Healthy Parenting Handbook with Katie Kimball

One of the motivations for creating the Kids Cook Real Food™ eCourse was that I was just over halfway to “launch” with my oldest child.
Nine years old is half of the intensive part of parenting, and Paul had just turned 10. He demonstrated how to make homemade guacamole to his 4th-grade class, and I realized that guac was the only thing he truly knew how to make!
One cannot live on guac alone…so I knew I needed to teach him more before he left my home!
I love that parenting expert and author Amy Carney also uses the word “launch” to describe the process of sending off a child into the world, ready to serve and grow and live on purpose.
She too had a crisis of parenting when her oldest kids were about 10, and she reacted even more strongly than I did – that and more in today’s interview!
What Amy made me desire: The sort of MARGIN she found in her life when she taught her kids certain things.
How I’ll rethink something today: That being frustrated about a task is an opportunity for a teaching moment.
A goal I need to keep in mind: Play is as important as “being busy.”
In the first two days after the interview, I quoted a certain portion twice, and it’s what college professors and deans all agreed that young adults need more of.
This is a heartfelt, fun, fascinating, and inspiring interview, and I hope you enjoy Amy as much as I did!
Amy is teaching on How to Spot a Scam in #LifeSkillsNow Season 5 – register now!

Resources We Mention for Teaching Life Skills to Teens
Supporting the foster care system
Amy’s video on adoption through foster care
My interview with Julie Lythcott-Haimes about raising successful adults
Find Amy online here
Follow her on social media: Facebook, Instagram
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

What happens when you mess up as a parent?
Because let’s be honest… no matter how intentional you try to be, no matter how many goals you set, there are still going to be moments where you lose your patience, react in a way you regret, or just plain get it wrong. The real question is not if that will happen, but what you do next.
In this second half of my conversation with Jon Hord, we move from awareness into action. Jon shares what it actually looks like to repair those hard moments with your kids, how to model growth instead of perfection, and why those “mess up” moments can become some of the most powerful connection points in your family.
This episode is incredibly practical, but also deeply encouraging. You are not stuck in your patterns. You are not defined by your worst moments. And you have more influence than you think in shaping your relationship with your kids moving forward.
In this episode, we cover:
 What to say after you lose your temper or handle something poorly 
 Why apologizing to your kids builds respect instead of weakening authority 
 How to turn parenting mistakes into opportunities for connection 
 The difference between working on yourself silently and involving your kids in the process 
 A simple way to help kids learn compromise and ownership (using dinner!) 
 Why the dinner table is one of the most powerful connection points in your home 
 The impact of removing phones and distractions during family time 
 One mindset shift that can instantly change how you respond to your kids

Resources We Mention for Repairing Parenting Mistakes
Join the Engaged Father Project community now
The importance of family dinners
What is the role of fathers when it comes to teaching kids about health and food?
Helping teens and tweens build a healthy relationship with technology
Don't miss #LifeSkillsNow Season 5! Register now. 
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

Do you think you could be vulnerable enough to ask your kids, “How could I be a better parent?” Even the thought of that makes my chest tighten a little bit, but in this episode, Jon Hord is going to encourage dads—and moms—to do just that.
This conversation is such a powerful look at what it means to parent with intention instead of just reacting to whatever the day throws at you. Jon shares his own story of going from stressed, overwhelmed, and not showing up the way he wanted… to becoming a dad who is actively creating a new version of himself.
And the best part? This is not about perfection. It is about awareness, small shifts, and having the courage to grow.
If you have ever felt like you are just trying to get through the day without losing your patience, or wondered if you are really showing up the way your kids need, this episode will hit home in the best way.
In this episode, we cover:
 Why “being a good parent” might actually be aiming too low 
 The simple but uncomfortable question that can transform your relationship with your kids 
 What to do when your child gives you honest feedback… and it stings 
 How stress (especially from work) quietly shapes the parent you become at home 
 The difference between reacting to your kids and actually leading them 
 Why your childhood patterns show up in your parenting, whether you realize it or not 
 A practical way to pause in hard moments instead of escalating them 
 What it looks like to become the “new version” of yourself as a parent
Resources We Mention for Intentional Fatherhood
Join the Engaged Father Project community now
Decode Your Child’s Behavior and Dial in Your Parenting Boundaries from the Author of Transforming Toddlerhood, Devon Kuntzman
What is the role of fathers when it comes to teaching kids about health and food?
Don't miss #LifeSkillsNow Season 5! Register now. 
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

I love it when a conversation feels like it’s been years in the making. This one really has!
Today’s guest is someone who has quietly, faithfully shaped the way I think about food for a long time—my friend Wardee Harmon from Traditional Cooking School.
And if you’ve ever felt like the world of “healthy eating” is a swirl of contradictions…one expert says this, another says that…you are not alone. (Honestly, it can make your head spin before you even get dinner on the table.)
Wardee has this rare gift of bringing clarity to all that noise.
Her Eat God’s Way plan isn’t just another list of rules or trendy swaps. It’s a grounded, thoughtful look at the foods humans were designed to eat, paired with traditional methods that real families have used for generations. Things like soaking, fermenting, sourdough…not because they’re fancy, but because they work.
And I’ve seen firsthand how she teaches. She doesn’t overwhelm. She connects the dots.
She makes it feel doable, even if you’re starting from “we eat cereal for dinner sometimes and I’m just trying to survive.”
I also love that her perspective is rooted in faith, but she holds it with such grace. If that resonates with you, you’re going to feel right at home. And if it’s new or not quite your thing, there’s still so much practical wisdom here to take and run with.
Wardee is also one of our incredible leaders for #LifeSkillsNow! This year she is teaching a delicious gluten-free Blueberry Oat Cake.
So whether you’re curious about traditional foods, wondering if sourdough is worth the hype, or just hoping to feel a little more grounded in what you feed your family…
You’re in the right place.
Resources We Mention for Eating God’s Way

Get the Eat God’s Way books
Check out Wardee’s book Fermenting: Pickles, Kimchi, Kefir, Kombucha, Sourdough, Yogurt, Cheese and More! (The Self-Sufficient Kitchen) – Amazon, Bookshop.org
Healing eczema naturally
Health benefits of sourdough
See all the Traditional Cooking School courses
Don't miss #LifeSkillsNow Season 5! Register now. 
Shop Truly Free household cleaners and more at https://raisinghealthyfamilies.com/trulyfree!
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

Let me ask you something. When was the last time you felt genuinely sharp? Not just “I had coffee and I’m functional” sharp, but clear-headed, energized, actually-in-the-room sharp?
Most of us have quietly accepted a version of ourselves that’s a little foggy, a little tired, a little “off” and chalked it up to getting older, being busy, or just how things are now. But here’s the thing: that fog has reasons. 
In this post, we’re pulling back the curtain on what’s actually going on inside your body and brain during perimenopause. We’re talking about the surprising link between your gut and your mood, what your sleep problems are really trying to tell you, and why stress is so much sneakier than anyone gives it credit for.
Resources We Mention for Daily Habits for Perimenopause
Get Cynthia’s books: The Menopause Gut (Amazon/Bookshop.org) and Intermittent Fasting Transformation (Amazon/Bookshop.org).
Perimenopause May Be the Wisest and Best Years of Your Life – How to Make That Reality with Jenn Pike
Women Metabolize and Build Strength Differently Than Men (Especially Over 30) with Pearl & Serene, authors of Trim Healthy Wisdom
The best blue light glasses for better sleep
Stress Mastery Challenge for busy moms
 Get some natural support from Berkeley Life's supplement
Don't miss #LifeSkillsNow Season 5! Register now. 
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!