Kids & Family
**Crazy Cool Family**

Want home to be your favorite place in the world? Want to see siblings get along like best friends? Want to send your kid off to college with hope instead of fear? At Crazy Cool Family, we can help you answer all of those questions with a resounding “YES!”

We have one simple mission: To show parents how to create amazing families by building their lives around Jesus and helping their kids to do the same. In Matthew 22, Jesus tells us that what is most important in life is our relationship with God and our relationships with one another. We believe that families are our most important relationships and their strength will determine the strength of your family. You will Rethink the Way You Do Family when you see God’s incredible relational design for your families.

God wants a Crazy Cool Family for you and we want to help you get there!

Latest Episodes:

#178: Who Knows Your Kid Best? (Feat. McCade Manning) Aug 31, 2022

Show notes

We are wrapping up the summer series with McCade, our 7th child!

McCade is practically perfect in every way (just kidding!) McCade is the youngest of seven and remembers all his siblings being older and stronger. As the 7th kid, he learned to be independent, courageous, and very tough.

McCade is 16 years old now and is discovering who he is, what he believes, and how he wants to interact with us (the old parents he is stuck at home with). Now that he is the only child at home, we see the next few years being a sweet time for us to invest in his life and prepare him for what's ahead.

Here are a few things he said in the episode for parents who are raising teenagers:

Allow kids as much freedom as you can (responsibility = freedom!)
Let them solve their own problems (stop coddling them!)
Be a place for them to share, talk, and not be ridiculed

We learned how powerful a parent's voice is in a teenager's life. Even if they roll their eyes and act like they don't care, they do. Cade shared how his relationship with God has been growing because he has watched his older siblings, and parents live out their faith. He has been watching and learning from us all these years.

Parents, as your teenagers is trying to build their life, it's not too late for you to come alongside them. Be a parent who encourages, challenges (in love), and believes the best in your child.

Want to know how to do all of these things?

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST TODAY!

Crazy Cool Resources:

#177: Who Knows Your Kid Best? (Feat. Maddox Manning) Aug 17, 2022

Show notes

The summer series continues with Maddox, our 6th child!

Is your child....

Easy going but picky about random things (like food textures)
Has big emotions but you never know what's going on in their heads/hearts
Acts apathetic or resistant to trying new things

Maddox shares how he spent his childhood going with the flow but also needing a lot out of the relationships in his life. In middle school, he experienced the powerful grace of God and started questioning his beliefs with us. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit helped up navigate his questions and doubts.

Countless kitchen counter conversations and encounters with Jesus have developed Maddox into a mighty man of God. He loves the local church, is an amazing big and little brother, and is ready to start a new season in a new state by attending a university.

Do you want to release your child into college (or adulthood) confidently?

In this podcast, Maddox shares how parents can make their kids feel safe, open, and seen. Through discovering faith, finding friendships, and making life decisions, we walked alongside Maddox and helped him be the best version of himself.

Now he is leaving for college and we are sending him! It's the biggest blessing, as a parent, is sending your child into their season with confidence. Listen to learn how to start loving your child and building their trust!

God has a plan to connect you and your child. Listen and share with anyone you know who needs to hear this encouragement today!

Crazy Cool Resources:

#176: Who Knows Your Kid Best? (Feat. Michael Manning) Aug 03, 2022

Show notes

What if your child acts like a punk?

Our 5th child and first boy, Michael, said he "was a huge punk" growing up.

Wanna know why?

In this podcast, Michael shares his first memories of childhood, having 4 older sisters (aka his personal cheerleaders) and how he discovered Jesus + his calling to be a leader.

Do you feel like your child is distancing themselves from you?

Do you worry your kid will not grow up and discover Jesus' love for themselves?

This podcast is for you. There is hope. God has a plan to connect you and your child. Listen and share with anyone you know who needs to hear this encouragement today!

Crazy Cool Resources:

#175: Who Knows Your Kid Best? (Feat. McKenzie Reaume) Jul 20, 2022

Show notes

How do you help your middle child live out their God-given identity?

The "Who Knows Your Child Best" series continues with our 4th daughter McKenzie Reaume. She is in between the three older sisters and three younger brothers. God gave us McKenzie as the relational bridge between the Manning kids.

In this podcast, you will hear us discuss:

What Kenzie was like as a child
How she related to her siblings
How we parented her well (and not so well)
Her journey to knowing God deeply
Practical ways parents can love their child if they are like McKenzie

This podcast is jammed packed with wisdom, practical tools, and funny memories. If you have a middle child, this is the podcast for you!

Crazy Cool Resources:

#174: Who Knows Your Kid Best? (Feat. Macy Robinson) Jul 06, 2022

Show notes

Is your child emotional? High achiever? Really hard on themselves and hard on you?

This week, our 3rd daughter, Macy, joins us to talk about how to raise an emotional child. She grew up in our household with lots of siblings AND LOTS of emotions! She was by far our hardest toddler and there was a whole season we didn't take her out because she threw too many fits!

We love Macy because she brings heart into our family. If you need a good cry, talk to Macy. If you need someone to feel what you feel and be with you through it, call Macy. She is an aware, an incredible helper, and has a heart of worship. God put her in our family to keep us on the straight and narrow (huge rule follower), but also to show us the depth of love God feels towards us.

In this podcast, we discuss:

How emotional kids think, feel, and react to life
Ways parents can model emotional intelligence
The spiritual part of raising an emotional child
Practical things to do when this type of child is struggling

Do you have a child like this?

How do you love them?

Listen to this week's podcast to gain insight on how to raise an emotional, perfectionistic child. If your child is struggling with self-esteem issues or reacts poorly to life's circumstances, then this is the podcast for you! Macy gives wisdom and helpful tools to equip parents who desire to raise an emotionally healthy child!

Crazy Cool Resources:

#173: Who Knows Your Kid Best? (Feat. Madeline Jones) Jun 22, 2022

Show notes

Is your child loud? Energetic? A little too adventurous for your parent-heart?

This summer we are slowing down the podcast and inviting each of our kids to share about their perspective of family, relationships, and our parenting. You do not want to miss these honest conversations about our wins and misses as parents. Trust us, our kids will not hold back!

The question we are asking, to you parents, in the Summer Series is "Who knows your kid best?"

Do you know your child better than anyone else?

How do you get to know them better this summer?

As we've watched our kids grow up, we've learned a few things. Our hope is that you learn how to love your kids by listening to ours!

The podcast will air every other week throughout the summer. So take time to listen, process, and practice what you are learning!

Meet Madeline Jones!

Madeline is our second daughter. From the start, she has been full of life, energy, and joy! She is married and has 2 kiddos under 3 with another baby on the way!

Madeline unpacks her childhood, personality, and memories in this podcast. She shares about her relationship with God and how she loved adventure from a young age. Her story is powerful and we know there are more kids out there like her!

A few things about Madeline:

She loved (still does love) playing babies
She was coachable and good at basketball
She often found a camera and videoed or performed for people

Here are a few main things Madeline shares about being raised by us:

She felt like an optimistic child and hated to be lectured, put down, or nagged. When we encouraged her, it made her heart come alive but when we coached or lectured, it shut her down
She loves intentional times with family and sharing about the things we did each day.
She loves missions and wants to live her life bringing the Kingdom of God to earth!

Does this sound like your son or daughter?

Do they challenge you and push the limits of your family's culture?

This many not be a bad thing. Listen to the podcast for insight on how to train up and love this type of child! We believe God has something in this podcast for you! Listen and share today!

Crazy Cool Resources:

#172: Who Knows Your Kid Best? (Feat. Mollie Torres) Jun 08, 2022

Show notes

We are kicking off our Summer Series!

The question we are asking, to you parents, in the Summer Series is "Who knows your kid best?"

Do you know your child better than anyone else?

How do you get to know them better this summer?

As we've watched our kids grow up, we've learned a few things. Our hope is that you learn how to love your kids by listening to ours!

The podcast will air every other week throughout the summer. So take time to listen, process, and practice what you are learning!

Meet Mollie Torres!

Mollie is our oldest daughter and the 2nd mom to our other 6 kiddos. She is organized, fashionable, and is very... VERY passionate.

Mollie and Suz started the fam and Don joined in (meaning Don is not Mollie's biological dad) and the adjustment was a little tricky for everyone as the Manning family formed.

Here are a few main things Mollie shares about being raised by us:

As a first born, she sometimes felt like a failure and unable to share her emotions when she messed up or "fell short" in our eyes
As a girl, she often felt hurt by our harsh words (or lack of encouragement)
As an older sister, she felt like she had to be mature and help with her siblings and house stuff more than she wanted

Does this sound like your first born son or daughter?

Mollie's insight into her upbringing is so valuable. She is now an amazing mom to Sebastian (3 year old boy) who is a lot like her! Her perspective of our parenting choices is priceless. Listen today and learn why.

Topics we discuss:

Learning to listen and draw out your child's emotions
Building trust and talking about the ways trust has been broken
Setting expectations (specifically around grades)
Giving them experiences with Jesus
Inviting the Holy Spirit into hard parenting moments
Choosing relationship instead of rules with your first child

Crazy Cool Resources:

#171: Fight the Fight and Jump into Summer Jun 01, 2022

Show notes

Ready for summer?

We fight for family and we love summer! This week's podcast is about fighting for your family AND jumping into summer.

Listen to this week's podcast to kickstart your summer and start investing in your family.

Crazy Cool Resources:

#170: Stop Sibling Fights with Investment May 25, 2022

Show notes

Are you over your kids fighting with each other?

Do you see them going against each other and just wish they could learn to listen and love their sibling?

Suz and Macy share ways you can change your family's culture on this week's podcast!

Suzanne talked to several Crazy Cool Parents and asked them, "How do you help your kids get along?"

The answers will blow your mind! The parents have taken building culture to the next level and their kids are becoming best friends.

We believe family is made by God and He has a specific plan for every family. What is yours? We encourage you to listen to our podcasts so you can be inspired and gain insight for your family. Listen and share today!

Crazy Cool Resources:

#169: We Fight for Family to Believe May 18, 2022

Show notes

What are your family's beliefs?

Are your beliefs helping or hurting your family grow?

We were recently on a walk and started talking about how our family has been marked by our beliefs. We identified positive and negative (true and false) beliefs and started seeing how beliefs affected our parenting.

"What we believe about things influences what happens in our life." - Don

Beliefs are amazing because they are always growing and changing. As parents, we can invite God in and ask Him what beliefs we need to incorporate into our family, starting now!

“If you have a belief you do not like, you can change them!” - Don

Fighting for family takes time. We want you to fight by looking at your beliefs. What does your family think about, talk about, and care most about? These things are connected to your beliefs.

What does it look like to build family beliefs?

Here are a few we have chosen to live by over the last 30 years:

Relationships are valuable
Our kids are gonna turn out great
What we talk about influences our family
Encouraging our kids to do their best
We serve rather than look to be served
I am for my spouse, we want to understand each other
Our kids will be best friends
Believe God is good, no matter what

Building your family's belief system is a process and every family can start today. How are you going to start fighting for your family's culture? What is one thing you can start doing today?

Take a minute and ask God:

What are my family’s beliefs?
What beliefs do you want us to have?
Are there any false/bad beliefs we need to get rid of for our good?

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Crazy Cool Family

We are wrapping up the summer series with McCade, our 7th child!

Here are a few things he said in the episode for parents who are raising teenagers:

Allow kids as much freedom as you can (responsibility = freedom!)

Let them solve their own problems (stop coddling them!)

Be a place for them to share, talk, and not be ridiculed

Want to know how to do all of these things?

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST TODAY!

Crazy Cool Resources:

The summer series continues with Maddox, our 6th child!

Is your child....

Do you want to release your child into college (or adulthood) confidently?

Crazy Cool Resources:

What if your child acts like a punk?

Wanna know why?

Do you feel like your child is distancing themselves from you?

Do you worry your kid will not grow up and discover Jesus' love for themselves?

Crazy Cool Resources:

How do you help your middle child live out their God-given identity?

The "Who Knows Your Child Best" series continues with our 4th daughter McKenzie Reaume. She is in between the three older sisters and three younger brothers. God gave us McKenzie as the relational bridge between the Manning kids.

Crazy Cool Resources:

Is your child emotional? High achiever? Really hard on themselves and hard on you?

In this podcast, we discuss:

Do you have a child like this?

How do you love them?

Crazy Cool Resources:

Is your child loud? Energetic? A little too adventurous for your parent-heart?

Meet Madeline Jones!

A few things about Madeline:

Crazy Cool Resources:

We are kicking off our Summer Series!

Meet Mollie Torres!

Crazy Cool Resources:

Ready for summer?

Crazy Cool Resources:

Are you over your kids fighting with each other?

Do you see them going against each other and just wish they could learn to listen and love their sibling?

Crazy Cool Resources:

What are your family's beliefs?

Are your beliefs helping or hurting your family grow?

What does it look like to build family beliefs?

Here are a few we have chosen to live by over the last 30 years:

Take a minute and ask God:

Crazy Cool Resources:

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