Parenting Out Loud

Just when you thought the summer school holidays couldn't get any longer, one Australian school has announced it's finishing up next year in NOVEMBER. Yes, November. Cancel Christmas. You'll be too busy organising vacation care. Meanwhile, the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show is back, this time with a post-partum Angel.  Has motherhood become the ultimate marketing strategy? Plus, a six-year-ol...

A viral essay from a dad admits he loves his kids but having a second child ruined his life. Is going from one kid to two really the parenting tipping point nobody warns you about? Meanwhile, there's a Tik Tok debate over the phrase “You get what you get and you don't get upset.” Because wait, aren't we supposed to be validating ALL the feelings?  Amelia has the story of a mum who...

Cocaine use is rising in suburban Australia, and one story about “cocaine mums” went absolutely bananas this week. Is this mummy wine culture 2.0?  Meanwhile, CDs are back and suddenly a Discman with wired headphones is cool again. But maybe The Great Unplugging isn’t really about nostalgia. Maybe parents are just desperate for a device that doesn’t have an algorithm a...

A 20-second clip of a mum carrying a baby, a backpack, and three trays of food had millions of strangers screaming “LEAVE HIM”. Is it the parenting equivalent of the Coldplay viral video?  Also, we regret to inform you there is now a name for husbands disappearing into the toilet for suspiciously long periods: weaponised pooping. Also, if parenting feels impossibly hard right now,...

A fun idea for a kids party ends in a five-hour furore and that's not even the weirdest thing that happened this week, because Gabby's Dollhouse  - after 14 seasons - suddenly has a sister, and dogs. What is happening?  Meanwhile, Amelia issues an apology for everything we said about Gwyneth Paltrow and conscious uncoupling, because turns out she was onto something.  Monz brings us...

Playdates are cancelled. Because the French reckon adults just need to get together when it suits them, and let the kids figure it out themselves. Sacre Bleu. Meanwhile, The Oreogate plot thickens; was the entire thing a marketing ploy? An ad? Stacey has the official update. Gen Alpha's are making their parents drive three hours for a very specific haircut, Lady Gaga joins the celebrity steal...

Would you rent a nanna? One Australian grandma has built a business on what so many exhausted parents are missing. Take our money, Nanna.  Meanwhile, Meghan Markle has been dubbed a submarine parent. Is she really doing anything different from a FIFO dad or does it get complicated when motherhood and domesticity are also part of your brand? Plus, should we stop telling our kids they’re...

1980's dinners are back. One mum got so sick of weeknight dinners, she went back to cooking only the simple meals of her childhood. Fish fingers. Meat and potatoes. And we love it more than Fritz and Sauce in a bowl (whatever the heck that is).   Also, a viral series where adults talk like kids has us wondering whether we're lost the art of great convos. Should we skip straight to: &ldqu...

Grace Rouvray is back this week, alongside Stacey Hicks and Amelia Lester as we remember Dolly Parton and consider the roles 'favourite aunts' have in our child's lives.  Plus, Stacey takes us deep into the viral 'Oreo-gate' drama to reveal why the internet’s favourite mum group feud is almost certainly fake. And, we’re rating two new playgrounds — including a wine-barrel se...

Bluey’s had a Hollywood glow-up and some don't love the 3D fur on Australia's best dogs. But are we all just terrible at change? The Lindsay Clancy trial has become the case mothers can’t stop talking about. Why has this horrific story captivated so many? (Skip ahead to 26 minutes if you this isn't for you.)  Also, Sarah Abo brought her four-week-old baby onto breakfast TV. A gorg...

This is a heavy one, and an episode we wish we didn’t have to record. Today, we're sharing a story that has broken hearts globally: the Lindsay Clancy trial currently taking place in the US. Mia Freedman is joined by The Quicky journalists,   Tamsin Rose and Georgie Page, to unpack the details of this incredibly distressing case. We’ve kept this as a standalone episode so you can...

Would you let your five-year-old go to the park alone? One mum did, and the internet went straight to abduction, neglect and worst-case scenarios. So… have parents become addicted to imagining the worst? And what’s all that fear doing to our kids? A baby cried in business class and another passenger decided that was simply not part of the premium experience. Anne Hathaway showed...

You're bleeding, leaking, sleep deprived. There is a lot of crying; mostly yours but also the baby. You can't remember what day it is, when you last showered, or even your own name. But hold on - are you soaking it up, mama? Because you should be! This week, the relentless pressure to enjoy every second of motherhood while you’re still very much surviving it. Because apparently we only get 1...

Suri Cruise has dropped her megastar dad’s surname and it’s starting to look less like celebrity gossip and more like a new wave of family estrangement. We unpack why the adult children of Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise are making their distance official, the PR strategy that helped both men quietly sidestep the conversation, and why mothers are still so often blamed when children cut contac...

There’s a birthday party ritual that has snuck into the modern parenting mental load - so we’re calling for a national amnesty.  Meanwhile, the Ashley Tisdale has turned her toxic-mum-group drama into a TV show and Stacey is cancelling all plans to watch. A Wall Street Journal feature on “CEO parenting” blew up the internet this week. With wealthy parents detailing the...

The biggest show on TV right now - Amazon Prime's Elle -  is making best friend parenting look deeply aspirational. Monz wants in. Amelia absolutely does not, and Stacey is blaming Gilmore Girls for making the whole thing look normal. Then, is reading really dying, or are kids just consuming words in completely different ways? Amelia brings the panic, Monique brings the Australian research, a...

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The sibling gold standard has officially been set by Harry Styles and his sister Gemma, but it’s giving Stacey some serious 'parent of one' guilt. Plus, the Australian schools that are handing out codes of conduct to an unlikely group — the parents.  Plus, in the celebrity world, can motherhood be used as a strategic 180 to swing public perception, or do we just inherently view mo...

Can a celebrity really keep their family a secret in 2026? One very famous parent is believed to have two children that most people don't even know exist, or do they? Plus, it's school holidays, which means one thing: Dad-cation season. But after we witnessed one father do absolutely nothing on a long-haul flight while his partner did everything, we need to ask... are we still having the same pare...

Fun playground or toddler emergency room invitation? Melbourne parents are fiercely divided over a controversial new playground featuring... checks notes... giant rocks. Is this brilliant independent play, or have we officially reached peak chaotic parenting? We have thoughts. Plus, Monz and Stacey ran to see Toy Story 5 and what they witnessed was a brutal gut punch. Pixar took our greatest...

Japan’s national soccer team and their supporters have gone viral following their World Cup match after leaving the stadium and their locker room absolutely spotless. We want to know how we can get our kids to follow suit. Influencer and  Love Island star Molly-Mae Hague has stepped out 10 days postpartum in a white dress and everyone has lost their minds, but not for the reason you&rsq...

Have you ever dreamt of packing up your family and escaping to the country? Former AFL player Buddy Franklin and his wife Jesinta have ditched the big city for something a little... quieter. Monz, Amelia and Stacey are unpacking whether it’s possible to completely reinvent your family life. Plus, Stacey explains her 'Florist Theory.’ Also, there’s a new solution for parenting exh...

Future King Prince William claims his morning school run is actually just as chaotic and messy as ours. We’re trying to decide whether or not we believe him. From a cryptic countdown to 13 clouds on a billboard. Taylor and Toy Story have officially collabbed. We’re breaking down all the Easter eggs and whether she might be attempting to reach EGOT status with her new song ' I Knew It,...

Are Australian parents okay? If you're finding parenting deeply exhausting, a study has found you're not the only one. Monique Bowley, Amelia Lester and Stacey Hicks are unpacking why parents are feeling so stressed out. Plus, Stacey has a theory that might just be genius. Also, are you constantly saying sorry for your kids just being...kids? We're discussing why we feel the need to apol...

Sienna Miller and Laura Henshaw are presenting two very different versions of new motherhood in our feeds — so why is the internet upset with both of them? Monique Bowley, Amelia Lester and Stacey Hicks dive into the unrealistic expectations on new mums and how there might be no right answer. Also, Mandy Moore has officially entered the chat over Ashley Tisdale’s viral ‘toxic&rsq...