Pick Your Battles
Thank you for listening to Pick Your Battles! We are here to give you professionally, UNPROFESSIONAL parenting advice. We are just two moms laughing as we navigate parenthood and picking our battles along the way. Whether you are a mom, dad, grandparent, friend, or someone who knows a kid, you're in the right place. As we know, there isn't a manual that's given to you when you have a child and Kaela and Dayna are here to share their peaks, pits, and lessons learned along the way. Kaela is a stay-at-home mom and lives in southwest Michigan with her two children, two dogs, and husband, Zander. Dayna works full-time in the corporate world and has a son, a dog (whom she refers to as her firstborn) and her husband, Jimmy. The idea for this show, like Dayna's son, was born during the COVID pandemic and has been a fun and wild ride ever since.
Episodes
Not the most uplifting way to start the new year, but this is a topic that we both have been wanting to talk about for months now. Every family will be touched by death at some point - whether it's a friend, a pet, or a close family member (which in our minds PETS fall into of course). But the task of talking about "death" with a child is a tricky one. Do you bring in a religious aspect? Do you sugarcoat it? Is it best to just rip ...
We celebrated Atlas' birthday by taking a multi-family trip to Chicago, and BOY did we learn a lot. From schlepping 5 children ages 6 and under through the snowy streets of Chicago, through exhibits and tanks-gallore at the Shedd Aquarium, and in the halls for a giant hotel, we are all still recovering from this group trip!
TRIGGER WARNING
1 in 4 women suffer from infant and pregnancy loss and October is the month that honors those losses.
We welcome back our best friend and sister-in-law, Kelsey, to the show to talk about her journey with infertility, IUI, IVF, and ultimately losing her baby at 10 weeks pregnant. This is HER journey and HER feelings on how she and her husband Zak are navigating these times. We all hope that this allows people who are ...
THIS IS A GOOD ONE Y'ALL.
It probably goes without saying that no two parents parent the same, and maybe they shouldn't, but at the end of the day, it's still hard. Especially when your kid COMPLETELY disregards your discipline, but when threatened with the thought of your husband or wife getting involved, flips like a pancake. (Spoiler alert, Wyatt does this to Dayna while we are recording so you can hear it firsthand...).
There is a never-ending list in our heads - things that need to get done every single day - and a lot of the time that list lives just in our brain. As this list then of course grows, it begins to add weight.
After sitting and chatting with Emily, from Raising Little Millionaires a few weeks ago- we instantly knew we needed a Part 2.
Our first episode with Emily was structured around teaching our children responsibility with money. This episode, we focus more on money for college, learn about 529 and more ways that we can prepare our children for the real world and real money.
We also answer questions that we sent in from YOU, our liste...
We have officially kicked off the 2025-2026 school year and we thought including Wyatt and Maesyn on the podcast would be a fun twist to the show! Truth be told, they really just liked to look at themselves on the computer while they were talking (so stay tuned for the social clips) but we are both excited to have a little bit of a break from these silly gooses!
Have a great year, y'all!
Do you give your child an allowance? Do they have chores they are expected to do and others they get paid for? Do they really understand the value of a dollar and how to make smart money decisions? We sit down with Emily Holthaus, founder of the social media account Raising Little Millionaires, where she gives amazing money advice for parents and kids of all ages!
You know the song lyrics "every day we hustlin'"?! Raise your hands if that's your EVERY day as a parent!!
(Kaela and Dayna both throw both hands up in the air)
This episode is all about that hustle culture that whether you feel it or notice it or not it is very much a part of your day-to-day.
As a part of our podcast brand (and the need to keep up the hustle) we have an Etsy shop that we created some brand merchandise for so please...
Dayna got some big news right as summer was starting...she was told her job was being eliminated. The summer was going to be like every other - she would be working and Wyatt would be going to summer camp - but now that plan has changed. The good news is that it's SUMMER TIME IN MICHIGAN! This is truly what we wait all year for, so she is taking it day by day and enjoying the time she has now with her little man and the rest of her...
Is it bullying or is it just kids being kids? Recently, Wyatt was playing at the park and we found ourselves in a... situation. Was it just boys playing rough or was it the early stages of Wyatt getting bullied? Meanwhile, Atlas is who is 2.5 is in his hitting stage of toodler-hood. Kaela wants to know if this is normal or if she has a future bully on her hands.
We want to know so we asked the question - What is your guilty pleasure!? Is it watching trash TV? Is it cooking? What about reading or redecorating your house!? Whatever it is, enjoy it! Take time for yourself and do what makes you happy! It will make you a better parent. Listen here to find out what ours are!
Since Dayna did her interview with Sarah alone, it's Kaela's turn to take the mic and chat with her "other half"...Jamie! In this episode, Kaela dives into the finances of it all. Who pays for travel baseball? If the kids are 3 years old today...who the hell pays for college 15 years down the road?! Find out here!
This is an episode about the "D word"...divorce.
This episode Dayna chats with Sarah from Jacob’s Berger Family Law Firm in New Jersey. They talk about all aspects of family law, specializing in divorce and much more.
Dayna asks about the ins and outs of being in this field of work, what’s the rewarding and hard parts of the job. As well as some tips for making co-parenting a little easier.
Whether you know someone going through a d...
IT'S SEASON 3 BABY!
Thank you to all of our listeners who have been around since Season 1 Episode 1,c and those who are listening for the first time today. This is out fun little passion project and we are so thankful for another season dedicated to picking our battles.
This episode, were chatting about ROAD TRIPS. Kaela and her husband, Zander, took the kids to visit their Aunt and Uncle in Florida over spring break. Rather than sp...
Being a parent isn't easy, and being a SINGLE parent, certainly takes the cake. On this episode of Pick Your Battles, we have the pleasure of talking with Erin, a single mom of two boys who is also a mental health nurse practitioner in south Jersey. Erin opens up about her navigating having two different fathers to her boys, co-parenting with them (or lack-there-of) and what she does to set boundaries and give herself some time to ...
To post or not to post? That is the question.
Social media is such a huge part of today's society, you really cant escape it. However, you can shelter your children from it.
In a previous episode we talked about the "appropriate" ages for kids to be on social media. This episode, we're focusing on whether or not parents post their children on social media.
With outside opinions and insights from Paula at The Balanced Mom, Candace M...
You know you've "made it" when the trolls come out to comment on your shit...right?? If that's the case, count us as "MADE IT" because that's exactly what happened. Dayna created (what we thought) a very funny video that landed on the wrong side of TikTok. Those finger warriors had a lot to say about her parenting or lack thereof, and that CPS should pay her a visit??
We are counting this as a milestone achieved as well as gaining ...
We have hit some big milestones recently including....drum roll.... HITTING 80 EPISODES! That's wild! Although this is a short one, we wanted to make sure we celebrate with everyone and give you a look into all the work we have been doing, and of course the battles we picked, to get to this point. Thank you to all of our listeners, our social media followers, and our friends and family who are supporting us along the way! Here's to...
Let’s hear it parents, how long has your family been sick this season? Whether it’s Influenza, Covid, RSV, you name it- it’s been rough!
This episode Dayna and Kaela chat about the sickness that ran through their families, days out of school and more.
We’re (not so) patiently waiting until spring and will gladly take the spring time allergies!
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