The Monica Swanson Podcast - boy mom, build strong families, Biblical worldview, women’s wellness

We all want our kids to have good character, but we don’t always consider how crucial character is to our kids’ future success.  In today’s interview, former multi-billion-dollar investment manager, Dennis Trittin, helps us connect the dots and find even more motivation for raising kids of character.  After over 30 years managing investments and studying successful leaders all over the world, Denn...

I love talking about birth order, and today’s episode had me smiling and laughing throughout.  Youngest kids are known for some unique character qualities – from being the comedians of the family, to getting off easy compared to their older siblings, and more. They are fun to love, but they still need our intentional parenting! In today’s episode, I share fun facts and helpful information about “W...

This is the 2nd in a series looking at how birth order affects our sons.  You’ve probably heard the term, “Middle Child Syndrome”, and if you have a middle child you will probably agree that this can be a complex position in the family. I began studying birth order to better understand my own middle son, and what I learned helped our family so much.  After sharing what I learned on my blog, I hear...

This is the first in a short series looking at how birth order affects our sons.  I love to study personalities, love languages, birth order, and anything else that can help us better understand and relate to our kids.  Today I am sharing a blog post I wrote a few years ago about firstborns, as well as a short interview with MY firstborn, Josiah. Josiah offers some encouragement to the moms and ki...

I am over-the-moon excited to share this interview with the author of the resource I have always dreamed of, but now hold in my hands…(happy tears!) The Bible Recap: A One-Year Guide to Reading and Understanding the Entire Bible.  Perhaps you are familiar with the Bible Recap Podcast (with over 20 million downloads in the first year!) but my 2021 is starting off extra special because of this new t...

Carl Laferton, best-selling author of The Garden, the Curtain, and the Cross, joins us today to talk about his brand-new book, The God Contest.  I have such passion for this topic because my four sons’ early years were impacted so deeply by good stories.  Bible stories, stories about heroes of the faith, and other creative, even silly stories -- shaped my boys’ character, faith, and interests.  Th...

Prominent Pastor and New York Times best-selling author, Mark Batterson joins us for such an inspiring interview to prepare us all for the new year. I love talking about positive habits, goal-setting, and, well – winning just about anything, and this chat just hit the sweet spot for all of that!  Mark is sharing from his brand new book (releasing today! -- December 29th!) called Win the Day: 7 Dai...

Merry Christmas!!  In today's short episode Josiah and Luke join me to talk story (as we say in Hawaii) about Christmas memories and traditions.  We talk Christmas music, (look for this year's playlist in show notes) favorite movies, the most memorable gifts, and what they each love most about the true Christmas story.  This is a fun episode to share with your kids!  Sending much love and Mele Kal...

Alexandra Kuykendall joins us today with such a refreshing, endearing message about Loving Your Actual Christmas.  Drawing from her book (by that name,) Alex reminds us that Christ did not come for the people who have it all together, but for the weary,  grieving, and hurting.  He came for us real people who sometimes struggle our way through the holidays. When we don’t have our act together, Jesu...

Over the past years, I have heard from countless families about their greatest challenges in parenting during the holidays. One thing I hear every year is the frustration of kids being on screens and feeling like technology is stealing their precious family time.  In today's episode I offer some practical ideas about being proactive and making a tech-smart plan for your family this holiday season....

Kate Merrick and I wanted to share a chat about gifts in the holiday season.  Because, as Kate said, "There are a lot of gift guides out there, but not a lot of guidance on gifts."  So true.  So join us for a fun conversation where we share favorite holiday memories, expectations for the season ahead, and some guidance for choosing gifts that last this season.  Kate shares memories of being raised...

Krista Gilbert, author of Reclaiming Home, joins me for a practical and inspiring conversation about gratitude.  Krista and I share ways we can teach our kids to be grateful -- from ideas for Thanksgiving day, to things we can do throughout the holidays (and into the New Year!)  Krista shares some awesome ways we can show our appreciation to others-- from service workers to cleaning staff, to our...

My guest today is Amy Carney - author ("Parent on Purpose"- an excellent book) speaker, content creator, product maker, and Mom to five. Amy knows a thing or two about sibling relationships!  Shortly after her triplet sons were born (*gulp*), she had a daughter, and a couple years later, adopted another son. Amy and her husband have made some upstream choices to parent their children with great in...

David Thomas joins us again for part 2 of our conversation drawing from his book, “Are My Kids on Track? The 12 Emotional, Social and Spiritual Milestones Your Child Needs to Reach.” In Episode 78 David and I talked about the 4 emotional milestones our sons need to reach, and today we cover the 4 social milestones they need to reach.  David offers such valuable insight into boys’ development and h...

Wendy Speake’s new book, The 40-Day Social Media Fast, is an invitation to exchange your online distractions for real-life devotion. Today, Wendy joins us to talk about all of the things we Moms tend to run to on hard parenting days -- social media being a big one in today’s culture, but not the only one! So, if you (like me) ever catching yourself mindlessly scrolling…turning to Facebook or Insta...

David Thomas, counselor, speaker and author (not to mention dad to one daughter and twin sons!) joins us for the first of a two-part conversation about milestones our sons need to reach.  Today we talk about emotional milestones (in two weeks we’ll cover social milestones.)  David touches on the four milestones boys should reach as well as some of the stumbling blocks that get in the way.  David h...

To celebrate my upcoming (significant 😯 ) birthday 😉, this week my son Luke takes the role of interviewer, firing me a list of questions sent in by listeners. Some of the questions are more serious parenting questions (challenges with tweens, keeping toddlers in their beds, etc.) and some are just for fun (how is my bang-grow-out process going?) But they are all good conversations, with my son L...

Bethany and Ryan Bomberger have been a great inspiration to my family. Today, Bethany shares her family's story, and what led she and her husband to start the Radiance Foundation. Bethany also talks about (and reads an excerpt from) her book, Pro-Life Kids.  I believe this conversation will offer hope and inspiration to families everywhere! **Sign up today for the Perfectly Imperfect Event hosted...

Alli Worthington, author, speaker, business coach, and BOY MOM to five sons (!!) joins us today with an encouraging and empowering message for all moms. Just listening to Alli speak made me feel stronger!  Be sure to check show notes to find out more about Alli and get links to her new book, Standing Strong! Show notes:   www.monicaswanson.com/podcast Today's episode:   www.monicaswanson.com/episo...

Dad's are hugely important in the character development of their kids. My husband joins me to talk about some of the most important things a dad can do to be intentional about his kids' character training and development.  Find a video interview with my husband and lots of other encouragement for dads and moms in the Character Training Course - which just opened its doors for purchase from now unt...

I'm so excited to share sneak peeks from 7 interviews which are part of the brand new Character Training Course which will be launching on Sept. 28th! 😁   I think you'll be encouraged and inspired by these 7 nuggets of parenting wisdom from: Jonathan Pitts, Ruth Chou Simons, Dennis Trittin, Kari Kampakis, Maile Higashi, Wendy Speake, and my son Jonah.  Find out more about the Character Training C...

If you have a child who worries a lot, the season we are in is likely especially stressful. After hearing from many of you who have an anxious child, I knew just who I wanted to bring on to help! Sissy Goff is a counselor, author, and speaker who helps kids find confidence in who they are and hope in who God is making them to be. I’ve read many of Sissy’s books and have so much respect for her! I...

This is the final episode in our summer series exploring The Joys and Challenges of Every Stage of Raising our Sons.  And this is one of my very favorite stages to talk about (maybe because two of my sons are in it now!) No matter the age of your son(s), I think you’ll be encouraged and inspired by this conversation!  Author, podcaster, speaker, and musician, Gwen Smith, joins me to talk about pre...

This episode is a big breath of fresh air for all...of...us. Whether you have boys or girls, whether you homeschool, distance school, (or aren't sure what you're doing for school! 😊) Just hearing my guest, Corinne Gold, share perspectives from her life will be incredibly refreshing to everyone! I know that a lot of people are stressed out right now, and it is my hope that listening to Corinne's s...

Word on the street is that all the fun of raising boys ends when they become teenagers...that boys will pull away from their parents...rebel..experiment, and on and on.  But does it have to be that way?  Krista Gilbert - author, podcaster, and mom of 3 teenage boys (as well as one daughter!) and I dive in deep to discuss our experience raising teen boys.  We talk about what an absolute blast teen...