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As summer approaches and life has opened up again, the number of schedulable kids activities has shot back up. So how do we navigate which and how many activities to sign them up for now? Patrick and John chat about how to avoid overscheduling their kids lives and why it's worth giving more thought to how we structure their time in the first place.

Yeah... we're tired of talking about COVID, too. But here it is. Despite the fact that we've pretty much all settled on it being a part of our normal life now, the balancing act of school, daycare, work, and keeping some sanity with COVID in the house is still a big deal. John shares with Patrick the experience of catching COVID from his son and managing it in the household.

It seems we're all entering a new chapter, where COVID has become integrated into society, and no longer overshadowing it. So looking back at the last two years, how have we grown as young(ish!) parents? Patrick and John consider what they have lost and what they have found during this stretch, particularly when it comes to their ever-evolving identities.

The role that anger plays in parenting is very real. And it's often laced with guilt when we know we're supposed to model calmness for our kids. John and Patrick delve into how anger crops up for them and how they might have a healthier outlook on the emotion that deserves space and acceptance just like any other.

So much of parenting focuses on raising future adults. And so much of our own energy is focused on producing a more desirable future rather than fully experiencing this moment. It's no wonder then, that time flies by. Patrick and John pickup where they left off, digging further into "Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals," by Oliver Burkeman to see if they can learn a thing or two about how to slow down, do less, and accept that this is it.

Much of our adult lives are focused on how best to manage time. But what if it's our perspective on time that's the real issue? Patrick and John begin a multi-episode discussion on the notion that we've got it all wrong when it comes to managing our brief time on earth, as put forward by author Oliver Burkeman in his book, "Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals."

January 2022 marked another turn in this rollercoaster pandemic, disorienting families across the US as school returned from the holiday break. Now in February, John and Patrick return for their fifth season to take stock of the whirlwind start to the new year with childcare and school up in the air and COVID entering the home. Welcome back!

The second year of the pandemic—and fourth season of Just Winging It—is coming to a close. As always, there's a lot to reflect back on. Patrick and John unpack the various themes that emerged throughout the season and in their lives; from staying fit, mental health, cultivating independent thinking kids, and the various ways our lives have adapted to meet the moment.

Most kids won't grow up to be professional musicians, but shouldn't every child get the chance to explore their ability to make music? As a follow-up to their last episode on teaching music, John and Patrick welcome elementary school music teacher, Adam Shumate, to the show to share his journey into making and then teaching music. The dads dig deeper into how they might play some part in shaping their own kids' musical journey.

When and how does a parent go about teaching kids how to make music? How can you tell whether your child has a knack for it? Patrick and John discuss their very different backgrounds when it comes to making music and how that has informed their approach with their kids, including how they treat music around the house and the start of formal music lessons.

A new school year often comes with making and breaking routines, from morning to nighttime and everything in-between. John and Patrick catch up on life during the first few weeks of the new school year; the start of sick days, disrupted sleep habits, getting out of the house in the morning, and the list goes on.

How are you feeling? How honestly can you answer that question? All parents have been in the position of helping their kids manage emotions, but maybe we've still got some emotional intelligence to develop ourselves. Patrick and John talk about research by Dr. Marc Brackett from Yale's Center for Emotional Intelligence. Dr. Brackett advocates for a less judgmental and more inquisitive approach to probing into our feelings and learning to regulate them. Sure sounds like a useful parenting skill.