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What Fresh Hell: Parenting, Relationships, and Making Life Better, with Two Funny Moms

When you’re a parent, every day brings a “fresh hell” to deal with. In other words, there’s always something. Think of us as your funny mom friends who are here to remind you: you’re not alone, and it won’t always be this hard.
We’re Amy Wilson and Margaret Ables, both busy moms of three kids, but with completely different parenting styles. Margaret is a laid-back to the max; Amy never met a spreadsheet or an organizational system she didn’t like.
In each episode of “What Fresh Hell” we offer lots of laughs, but also practical advice, parenting strategies, and tips to empower you in your role as a mom. We explore self-help techniques, as well as ways to prioritize your own needs, combat stress, and despite the invisible workload we all deal with, find joy amidst the chaos of motherhood.
If you’ve ever wondered “why is my kid…” then one of us has probably been there, and we’re here to tell you what we’ve learned along the way.
We unpack the behaviors and developmental stages of toddlers, tweens, and teenagers, providing insights into their actions and equipping you with effective parenting strategies.
We offer our best parenting tips and skills we’ve learned. We debate the techniques and studies that are everywhere for parents these days, and get to the bottom of what works best to raise happy, healthy, fairly well-behaved kids, while fostering a positive parent-child relationship.
If you’re the default parent in your household, whether you’re a busy mom juggling multiple pickups and dropoffs, or a first-time parent seeking guidance, this podcast is your trusted resource. Join our community of supportive mom friends laughing in the face of motherhood!
whatfreshhellpodcast.com

Copyright: Copyright © 2016-2023 What Fresh Hell, LLC

Latest Episodes:

Fresh Take: Loryn Brantz on Finding Joy in Parenting Through Poetry May 30, 2025

Show notes

How can we find time to be creative as busy moms of young kids? Loryn Brantz, author of the new poetry collection POEMS OF PARENTING, discusses how her creative practice informs her parenting and vice versa.

Loryn is the creator of the bestselling Feminist Baby board book series and has worked as a director and illustrator for Sesame Street and Ms. Rachel. Margaret and Loryn discuss:

Loryn’s creative journey from Sesame Street to Buzzfeed to publishing twelve books
How motherhood and exhaustion birthed her viral poetry collection onInstagram
The power of mindfulness and meditation for overwhelmed moms
Why Loryn believes kids' media should stay focused on kids

Insights on the balance between nurturing children and preserving creativity

Here's where you can find Loryn:

Instagram: @lorynbrantz
https://www.lorynbrantz.com/
Buy POEMS OF PARENTING: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780063426436

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠⁠⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/⁠⁠⁠

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent,

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Traveling as a Family May 28, 2025

Show notes

We asked our listeners what advice they have for harmonious family traveling. Here are our favorite tips they shared, plus a few of our own, from how early to get to the airport to hitting the top kid-friendly site in Paris!

Amy and Margaret discuss:

How to communicate effectively with your spouse before traveling
Useful packing tips - here's the carry-on bag Amy loves
Vacation scheduling advice
How to include kids in planning vacations

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/⁠⁠

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, emotional labor, cognitive labor, summer camps, summer camps for kids, camps for kids, kids camps, kids summer activities, summer activities for kids, summer travel, summer vacation, summer, travel with kids, travel tips, tips for traveling with kids, vacation with kids, vacation tips

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DEEP DIVE: Do We Need to Lower Our Standards? May 26, 2025

Show notes

This Deep Dive series is all about why motherhood is so gosh darn hard. Turns out there are sociopolitical forces at play that make motherhood way harder than it needs to be. Listen to the full playlist on Spotify.

When we explain to our partners and families that we need them to pitch in around the house, we sometimes hear back that the real problem is our too-high standards. That if we actually think "doing the laundry" means FOLDING the laundry, instead of leaving it in the dryer, that that is just too high a bar.

Eve Rodsky, author of FAIR PLAY, suggests that partners establish a "minimum standard of care" for household duties. But how does that get set? And is that really all it takes?

In this episode, Amy and Margaret discuss:

How to use "community standards" to determine minimum standards of care
The tired old idea that women have impossible standards
Why it might be your system that's the problem and not your partner

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

Sheila Wray Gregoire for Bare Marriage: EMOTIONAL LABOR SERIES: HOW DO WE DECIDE WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE?
Listen to our Fresh Take with Eve Rodsky
Eve Rodsky's FAIR PLAY: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780525541943
Leslie Goldman for The Cut: The Marriages Hanging On by a $19 Deck of Cards
Buy Lyz Lenz's book THIS AMERICAN EX-WIFE: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780593241127

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, household equity, household equality, gender household equality, gender household equity

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Fresh Take: Gretchen Rubin on Life's Simple Truths May 23, 2025

Show notes

If we impart the life lessons we've learned to our children, does that mean they won't make the same mistakes? Gretchen Rubin, author of the new book SECRETS OF ADULTHOOD, discusses how aphorisms provide us with a particular kind of wisdom that stays with us, often forever.

Gretchen Rubin is one of today’s most influential observers of happiness and human nature. She’s the author of many NYT-bestselling books.

Gretchen and Amy discuss:

Why Gretchen chose the aphorism format for her book

Why Gretchen prefers the term "open door" to "empty nester"

Particular aphorisms that ring especially true for Amy and Gretchen

What Gretchen hopes people will get out of the book

What the fluency heuristic is—and how rhymes can win parenting battles
How brief sayings can provoke deep reflection and even disagreement
The surprising dangers of “productive” procrastination
Why the opposite of a profound truth can also be true
How everyday routines and mini-quests (like collecting globes or visiting museums) can increase happiness

Here's where you can find Gretchen:

👉 Buy Secrets of Adulthood: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780593800737
🌐 Visit Gretchen’s website: GretchenRubin.com
🧪 Follow Gretchen on IG @gretchenrubin
📩 Sign up for her newsletter: Five Things Making Me Happy
🎧 Listen to the Happier with Gretchen Rubin podcast

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/⁠⁠⁠⁠

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, happiness

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How Parenting Advice Has Changed Over the Last 125 Years May 21, 2025

Show notes

Is parenting today genuinely more difficult—or are we just overthinking it? Amy and Margaret explore the evolution of parenting over the last 125 years, tracing shifts from the rigid, hierarchical households of the early 1900s to today’s emotionally intense, overanalyzed parenting culture.

These trends beg the question: What’s the real cost of trying to "optimize” every moment of our children's lives?

In this episode:

How parenting norms have changed since 1894
The impact of attachment theory and the rise of “gentle parenting”
The shift from communal to isolated parenting and why it matters
Why parents today feel so much more pressure to “get it right”
How technology and information overload affect modern family dynamics
What we might be missing by focusing too much on doing everything perfectly

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

JM Finn: Changing Attitudes in Parenting Over the Last 150 years

Conscious Mommy: Parenting Styles and their Evolution: Old, New, Recent Studies and Recommendations

Claire Cain Miller for the NYT: How Parenting Today Is Different, and Harder

Elizabeth Tenety for Motherly: Why parenting in 2025 feels much harder than it did in the ‘90s—this mom’s take hits home

Our Fresh Take with Nancy Reddy, author of THE GOOD MOTHER MYTH

📺 Watch on YouTube: Search "What Fresh Hell Podcast" on YouTube and subscribe

🔗 Connect with Us:
Join the conversation in our Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/whatfreshhellcast
Follow us on Instagram: @whatfreshhellcast

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/⁠⁠

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, history of parenting, parenting history

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DEEP DIVE: Decision Fatigue—And Why It's Especially Bad For Moms May 19, 2025

Show notes

This Deep Dive series is all about why motherhood is so gosh darn hard. Turns out there are sociopolitical forces at play that make motherhood way harder than it needs to be. Listen to the full playlist on Spotify.

The average adult makes 35,000 decisions a day. The average "default parent" makes a lot more than that. No wonder we suffer from decision fatigue. The more decisions we have to make, the more fatigue we develop, and the more difficult it can become to function.

So how can we combat the frustration, apathy, and resentment that result from having to make all the decisions in the family?

In this episode we discuss:

-How decision fatigue manifests—and how it differs from burnout

-The best time of day to make hard decisions

-Why "going with the flow" is not actually a thing

Sign up for What Fresh Hell Plus on Supporting Cast to get all episodes ad-free, plus monthly bonus episodes. Supporting Cast works right where you already listen! Go to whatfreshhell.supportingcast.fm to subscribe in two taps for just $4.99 a month, or $39.99 a year.

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

-Sara Berg for the American Medical Association: "What doctors wish patients knew about decision fatigue"

-Michelle Adelman for HowStuffWorks: "When's the Best Time of Day to Make a Decision?"

-Lauren Barth for The Bump: "Why the Decision-Fatigue Struggle Is (Still) Real for Parents"

-Frank Graff for PBS North Carolina: "How Many Decisions Do We Make In One Day?"

-Ilyse Dobrow DiMarco for The Washington Post: "For parents, everything feels like a high-stakes decision now. Here’s how to lower the anxiety."

-Ashley Stahl for Forbes: "How Burnout Affects Your Decision-Making Process—And How To Fix It"

-Eva M. Krockow for Psychology Today: "How Many Decisions Do We Make Each Day?"

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, household equity, household equality, gender household equality, gender household equity

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Fresh Take: Anna Fader and Amelia Eigerman May 16, 2025

Show notes

How can we get buy-in from our kids when we go on vacation, whether it's a half-hour down the road or the other side of the world? Anna Fader and Amelia Eigerman, the mother-daughter team behind the MOMMY POPPINS TRAVEL JOURNAL AND ACTIVITY BOOK, have devised practical tips for really including our kids on family adventures.

Anna Fader and Amelia Eigerman are a mother-daughter team. Mommy Poppins is recognized as a leading authority on family activities and travel, cited in publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Forbes, among others.

Anna, Amelia, and Margaret discuss:

Why this travel journal is appropriate for every kind of vacation
The two different perspectives they bring to the book
The important skills kids can learn while traveling

Here's where you can find Anna and Amelia:

www.mommypoppins.com
@mommypoppins on IG, FB, TikTok, and Youtube
Buy the MOMMY POPPINS TRAVEL JOURNAL AND ACTIVITY BOOK: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9781964487014

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/⁠

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, summer travel, summer vacation, vacation with kids, travel with kids, kid-friendly vacation, kid-friendly travel, tips for vacation with kids, tips for traveling with kids

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Moms and Anxiety May 14, 2025

Show notes

Moms are usually low-level anxious about their kids at all times. But it's exhausting. How much of this anxiety we feel is normal and how much of it may require medical intervention? Here's how moms specifically feel anxiety and some tips for making it a little less intense.

Amy and Margaret discuss:

Anxiety symptoms that can be specific to moms
How clinical anxiety is different from everyday anxiety necessary for human survival
How to actively work against your anxiety as a mother

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

Jennifer Kelly Geddes for What to Expect: 6 Types of Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders
Calm.com: Yes, motherhood anxiety is totally normal. Here's how to cope
Cleveland Clinic: Anxiety Disorders
Marika Lindholm, PhD, for Psychology Today: 10 Anxiety Busters for Moms

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/⁠

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, household equity, household equality, gender household equality, gender household equity, anxiety

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

DEEP DIVE: Making the "Invisible Workload" Visible May 12, 2025

Show notes

This Deep Dive series is all about why motherhood is so gosh darn hard. Turns out there are sociopolitical forces at play that make motherhood way harder than it needs to be. Listen to the full playlist on Spotify.

What should we do when all the work we do to run our family's lives is done so successfully that they not only don't acknowledge it—they don't even understand it? How do we help our partners understand that saying "I left the doctor a message, but they didn't call back" does not really count as a completed task?

It's all about what's called the "invisible workload." In this episode Amy and Margaret discuss:

Whether "cognitive labor" (Allison Daminger) or "emotional labor" (Rose Hackman) might be even better terms for what we're talking about
Pushing back on "weaponized incompetence"
The difference between taking on tasks and taking on outcomes
The importance of giving voice to invisible labor in front of kids

Here are links to some interviews/books we mentioned in the episode:

Our interview with Eve Rodsky
Mac Daniel for Harvard Radcliffe Institute: "The Unseen Inequity of Cognitive Labor"
FAIR PLAY by Eve Rodsky: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780525541943
EMOTIONAL LABOR by Rose Hackman: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9781250777355
THIS AMERICAN EX-WIFE by Lyz Lenz: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780593241127

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, emotional labor, cognitive labor

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Fresh Take: Susan Dominus May 09, 2025

Show notes

What do high-achieving families have in common, and what are some good lessons from them we can replicate in our own parenting? Susan Dominus, author of the new book THE FAMILY DYNAMIC, discusses the forces at play in families with multiple successful members and how we can encourage our kids to succeed in the ways that make sense for them.

Susan Dominus is a staff writer for The New York Times Magazine. In 2018, Susan was part of a team reporting on workplace sexual harassment that won a Pulitzer Prize for public service.

Susan, Amy, and Margaret discuss:

How socioeconomic status informs family dynamics
The role that parent expectations play in child development
Why relationships outside the family are important for kids

Here's where you can find Susan:

@suedominus on IG
@susandominus.bsky.social on Bluesky
Buy FAMILY DYNAMIC: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780593137901

We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website:

⁠https://www.whatfreshhellpodcast.com/p/promo-codes/⁠

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, siblings, brothers, sisters, sibling relationship, kids age gap, sibling age gap , family dynamic

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