Creating a peaceful, functional environment isn’t about becoming a hippy, minimalist, tree-hugging, eco-warrior freak (but hey, if that’s your thing, more power to you). It’s really about making your surroundings work for you, not against you. In today’s episode, we discuss environmental wellness and how simple changes in your surroundings can make a huge difference. Zach talks about his love of organization, Hanna shares tips on keeping the home functional with five kids, and we discuss ways to make your environment life-giving.

Key Takeaways:

• Minimize Excess: Less stuff = less stress. Cut down on what you don’t need, and it’s amazing how quickly peace follows.
• Define Your Spaces: Whether it’s a “work zone” or “relax zone,” having designated areas helps set boundaries and keeps things sane (for you and the kids).
• Get Outdoors: A little time outside can reset your energy, clear your mind, and bring some balance to the day.
• Reset to Zero: A nightly tidy-up, even for 10 minutes, makes the space feel fresh. Defined chores let everyone pitch in.
• Progress > Perfection: Environmental wellness isn’t about perfection. It’s about making small, intentional changes that make your environment feel right.

We would love to hear your thoughts! Please leave a review!

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Feel free to send us your questions, feedback, or even your favorite jokes to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thewayfampodcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Recommendations:

• Clutter-Free with Kids by Joshua Becker: tips for managing kid-related clutter.
• The Minimalist Home by Joshua Becker: finding peace by clearing clutter in every room.
• The Clutter Connection by Cassandra Aarssen: organizing solutions for every personality type.
• Outdoor Kids in an Inside World by Steven Rinella: getting your family out of the house and engaged with nature

Chapters:

01:18 Weekly Updates and Family Stories
06:42 What is Environmental Wellness?
18:04 The Impact of Clutter on Our Minds
27:35 How to Create a Peaceful, Productive Space
45:10 Practical Tips for Setting Up Functional Family Spaces
55:07 Environmental Wellness Recommendations and Final Thoughts

Today, we’re talking about emotional wellness and how it works in our everyday lives. We talk about how emotions act like warning lights, signaling that something deeper might be going on. Zach shares his struggles with big emotions and practical tools that help, and Hanna talks about the challenges of managing emotions as a parent. From learning how to calm ourselves down to teaching our kids how to do the same, we cover it all.

Here’s what we cover:

• Emotions as Warning Lights: they’re more than just feelings , they’re telling us something important.
• Tools for Managing Emotions: cover the main bases like eating, sleeping, exercise and breathing, and how getting outside can make a big difference.
• Parenting with Emotional Health in Mind: helping our kids (and ourselves) manage emotions, especially when things get crazy.
• Healthy Emotional Habits: staying aware of our feelings and pre-deciding to handle stressful moments before they even happen.
• Escaping the Digital Trap: setting screen time boundaries and finding healthier ways to cope.

We would love to hear your thoughts! Please leave a review!

Follow us on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Feel free to send us your questions, feedback, or even your favorite jokes to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thewayfampodcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Recommendations:

• Emotionally Healthy Leader book
• Raising Emotionally Strong Boys book
• Monk Manual planner
• The Power to Change book
• Dwell App

Chapters:

10:00 Emotions as Warning Lights

20:30 Tools for Managing Emotions

35:00 Emotional Health in Parenting

45:00 Healthy Habits for Emotional Regulation

55:00 Closing Thoughts on Emotional Wellness

58:11 Practical Tips and Recommendations

Today we talk about the importance of hobbies and how they impact daily life. Zach has a Karen moment and rants about content creators. We talk about different hobbies and how they bring joy, foster creativity, and provide balance in a busy household. From sewing and leatherwork to baking, we cover how hobbies help us stay engaged and avoid the pitfalls of low-quality leisure.

Here’s what we cover:

• High vs. Low-Quality Leisure: the difference between passive activities and engaging hobbies.
• Finding the Right Hobby: how to discover hobbies that bring joy and fulfillment, and why it’s crucial to have hobbies outside of work and family obligations.
• Hands-On Activities: the benefits of engaging in hands-on hobbies like sewing, leatherwork, and cooking, and how they can lead to a sense of accomplishment and creativity.
• Digital Distractions: the impact of digital devices on our lives and the importance of setting boundaries to stay present and engaged.
• Social Media and Hobbies: the influence of content creators and social media on hobbies and how to maintain authenticity in a digital world.

We would love to hear your thoughts! Please leave a review!

Follow on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Feel free to send us your questions, feedback, or even your favorite jokes to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thewayfampodcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Recommendations:

• Leatherworking
• Gilmore Girls
• Sourdough Baking
• ⁠Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Book ⁠
• ⁠Shop Class as Soulcraft Book⁠
• ⁠The Most Fun We Ever Had Book⁠
• ⁠Past Lives Movie⁠

Chapters:

00:00 Welcome to the Way Family Podcast

00:12 Introduction to Hobbies and Their Importance

05:00 The Difference Between High and Low-Quality Leisure

15:30 Discovering Personal Hobbies and Interests

28:00 Engaging in Hands-On Activities

40:00 Managing Digital Distractions and Staying Present

50:00 The Influence of Social Media on Hobbies

It’s been 4 years since we were into the podcasting game, a lot has changed since then. We’ve changed and podcasting has changed, and we're sure you and your season of life and interests have changed.

We want your feedback, it’s important to us and we would love for you to reach out and share your thoughts on content, length, and topics. Help us settle the debate between structured outlines and spontaneous conversations or find a middle ground.

We would love to hear your thoughts! Please leave a review!

Follow on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Feel free to send us your questions, feedback, or even your favorite jokes to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thewayfampodcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Chapters:

00:00 Welcome to the Way Family Podcast

00:53 Listener Feedback and Engagement

02:42 Podcast Evolution and Changes

10:00 Future Plans and Audience Interaction

Parenting is one of the hardest and most rewarding area of our lives, even if it doesn’t feel rewarding in the moment. In this episode, we discuss parental wellness and how it looks for us. We share our experiences and the strategies we’ve developed over the years to ensure we’re staying on track as parents. From one-on-one time with our kids to maintaining a structured daily routine, we explore the steps we’ve taken to not be a grumpy stinky parent and provide opportunities for our kids to learn and grow.

Here’s what we cover:

1. One-on-One Time: Why individual time with each child is important and how we do mama/daddy dates.
2. Creating Structure: The systems we’ve put in place to provide consistency and structure.
3. Discipline and Connection: The importance of connecting with our kiddos before correcting their behavior.
4. Inviting Kids in Everyday Tasks: Teaches kids valuable life skills but also helps them feel like an important part of the family team.
5. Apologizing to Your Kids: Modeling humility by apologizing to our children when we make mistakes, and how this helps create a healthy fam.

We would love to hear your thoughts! Please leave a review!

Follow on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Feel free to send us your questions, feedback, or even your favorite jokes to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thewayfampodcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Recommendations:

1. ⁠Habits of the Household ⁠
2. ⁠Intentional Parents Podcast⁠
3. ⁠What to Expect When You’re Expecting⁠
4. ⁠The Three Big Questions for the Frantic Family⁠
5. ⁠Take Back Your Family⁠
6. ⁠The Secrets of Happy Families⁠
7. ⁠Hunt, Gather, Parent⁠
8. ⁠Intentional Family Podcast⁠
9. ⁠Rhythms of Renewal⁠
10. ⁠How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen⁠
11. ⁠The Intentional Father⁠
12. ⁠Do Fathers Matter?⁠
13. ⁠The Place We Find Ourselves⁠
14. Inception
15. ⁠Chandler (Chan with the boys)⁠
16. ⁠Oliveda Skincare⁠

Chapters:

00:00 Welcome to the Way Family Podcast

00:09 Discussing Social Wellness

00:41 Parental Wellness Introduction

01:44 Homeschooling and Family Adventures

03:15 Camping Trip Highlights

08:29 Parenting Strategies and Challenges

11:31 One-on-One Time with Kids

16:12 Teaching Responsibility and Independence

28:42 Emotional Attunement and Apologies

35:20 Providing Structure and Checkpoints

45:05 The Overflow Principle

45:59 Managing Bedtime Routines

49:33 Parenting Insights from 'Hunt, Gather, Parent'

50:59 Encouraging Independence and Responsibility

54:40 The Importance of Family Involvement

01:05:21 Long-Term Parenting Vision

01:11:10 Book and Podcast Recommendations

01:25:48 Final Thoughts and Encouragement

What is and social wellness and how important is it? This episode covers the challenge of making and maintaining deep, meaningful friendships as adults. We explore why social connections are essential for longevity and mental health and share practical tips for fostering social wellness.

1. Making time for close friendships
2. Joining community groups
3. Hosting gatherings
4. Planning hangouts
5. Bringing friends into your hobbies
6. Balancing real-life and digital interactions.

This episode also touches on the concept of self-stewardship and how it benefits others and honors God by managing yourself and your relationships responsibly.

We would love to hear your thoughts! Please leave a review!

Follow on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ ⁠⁠or ⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠

Feel free to send us your questions, feedback, or even your favorite jokes to ⁠⁠⁠⁠thewayfampodcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction and Episode Overview

00:47 The Car Analogy of Life

01:58 Breaking Down Relational Wellness

03:19 The Importance of Social Wellness

04:18 Challenges of Making Friends as Adults

08:30 Statistics on Social Connections

10:12 Self Stewardship and Social Wellness

14:19 Impact of Social Wellness on Other Life Areas

18:45 Tips for Building and Maintaining Friendships

35:21 Balancing Real Life and Digital Friendships

40:47 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Over the past 3 years we created a system to help us avoid falling in the pit and becoming troll humans. We use this evaluation to help grow and be more self-aware in our lives and family. In this episode, we share why we started this practice, some insights from doing it regularly, and why we do it quarterly instead of an annual review. Here’s what we cover:

1. Why We Self-Assess: the importance of regular check-ins on our personal and relational health and how it helps us stay on track.
2. The Method: how we rate ourselves in internal, external, and relational areas of life and pick habits to start or reconnect with.
3. Challenges & Wins: the high's and low's we've had and how we've managed them.

We would love to hear your thoughts! Please leave a review!

Follow on: ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ ⁠or ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠

Feel free to send us your questions, feedback, or even your favorite jokes to ⁠⁠⁠thewayfampodcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠.

Recommendations:

• Atomic Habits⁠
• ⁠Habits of the Household
• Monk Manual Planner
• Full Focus Planner
• Ford Vs Ferrari movie
• The Departed movie

Chapters:

00:00 Welcome to the Way Family Podcast

00:09 Introduction to Our Rating System

00:28 Why We Do the Ratings

01:27 Weekly Recap

04:42 The Concept of Self-Evaluation

07:10 Breaking Down the Evaluation Areas

10:26 Rating Each Other: The Process

16:57 Implementing Changes and Habits

20:24 Physical and Mental Health Habits

21:44 Handling Criticism in Relationships

23:12 The Ostrich Effect and Self-Awareness

27:55 Developing and Implementing Habits