Lifehacks for Working Moms with Megan Strand
34 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 9 years ago - ★★★★★ - 26 ratingsLifehacks for Working Moms with Megan Strand: the podcast that helps you overcome the overwhelm, embrace the chaos and cultivate a life you love. This show ran from 2014-15 on TruStory FM (formerly RashPixel.FM) and is now retired.
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
Encouraging (and Troubleshooting) Your Child’s Healthy Speech Development
August 04, 2015 19:31 - 27 minutes - 19.4 MBWhen my kids were young, I had the good fortune to have multiple friends that were Speech and Language Pathologists. So any time I had a question or concern about my kiddo's language development, I'd turn to them for assistance, reassurance or strategies. I realize not everyone has this dynamic, so in this week's episode I've invited Sharon Soliday, a dear friend of mine (and Speech and Language Pathologist), to join me to discuss all things speech and language. ß
Money Talks: Conversations To Have With Your Kids About The Almighty Dollar with Tim Ranzetta
July 29, 2015 16:16 - 29 minutes - 20.4 MBOver the past several weeks, we’ve talked about creating a personal spending plan and some tips about how to save money on one of your largest monthly expenses. But what about imparting some of that financial literacy to your kiddos? As far as Tim Ranzetta is concerned, having those conversations early and often is key to ensuring your kids have a firm financial foundation to avoid costly spending pitfalls and proactively manage their own finances. On this episode, Tim and I discuss all t...
$5 Dinners Your Family (And Your Wallet) Will Love with Erin Chase
July 22, 2015 04:55 - 22 minutes - 16.2 MBI have a bit of a love/hate relationship with cooking and meal planning. I enjoy cooking and feeding my family healthy meals, but it turns out this is something you have to do every. single. day! I get burnt out easily. AND, as you might have noticed, food is EXPENSIVE and it just seems to be getting more so. For me, it’s overwhelming to manage the logistics as well as the finances of all this eating. My guest today happens to be a master at both meal planning AND shopping on a budget. Her ...
Personal Finance Strategies that Actually Work with Mindy Crary
July 16, 2015 15:00 - 28 minutes - 20.3 MBWhen you sit down to do your finances, does your heart fill with dread and loathing? Yeah…me too. My guest in this episode is CreativeMoney.biz’s Mindy Crary and she thinks all of this finance stuff is FUN (crazy, right?) and joins me to share her approach to personal finance. Tune in to this episode to hear Mindy’s tips on the best online spending tools, how and where to start cutting back on things you probably won’t miss and ways to prioritize spending plans without going overboard. Min...
Furry Friend Field Report from Best Friends
July 07, 2015 15:00 - 16 minutes - 11.5 MBLast month my family and I spent a week in Utah. Several of those days we volunteered at the largest no-kill animal shelter in the country - Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. This experience was a fantastic one for the entire family as you’ll hear on today’s episode. We worked with bunnies, parrots, puppies, cats and horses. You’ll hear which ones were winners and my family’s advice on volunteering at Best Friends (hint: do it!). This episode is a bit different than most so if this is your fi...
Fear Public Speaking More Than Death? It’s Time for Toastmasters
June 11, 2015 00:46 - 23 minutes - 16.3 MBHow do you feel when you're called upon to give a presentation in front of a group of people? Nervous? Anxious? Terrified? If your public speaking skills leave a little to be desired, whether it's simply increasing your confidence or boosting your communication skills, today's episode is for you! Our topic today is one that’s near and dear to my heart and that’s how to overcome the sheer terror that can sometimes accompany the prospect of speaking in front of a group. After a particularly...
Unique and Meaningful Father's Day Gift Ideas with The Good Dad Project's Larry Hagner
June 02, 2015 15:00 - 25 minutes - 17.8 MBIt’s time to start thinking about Father’s Day and all of the amazing men in your life. For some of you that means double, or even triple duty, as you consider your own father or grandfather as well as the father of your precious cherubs. While the default may be to make a special breakfast or dinner for Dad and call it good, this week’s episode offers a thoughtful approach to honoring that special guy in your family’s life. My guest this week is Larry Hagner, host of The Good Dad Project p...
Greener Thumbs Greener Gardens with Shorty’s Gardening Experts
May 26, 2015 15:55 - 25 minutes - 17.9 MBIt’s almost here. I can feel it. Summer and its glorious sun. As I say ‘good riddance’ to cloudy, damp weather and prepare to relish longer days and a more relaxed schedule for the kids, I dream of a summer garden. The promise contained within a flat of vegetables inspires visions of freshly picked produce on my dinner table. Each year, I try to take a teeny step forward in my gardening skill. I’ve finally reached the point where I can grow cucumbers, tomatoes and snap peas without too mu...
Love ‘Em or Lose ‘Em: Simple Appliance Maintenance You’re Probably Not Doing But Should Be
May 20, 2015 03:22 - 31 minutes - 57.8 MBHow much time do you spend thinking about your home appliances? Probably zero until you’re faced with a leaky fridge or dryer that’s no longer drying your clothing. And then it’s a minor emergency because the truth is, we depend on these appliances for modern day living. Did you know your major appliances should last 10 years or more? The key to long happy lives for your appliances is to maintain them. Angie’s List’s Cheryl Reed joins me in today’s episode to share some very simple ways t...
Hacks to Organize, Manage and Enjoy Your Photos with Photojojo's Laurel Sittig
May 12, 2015 15:00 - 20 minutes - 14.5 MBA few weeks ago I took to my Facebook page to ask what projects you knew you SHOULD be tackling but you just didn’t know where to start. One neglected project mentioned repeatedly had to do with photos...“organizing all my photos” or “sorting/printing pictures” and “creating yearly memory books for my kids”. And BOY can I relate. So today, I’m calling in an expert. Laurel Sittig is Editorial Manager for Photojojo, a blog and online store for photography gear and cool photo ideas. Laurel wa...
Essential First Steps of Emergency Preparedness Your Family Should Know
May 05, 2015 15:00 - 26 minutes - 18.8 MBIf a natural disaster struck tomorrow, would you be ready? Odd are, your answer is, "no". We've seen communities all around the world touched by horrific natural disasters, the most recent being the earthquake in Nepal. What if that was your community? Do you even know where to begin? The sad reality is that many of us are NOT prepared. But the good news is that, by listening to today's episode, you're going to get some terrific resources from my guest, Marcie Maynes. Marcie teaches all a...
Minisode >> Get Rid of the Calendar Game Time Suck with Calendly
April 28, 2015 15:00 - 13 minutes - 9.83 MBHow many hours each week do you spend playing the calendar game over email trying to coordinate a simple phone call or in-person meeting? If your answer, like mine, is "a lot!", then keep reading. This minisode is for YOU. I've been on the hunt for a web-based tool that will essentially schedule my meetings for me. I've finally found it in Calendly. This Google-calendar-based online scheduler provides you with a link to share with others that displays only the times you tell it to, based o...
Streamline Your Digital Life with Pete Wright
April 21, 2015 15:00 - 26 minutes - 18.5 MBDo you ever wish your digital life would just synchronize itself? I mean, it seems conceivable, right? That technology could self-organize to your benefit? You could just sit back and watch it all happen, tweaking now and again. Well, hang on to your mousepads because...wait for it...it can. And that's what we're delving into in this episode. It's a web service called IFTTT (If This, Then That, rhymes with "Gift") that enables you to create 'recipes' linking one platform (channel) to anoth...
Changing the Game of Youth Sports with John O'Sullivan
April 14, 2015 02:24 - 23 minutes - 16.6 MBIf you have a kiddo that’s into sports, you’re going to want to pay close attention today because I have a guest that may very well change the way your family approaches those sports activities. John O’Sullivan has been involved in soccer full time as a player and coach since 1996. He is now an international speaker and national best-selling author of a book called Changing the Game: The Parents Guide to Raising Happy, High-Performing Athletes.
How One Family Traveled the World with Taking the Big Break’s Kathrin Spaccarelli
April 07, 2015 03:20 - 24 minutes - 17.1 MBDoes travel run in your blood? Ever dreamed of taking your kids to another country? If so, then today’s episode is a dose of inspiration for you. In September of 2013 Kathrin Spaccarelli and her husband sold most of their belongings, including their home, and traveled the world for a year with their two sons who were ages 6 and 10 at the time. They visited 25 countries on 5 continents in the experience of a lifetime. Kathrin joins me in today’s episode to share a little bit about their jo...
Turn Summer Learning Into an Online Adventure with Brain Chase’s Heather Staker
March 31, 2015 04:23 - 22 minutes - 15.5 MBRaise your hand if you purchase those thick summer learning workbooks for your kids. Now keep them raised if you’re successful in getting them to complete their allotted assignments all summer long. If you’re hand is still raised, congratulations, you’re the one super parent on the planet who has accomplished this feat. The rest of you, read and listen on! I have a confession to make. Part of me really hates summer vacation because it’s a long stretch of 10 weeks when my kids are not in s...
Create a Meaningful Family Adventure: Volunteering Abroad with United Planet’s Dave Santulli
March 23, 2015 19:56 - 24 minutes - 17.1 MBDo you ever feel the itch to do something just a little out of the ordinary? Something that would have a lasting impact on you, your family and the world? I do. All the time. One thing I’ve been researching seriously over the last few months is volunteering overseas with my family and today’s episode is all about that: having a meaningful volunteer adventure abroad. I’m joined by Dave Santulli, Founder & Executive Director of United Planet, an organization that offers volunteer opportuni...
Mom Entrepreneurs Unite with The Founding Moms’ Jill Salzman
March 17, 2015 04:21 - 20 minutes - 14.5 MBDo you own your own business? Or have you ever dreamed of starting your own business? If so, today’s episode is for you. According to Jill Salzman, moms make the best entrepreneurs because we know how to make it up as we go. Jill created the mom entrepreneur MeetUp, The Founding Moms. Their mission? Helping moms get down to business. Jill shares what happens at these monthly MeetUps in cities around the world, a few amazing and inspirational stories of successful mom entrepreneurs and w...
10 Critical Questions To Ask When Choosing a K-12 School with Noodle’s Suzanne Podhurst
March 10, 2015 04:30 - 20.4 MBHow important is your child’s education? Hard to quantify, right? It’s probably safe to say that your knee-jerk response is something along the lines of, “Very!”. At least it is for me. Choosing the right school for your child can be a weighty and complicated decision, no matter their age. Whether you’re deciding where to settle as a family based on the public schools or checking out private or charter school options, there are so many factors that come into play. Where to start may well...
Fashion Tips for Busy Moms with Wardrobe Therapy’s Elizabeth Smith
March 03, 2015 00:38 - 28 minutes - 20.1 MBDo you ever feel like your wardrobe could use a serious makeover but don’t know where to start? I work from home, so the motivation simply isn’t there most days to do much other than shower and pull on a pair of yoga pants and a hoodie. The challenge comes when I do need to go to a professional meeting or just want to look put together. I’m at a bit of a loss. I have a few go-to outfits but that’s where it ends. For today’s episode I pull in a fashion big gun to help. Elizabeth Smith found...
Why Your Kids Talk Back and How to Eliminate It
February 24, 2015 16:00 - 26 minutes - 18.8 MBIf you’re reading these words, you’re probably a parent. If you’re a parent of children that can speak, you’ve probably experienced the topic of today’s episode – and that’s back talk. Rude, snarky comments in response to your authority as a parent. It’s maddening! Luckily for us, we have a parenting expert to help us address this dynamic in our homes. Dr. Becca is a child psychologist and host of the blog, Parenting the Modern Family. Tune in to hear Dr. Becca’s wisdom!
Parenting: All Joy and No Fun with Jennifer Senior
February 17, 2015 16:00 - 16.3 MBWaking up to realize that you are a parent…in charge of another human being’s life…is typically a pretty life-altering experience. And while our Facebook feeds show much of the joyful, silly, happy and proud sides of being a parent, what we seldom admit to ourselves, let alone to our social circles is that parenting is hard and not always a lot of fun. My guest today is Jennifer Senior, author of the much acclaimed book All Joy and No Fun, named one of Slate’s Top 10 Books of the Year which...
Keep Your Kid Safe Online with Internet Safety Expert Larry Magid
February 10, 2015 01:00 - 22 minutes - 15.7 MBIt’s a brave new parenting world out there, fraught with all sorts of parenting conundrums that our parents never had to deal with. So many of us feel like we can’t keep up with our kids and their love of technology. The thought of them venturing into an unknown cyberworld fills us with both excitement as well as great fear. In this episode, I’m joined by an expert on keeping kids safe online. Larry Magid is a technology journalist and an internet safety advocate and serves as on-air techno...
Get More Sleep Tonight with Tips from Terry Cralle
February 03, 2015 04:03 - 23 minutes - 16.5 MBHow’d you sleep last night? Sometimes if we don’t sleep well, it’s a function of our environment: you’re up with a kiddo, the cat’s crying to be fed or that cough kept you up all night. But so often sleep is elusive because of our poor sleep habits, the biggest being our own attitude toward sleep. In this episode you’ll hear from a sleep expert named Terry Cralle – she’s a registered nurse and certified clinical sleep educator and spokesperson for the Better Sleep Council. And she’s got s...
The #1 Thing Missing From A Busy Mom’s To-Do List with Julie Jeske
January 26, 2015 22:18 - 24 minutes - 17.3 MBIf you’re reading these words, my guess is that you’re a loving person. You probably spend an awful lot of time loving the other people in your life, whether that’s a partner, your kiddos or even your pets. But are you taking the time to spread that love to yourself? If you’re like most busy women, you may fall a little short in that department. In this episode I’m joined by the lovely Julie Jeske, an individual and couples counselor who is going to give us a 20-minute look into why we shou...
The Amazingly Simple Way to Up Your Energy Level
January 20, 2015 16:00 - 25 minutes - 18.2 MBWhat if I told you that there was a simple way you could have more energy each day without increasing your caffeine levels? Not the hyper kind of energy fueled by caffeine and sugar where you know a crash is just around the corner, but the kind of energy that just makes you feel more like you. The good news is that getting more energy is simple. The bad news is that it’s not easy. In this episode, I’m joined by Marcelle Pick, Founder of Women to Women. She knows a thing about increasing y...
Eat This, Not That: Foods That Impact Your Sleep with Lissa Coffey
January 13, 2015 16:03 - 23 minutes - 16.7 MBWe’re all well aware that we should be getting a good night’s sleep every night but sometimes that seems impossible. Or worse…even if we’ve allocated the time for a solid night of dreamland, we find ourselves unable to fall asleep or stay asleep. I don’t know about any of you, but this stresses me out! Well, it turns out that, with sleep, like pretty much everything having to do with being healthy, we probably need to take more of a holistic approach. In this episode, Lifestyle and Wellness...
Clone Yourself with a Virtual You with FancyHand's Josh Boltuch
January 06, 2015 16:00 - 19 minutes - 13.8 MBWant to make 2015 the year of being more intentional and more productive? Then you must tune into today’s episode. Ever thought about cloning yourself to squeak out just a few more things each day? I know I have. In today’s episode I discuss the next best thing: hiring a virtual assistant with Josh Boltuch, CEO of Fancy Hands, the fastest growing virtual assistant service out there. With monthly subscription plans starting at only $30, it’s affordable to boot! Beware: hiring a virtual assi...
Planning the New Year? Start Here with Sabrina Walters
December 23, 2014 16:00 - 23 minutes - 16.7 MBI'll admit it. I have a love/hate relationship with the looming end-of-year, goal setting process. I honestly do really love the reflective process of intentionally setting the tone for the coming year. But I've done it so many times only to have it forgotten by February that I've become a teeny bit cynical about the whole deal. But that doesn't mean I've given up entirely! In this episode, I'm doubling down by calling in the reinforcements and explore a framework for all this end-of-year n...
Trick Yourself (And Your Family) Into Eating Less This Holiday Season with Dr. Brian Wansink
December 16, 2014 16:00 - 21 minutes - 10.1 MBDid you know that you make 25-30 food-related decisions by the end of breakfast each day? What?! It’s not just about the type of cereal you choose for breakfast, it’s how much you serve yourself, whether to add milk, how much milk, whether to finish the first bowl, if you go back for seconds, what you do with the extra milk and on…and on…and on…And that’s just in your kitchen! You do this all. day. long. Which, it turns out, is why we end up mindlessly overeating. We don’t realize we’re ...
Foster Independence This Weekend with Tips from Communications Expert Kira Wright
December 09, 2014 14:52 - 33 minutes - 23.2 MBNo matter how old your kiddos are, fostering independence is one of those skills I think we all probably try really hard to impart to our little cherubs. Sometimes we’re successful as we patiently share a process or explain a rationale for the umpteenth time. And sometimes we scrap that nonsense all together and just do it ourselves - done! If this sounds familiar to you, you’re going to love this latest episode. I've had the good fortune of joining a group of Speech-Language Pathologists ...
Genius Gentleman Scholar Pete Wright on Mastering Life’s Every Detail with Evernote
December 02, 2014 16:00 - 33 minutes - 23.2 MBWhere do you store the stuff that matters in your life? Do you have a special notebook? Do post-it notes litter your desk and computer? Perhaps you use collaboration software for work and then a calendar for home? Google docs? Excel spreadsheets? Or maybe you’re like me and you use every. single. one. of these things. It gets a bit cluttered and it’s definitely clunky and none of these items talk to one another. What if you could store all of these important things in one single place? On...
Real Food, Real Fast with Spoon and Saucer's Brandie Kajino
November 25, 2014 16:00 - 24 minutes - 17.2 MBIf you’re anything like me, you love food. Good food. Real food. Nothing puffs up my mama pride more than putting a healthy, yummy dinner on the table for my family after a long day (it sort of feels like a reward for me too!). Can you relate? But holy heck, there are a slew of logistics that come along with getting to that nicely made dinner from the planning to the shopping to the prepping and the actual cooking (not to mention cleaning the whole shebang up afterwards!). It’s a giant bla...
Lose The Household Clutter Without Losing Your Mind with Nikki Kinzer
November 18, 2014 16:00 - 25 minutes - 26 MBThis whole month we’re talking about creating a happy home. Today that means talking about a clean and organized home. As a mother, (whether you work outside the home or not) we all know that having a chaotic tornado of a home makes life a lot more stressful (and I know this from intimate personal experience). There’s something almost therapeutic when your house is neat and organized and clean. The challenge…at least for me…lies in keeping it that way. Which is why you’re going to love my g...