Big Fat Positive: Pregnancy and Parenting (BFP)

In this week’s “Mom Confessions” segment, Shanna and Laura confess to their recent acts of coercion, deception and vice, one of which involves... a smoothie. Also, Laura gets an email from her son’s teacher that she was not expecting, and Shanna feels conflicted about evening activities that cut into her daughter's sleep. 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:

• How much sleep kids actually need

• How a short night's sleep affects a kid’s mood and focus the next day

• When a school actively tells parents how much sleep kids need

• Deciding whether to skip a late practice, and how it feels

• Getting an unexpectedly good report from a teacher

• What it’s like when school emails are usually bad news

• Why kids with ADHD hear their names in negative contexts

• Knowing you made the right call switching schools

• Using games to get kids dressed in the morning

• Creative ways to motivate your kids to finish their homework

• Turning chores into a game

• A surprising tactic for getting kids to bed

• Celebrating an anniversary away from the kids

• Going to Universal Studios with kids

Products, links, resources mentioned in this episode:

• Our new Episode Guide

• Mayo Clinic on how much sleep children need

• Scratch-off stickers at Staples

• Vibrato Grill Jazz

• Universal Studios Hollywood

• Canva

• Wheel of Names

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.

Big Fat Positive 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.

In this week’s “What I Googled This Week” segment, Shanna shares what she’s learned about perimenopause after a round of hormone replacement left her feeling awful, and Laura sets out to answer how much boobs actually weigh. Also, Laura attempts to get a decent family photo, and Shanna attempts to take a trip without her kids. 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:

• Why hormone replacement can make you feel bloated

• Perimenopause and HRT as trial and error

• Why cup size doesn’t tell you what your breasts weigh

• Sister bra sizing and breast density

• Infected bursitis

• Changing your plans when your partner gets sick

• Family photo sessions, and whether they’re worth it

• Getting kids to stand still for one picture

• Picking the lock on a kid’s journal

• When a parent reads a kid’s diary

• Presbyopia and the options for treating it

• Overnight contact lenses for kids with myopia

• Towel warmers

Products, links, resources mentioned in this episode:

• Miko towel warmer

• Good to Go: A Fresh Take on Potty Training for Today’s Intentional Parent

• wikiHow: How to Weigh Your Breasts

• Crescenta Valley Community Regional Park

• Yuvezzi eye drops

• Overnight contact lenses for kids

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.

Big Fat Positive 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.

In this week’s “Today I Learned” segment, Laura explains what an en caul birth is and the centuries of strange folklore that grew around it, and Shanna digs up an 1890s doctor whose cure for period cramps involved an entirely unrelated body part. Also, Shanna attempts her first low-key Halloween in years, while Laura takes two kids who claim to love horror into two different Halloween stores. 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:

• What an en caul birth is, and how rare they are

• The difference between an en caul birth and a caul birth

• Caul folklore around the world

• How doctors treated menstrual symptoms in the 1800s

• Cocaine in 19th-century medicine

• Freud’s closest friend and his strangest theory

• Halloween burnout and scaling back the holiday

• Taking scared kids to a Halloween store

• Letting kids pick their own costumes

• Keeping a kid-free outing a secret

Products, links, resources mentioned in this episode:

• Benandanti

• Ember days

• Strigoi

• Wilhelm Fliess

• Spirit Halloween

• Bath & Body Works

• Halloween Horror Nights

• Downtown Disney

• Forgotten Island movie

• Jumanji: Open World (2026)

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.

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.

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:

• What it takes to become a school volunteer now

• Live scan fingerprinting and background checks for parents

• Completing mandated reporter training

• Background checks for youth sports volunteers

• After-school enrichment lotteries

• Getting homework done before you get home

• Working with a teacher to get assignments early

• When an emoji goes wrong

• How different generations read emojis

• Why your husband can’t find the thing that’s right there

• Reading aloud in your kid’s classroom

• Taking a solo hike to feel like yourself again

• Hiking spots in Los Angeles

Products, links, resources mentioned in this episode:

• The Legend of Rock, Paper, Scissors by Drew Daywalt, illustrated by Adam Rex

• The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt

• What Makes a Baby by Cory Silverberg

• Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

• Bodies Are Cool by Tyler Feder

• Buffalo Fluffalo by Bess Kalb

• Strange Planet: The Sneaking, Hiding, Vibrating Creature by Nathan W. Pyle

• O’Melveny Park

• California Mandated Reporter Training

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.

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.

Kids’ ages: Shanna’s kids are 7 and 10 years old, and Laura’s kids are 5 and 7 years old.

Topics discussed in this episode:

• Lying down with kids at bedtime, and when to stop

• Co-regulation at bedtime and why some kids need it

• When a kid leaves their room over and over

• Bedtime when siblings share a room

• Separation anxiety at bedtime

• Severe sleep anxiety in kids

• When your kid gets in your bed every night

• Whether middle-of-the-night waking is fear or habit

• Parenting decisions at 2 a.m.

• Teaching kids acceptance instead of fighting sleep

• Lucid dreaming and reality checks for kids with nightmares

• How a podcast keeps track of story ideas

• Using Todoist and Airtable to organize creative work

• Using your camera roll and calendar to remember your own week

Products, links, resources mentioned in this episode:

• Todoist

• Airtable

• The Nugget

• Radiolab

• Send us a question on SpeakPipe

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.