Parenting Roundabout

Inspired by a mom who mercilessly sold her kids' toys on eBay, we complain about the stuff in our homes we'd like to put a price tag on and shove out the door (although two of us are more motivated than the third).

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, so much betrayal. On As We See It ("Outed"), Harrison feels deceived by Mandy, Jack realizes he isn't fooling anyone into thinking he's neurotypical, and Violet finds out Van wants her to move to a residential treatment center. Next: "Please Don't Leave," the season finale.On The Gilded Age, Agnes's butler, Bannister, commits the sin of moseying across the street and posing as the Russells' butler. As the episode title reminds him, "Heads Have Rolled for Less." Next: "Irresistible Change."

An episode of the Choiceology podcast [https://www.schwab.com/resource-center/insights/content/choiceology-season-9-episode-1] about Strider balance bikes [https://striderbikes.com/] got us talking about how removing steps, pieces, or extra clutter can help kids master a skill. Terri also thinks there's a market for balance bikes for small adults, so call us, Strider!

Spam phone calls are bad enough, but what about when salespeople come to your door—do you open it or hide until they go away? Or what if it's a kid selling cookies? Or a neighbor with a dead goose? We assess our degree of welcoming on today's Speed Round.

Even though she's moved on from having to wrangle small, grabby children in line at the store, Nicole still has some complaints about the system (or lack thereof).

This week, in honor of an ailing pet in our podcast family (get well soon, buddy!), we're revisiting some of our past discussions about our companion animals--and that goes for roundup recommendations too.In November 2018, Terri shouted out Chewy.com and 1800PetMeds.com. In May 2020, Catherine gave Crown and Paw pet portraits the seal of approval (also mentioned: Gray Duck Art pet painting kits). ​ ​In October 2021, Nicole shared a squeezable treat that her cats go crazy for.Visit https://parentingroundabout.com/ for links to all of these goodies.

This week, in honor of an ailing pet in our podcast family (get well soon, buddy!), we're revisiting some of our past discussions about our companion animals, from cats and dogs to turtles and stick bugs. Today's episode comes from September 2021.​Today we're obsessing about family members' conflicting opinions about adding a furry friend to the mix. It all started because a kitten literally fell into Nicole's yard (and was far too cute to turn away).

This week, in honor of an ailing pet in our podcast family (get well soon, buddy!), we're revisiting some of our past discussions about our companion animals, from cats and dogs to turtles and stick bugs. Today's episode comes from May 2019.​Today's Round 3 is not for the weak of stomach. Skip this one if you don't want to join us in recalling and complaining about all the disgusting ways we've had to show love and care for our dogs.

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2: As We See It's 6th episode, "Fear Is My Bitch," once again found us lamenting some bad, bad decisions and choices (but at least Joe Mantegna's character is still alive). Next: "Outed."On The Gilded Age (episode 5, "Charity Has Two Functions"), there are more lamentable choices, but also more extremely elaborate gowns and hats. Next: "Heads Have Rolled for Less."

This week, in honor of an ailing pet in our podcast family (get well soon, buddy!), we're revisiting some of our past discussions about our companion animals, from cats and dogs to turtles and stick bugs. Today's episode comes from May 2019.Today we have some complaints about our (mostly) beloved pets: Cats are stalking lizards, a dog has herpes, and we've got a tortoise situation AND a hare situation.

Catherine plans to attend a local writer's conference, and that inspired Terri to share her formative experience with the Santa Barbara Writer's Conference [https://www.sbwriters.com/] in the mid-’80s and Nicole to recall a particularly great teacher's conference full of math accessories [https://creativemathematics.com/].

When we heard that photos from inside a wifi-enabled refrigerator might be used in a dating app, we started wondering—and worrying—about where else those pics might turn up.

On this week’s Roundabout Roundup, Catherine was Instagram-influenced to buy a cozy, new-but-recycled sweater from Everlane [https://www.everlane.com/products/womens-waffle-pullover-recashmere-bone]. Nicole found some gluten-free crackers with just the right amount of spice (Good Thins Jalapeño & Lime Corn & Rice Snacks [https://www.goodthins.com/jalapeno-product.html]). And Terri's loving a Walker Hayes playlist made by a fan named Nick Simmons [https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/walker-hayes/pl.u-6LbWuVL1NM]. Hayes is more than just "Fancy Like"!

You can get everything at Walmart, even parenting advice: The retailer has a new service called Tot Squad [https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/tot-squads-parenting-services-now-available-on-walmartcom-and-select-walmart-stores-301487833.html], with on-call experts to help parents with advice on topics like sleep, breastfeeding, and car seats. That's great, but where's the Squad for parents of older kids? That's what we need!

Gruesome images on cigarette packs and soda bottles can deter consumers. So we came up with some more products (and people) that should come with warning labels to keep our kids away.

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2: As We See It episode 5, "Ever Had an Edible?" pushed all of Terri's mom-of-kids-with special needs buttons, and she has a few choice words for Jack's aunt, Julia the French fry guy, and most especially Harrison's mother. Next: Episode 6, "Fear Is My Bitch."Over on The Gilded Age's "The Long Ladder," everyone was much better behaved, even when they were being racist and hitting on their bosses and just generally acting clueless. Next: Episode 5, "Charity Has Two Functions."

Back in the fall of 2020, we talked about Play-Doh for grown-ups [https://www.parentingroundaboutpodcast.com/blog/yesterdays-toys-today]. Now, Build-a-Bear has gotten in on the action with stuffed animals "just for adults" [https://cafemom.com/news/build-a-bear-after-dark-collection/build-a-bear-announced-the-collection-on-february-2] We say there's no shame in enjoying a teddy bear at any age, and it doesn't need to come with an adult accessory (like a glass of Champagne). Plus, we drift into whether candles make a good gift.

Hey, did you hear that Nicole wrote a book? And it's finally here! We celebrate her book-release day with a little talk about Inclusion in Action: Practical Strategies to Modify Your Curriculum and why you should run out right now and buy it: https://www.amazon.com/Inclusion-Action-Practical-Strategies-Curriculum/dp/1681252244.

Terri's been obsessing about her kids' jobs for a while, and now Nicole is joining her. How much pressure should we put on our high-school students to be gainfully employed?

On this week’s Roundabout Roundup, Terri shared another delicious snack option: potato sticks from Utz [https://www.utzsnacks.com/products/utz-potato-stix-original-potato-sticks?variant=9121492271148]. Nicole's enjoying season 2 of the not-for-kids TV show Euphoria [https://www.hbo.com/euphoria], and Catherine has another word game to suggest. If Wordle isn't enough for you, try Quordle [https://www.quordle.com/]!