Guest 1: Janet Hughes, advocate for children’s vision.
Children's Vision Foundation
Topic: Raising the standards for eye care.
Issues: The critical difference between vision screenings and eye exams—and why screenings often miss serious problems; the importance of good vision in school and elsewhere (academic learning is 80% visual).

Guest 2: Darryl Shue, representative of the Military Family Network

Topic: Military families
Issues: Special concerns of families facing deployment; the challenges of staying in touch across time and distance; resources that can help support deployed servicemembers and their families; special concerns of reservists and Guard troops.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:01 — 27.5MB)

Guest 1: Wednesday Martin, author of Stepmonster.
Topic: A new look at why real stepmothers think, feel, and act the way they do
Issues: The process of becoming a stepmother; the myths and realities of being married to a man with children; debunking the prevailing notion that stepmothers are responsible for the problems they encounter.

Guest 2: Karyl McBride, author of Will I Ever Be Good Enough?
Topic: Healing the daughters of narcissistic mothers.
Issues: Recognizing how your own experiences with maternal narcissism and its effects on all aspects of your life; discovering how you have internalized verbal and non-verbal messages from your mother and how they have translated into overachieving or self-sabotage

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:00 — 27.5MB)

Guest 1: James Steyer, CEO and Founder of CommonSenseMedia
Topic: Is social networking changing childhood?
Issues: Discussing a recent survey that found that kids are increasingly connected with friends, classmates, and others through social networks—and parents are completely out of the loop; what parents need to do to supervise and monitor their kids’ online behavior.

Guest 2: Timothy Smith, author of Crashproof Your Kids.
Topic: Make your teen a safer, smarter driver
Issues: Developing your teen’s braking, car control, and defensive driving skills; handling road emergencies and basic maintenance; helping young drivers deal with dangerous distractions; a parent-child contract that outlines expectations, responsibilities, and rules.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:02 — 27.5MB)

Guests for both segments: Benji Kessler, young man with Tourtete’s Syndrome, and Dr. John Walkup, Chairman of the Tourette Syndrome Association's Medical Advisory Board.

Topic: Real-life and scientific perspectives on Tourette Syndrome
Issues: What it’s like to grow up and live with Tourette Syndrome; how TS affects people on a day-to-day basis; myths and misunderstandings about what TS is and what the actual symptoms are (as opposed to what we see on TV); other conditions that often accompany TS (obsessive behavior, depression, anxiety);medical and other treatment options;

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:00 — 27.5MB)

Guest 1: Rachel Compos Duffy, author of Stay Home, Stay Happy.
Topic: Secrets to loving at-home motherhood.
Issues: Embracing the choice to stay home with confidence; taking care of yourself guilt-free; mentally and physically recharging every day, and more.

Guest 2: Deborah Copaken-Kogan, author of Hell is Other Parents.
Topic: Tales of maternal combustion
Issues: A collection of witty, smart, funny, poignant essays on dealing with intrusive and judgmental other parents, modern working parenthood, raising a family on inadequate income.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:00 — 27.5MB)

Guest 1 and 2: Po Bronson, author of NurtureShock
Topic: New thinking about children
Issues: Why just about everything you think you know about parenting could be wrong; why the most brutal person in a child’s life is often a sibling; when is it too soon—or too late—to teach a child about race; why reading to your child may not be the most effective way of stimulating vocabulary.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:00 — 27.5MB)

Guest 1: Rachel Kauder Nalebuff, editor of My Little Red Book.
Topic: Stories about first periods.
Issues: How dads can approach his daughter's first period without making it uncomfortable for either of them; why there is a taboo around the subject matter.

Guest 2: Guest Michael Greenberg, author of Hurry Down Sunshine.
Topic: A father's story of love and madness.
Issues: What it's like to be the parent of a child who suffers from mental illness; understanding and coping with the anger, frustration, desperation, and helplessness that parents and other loved ones may feel when trying to save a child from mental illness.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.5MB)

Guest 1: David Swanson, author of Help—My Kid Is Driving Me Crazy.
Topic: How kids manipulate their parents.
Issues: Why kids manipulate; Learning to recognize 17 distinct types of manipulate and what you need to do to disarm them.

Guest 2: Diana Peters Meyer, author of Overcoming School Anxiety.
Topic: Getting kids ready for school.
Issues: How to help your child deal with separation, tests, homework, bullies, math phobia, and other worries; telling the difference between normal start-of-school jitters and anxiety that warrants a call to the specialists.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.5MB)

Guest 1: Sam Goldstein, coauthor of Raising a Self-Disciplined Child.
Topic: Help your child become more responsible, confident, and resilient.
Issues: Teaching children of any age, from preschool to adolescence, the value of self-control, self-reliance, and self-assurance—skills that will last a lifetime.

Guest 2: Eva Bramwell, personal trainer, fitness instructor, and owner of Radicle Fittness (yes, that's the correct spelling).
Topic: The importance of exercise.
Issues: How to warm up; identifying the right fitness program for you; working with a personal trainer; great workouts for families; avoiding injury.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.5MB)

Guest 1: Malina Saval, author of The Secret Lives of Boys.
Topic: Inside the raw emotional world of male teens.
Issues: Why the author believes that the "boy crisis" we hear about is overblown; understanding the landscape of boys' social cliques; how parents can get closed-mouth sons to open up.

Guest 2: Amy Nobile, coauthor of I'd Trade My Husband for a Housekeeper.
Topic: Loving your marriage after the baby carriage.
Issues: The challenges of modern parenthood for married couples; a frank look at marriage post-tots; keeping parenthood compatible with marital bliss; how moms can learn to make the most of what they have and love their marriage as much as the husband and kids.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.5MB)