Healthy Parenting Handbook with Katie Kimball

Note: I mention in this interview to go to episode 38, but things got switched around and it's actually 39. Sorry! No one has to say school lunches are good or bad, healthy or unhealthy. That’s not my point today - although I think school lunches could use some improvement . :) Today let’s talk about picky eating specifically - could school lunches potentially contribute to or exacerbate pick...

If your child has ever thrown a tantrum … If you’ve ever reacted, let’s say, “imperfectly” to that tantrum… If you’ve ever wondered why your toddler or teen is having a meltdown over something seemingly inconsequential… My friends, then this interview is a MUST LISTEN . Ann is an incredible teacher - let’s learn about: The impact of childhood experiences on adult relationships and parenting How to...

What are your feet doing RIGHT NOW? Are you standing on them? If not... stand up and listen to this! I learned so much from Juliet Starrett, founder of one of first 50 CrossFit gyms in America who got passionate about kids' mobility when she saw a HUGE problem at her daughter's field day . She launched StandUpKids.org, a nonprofit dedicated to funding standing desks for schoolchildren, a...

Bet you a million bucks you’ve heard people say (or said yourself): It’s too complicated to get healthy - everyone says something different! Such and such diet/strategy/exercise worked for so-and-so, why isn’t it working for me? I feel like I’ve tried everything and it’s so hard to figure out what works ! Maybe, just maybe… everyone is different? Years ago the term “bio-individuality” began to be...

We know that anxiety is affecting both kids and adults at alarming rates . We’ve discussed anxiety busters before on The Healthy Parenting Handbook, and today we’re completing the trifecta of experts with an MD who practices integrative medicine. Dr. Wiggy Saunders joins me to dive into anxiety once again because we can’t give parents enough strategies to help their kids (and themselves) dig out o...

I learned today that I still have a lot of internal tendencies from middle school . 😮 Middle school can be a foreign land and a tumultuous time, and figuring out how to parent middle schoolers is hard on parents. We want our kids to be happy, resilient, and thriving, not wilting, crying, and worrying . As we head back to school, stresses are always high, and our kids need us to help them stay bal...

Not kidding, I referenced this interview FOUR times the same week we recorded — it’s THAT pertinent to our jobs as parents ! Today we’re focusing on the MOST important quality our kids need today – resilience . Michele Borba's book THRIVERS is about 7 teachable skills that set happy, healthy, and high-performing kids apart — and I believe those are listed in an intentional order. If you find...

Shannon Miller is a 7-time Olympic medalist and has over 100 national competition medals in gymnastics as well, more than half the gold kind. People in our generation certainly remember her name from the “Magnificent Seven” team gold winners in the 1996 Olympic games , where she captured the first balance beam gold an American had ever achieved. She’s no stranger to hard work and success, obviousl...

Did you start to question the products you put on your kids’ skin once you were a mom? Meet Tatyana Cerullo, attorney, and formulator of Kōkua Suncare, who came to that realization as she saw the legal system behind the marketing. We get so much conflicting information these days about whether the sun is something to hide from or embrace, what’s safe to apply on our skin, and how to manage it all...

Grabbing a piece of whole fruit or a popsicle are both fast, easy, and refreshing in the summer. But will they give your kids fuel for summer play? We know we’ll be asked about snacks approximately 5,287 times … in June . 😉 Nobody wants that! Here are some ideas to keep snacking running smoothly and prevent hungry tummy issues: Make a System Watch for Sugar Teach your kids “Satisfying” Protein an...

What life skills are kids and teens going to need in this fast-paced digital world??? We can’t really predict what specific skills our kids will need in 20 years, BUT we know they’ll need to know how to learn and other “soft skills.” Enjoy meeting a handful of our #LifeSkillsNow summer camp leaders as we explore what our youth need most and how parents can serve. Whether it’s about owning ones hea...

I actually HUGGED my to-do lists, all of them, during this interview! My guest Megan Sumrell warned me that she was going to tell me task lists are no good. I added that to my list. ;) If you’ve ever felt like you have too much to do, too many demands on your time, or like you’re bound to that to-do list, this episode is for you! We discuss: Why traditional time management systems often fail to ad...

Grocery budget hurting? Erin Chase of $5 Dinners has been making inexpensive meals to save her family’s grocery budget since the real estate crisis of 2008. She says the current inflation problem is similar in how it’s making people feel about money and savings, and it’s TIME to pay attention to your food budget, no matter who you are. In this episode, prepare to learn: How to stay ahead of the cu...

You’ve heard people say it …You may have said something similar yourself … It’s a negative judgment on teens , especially parenting teens. “Oh, just look out for when they’re teenagers!” “ Teens are just moody …just confrontational…just tough to parent.” Etc. Etc. Etc. I’ve said it too, and I feel regret! Turns out, most of the time, I puffy-heart-love parenting teens . They’re spectacular! They’r...

I interview a LOT of different people in a myriad of professions, but I’ve never come close to having a woodworker on the show before ! “What would we talk about - how to build things? That won’t go well on a podcast in someone’s ear…” I thought. Do not worry my friends, because Anika and I are both moms, so we dig into woodworking as an analogy for parenting and life skills , and I know you’ll be...

What happens when you’re already living your dream…but it’s a dream interrupted? Dr. Robin Dickinson was a family practitioner who loved her job and her patients, and she was GOOD at what she did. But when the pandemic sent her kids home from school, they needed her more . What happened next is nothing short of extraordinary. In today’s interview, you’ll learn: Why teaching kids in-depth medical s...

Confession: My house is VERY cluttered . I have never been good at letting go of things. “I might need that someday!” “What about the grandkids? They’ll want to read that book!” I’m always a little anxious and yet inspired when I talk to organizers and decluttering experts, and this conversation with Katy Wells will not disappoint!! Her story was a huge surprise to me and made her all the more bel...

When is the last time your kids were learning something in school and you got totally pulled in ? That happened to today’s podcast guest, Kathy Gibbens, when her daughter was learning logic and critical thinking in middle school, and Kathy became a mom on a mission . She realized critical thinking is, well, critical to our society thriving and started teaching others things like logical fallacies...

For real, let's talk about Kid POOP. Because it doesn't get enough press! Dr. Song talks about kids' poop with every patient at every visit. You're going to love this interview! Dr. Elisa Song, MD , holistic pediatrician, is back today with some very important instruction for parents and kids about WHY we need to be aware of our kid's poop each day, what to look for in a h...

In today's Healthy Parenting Handbook, I'm going to take 5 different arguments against kids doing chores and learning life skills and counter them with facts, stories, research, and a big ol' dose of common sense . These are real arguments I hear from both well-meaning parents AND keyboard warriors on social media , plus one from a well-established expert I heard on a podcast that I...

Oh, parents. Parents in the tech age... there REALLY is no handbook for this ! We've never seen our parents struggle through having the Internet in our kids' pockets, and honestly? I don't like the feeling of making it up as I go along . That's why I've been following Andrea and Tyler at Better Screen Time for a few years in my personal email, and I don't know why I d...

Power. Control. Parenting. Which of these three doesn’t belong? My guest today is Wendy Snyder, a positive parenting educator who reminds us, “Control is not the goal of parenting.” Obviously, there is a balance of power in a parent-child relationship, but taking the power or fighting over who has power isn’t the right game to play . Wendy will teach you: Why yelling is sometimes what parents do w...

I used Tosha's tips the very DAY we recorded this interview, and I have to tell you -- they work. So well. Once you hear about her strategy for reducing frustration and nipping "negative spirals" in the bud , you'll know why when my husband spent a ton of time hanging with our then-5-year-old, Gabe, over Christmas break, he said: "You know, Gabe has had a really good break...

I’ve been telling everyone about this book! Ever since I read  The Gift of Failure by Jessica Lahey, it has truly changed my parenting . My mindset about the mistakes my kids make and little accidents they have is totally more peaceful, and the whole time I was absorbing the information, I was thinking, “How can I interview this author so I can share her amazing wisdom with my audience???” Turns o...

I'm so happy to have my stress mastery mentor here today! Heidi Hanna, PhD, is one of the most intellectual, intuitive and compassionate people I know, and I'm honored to host her wisdom today. We recorded this interview in March 2020, when we were all in a tailspin and figuring out managing our stress was more important than ever! Fill your brain with Dr. Hanna's research and her p...