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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:

When Our Kids Are Bad at Making Friends May 29, 2024

Show notes

When we have a kid who just doesn't seem to fit in—or who is a loner, if a fairly content one—it can be hard for parents. But putting our own anxiety about it aside, and getting clear on the lagging skills and social cues that may not quite be in place, is the best way to help kids get on a better path. This episode is full of specific and useful advice!

Amy and Margaret discuss:

all the reasons kids can have trouble making (and keeping) friends
five "unwritten social rules" that some kids take longer to comprehend
how figuring out the specific issues at play can lead to the most useful solutions

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

Jamie Howard, et. al for Child Mind Institute: Kids Who Need a Little Help to Make Friends
The Sue Larkey podcast: Promoting Social Understanding – Social Scripts
Gwen Dewar for Parenting Science: How to help kids make friends: 12 evidence-based tips
Christine Comizio for U.S. News Health: Understanding Kids' Friendship Struggles: Common Causes and Solutions
Lexi Walters Wright for Understood.org: 5 “unwritten” social rules that some kids miss
Andrew M.I. Lee for Understood.org: Why some kids have trouble making friends
ADHD Dude: "How to Help Your ADHD Child Keep Friends"

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, friendships, making friends

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DEEP DIVE: Bad Mom Moments (with guest Arianna Bradford) May 27, 2024

Show notes

This month, we're doing a deep dive series into mom guilt—why it's so pervasive and what we can do about it. You can find the playlist with all of the episodes in the series here.

Fess up: everyone's got a Bad Mom Moment. Or twelve.

We tend to hold these things really close, our shame rooted in deep certainty that no other mother has ever temporarily forgotten their baby in the toy aisle at Target.

Guess what? You're not alone. Here are some of our listeners' Bad Mom Moments– and more than a few of our own.

Our guest this week is Arianna Bradford, the brains behind The NYAM (Not Your Average Mom) Project, a website dedicated to helping parents -- moms especially -- celebrate the person they are outside of their role as a parent. Her book, SHAME ON YOU: BIG TRUTHS FROM A BAD MOM, is a hilarious collection of parenting essays that focus as much on a mother's mental health as they do on kids, and how very, very strange they are.

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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Fresh Take: Naomi Cahn and June Carbone on Building a Just Economy May 24, 2024

Show notes

Contrary to popular belief, the gender wage gap is widening, not narrowing. Naomi Cahn and June Carbone, authors of FAIR SHAKE: WOMEN AND THE FIGHT TO BUILD A JUST ECONOMY, discuss why working women still lag behind men both in wage equity and in positions of power.

Naomi Cahn is the Justice Anthony M. Kennedy distinguished professor of law at the University of Virginia School of Law. June Carbone is the Robina chair of law, science, and technology at the University of Minnesota Law School.

Naomi, June, and Amy discuss:

How the "winner takes all" economy rewards men and not women
The "triple bind" that sidelines women in the workplace
How things get even more complicated for working parents
What solutions for this problem look like at a societal, organizational, and personal level

Here's where you can find more of June and Naomi:

June Carbone: https://law.umn.edu/profiles/june-carbone
Naomi Cahn: https://www.law.virginia.edu/faculty/profile/nrc8g/2915359
@carbonej and @NaomiCahn on X
Buy FAIR SHAKE: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9781982115128

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, feminism, feminist economy, feminist economics

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How Old Is Old Enough? May 22, 2024

Show notes

How do we know when our kids are old enough to walk home alone? Wear makeup? Get a phone? It definitely depends on the kid, your family situation, and the community where you live, but we think there are few ground rules—and some scaffolding it's a good idea to have in place.

Amy and Margaret discuss:

why social media may be the thing to delay, more than the phone
why it can be tricky to leave older siblings in charge of younger siblings even when they actually are old enough
when kids are old enough to "date" (which depends on what the meaning of the word "date" is)

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

Our Fresh Take with Camilo Ortiz

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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DEEP DIVE: JoAnn Crohn of "No Guilt Mom" May 20, 2024

Show notes

This month, we're doing a deep dive series into mom guilt—why it's so pervasive and what we can do about it. You can find the playlist with all of the episodes in the series here.

JoAnn Crohn of No Guilt Mom is a parenting educator who helps moms feel confident in everything from raising empowered, self-sufficient kids to dropping the anxiety and guilt out of modern parenthood.

No Guilt Mom offers self-paced digital courses in handling big emotions, getting kids to help out more, creating a morning routine, and conquering the homework drama.

JoAnn is the co-host of the No Guilt Mom podcast, a former board-certified middle-school teacher, and a mom to 2 kids, ages 13 and 8.

In this episode, Amy and JoAnn discuss:

Why rewards charts taught as classroom strategies can often become counterproductive
Why kids do well if they can
When rewards charts actually DO work
No Guilt Mom's HAPPY approach to parenting more effectively– while raising happier, more self-sufficient kids at the same time...

Here's where you can find JoAnn:

@noguiltmom on FB/IG
noguiltmom.com

Here are the links to the podcast episodes Amy references:

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, mom guilt

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Fresh Take: Cameron Normand of "Stepfamily Solutions" May 17, 2024

Show notes

How can a step-parent gain the trust of her kids as she becomes part of their family? Cameron Normand, founder of Stepfamily Solutions, discusses her own experience as a stepmom and offers some helpful takeaways for navigating stepfamily dynamics.

Cameron and Margaret discuss:

The biggest misconception about stepfamily life
Cameron's top piece of advice for new stepmoms
How to deal with a stepchild or ex-spouse who is less than accepting

Here's where you can find Cameron:

stepfamilysolutions.com
@stepfamilysolutions on FB, IG, and TikTok
Listen to Cameron's podcast "The Stepmom Diaries"

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/

manifest reality, positive thinking, toxic positivity, magical thinking, 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, stepmom, stepparent, blended families, step kids

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Do We Need to Lower Our Standards? May 15, 2024

Show notes

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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DEEP DIVE: Dr. Pooja Lakshmin on Burnout and Mom Guilt May 13, 2024

Show notes

This month, we're doing a deep dive series into mom guilt—why it's so pervasive and what we can do about it. You can find the playlist with all of the episodes in the series here.

Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, MD is a psychiatrist and author specializing in women's mental health. She is a frequent contributor to The New York Times and the founder of Gemma, the first digital education platform dedicated exclusively to women’s mental health. Dr. Lakshmin is most passionate about empowering women and sees her clinical work as a perinatal psychiatrist as an extension of this mission.

In this episode we discuss mom guilt, stress, self-care, the anxiety of this ongoing pandemic moment, and how we can reclaim ourselves amidst it all.

You can find Pooja on Instagram @poojalakshmin and at her website: poojalakshmin.com

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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Fresh Take: Danielle Bayard Jackson on "Fighting for our Friendships" May 10, 2024

Show notes

Are female friendships really more complicated than male friendships? Does that make our friendships more valuable?

Danielle Bayard Jackson is a female friendship coach and educator on the science of women’s platonic connections. In her new book FIGHTING FOR OUR FRIENDSHIPS, Danielle explains what makes female friendship strong as well as tips for making and keeping great friends.

In this interview, Danielle and Amy discuss:

The three central affinities that bring women together: secrecy, symmetry, and support
How to compassionately approach friends who are flaky
Scripts for navigating common issues in friendships

Here's where you can find Danielle:

www.betterfemalefriendships.com
@daniellebayardjackson on IG
@thefriendshipexpert on TikTok
Listen to the "Friend Forward" podcast
Buy FIGHTING FOR OUR FRIENDSHIPS: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780306830617

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, friendships, female friendships

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MAY BONUS TEASER: Our Myers-Briggs Personality Tests! May 09, 2024

Show notes

This month, we take the Myers-Briggs personality test live on air—Margaret answers with her first instinct and Amy parses every question within an inch of its life. The results will and will not surprise you...

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