We’re Doing Great | A Podcast for Imperfect Parents by Pok Pok

What happens when you stop directing your child's play and simply let them lead? In this episode, Esther sits down solo with multidisciplinary artist and mom Mills Brown to explore the deep, sometimes surprising, places where play, creativity, and parenthood overlap. You'll hear about Mills's sensory play sessions for children as young as six months at Modern Art Oxford, her upcoming solo exhibition, and the Montessori philosophy that shapes everything she does, including why the most powerful thing you can do in a play environment is step back and say nothing at all. Whether you've been wondering how to nurture your own creativity or simply how to make more space for truly free, open-ended play at home, this conversation is warm, curious, and full of gentle reminders that you're doing better than you think. Mills Brown is a multidisciplinary artist whose work lives at the intersection of painting, illustration, animation, and sculpture, with play as the thread that ties it all together. She's the Producer of Early Years and Young People at Modern Art Oxford, where she creates sensory play experiences for children as young as six months old, and is the creator of the upcoming immersive solo exhibition Where We Overlap. She's also a mom to an 18-month-old, which means her studio, her gallery, and her living room all tend to blur into one big creative experiment. What you’ll learn in this episode: (00:01:57) How Mills Brown creates sensory play sessions for children as young as six months at Modern Art Oxford's Make Play program, using themes from current gallery exhibitions as a jumping-off point for open-ended exploration. (00:05:03) Why the Montessori concept of the "prepared environment" is one of the most powerful tools any parent or educator can use, and why the adult's most important work often happens before the child even enters the room. (00:07:12) Why Montessori-inspired parenting is genuinely accessible to every family, regardless of income, and why the $200 Montessori shelf is really just a low shelf a child can reach. (00:08:23) Why children almost never need adults to tell them how to play, and how learning to step back, observe, and say less can be one of the most supportive things a parent can do. (00:14:35) How the time constraints of early parenthood can actually push creative people to focus more deeply and get more done than ever before. (00:20:28) Why prioritizing unstructured play time as seriously as focused work is a vital investment in your child's development. Thank you to Mills Brown for being on our show! Learn more about Mills at https://www.millsbrownart.com/ or by following her Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/mills_brown_ Subscribe and follow the "We’re Doing Great" podcast by Melissa Cash, Esther Huybreghts, and the Pok Pok team: * Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1855989506 * Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6ItWi8W0bYFS6yplP3tQii * YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WereDoingGreatPodcast?sub_confirmation=1 * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/weredoinggreatpod/ * TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@weredoinggreatpod We’re Doing Great is the parenting podcast that helps you navigate the hard stuff, savor the good stuff, and remember you’re not alone. Hosts and moms, Melissa Cash and Esther Huybreghts, team up with experts to share practical guidance on how to stay anchored when the waters get rough. Join us on the frontlines of modern parenting as we explore what it really means to be good at the hardest job on earth. Pok Pok is on a mission to help raise the next generation of creative thinkers through non-addictive, digital tools that help them think outside the box and learn through play. Learn more about Pok Pok: https://playpokpok.com. Follow Pok Pok on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@studiopokpok?sub_confirmation=1 This episode was produced by Story On Media: https://www.storyon.co/

How much of your parenting anxiety is influenced by what you read and see online? Melissa Cash and Esther Huybreghts sit down with Vanessa Grant to explore how parenting has become something you do in public. They unpack the pressure created by media, social platforms, and endless advice, and how it affects the way you show up for your child. You will walk away with permission to tune out the noise and trust your instincts more. Vanessa Grant is the editor in chief of Today’s Parent, where she blends journalism, data, and real parent needs to shape modern parenting conversations. What you’ll learn in this episode: (00:01:18) How parenting media is shaped by search data, SEO, and what parents are actively looking for online. (00:02:10) How editorial teams balance quick, practical answers with deeper, more thoughtful storytelling. (00:03:28) How parenting content is structured to fit shorter attention spans while still delivering useful information. (00:04:14) The tension between creating content that performs well and content that feels responsible to publish. (00:05:24) Why hopeful parenting content often performs better than fear based messaging. (00:06:19) How parenting publications maintain trust through science backed, honest, and non controversial content. (00:12:07) Why parenting trends like gentle parenting keep resurfacing and how judgment fuels these debates. (00:18:18) Why building trust, connection, and belonging with your child matters more than avoiding every possible risk. Thank you to Vanessa Grant for being on our show! Learn more about Vanessa and Today's Parent: https://www.todaysparent.com/ Subscribe and follow the "We’re Doing Great" podcast by Melissa Cash, Esther Huybreghts, and the Pok Pok team: * Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1855989506 * Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6ItWi8W0bYFS6yplP3tQii * YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WereDoingGreatPodcast?sub_confirmation=1 * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/weredoinggreatpod/ * TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@weredoinggreatpod We’re Doing Great is the parenting podcast that helps you navigate the hard stuff, savor the good stuff, and remember you’re not alone. Hosts and moms, Melissa Cash and Esther Huybreghts, team up with experts to share practical guidance on how to stay anchored when the waters get rough. Join us on the frontlines of modern parenting as we explore what it really means to be good at the hardest job on earth. Pok Pok is on a mission to help raise the next generation of creative thinkers through non-addictive, digital tools that help them think outside the box and learn through play. Learn more about Pok Pok: https://playpokpok.com. Follow Pok Pok on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@studiopokpok?sub_confirmation=1 This episode was produced by Story On Media: https://www.storyon.co/

Are you carrying invisible responsibilities that no one else even realizes exist? If your brain feels like it has forty tabs open at once, this episode will feel painfully familiar in the best possible way. Melissa and Esther have an honest, funny, and thoughtful conversation about the invisible labor of parenting, the resentment that can build around it, and the ways parents sometimes add pressure to their own plates. You will walk away with a sharper way to think about mental load, more compassion for yourself, and a few simple ideas for talking about it at home. What you’ll learn in this episode: 00:01:16 You will hear how quickly parenting mental load builds when work, sick kids, travel, and household logistics collide. 00:02:44 You will learn why feeling recognized as a parent is often less about praise and more about wanting your invisible effort to be seen. 00:03:48 You will hear a real-life example of what mental load actually sounds like in a parent’s head, from meal prep and daycare tasks to email, sports signups, and travel planning. 00:05:36 You will learn how parents often decide which responsibilities to drop first when there are simply too many balls in the air. 00:09:43 You will hear a thoughtful discussion about when it is worth going the extra mile for your kids and when good enough may actually be enough. 00:14:34 You will learn why differences in parenting style can create tension, especially when one parent plans ahead and the other solves problems later. 00:18:27 You will hear how assigning broader household categories, like meals or laundry, can reduce resentment and create a more functional division of labor. 00:24:52 You will learn a simple percentage check-in method that can help you and your partner communicate your mental bandwidth without turning overwhelm into a competition. Subscribe and follow the "We’re Doing Great" podcast by Melissa Cash, Esther Huybreghts, and the Pok Pok team: * Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1855989506 * Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6ItWi8W0bYFS6yplP3tQii * YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WereDoingGreatPodcast?sub_confirmation=1 * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/weredoinggreatpod/ * TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@weredoinggreatpod We’re Doing Great is the parenting podcast that helps you navigate the hard stuff, savor the good stuff, and remember you’re not alone. Hosts and moms, Melissa Cash and Esther Huybreghts, team up with experts to share practical guidance on how to stay anchored when the waters get rough. Join us on the frontlines of modern parenting as we explore what it really means to be good at the hardest job on earth. Pok Pok is on a mission to help raise the next generation of creative thinkers through non-addictive, digital tools that help them think outside the box and learn through play. Learn more about Pok Pok: https://playpokpok.com. Follow Pok Pok on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@studiopokpok?sub_confirmation=1 This episode was produced by Story On Media: https://www.storyon.co/