Mummy Milli

I have found in our ‘limited screen time’ family, that podcasts have been my saviour. 

In my family home the TV was on from when people woke up to when the last person went to sleep. There was constant sound even when no one was watching. This has lead to me still requiring background sound. Prior to Monkey, that was TV in the background, occasionally music, but like almost all things parenting, changes have to be made. Actually, I decided that I wanted to grow and make a change. Luckily for me we live in the time of podcasts and audiobooks. 

The podcasts I have listed have lots of episodes already so plenty of content for you to listen to, whether its for road trips, the daily pick up or just some inspiration while you are at home.

My top 5 podcasts in no particular order as they are all so different:

Ologies along with the new Smologies!

This is the podcast to listen to so you can be the ‘go to’ at Trivia or the annoying person with all the random pieces of information on almost any topic. Alie interviews a person each week on a different topic and her light-hearted, fun approach seems to make the information stick in my head even better. 

She has even created Smologies which are shorter podcasts specifically edited for children.As Monkey is still so young and the content of most of Alie’s episodes are appropriate, with not too much swearing we still listen to the long form as I like an hour long podcast as opposed to the 25 minute episodes but I love that she has created this option for families and schools, etc. 

If you want to learn lots of information on a myriad of topics in a fun way I really suggest this podcast.

Zero to travel

Do you feel like, sometimes, you need to escape somewhere? But right now you have to get dinner on the table, or it is pick up time and you really can’t just take off like you used to?  

This podcast is fantastic for that but it also offers something I find very valuable and inspiring, some great family travel episodes! These show that travel is not off the table with children. I believe these episodes are as much for Jason (the host) as for his audience, as Jason is a father of two, himself. 

I really love this podcast as it doesn’t just discuss places but how and why we travel, values and how to achieve it on any budget. 

CoffeeBreak Espanol

This one I love to listen to in the morning as I set my day up with something productive. What used to be yoga and journaling by myself, are now joint activities and slightly chaotic breakfasts. I am so thankful that Monkey has finally started to get the hang of food going into his mouth and not on the floor as it has made the morning chaos slightly less. 

The spanish line of Coffeebreak podcasts have two delightful Scottish people teaching you, their accents add another layer of entertainment. If Spanish isn’t for you there are other languages including Italian, German and Chinese. These are  a great way to introduce other languages into the home, and at only 15 minutes they are short and easy to fit into your day. 

Office Ladies

Having grown up in a family where the TV was constantly on in the background I find it very hard to be in quiet situations, sometimes this even affects my focus. Office Ladies is a really fun rewatch of The Office,  by Jenna Fischer (Pam) and Angela Kinsey (Angela), and is mainly acceptable listening with children around. While listening to this podcast I feel like I am discussing one of my favourite shows with old friends who are just so supportive and kind, it can be a real break from parenting. 

If The Office isn’t for you there are plenty of other options including Fake Doctors, Real Friends ( Scrubs), Gilmore Guys (Gilmore Girls) and The Always Sunny Podcast (Always Sunny in Philadelphia), although this last one is probably not appropriate for children. I have not tried all these out yet but I have had Fake Doctors, Real Friends suggested to me. 

Raising Wildlings

Finally a podcast actually about raising children. My partner and I use this podcast to start some thought provoking conversations on how we want to raise our son. This podcast has a large focus on heading outside with your family, learning through making mistakes and all the different opportunities we have to educate our children.  

Although some of their more recent episodes have gotten quite sales heavy, their earlier episodes hold plenty of great conversation and starter information. I would suggest heading back to those early episodes and then picking and choosing only what interests you in their later episodes. 

What are your must listen podcasts? Let me know in the comments below, I am always on the lookout for something new.