The Mom Hour

Little kids have big needs when it comes to staying warm, comfortable, and happy in the winter, and even as the season returns again and again, growing kids seem to KEEP NEEDING WINTER STUFF. With Meagan’s decades of experience parenting five kids through Michigan winters plus the latest and greatest tips from our listener Facebook community, we’re rounding up all the footwear, apparel, car and stroller stuff, indoor and outdoor play, and miscellaneous products that will keep your whole family cozy all winter long. Join us!LINKS MENTIONED:Join our special Facebook Group for The Mom Hour Listeners (make sure to answer the questions to be approved!)All the products we mentioned in the episode are listed by category in this blog post roundupCheck out The Mom Hour Amazon Store for curated product recommendations by categoryWant more ideas for getting through the winter? Check out our episode Stocking Your House For Stuck Inside Days (Episode 145 from February 2018)MORE HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Would it change your life to write thank you letters to the people who’ve helped you get to where you are? That’s what writer Nancy Davis Kho set out to do when she approached a milestone birthday while navigating a challenging series of family transitions and personal loss. In this month’s Voices interview Meagan chats with Nancy about the science behind gratitude and the connection to happiness, and what the thank-you project taught her. Enjoy!LINKS MENTIONED:Find out more about Nancy’s book The Thank-You Project: Cultivating Happiness One Letter of Gratitude at a TimeCheck out Nancy’s podcast Midlife MixtapeFind Nancy Davis Kho on Facebook, Twitter or InstagramMORE HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Meagan’s last three Christmases have played out like a sad country song (divorce! family emergency! breakup!), and this year she’s going ALL IN on festiveness in an effort to reset the tone for the season and find new ways to enjoy and embrace the holidays as a mom of older kids. There will be Nutcrackers, Messiahs, baking, multiple advent calendars, and even (teen-willing) some ambitious exterior illumination. Sarah’s asking the questions today and Meagan is here for all of us who want to kick off the season with maximum enthusiasm. Join us! LINKS MENTIONED:Meagan talked with her sister about her medical emergency during the holidays in Surviving A Major Health Scare with Kathreen Francis: Voices 25 (from May 2018)Check out our blog post 6 Easy (We Promise!) Homemade Holiday Gifts You Can Make With Your Kids All of the advent calendars Meagan purchased for her kids this year can be found in our Amazon Store(affiliate links)Listen to our two holiday bonus series: Creating Holiday Memories (Noticing, Appreciating and Capturing), and Holiday Shopping (Organizing, Planning & Purchasing, Small Business, Maker & Handmade, and Storing, Wrapping & Opening)MORE HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We may seem set in our ways, but sometimes a change in persuasion comes later in motherhood–and life. This More Than Mom episode is all about the things we’ve changed our minds about, from the inconsequential (pickles?) to the highly controversial (decorating for Christmas before Thanksgiving!). Join us as we confessing our changes of heart today! LINKS MENTIONED:Armchair Expert with Dax ShepherdSarah mentioned our More Than Mom episode all about hair, More Than Mom: Hair Styling & Hair MaintenanceThe Teachers Respond To May Madness bonus episode and Elizabeth Chapman (@samandscout) are what made Sarah think differently about school themed dress-up daysCheck our our two holiday bonus series: Creating Holiday Memories (Noticing, Appreciating and Capturing), and Holiday Shopping (Organizing, Planning & Purchasing, Small Business, Maker & Handmade, and Storing, Wrapping & Opening)MORE HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Once the gifts have been purchased, what do we actually DO with them? Hide and hope? Box up and ship? Wrap and display? Stack in cardboard boxes until the eleventh hour? Turns out, it’s a little of all of the above in our houses. In the final installment in our Holiday Shopping series, Meagan and Sarah discuss the tricky time between when gifts are procured and when they are opened. Join us!This episode is part of our 3-part series on Holiday Shopping. You can listen to Part 1 here and Part 2 here!HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We love supporting artists, makers, and small businesses, but when it comes time to actually DO the holiday shopping, this can be easier said than done. In the second installment of our Holiday Shopping series, Meagan and Sarah offer specific sites, marketplaces, and buying tips for those who want to shop small and give handmade this holiday season. Join us!This episode is part of our 3-part series on Holiday Shopping. You can listen to Part 1 here, and check back tomorrow for Part 3!LINKS MENTIONED:EtsyMintedUncommon GoodsRedbubbleMORE HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

List-making, idea-capturing, online-ordering, OH MY. It’s time to get serious about holiday shopping, and between us we’ve got multiple spreadsheets and very different tactics when it comes to organizing, planning, and buying holiday gifts. In the first part in our Holiday Shopping series, Meagan and Sarah tackle all the prep and that goes into our purchasing this time of year. Join us!This episode is part of our 3-part series on Holiday Shopping. You can listen to Part 2 here and Part 3 here.LINKS MENTIONED:Sarah’s gift planning spreadsheetMORE HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Grab your favorite beverage and cozy up for a catch-all catch-up with Meagan and Sarah! We talk about the season, the weather, our recent travels, and some fun updates from the business! Then Sarah is joined by our resident Books Talk contributor Katie Addiss to talk about holiday books, what we’ve been reading lately, and how we read while traveling–both to ourselves and to our kids. Happy Thanksgiving week, friends!LINKS MENTIONED:Kidliterate is live! Check out Sarah’s new podcast with her 11-year-old daughter, all about great media picks for the whole family, and THANK YOU for your support, shares, stars, reviews, and kind words.We talked about our recent hair episode, and Sarah’s discovery of the Revlon One Step Hair Dryer & Volumizer Hot Air Brush (affiliate link)Singer-songwriters we hung out with in Nashville that you should check out: K.C. Clifford, Nora Jane StruthersPodcasters we hung out with at the Blissdom conference in Nashville that you should check out: Pantsuit Politics, ShePodcasts, The Popcast with Knox & Jamie, The Podcasting Party, Asking For A FriendGirl, Stop Apologizing: A Shame-free Plan for Embracing and Achieving Your Goals by Rachel HollisAtomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James ClearFor Small Creatures Such as We: Rituals for Finding Meaning in Our Unlikely World by Sasha SaganLess (Winner of the Pulitzer Prize) by Andrew Sean GreerSnow (Caldecott Honor Book) by Uri ShulevitzPick a Pine Tree by Patricia TohtNorman Rockwell’s Christmas Book by Molly RockwellLast year’s blog post roundup of Our Favorite Holiday Picture BooksMagazines from Cricket Media that Katie and Sarah both love: Baby Bug, Lady Bug, ASK (Arts & Sciences for Kids), Cobblestone, MuseDisney “Me Reader” Electronic Reader 8-Book LibraryMORE HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re doing a deep dive into all things hair and hairstyling in this week’s More Than Mom episode! From how often we wash to whether we heat-style, covering grays, DIY color, cutting bangs, salon visits, favorite products and more, we have thoughts about it all. Join us!LINKS MENTIONED:Meagan uses the Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer & Volumizer Hot Air BrushMeagan swears by the Briogeo Scalp Revival Charcoal Biotin Dry ShampooWe both really like the Briogeo Farewell Frizz Blow Dry Perfection & Heat Protectant CrèmeSarah uses the L’ange Hair Aplatir Blush Tourmaline Ceramic Flat IronWe both love the Aveda Damage Remedy Daily Hair RepairMeagan’s Rose Gold hair dye is the L’Oréal Paris Superior Preference Fade-Defying + Shine Permanent Hair Color, and her color is the 7RB Dark Rose BlondeBetween hair appointments, Sarah touches up gray roots with the L’Oreal Paris Magic Root Cover Up Gray Concealer SprayA couple of hits from our FabFitFun subscription have been the OUAI Leave In Conditioner and the ORLANO PITA Play Atmos-shield Hair Protectant Treatment SprayMORE HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How can we capture sweet holiday moments even while they’re happening? What’s the balance between being the family documentarian and truly participating in the magic as it unfolds? In the final installment in our special series on Creating Holiday Memories, Meagan and Sarah offer easy ways to preserve those fleeting moments in writing, photography, video, and more–without stressing about perfection or performance. Join us!This episode is part of our 3-part series on Creating Holiday Memories. Check out Part 1 and Part 2 from earlier this week, and thanks for listening!LINKS MENTIONED:Download the Chatbooks appListen to Part 1 in this seriesListen to Part 2 in this seriesMORE HELPFUL LINKS:Visit our websiteCheck out deals from our partnersFollow us on InstagramJoin our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)Sign up for our newsletterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.