Parenting Roundabout

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, Dancing with the Stars felt the need for a James Bond-themed evening, which meant nothing but slow rumbas and the occasional tango (and poor Jessie James Decker dipped in gold paint). Next: Disney Plus Night. On Rutherford Falls, Reagan encountered a bureaucratic level of hell that reminded us of The Good Place. But thanks to her new curator, Nelson, sh...

It's sweater-weather, fall-foliage, pumpkin-patch season ... at least for two of us. Nicole is nostalgic for Canadian autumns from her home in the southern California desert.

Turns out we're better at passing along clothes, toys, and baby gear than we are at tossing birthday cards (with a few special exceptions, of course).

In the complaint department today: We try and try to teach our kids basic life skills, like laundry and cooking. And yet (some of) them just don't seem to get it. We'd like our appliances to step up and share some of the burden.

On this week’s Roundabout Roundup, Catherine's been enjoying the YouTube series Jet Lag: The Game [ https://www.youtube.com/c/jetlagthegame ] with her son. Nicole is trying out the Rover app [ https://www.rover.com/ ] for pet care (and has an inside look at how the company vets its caretakers). And thanks to Dancing with the Stars, Terri's checking back in with an older show she enjoyed: Brothers...

Terri was surprised to learn that her husband carries a comb to touch up his 'do while he's at work, which got her (and us) obsessing over how much personal grooming we do in public. Or in private, for that matter.

Whether our kids are at home or away, there are challenges (and some victories) when it comes to staying in communication with them.

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, Dancing with the Stars suggested we learn a whole lot about the life of Elvis and about how bad many guys look in wigs. And we said goodbye to a Real Housewife in favor of a Charlie's Angel. Next: James Bond Night. On Rutherford Falls, we also learned something: Reagan has a family! A beloved Aunt Sue, who passed away, and parents. Whaddya know! And spe...

Having a growth mindset [ https://www.mindsetworks.com/science/ ] can be a pathway to success for kids (and adults). But sometimes a parent's idea of growth doesn't match a teacher's, and then what?

Forget the running playlist, the breakup playlist, and the poolside playlist. We have some other ideas for songs to live by.

​A New York Times letter-writer prompted today's chat when she wrote: "It is my belief that children often have more of an impact on changing their parents than parents may have on molding their children." We can't quite commit to that "more" business, but agree that parenting sure has changed us.​

On this week’s Roundabout Roundup, Terri recommends a trip down memory lane with The Big Chill on HBO Max [ https://www.hbomax.com/feature/urn:hbo:feature:GYiJjVARO5pA3MQEAAABR ], or a old movie of your choice. Since her kids are no longer at home, Nicole's spoiling her cats with a cute new cat condo [ https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792CKRHC?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details ], and Catherine s...

We borrow once again from the Bobby Bones Show [ https://bobbybones.iheart.com/ ] to obsess about whether 12-year-olds should wear thongs or cut their hair in mohawks, and how we feel about our own kids' clothing, hair, and accessory choices.

On this week's Round 3, it's our version of the TikTok #parentingchallenge. Between us and our spouses, who's stricter, funnier, neater, more outgoing? It's a new twist on complaining about our partners--gently!

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, it's back to the ballroom for a new season of Dancing With the Stars. The show is now streaming on Disney+, so you've got to pony up for that service if you want to watch. But benefits include no commercials, an elimination at the end of the show (instead of awkwardly happening a week late), and--at least this week--mostly dancing, little faffing about....

Here's a lesson learned: Don't ask your kids who their heroes are unless you are prepared for their answer. But we also acknowledge that life off of the pedestal is pretty comfortable.

It's time to return to the urgent question of most recent photos on our phones [ https://www.spreaker.com/episode/18922795 ], and this crop is more exciting than last time: A memorable souvenir, a nimbler-than-expected dog, and some possibly illegal activity.

Target's car-seat trade-in event [ https://corporate.target.com/corporate-responsibility/planet/sustainable-products/car-seat-trade-in ] is happening now (NOTE: This is a replay, but the event really is happening now, September 11-24!), which got us thinking: We have a lot of other kid stuff we'd like to trade in for bigger and better things.

On this week’s Roundabout Roundup, Nicole is into the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon [ https://www.hbo.com/house-of-the-dragon ]. Switching gears entirely, Terri recommends a daily live rosary from Kitty Cleveland of Kitty's Morning Glories [ https://www.facebook.com/groups/307917207476233 ]. And Catherine's off in another very different direction with the book Reading for Our Lives:...

Parenting TikTok is all about #gentleparenting, so we had to obsess over it for awhile. Nicole's all for it, Terri has doubts, and Catherine mostly stays out of it and feels quietly guilty about whatever she did or didn't do when her kids were little. Mentioned: "What Is Gentle Parenting?" at Parents magazine [ https://www.parents.com/parenting/better-parenting/style/what-is-gentle-parenting/ ] an...

While Nicole was away, Catherine and Terri alternated home and appliance annoyances [ https://www.parentingroundaboutpodcast.com/blog/revisiting-the-joys-of-homeownership ]. Now that Nicole is back, it was her turn to deal with a big mess: ants taking over her pantry.

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2: We kick off season 2 of Rutherford Falls (the final season, as it turns out). The titular "white man" is, of course, Nathan, who has secretly returned to Rutherford Falls but possibly hasn't learned much on his epic journey of self-discovery. Next: S2 E2, "The New Curator." We also kicked off a new season of Dancing with the Stars, now on Disney+, with...

We've been checking all those first day of school photos, and that led us to reminisce about back-to-school shopping--with our own moms, and with our kids.

Not all of our children's activities are exactly fun for us, but there are those things that became as much a part of our social life as our kids'. On today's Speed Round, we give a cheer for team sports and marching band. And fancy cupcakes!

After ignoring it for years, we suddenly started to wonder if dental insurance is a must or a maybe. Our complaint: The math (surprise!) is complicated, at least here in the USA (mentioned: Oscar insurance [ https://www.hioscar.com/ ]).