Homework Battles and Life After a Screen-Time Ban - Ep. 431
Big Fat Positive: Pregnancy and Parenting (BFP)Show Notes
Homework season starts and goes about as badly as Laura feared, leaving her looking for a way to get it done somewhere other than the kitchen table. Shanna's brutal mornings turn around after an unexpected discovery at urgent care. In this week's "Loose Ends" segment, Shanna and Laura revisit the stories they left dangling: whether a months-long screen time ban is still holding up, where a nine-month-overdue front tooth finally landed, and whether a head wound is going to leave a scar. They also share this week's BFPs and BFNs.
Kids' ages: Shanna's kids are 7.5 and 10.5 years old, and Laura's kids are 7.5 and 5.5 years old.
Topics discussed in this episode: • When homework becomes a nightly fight • Homework and ADHD: when easy work is still painful • Why kids do homework for other adults but not their parents • How a hidden ear infection can lower a kid's frustration threshold • Choosing a pediatric urgent care over a general clinic • Getting a medication-anxious kid to take ear drops • When a permanent tooth takes nine months to come in • Scar care and silicone scar gel for kids • Starting over on an occupational therapy waitlist • Talking about your child's struggles with your child in the room • Life after a screen time ban: what the kids actually do instead • Why movies work better than episodes for sensitive kids • Rage cleaning as a household strategy • Keeping a drip irrigation system alive while you travel
Products, links, resources mentioned in this episode: • BIOCORNEUM scar gel • How to Keep House While Drowning by KC Davis • KC Davis's Struggle Care site • Dog with a Blog • The Comeback • Hollywood Bowl • The Buy Nothing Project • Cat's Cradle toy
Connect with Us: • Become a Patreon member for ad-free episodes, bonus content and more. • Follow @bfppodcast on Instagram, TikTok and Facebook, or join our Facebook community group.
Loved this episode? A quick rating or review helps other parents find the show. Thanks for listening!
Big Fat Positive: A Pregnancy and Parenting Journey is produced by Laura Birek, Shanna Micko and Steve Yager. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
More from Big Fat Positive: Pregnancy and Parenting (BFP)
In this week's "Out of Context" segment, Shanna and Laura trade screenshots of text messages that need some explaining, including an emoji mix-up from an unexpected sender and a running joke about husbands who can’t see what’s right in front of them. Also, Laura finds out what it takes to get approved as a school volunteer these days, and a lottery win at school takes a real bite out of homework stress at Shanna’s house. They also share this week’s BFPs and BFNs.
Shanna and Laura answer listener questions about lying down with kids at bedtime, how to handle a child’s sleep anxiety, and the systems they use to keep track of every story they want to tell on the show. Shanna describes her bedtime routine now that her kids are older, Laura makes peace with the kid who lands in her bed at 2 a.m. every night, and both share the apps and docs holding this podcast together.
In this week’s “Internet Insanity” segment, Shanna breaks down the NeeDoh squishy toy craze that’s led to store fights, police involvement and a 243% spike in poison control calls, and Laura finally solves a months-long mystery about the bot-like comments appearing on the show's Spotify episodes. Also, fall activities ramp up for Shanna’s family, while Laura rides an unexpected wave of productivity around the house. They also share this week’s BFPs and BFNs.
Shanna's drop-off struggles with her youngest escalate, so she lands on an unconventional solution to improve her family's morning routines. Laura scrambles to find last-minute babysitter coverage so she can attend an all-day music festival without the kids. In this week's "Throwback" segment, Shanna confesses to a split-second decision in fifth-grade band class that hurt a friendship, and shares what she hopes for her own fifth grader, who's navigating similar terrain. They also share this week's BFPs and BFNs.
Choosing between charter, magnet, public and private schools is overwhelming, and so is the trial-and-error process of finding the right ADHD medication for your kid. In this Ask-Us-Anything minisode, Shanna and Laura answer listener questions about how to narrow down school options when you don't know where to begin, and what their families' ADHD medication journeys have actually looked like, including what didn't work and why. Laura also shares an ADHD update of her own.