Mending Families

Welcome to the summer series top 8 most listened-to episodes of this past year! Today we will get to hear Hannah McLeod's inspiring story again as she was originally episode #13. On today’s episode, Hannah tells us about Beachbody and how she has been able to make her daily exercise a habit that she rarely even thinks about. She shares some of the hard things that she has been through in the p...

Welcome to the summer series top 8 most listened-to episodes of this past year! This week we will hear #7 in our countdown with Steve Lympus who was episode 50 back in early 2024. On today’s episode, Melissa and Steve talk about trauma informed parenting, where we can be more trauma aware, and how you start to see trauma everywhere once you start to experience growth. Steve also shared ways that w...

Welcome to the summer series top 8 most listened-to episodes of this past year! Let's start with #8, my interview with my husband, Jon Pemberton, which was the first episode of the podcast! On today’s episode, Jon shares his feelings about becoming a dad “overnight” when he married Melissa. His perspective on how he thought he would parent shifted when he was able to learn more about how disci...

On today’s episode, Becky shares about her journey to sobriety and how she has found her way to stretch therapy. She explains Fascial Stretching and how she has been able to use this strategy as a way to help others find healing and chronic pain relief. Finally, Becky gives us some simple stretches we can do from the comfort of our own home that can help our nervous system daily. Enjoy! Becky Kuku...

On today’s episode, Melissa gives you 5 tips to survive the summer months with your kids at home. With summer just beginning, this episode is sure to give you some good things to consider when planning for the next few months. If you have any tips you’d like to share, feel free to shoot Melissa a DM on her Instagram and she will share with the listeners!  For a FREEBIE Melissa that will reduce Cha...

On today’s episode, Mara shares about being a child advocate and how that led her and her husband to being a kinship care provider for a teenage girl. We talk briefly about group homes and the “wish list” Mara has for the future of group homes. She gives us good things to think about when it comes to being involved in the lives of children in  foster care, and provides us with resources, thoughts,...

On today’s episode, Melissa peels back the curtains of her online course and let’s you experience one of the lessons. She created Mend, Heal, Grow when she realized that she could reach more families with the work she does by offering it online and not just in person! This course offers the ability to connect with other caregivers, meet weekly over zoom (not required) and grow as a person, parent...

On today’s episode, Melissa shares her thoughts and a few tips on potty training. It may seem like this is something that is pretty cut and dry, but Melissa gives us a few things to consider when starting (or restarting) potty training our toddlers, preschoolers and early elementary aged kiddos. As always, reach out with specific questions! For the FREEBIE Melissa mentions, go HERE and enter your...

On today’s episode, Jake shares about what brought him to becoming a Somatic Experiencing and how he uses this approach to help his clients find healing and space for healing. He gives us some practical things to consider and also some strategies that you can do today to help bring your nervous system to a place of calm. Enjoy! Jake White practices somatic experiencing and he has been in private p...

On today’s episode, Melissa starts by interviewing her 12 year old daughter about her thoughts on Mother’s Day. Melissa then interviews her teenage daughter to hear from her perspective what it was like growing up with some fear based discipline before TBRI came into the mix. She has some good insight to share that will be helpful to anyone who has a teen in their life! You  can find Kayanna’s mus...

On today’s episode, Autumn talks about how she went from being a teacher in the school system to being a stay at home mom to now being a published author. Autumn and her husband are also foster parents and we chat briefly about what they have learned during their time as family parents. This is a good one if you are looking for activities to do with your kids this summer! Enjoy! Autumn is a mom to...

On today’s episode, Melissa answers a listener's question about toddlers and how to handle their tantrums. Melissa helps us reframe how to look at tantrums and meet our kids where they are at while also meeting the need behind the tantrum. Not parenting a toddler? That’s okay! We all have kids in our lives and this episode is for everyone! A big THANK YOU to our new sponsor, ⁠West Plains Roast...

On today’s episode, Melissa shares about a recent panic attack that she experienced and how she has learned to get through them on her own. Melissa also believes in authenticity and so she gives the audience a sneak peek into the daily lives in the Pemberton household and how we all can learn from mistakes. Grab your coffee and let's have a chat! A big THANK YOU to our new sponsor, West Plains...

On today’s episode, Sandra shares about her own experiences with FASD and how she came to the place she is now, which is speaking and advocating for those affected by FASD. We talk about the school systems and ways to support our kids in the educational setting. Finally, Sandra gives us a better understanding of FASD and ways that we, as a community, can do a better job of supporting our kids with...

I had Haley as a teen and we have been through so many ups and downs, but are on the side of healing past hurts, as well as our relationship. It’s been so fun watching her grow and see her follow in my footsteps as a social worker. Haley has her Bachelors in Social Work and works for a local counseling agency as a crisis response counselor. She lives with her dog, Hank, and uses art as an outlet t...

On today’s episode, Mary Anne  shares about the ways that cancer has affected her family and what helped  her make it through.  She shares about not healing from grief but from growing through grief. Mary Anne also talks about how grief is not always related to death. This is a  heavy conversation, but a good one. Where to find Mending Families: Instagram - @mendingfamilieswa TikTok - @mendingfami...

On today’s episode, Melissa answers a listener's question about chores. She talks about how much is too much, thoughts on allowance, and what age should chores start.  Chores can be hard and cause disagreements in the home, so listen in to see if you can pick up some suggestions to make it easier on everyone! A big THANK YOU to our new sponsor, West Plains Roasters ! If you have not stopped by...

On today’s episode, Jon Pemberton guest-hosts the podcast as the tables are turned on Melissa. He interviews her on all things podcasting and what she has learned over the past year. Jon is one of the funniest people, so you won’t want to miss this one! For FULL SHOW NOTES, go to https://www.mendingfamilieswa.com/mending-families-podcast Where to find Mending Families: Instagram - @mendingfamilies...

On today’s episode, Melissa shares how she got to the place of leaving her job in Child Welfare to start Mending Families. She also gives her thoughts on a few topics that came up in her conversation with Matt Anderson in last week's episode. Melissa believes that in order to do better, we have to be willing to listen and grow our compassion. Let’s start here! For FULL SHOW NOTES, go to https:...

On today’s episode, Matt shares about his journey from running a foster care agency to leaving with no plan in the Fall of 2022. We talk about values fatigue, learning through relationships, and reflecting on how choices we make can effect an entire family system. Matt shares specific situations and experiences that have shaped how he views the child welfare system and “right relationship” with ot...

On today’s episode, Melissa answers listener questions about how to co-regulate with their child. This is a common question and can be a hard one to answer because it is so specific to each child, so Melissa gives you several tools to try out with your kids! Sometimes parenting is trial and error so give these a try and see what helps! Where to find Mending Families: Instagram - @mendingfamilieswa...

On today’s episode, Melissa gives you a sneak peek of the monthly membership, Let’s Grow, and you can listen in on one of the monthly trainings! Each month, for a small fee, you can join a live monthly training, peer support and so many giveaways and freebies! If you are interested in learning more, go to https://www.mendingfamiliieswa.com/membership . Where to find Mending Families: Instagram - @...

On today’s episode, Melissa and Steve talk about trauma informed parenting, where we can be more trauma aware, and how you start to see trauma everywhere once you start to experience growth. Steve also shared ways that we can make more space for queer kids that he believes can help them feel seen and loved.  This is an important conversation that you won’t want to miss! Steve Lympus and his wife,...

On today’s episode, Melissa shares her thoughts on the conversation she had with Leslie on last week's episode.  She expands on what we might think of as loss and gives tangible ideas on how we can help our kids process loss, but also how we can process our own losses as well. This episode is not just for parents as we all have kids in our lives that have experienced loss and have big feelings aro...

On today’s episode, Leslie shares with us about what the Childhood Cancer Coalition is and how they support families touched by childhood cancer. She breaks down the different ways that they offer support and give us ideas on how we can come alongside the organization to help them continue to give back. We also touch on grief and ways that we can come alongside those we know who are facing grief i...