The Lisa Show

Lisa is joined by her friend and music aficionado Kacy Faulconer to discuss the way that music has shaped their lives, and to identify which albums have made the biggest difference to them.

Do you have people in your life that you wish you were closer to, but you don't know what you can do to bring your connection to a new level? Lisa is joined by her lifelong friend Carrie Ann Rhodes to try our some new conversation tactics in order to deepen their friendship and get to know each other better.

Do you ever get back from a big family vacation, one you planned and saved for for months, and feel like you need a few days just to decompress? A vacation from your vacation? Managing an itinerary, sticking to a budget, keeping tired kids happy, and doing it all while trying to find some relaxation for yourself can seem like an impossible list of to-dos. So is it even worth it? What can we do to make vacations meaningful for the whole family, parents included? Lisa talks to listeners, the Council of Moms, and travel writer Lori Zaino to find out.

As the years pass and we get older, the relationships we have with our families grow and change. Sometimes this can bring us closer together, sometimes this can drive us apart. So what can we do to navigate the nuance and complexity of staying close to our siblings in spite of what life throws at us? Lisa talks with her longtime friend and celebrated actor and performer Kirby Heyborne about his lived experiences.

Our family members are often the people who know and care about us the most. They've seen us at our best and at our worst and are with us through most of life's challenges. Unfortunately, this means that it can be difficult to establish where the line is between "loving concern" and "too involved in my business." So how can we recognize when a family relationships needs a new set of boundaries? And how can we approach creating them without hurting the other person's feelings? Lisa talks with friends and experts with a wide range of familial experience to find answers.

Mother's Day can be wonderful holiday where we show appreciation to the moms that have made our lives so much better. But it can also be a difficult day, filled with grief, frustration, and unmet expectations. Since hardly anyone has the picture-perfect family situation, how can we make sure Mother's Day is something to be excited about rather than dread? Lisa convenes the Council of Moms, talks with Dr. Julie Hanks, and chats with her own mother to find out.

The internet is changing every single day, and the way we interact with the world and the people around us is changing with it. It seems impossible to keep up with every new advancement in technology while our kids are so much better at it than we are. So how can we be thoughtful, intentional parents when we can't keep pace with the world our kids are living in? Lisa talks through her own parenting experiences, brings in the Council of Moms, and chats with expert Amy Morin to find possible solutions.

Life is busy and sometimes it feels like it won’t get any easier. In the midst of so many things it’s easy to get overwhelmed. When that happens the last thing we can find time for is for relaxation. So how can we find time to relax when we are so busy with everything going on in our lives? And what does relaxation looks like in those circumstances? Lisa convenes with the Council of Moms and talks to Thomas McConkie, host of the Mindfulness+ podcast, to find out.

Do you ever miss the creative hobbies you used to have before careers, parenting, or just life got in the way? It can feel like there's never enough time, but being creative can be a cathartic--almost therapeutic--experience. So how can we express our creativity while still keeping up with the wave of daily responsibilities? Lisa talks with parents and professionals, as well as tries a new outlet herself, to find out.

Lisa is joined by friends Carrie Ann Rhodes, Emily Engemann, and Amy Hopkin to discuss questions that were submitted by listeners of The Lisa Show. If you want to submit your question to the Council of Moms, send us a message to [email protected] or DM us on any of our social media accounts.

It's easy to feel overwhelmed by all of the difficulties that life throws at us. And while we may try to find the silver lining, sometimes the advice to "look on the bright side" can feel invalidating and ignorant of the real, unavoidable struggles that we're going through. So how can we practice gratitude when nothing is going right? Or is it even worth it? Lisa convenes the Council of Moms, talks with Hank Smith, and tries out gratitude journaling herself to find the answer.

No one likes to think too much about the worst things that could happen. The loss of a loved one, financial crisis, natural disasters, any of these can happen without warning and can completely change the trajectory of our lives. So what things can we do now to make those tough pills a little easier to swallow? Lisa talks with friends, experts, and dives into her own "worst case scenario" to find out.

Between jobs, school, errands, and running kids from one activity to the next, there never seems to be enough time to get everything done. Let alone spare time for a social life and hobbies! So what does it take to actually make sure that everything is allotted the time that it needs? And can we do it without going crazy? Lisa talks with her friends and experts about what we can do.

Everyone wants to be a fun parent, but "fun" can seem antithetical to household rules and structures. But there seems to be a disconnect between what parents see as "fun" and what their kids think. While some parents think their kids want free reign of the house and no curfew, what they actually want may be more meaningful. In this episode, Lisa talks with friends and experts about what it really means to be a "fun parent" while still saying, "no."

Everyone knows someone who they just can’t stand to be in a room with. Whether it’s a disagreement about politics, about religion, lifestyle, or maybe they just aren’t very nice, there are people in our lives who are just harder to empathize with than others. Not to mention that the world events of the last few years seem to have pulled particularly strong opinions out of just about everyone. So is it worth learning to understand these people? And if so, how can we do it? Lisa talks with experts and friends to find out.

Over time, even the strongest relationships often start to mellow and decay. Sometimes, strengthening your connection is a matter of reigniting the flame that was always there; other times it means rescuing a relationship that is on the brink of disaster. So what can you do? Or is it even worth the time and effort? Along with her guests, Lisa digs into her lived experience to find the answers.

Sometimes it just feels impossible to get up in the morning. For one reason or another, or for no discernible reason at all, we just don't feel like ourselves and struggle to feel motivated. As parents this feeling can be compounded when kids are depending on us to take care of them. Where does this come from? And what can we do to dig ourselves out of it? Lisa talks with fellow parents and an expert to find out.

It's hard as a parent to avoid constantly feeling like we aren't doing enough for our kids. The world is constantly telling us to do more, try harder, and be better for our kids. But no one can actually live up to those expectations, right? In this episode, Lisa gets to the bottom of where "mom guilt" comes from and how we can free ourselves from it.

Catch new episodes of our podcast dropping weekly, starting February 8th, 2022! Enjoy fun, entertaining, and useful conversations with host Lisa Valentine Clark that will help you improve yourself, your family, and your community.