Birthday Party Planning with Jennifer Douglas

Anna Macfarlane, a mom of four kids and an online marketing and branding expert, joins me to break down how to build a fanbase on Instagram and TikTok: family style. Anna manages the @kidsaretheworst parenting humor account on Instagram, which has more than 500,000 followers. She also manages several other successful accounts and teaches social media marketing courses for families, businesses and bloggers. In our conversation, we talk about how to get started on Instagram and TikTok and how to grow a healthy fanbase. We also discuss the benefits of being on social media and why TikTok is growing faster than most people realize. (It’s not just for teenagers.) Other topics we cover include how to manage your time on social media, talk to your kids about social media and post responsibly.

Mike Julianelle, a dad of two who writes online as Dad and Buried, joins me this week to break down the cost of parenthood. In our conversation, we cover expenses every parent faces such as child care, transportation, vacation, food, medical expenses, diapers and more. We also cover the emotional cost of parenthood, such as stress and the loss of sanity. Learn more about Breaking Down Parenting: A ParentNormal Podcast at www.ParentNormal.com. 

Sara Buckley, a comedian, podcaster, social media pro and most importantly, a mom of 3, is this week’s guest. In our conversation, Sara opens up about her experience as a teenage mother and how it changed her life in high school and beyond. Sara explains how she felt when she learned she was pregnant and how friends and family responded to the news. Sara also shares her strong opinion about MTV’s Teen Mom “reality” show and how we don’t support teen moms enough. We also talk about when Sara gave the birds and the bees talk to her kids, how her marriage has remained strong after 15 years and how she started doing standup comedy.

Jeff Kinney, author of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series, is this week’s guest. It’s an interview from the archive that took place a couple of years ago while Jeff was on the set of the movie Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul, which many of you have probably read or watched with your kids by now. We’ll be back with new interviews next week. Learn more about Breaking Down Parenting: A ParentNormal Podcast on www.parentnormal.com. 

My guest this week is one of my favorite all-time comedians Nick Thune. Now this isn’t a typical Breaking Down Parenting interview because this interview dates back to 2015 when this podcast was called The ParentNormal Comedy Podcast. I wanted to share it again not just because I’m a fan of Nick Thune and he tells a couple of funny stories, but because it was the very first podcast interview I ever did, which makes it perhaps the most memorable podcast interview I’ve ever done. And if you’re a fan of this show, I thought you’d enjoy hearing how this show all started. You can hear I’m a little bit nervous in the interview. That’s partly because it’s the first podcast interview I’ve done. But it’s mainly because we’re talking 15 minutes before Nick’s about to go on stage and I wasn’t sure how cool he was going to be about answering my questions and opening up about his family. But as it turned out, he was very cool about it and I’ll always be grateful for it.

This week’s guest is James Breakwell, a father of four daughters and a comedy writer known to many as @XplodingUnicorn. In our conversation, we break down the parts of parenthood that send us into parent survival mode, how to survive with the stress and crazy parenting moments that James has had to survive however he can. We also talk about James’ new book How to Save Your Child from Ostrich Attacks, Accidental Time Travel, and Anything Else that Might Happen on an Average Tuesday. This is James’ third appearance on the podcast, dating back to the early version of the show when it was called the ParentNormal Comedy Podcast. We reminiscence on how James’ popularity has grown and how his writing life has changed. Find more at www.parentnormal.com. 

This episode is a must-listen for parents of twins. My guest is Macgill Frutchey, a mom of three, including twins. She’s also the funny mom behind the social media account Macgyvering My Way Through Motherhood. In our conversation, we talk about how Macgill literally had dreams of having twins come true and the excitement that brought her family. We also cover recognizing different baby cries, how to tell baby twins apart, best baby shower gifts for moms of twins, synchronized milestones of twins, being parent-trapped, how to carry two babies, getting creative like Macgyver and much more. Find every episode of Breaking Down Parenting: A ParentNormal Podcast and more at www.parentnormal.com. 

This week’s guest is Jenna Kim Jones, a mom of two, comedian and co-host of the podcast Couple Friends. In our conversation, we break down parent friendships. Specifically, we talk about how to find friends when you're a parent, what to expect from parent friends, why parent friendships are important, what to do with parent friends and much more. Find every episode of Breaking Down Parenting: A ParentNormal Podcast on www.ParentNormal.com. 

This week’s guest is Jennifer Douglas, a mom of two and the creative mind behind Goldfish and Chicken Nuggets (the website and social media accounts, not the foods). After reading Jen’s blog post on The Hot Mess Mom’s Guide to Throwing Your Kid A Solid Birthday Party, I knew she would be a great guest to help break down pro tips for birthday party planning. In our conversation, we talk about when kids should start having birthday parties with friends, how long the parties should last, good locations for a party, what to eat, party gift ideas for guests and much more. I also ask Jen about her time as team captain for UCLA swimming and representing Canada on the National swim team. Isn’t that so cool?

This week, Tara Clark, the mom behind the popular social media account Modern Mom Problems, joins me to break down modern parent problems. In our conversation, we talk about how parenting today is both harder and easier than it was for previous generations of parents. We discuss technology, safety, television, helicopter parents, evolving roles for moms and dads and much more.   To learn more about Breaking Down Parenting: A ParentNormal Podcast, visit www.parentnormal.com.