do drop a big fat expletive it will probably be in the worst time and place. It’s going to be embarrassing, but it’s also a valuable moment that will help your kid understand what is or isn’t acceptable among certain crowds, while allowing you both to acknowledge the emotion beneath the...

Changes: it’s not just a David Bowie song, but something your kid is going to go through a lot of throughout their early years. And Jamie isn’t merely talking about bodily or behavioral changes but changes in routine, changes in circumstances, and changes in family. Something as simple as leaving the house in the morning can be enough to set your little one on edge, so we need to both help them un...

Alanna McGuinn is a sleep consultant, founder of the Good Night Sleep Site and a stress management coach. As a mother of three, she understands firsthand how vital sleep is for both children and parents during those first few years of raising kids, so she now focuses on how you can maximize not only how long you and your toddlers sleep but the quality of that sleep as well. She’s also hosts the po...

This episode marks two very special occasions for Oh, Crap! One is that Jamie is happy to bring you all her first interview conducted over Instagram livestream! The second is that her guest of honor is Dr. Kendra Becker. Kendra is an “integrated physician” operating out of Jamie’s own home state of Connecticut and specializes in holistic treatment of young patients and their parents. One of Jamie’...

Some of you may not know this, but Jamie homeschools! (and no! Jamie doesn’t think everyone should homeschool and she’s not trying to convince you that you should!) Her son Pascal has been learning at home since he was still fairly young, and both he and Jamie have found to be this alternative mode of education not only better suited for him but engaging in a way that mainstream schooling isn’t al...

The latest episode of Oh, Crap! is a follow-up to Jamie’s earlier installment on keeping kids safe (see episode 15!). Many listeners wanted to know how to most effectively speak to their children about sexual abuse and what precautions should be taken. Jamie doesn’t want to set off anybody’s anxiety, but these are important subjects we need to know inside and out so our kids can be safe out in the...

Jamie and her friend recently came up with a plan to send their kids on a trip to the city on their own via the bus. To some parents, the idea of their teenage kids hopping on public transportation and jetting from the suburbs to the thick of downtown can be frightening, but Jamie wants to make sure Pascal and his friends develop the curiosity necessary to explore and learn as they get older and b...

It’s possible for parental expectations to be too high AND too low. You’ll have some parents keen on getting their little ones to read and write before they’re even in kindergarten while insisting they’re not yet emotionally able to comprehend big changes like moving homes. Social media plays a big role in perpetrating unrealistic expectations, with sponsored ads on Facebook and other platforms sk...

Just because your relationship with your child isn’t perfect doesn’t mean you’re messing up! Kids are lovely, but anyone with a two-year-old knows they can also be chaotic little imps when they see fit. They’re going to push your buttons both by accident or because they’ll know it’s going to push your buttons. For these moments, it’s handy to have consistent, proportional guidelines for helping yo...

The last few episodes of Oh Crap! haven’t been as upbeat as Jamie’s usual output, but it’s important to address the more serious side of introducing your children to the world and dealing with the not-as-fun aspects of parenthood. To conclude this series, Jamie is looking at how mental health affects our parenting, specifically focusing on anxiety. We all need to discuss mental health in a serious...

Last week, Jamie looked at the many ways we can explain the heavy stuff—body parts, birth, death—to our kids in language that’s simple yet mature. For this installment, we’re looking at an upsetting but still very important topic: the creepy people who can be of danger to your children. There’s no way to keep your children completely sheltered and safe without emotionally stunting them and prevent...

In this episode, Jamie would like you to step out of your comfort zone for a minute or two and really think about how you talk to your kids about Big Serious Things: private parts, reproduction, consent, and even death. Discussing these things openly in your household creates a culture without secrecy, weirdness or shame. This means that when your child stumbles across these topics in the big wide...