Parenting Roundabout

An incident at Catherine's daughter's high school got us talking about talking: As in, when parents gossip about what's going on at school without knowing what's actually going on. A bad idea? Yes. Kind of fun? Also yes.

On this week’s Roundabout Roundup: Speaking of roundups, Terri has rounded up much of her online writing at Authory, a service for creating a digital portfolio [https://authory.com/TerriMauro?mode=visitor]. Nicole's working more comfortably with her new memory foam lumbar support pillow from Guttylief [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B098STRTM1/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1]. And Catherine's loving Culver's Salted Caramel Pumpkin Concrete Mixer, which is like a slice of pumpkin pie in a milkshake [https://www.culvers.com/menu-and-nutrition/fresh-frozen-custard/concrete-mixers/menu-item-details/salted-caramel-pumpkin-concrete-mixer-mini].

Today, we obsess about what we'd put on a parenting wish list at this stage of the game. Our picks range from the mundane and practical to the truly fantastical.

We thought we were going to complain about the challenges of raising boys vs. girls, especially when it comes to attending school events and dances. But we ended up complaining about the perils of social insecurity for kids--and parents--of any gender.

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, "Tan Lines" is a bittersweet episode of Ted Lasso, with a big win and an even bigger loss for Ted. Next week: S1E6, "Two Aces."On Only Murders in the Building, the "Twist" of the episode title is dealt with fairly quickly, after a highly improbable car chase. But we're not here for the verisimilitude. Next week: S1E6, "To Protect and Serve." Mentioned: TV critic Brian Grubb tweeting about the show [https://twitter.com/briancgrubb/status/1448322932070141954] and the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast discussing it [https://podcasts.apple.com/am/podcast/only-murders-in-the-building/id278974813?i=1000534652726].

After reading about pandemic nostalgia at Scary Mommy [https://www.scarymommy.com/pandemic-nostalgia-longing-early-days/], we talked about whether there's anything we miss about March/April 2020 and everything that came with it. While the feeling of fighting against a common enemy was nice while it lasted, we definitely don't want to revisit anything else about that time (although if you want to hear about how we were reacting in the moment, you can check out our archives [https://www.parentingroundaboutpodcast.com/blog/archives/03-2020]).

We think Clue, Careers, and that game Catherine's family got at a garage sale could use some freshening up.

Calendars and planners: every parent needs one (or several), and if we could only find the perfect one, everything would just fall into place, right? We do have some specific ideas for all the planner-makers out there​.

On this week’s Roundabout Roundup: Catherine's enjoying The Spread [https://www.thespread.media/], a newsletter for people who miss print magazines. Nicole's sharing a squeezable treat that her cats go crazy for [https://www.hartz.com/products/cats/treats/squeeze_up/], and Terri reminds us all that is pumpkin doughnut season at Dunkin' Donuts, so act fast [https://www.dunkindonuts.com/en].

A U.S. News article on evaluating private elementary schools [https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/articles/how-to-evaluate-private-elementary-schools] got us talking about what we look for in a school--which is not always easy to quantify. Also mentioned: Our recent episode on school strategies [https://www.parentingroundaboutpodcast.com/blog/our-best-school-strategies].

On this week's Round 3, we're complaining about some of the things we were taught as kids, and that we were expected to teach our own kids. Because some of them just don't make sense.

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, we continue with our two half-hour comedies. On the sunnier one, Ted Lasso, we got our first look at Rebecca's oily ex, Rupert, and perhaps our last look, we hope, at Keeley and Jamie as a couple. Next: "Tan Lines."And on the slightly darker Only Murders in the Building, it's Sting, playing himself with a very good sense of humor, plus the sad backstory of Steve Martin's character, Charles. Next: Episode 5, "Twist."

'Tis the season for #hoco parades, football games. and dances, but why should high-schoolers and former high-schoolers have all the fun? There are a few (a select few) places and groups of people from other times in our kids' lives that we'd like to revisit.

Whether they're questions we don't want to answer in front of our kids to questions that throw us into an existential career crisis, we recall some questions we wish we'd never been asked.

Complaint day is a regular feature on Parenting Roundabout, and this week's subject is car trips with kids. So much to not like: arguments over the stereo system, bringing way too much stuff, the entire state of Indiana.

On this week’s Roundabout Roundup: Nicole shouts out Las Vegas's Hofbrauhaus [https://www.hofbrauhauslasvegas.com/], where it's Oktoberfest 12 months of the year. Terri's found a digital planner that's just as pretty as a paper one: Artful Agenda [https://www.artfulagenda.com/]. And Catherine's enjoying both the name and the flavor of Off the Eaten Path veggie crisps [https://www.offtheeatenpathsnacks.com/products/veggie-crisps].

Our Canadian was raised to be proud of her Australian roots, two of us are Italian by marriage, and two of our kids were born in Russia but don't recall their lives there. Mostly, we're all-American mutts who enjoy Italian food ... and Vegemite?!

Our kids are pretty far removed from recess time at this point, but we still managed to muster up plenty of complaints about their time in the schoolyard (not to mention our own. Terri's still mad about her sticker sales career being cut short).

On this week's entertainment-themed Round 2, the third episode of Ted Lasso's first season, "Trent Crimm: The Independent," brought us more Roy Kent and more Keeley, along with two-tone hair reporter Trent Crimm--who of course thwarted Rebecca's attempt to make Ted look bad. It's not happening, honey! Next week: "For the Children."Only Murders in the Building asked "How Well Do You Know Your Neighbors?" in its third episode. Not only did we learn more (probably too much more) about Cat Dad Howard, we also met Nathan Lane and Amy Ryan, along with Sting playing himself, or possibly a crankier version of himself--and one and all living in the Arconia. Mentioned: "Where to Shop Selena Gomez's Bright and Stylish Outfits from Only Murders in the Building" at Elle.com [https://www.elle.com/culture/movies-tv/a37432118/selena-gomez-fashion-only-murders-in-the-building/]. Next week: "The Sting."

On today's Round 1, we talked about what we'd need in a matchmaking app for parent friends: filters for drama, housekeeping standards, and kids' willingness to go with the flow. It's a tall order, but we know there's an app developer out there who can do it!