The Holderness Family Podcast

The 2024 Olympics have started! Today, we talk to our friend, Olympic Silver Medalist, and a U.S. pole vault record holder, Sandi Morris. Sandi barely missed going to the games in Paris this year (she placed 4th in qualifying) but she isn't letting that stop her. She offers words of encouragement on how to keep going and stay positive when you're doing something you love. (We're in awe of her mental and physical toughness.) You can learn more about Sandi and her journey here: https://www.sandimorrispv.com/.Fun Fact: Sandi and her husband and three-time Olympian, Tyrone Smith, joined us for our 2020 Fauxlympics in the pandemic, and Sandi helped critique Penn's Pole Vault in our 2022 Penn Vs. Olympics.Learn more about our Summer Book Club for ADHD Is Awesome: https://theholdernessfamily.com/adhdbookclub/Come see us at Quail Ridge Books: https://www.quailridgebooks.com/event/pennkimholderness24Shop Our MerchJoin Our NewsletterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow us on TikTok Follow us on FacebookKim&

Every now and then, there are times when I really just need to laugh. The world can feel so heavy, it’s nice to have an escape from time to time. On this week’s show, we play the game Wrong Answers Only with our producer, Ann Marie Taepke. In the game, we are given a piece of obscure trivia and we have to give the wrong answer on purpose. What transpired were a ton of laughs and some knowledge that will probably help us the next time we watch Jeopardy. Also, learn about our secret mission with Project Noodle! You have to listen to the full show to know your assignment :) Learn more about our Summer Book Club for ADHD Is Awesome: https://theholdernessfamily.com/adhdbookclub/Come see us at Quail Ridge Books: https://www.quailridgebooks.com/event/pennkimholderness24Shop Our MerchJoin Our NewsletterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow us on TikTok Follow us on FacebookKim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-winning videos, i

As someone who has said one of their family’s values is resilience, I have a hard time with seeing my kids quit something. If something isn’t serving me or isn’t something I am interested in, I have no problem saying no. (This took years to master, by the way.) So why do I have a problem with my kids wanting to quit something?This week, we invited our dear friend and parenting coach, Dr. Hope Seidel, on the podcast to talk about quitting. To start off the discussion, she mentioned that technically she quit being a pediatrician to follow her calling as a parenting coach. She likes to joke that she retired from being a pediatrician, because retiring is just a fancy way to say you quit something and have it be more acceptable. (So true.) Dr. Hope Seidel talked to us about how to reframe ending something and to value our children’s character over accomplishments. Listen to the show and tell us about a time you “retired” from something.You can learn more about Dr. Hope Seidel here: https://parentwithhope.com/Learn

Penn here. The other day I drove home from rural North Carolina after yet another youth basketball tournament. There are moments I question my sanity for agreeing to coach my son’s basketball team. It’s a time and energy commitment that can be draining. But there’s something else too. Coaching his team has taught me a great deal and I believe has made me a better parent. Kim and I discuss the lessons that I’ve learned in this week’s podcast and how they translate to parenting in general. After all of the countless practices, tournaments and road trips are said and done after PC “retires” from youth sports…I truly hope what I have taught him and the rest of these boys is something of value to them. Because what they’ve taught me? Priceless.Learn more about our Summer Book Club for ADHD Is Awesome: https://theholdernessfamily.com/adhdbookclub/Shop Our MerchJoin Our NewsletterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow us on TikTok Follow us on FacebookKim and Penn are online c

Hoping you all are enjoying your summer so far. Happy to say that Penn and I are currently in full-on summer mode. After a very busy spring with our book tour, we’ve been lucky enough to squeeze in some beach time in between work, sports, camps, and college prep for Lola. Penn Charles capped off his busy spring with a celebration for graduating from 8th grade.PC was quick to remind us that this was “no big deal,” but we were excited to celebrate him. This sparked a conversation between Penn and me about what other milestones in your children’s lives warrant a celebration (which was also a great walk down memory lane.) Should we throw a parade the last time you have to wipe a butt?Learn more about our Summer Book Club for ADHD Is Awesome: https://theholdernessfamily.com/adhdbookclub/Shop Our MerchJoin Our NewsletterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow us on TikTok Follow us on FacebookKim and Penn are online content creators known for their awa

Emotions are hard. Teen emotions are VERY hard. We brought in one of our favorite people to talk to us about the new Pixar movie, Inside Out 2. For the past four years, Dr. Lisa Damour has worked with the writers as they explore how becoming a teenager changes Riley’s emotional world. The author of three New York Times bestsellers, she helps highlight some of the uncomfortable emotions that are part of our everyday lives.Shop Our MerchJoin Our NewsletterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow us on TikTok Follow us on FacebookKim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-winning videos, including original music, song parodies, and comedy sketches. Their videos have resulted in over 2 billion views and 8 million followers across their social media platforms since they (accidentally) went viral in 2013. They have a best-selling book on marriage communication, a top-rated podcas

I have fond memories of riding bikes and walking around the mall, with my biggest worry being how to avoid the intense southern heat. Fast forward to today, my 17-year-old daughter’s summer is planned out to the minute. Between college applications, tennis, and being a normal social teenager, her schedule is could be compared to a complex military operation. It made me start to think about how summer experiences have changed since I was a kid, but also since becoming a mom of littles vs teens as well.We dive into all of that in this week’s podcast, as well as venturing into the absurdity of women's swimsuits and how the song "Summer of 69" by Bryan Adams has ruined me. What are your summer plans?? Comment below and happy listening!Shop Our MerchJoin Our NewsletterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow us on TikTok Follow us on FacebookKim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-winning videos, including original music, so

Penn and I do lots of things together. We work together, we live together, we travel together, and now we… dream together? (No, like literally the same dream. What do dreams mean?!) On this week’s podcast, we brought in expert dream analyst Jane Teresa Anderson to see if she could unravel that dream for us (and she also unraveled some of yours from those who called in!) Jane Teresa defines dreams as: “The experience that you have when your brain and your mind are processing the last one to two days of all your conscious experiences and your unconscious experiences trying to make sense of the world.” Our conversation was fascinating and something I hope you all enjoy too! What are recurring dreams that you’ve had and what do dreams mean to you? Shop Our MerchJoin Our NewsletterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow us on TikTok Follow us on FacebookKim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-winning videos, including original m

What a journey this past month has been. Kim and I finished up our final book tour appearance last week in Minneapolis - and we loved meeting all of you! ADHD Is Awesome is research-based and we interviewed many doctors, psychologists, and psychiatrists to get as broad a perspective as possible. But in the end, it's written from my perspective. When I look back at the process of writing this book, I wish I'd had the opportunity to talk more about other perspectives than my own. In particular, the perspective of the under-diagnosed woman with ADHD and minorities. In this week’s podcast, we got a chance to speak with Amy Marie Hann, a mother of 3 children with ADHD. Amy herself was diagnosed with ADHD as a child. Her father and sister are also ADHD, as is her husband. Needless to say, ADHD has permeated every corner of her life.  It was incredibly enlightening to talk to her about her own journey and how she has adapted her routines in order to not only keep her own ADHD in check, but also be able to be pr

Recently, I went back to therapy. Penn says has already seen a difference in me and I can feel it too. I'm a big fan of therapy and have been in and out of it, for whatever reason, my entire adult life. Doing the work (plus being encouraged by my doctor to go on a pediatric-sized dose of medication) has made the world a little brighter and easier for me to navigate. It goes without saying that therapy and medication are very personal decisions, but I want to be transparent and set an example for my kids so that they’re aware of the resources available to them.Many of you who have followed us for awhile know that I’ve been talking about getting a hobby for YEARS. (My hobby is talking about getting a hobby.) So, I asked all of you what hobbies you do! And friends, did you ever deliver with some unique ideas. From photography to composting to beekeeping, there were so many great and different suggestions, so thank you. On this week’s podcast we react to some of those suggestions, discuss why hobbies are a good i

First off, let me say that we are humbled and grateful for you all and the support of our book, ADHD Is Awesome. For the past few weeks, we’ve met so many of you on our book tour and I can’t tell you how incredibly emotional it’s been for us. (I’m a big ball of mush right now.) In this week’s podcast, we reflect on our first two legs of the book tour, what we did after finding out about making the NYT Bestsellers list, a really fun star sighting on an elliptical machine, and which celebrity couples that we would like to go on vacation with. (Hint: You have to pick people you’d be comfortable enough to fart in front of. This is key.)In all seriousness, we are deeply grateful for you, and have loved all of the stories, laughs, tears, and awkward hugs. Thank you all for being awesome. Shop Our MerchJoin Our NewsletterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow us on TikTok Follow us on FacebookKim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-wi

My mother (who I love and adore) moved to town in January to be closer to our family. It’s been wonderful to be able to call her up to see if she wants to go to dinner on a random Wednesday.  So last week, I did just that. Her response? “I have to check my calendar.” Wait, what? As she thumbed through her calendar looking for a free night, I started to think to myself “am I failing at friendship?”I’m exaggerating, because I do have deep friendships and very dear friends here. It’s just that life is busy and my introverted self is more comfortable at home on a Friday night in my pajamas than going to meet up with a friend. My husband, on the other hand, is very quick to go play tennis or grab a beer whenever he gets the opportunity. This week, we got curious about friendship with author, life coach, and friendship expert, Shari Leid. We explored why women form deeper friendships than men and if we are living in a friendship recession. It was a discussion that made us realize not only how we

As I write this, we are celebrating 19 years of pure, wedded bliss (do you hear the sarcasm?) NINETEEN YEARS. Our marriage is a freshman in college. Our marriage probably has a fake ID and makes bad decisions in bars. But on the balance, I will say I feel incredibly lucky. We have a really great marriage. This week we discuss our best marriage tips... including why Penn doesn't poop in our hotel room. (Yes, he's all mine ladies.) We also reflect on Lola going to prom and parenting advice for when they go away to college. What's the best marriage advice you have or tips for your kids going away to college? Share them with us! Learn more about our games here and our book here. Thanks for being part of this journey with us, friends. Kim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-winning videos, including original music, song parodies, and comedy sketches. Their videos have resulted in over 2 billion views and 8 million fol

If you are listening to this on April 30th - the day this podcast came out - our new book, ADHD Is Awesome is out today! About five years ago, we started making ADHD content and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive. (Spoiler alert: Your encouragement was a big motivator for us writing this book!) The biggest question we've gotten while writing this was: Will there be an audiobook? Well, today is your lucky day - this podcast includes a preview of our book's Introduction and Chapter 1. We're so happy this book is out in the world. If you get it, we hope you love it as much as we loved making it.If you want to come give us a hug on our ADHD Is Awesome book tour, check the dates here: https://theholdernessfamily.com/adhd-is-awesome/#tourKim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-winning videos, including original music, song parodies, and comedy sketches. Their videos have resulted in over 2 billion views and 8 million

Yay, you made it to the end (and a HUGE thank you for listening!) This is Part 3 of our 3-part ADHD Is Awesome bonus series. This podcast series is inspired by our new book ADHD Is Awesome which comes out April 30, 2024. In this series, we plan to answer three big questions: 1) What does ADHD look like, 2) How do you best partner with someone who has ADHD, and 3) What do you do with your ADHD to (mostly) thrive.This week, we have Dr. Norrine Russell join us to talk about tips and tricks on how we can do better when we have ADHD. We also have my son, Penn Charles, who also has ADHD, join us to talk about what tips and tricks he uses! If you haven't heard part 2 of this series, you can listen to it here: ADHD Is Awesome: How To Help (Part 2)The ADHD Is Awesome bonus podcast series is produced by Penn Holderness and Ann Marie Taepke, edited by Sam Allen, and engineered by Max Trujillo of Trujillo Media.Kim and Penn are online content creators known for their 

Hi friends, Penn here. As some of you know, I am obsessed with all things sci-fi. This traces way back to my childhood during the Star Wars and Star Trek days that sparked a lifelong fascination for all things space. It’s the main reason that I always wanted to be an astronaut. Fast forward to today, you can see that life took me in a wildly different direction. (Plus I have terrible vertigo so I would have made a horrible astronaut.) Dashed childhood dreams aside, the impact these movies and shows had on me got us thinking. Turns out, the stuff we consume has a greater impact than you think. Walt Hickey wrote a fascinating book called You Are What You Watch: How Movies and TV Affect Everything that discusses just that. In it, Hickey dives into (among many other things) the power of entertainment, how it can have an actual physical effect on us, and how it can greatly shape who we are as individuals and as society. So we invited him on this week’s podcast! Also bonus–after the interview, Kim and I t

Welcome back! This is Part 2 of our 3-part ADHD Is Awesome bonus series! This podcast series is inspired by our new book ADHD Is Awesome which comes out April 30, 2024. In this series, we plan to answer three big questions: 1) What does ADHD look like, 2) How do you best partner with someone who has ADHD, and 3) What do you do with your ADHD to (mostly) thrive.This week, we have Dr. Emily King join us to talk about how we can best partner with a child or student with ADHD. We also have my lovely wife Kim, who talks about what it's like to partner with her husband who has ADHD (me!) If you haven't heard part 1 of this series, you can listen to it here: ADHD Is Awesome: Your Brain (Part 1) The ADHD Is Awesome bonus podcast series is produced by Penn Holderness and Ann Marie Taepke, edited by Sam Allen, and engineered by Max Trujillo of Trujillo Media.Kim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-winning videos, including original music

I love discovering new things about people through great conversation. But lately I’ve been thinking about how to avoid the pitfalls of asking a question that might make the other person feel uncomfortable or awkward. One of the reasons for that self-reflection is the fact that we have a junior in high school and previously, if I met up with one of her friends, I'd ask, “Where are you thinking about going to college?”  I had no idea how much stress just that simple question creates. (I wrote a blog about it here!) So this week, we asked you to send us your worst and best questions to make us laugh and help us get better! From what NOT to ask a pregnant woman to “what is the first movie that comes to mind when you think of Tim Curry?” Penn and I picked out some of our favorites to share with you on this week’s podcast. What's the best question you've ever been asked? Special Announcement: We launched a 3-part bonus series All About ADHD! You can listen to the Part 1 now and pre-order our new book ADHD Is

Welcome to our 3-part ADHD Is Awesome bonus series! This podcast series is inspired by our new book ADHD Is Awesome which comes out April 30, 2024. In this series, we plan to answer three big questions: 1) what does ADHD look like, 2) how do you best partner with someone who has ADHD, and 3) what do you do with your ADHD to (mostly) thrive. This week, we have Dr. Marcy Caldwell join us who had a big hand in helping research for the book. We also have our producer, Ann Marie Taepke, gives some insight into working with someone with ADHD and we take a voicemail from Heather. We can't wait to hear what you think of this episode (and our new musical jingles that go with it!)The ADHD Is Awesome bonus podcast series is produced by Penn Holderness and Ann Marie Taepke, edited by Sam Allen, and engineered by Max Trujillo of Trujillo Media.Kim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-winning videos, including original music, song parodies, a

Most of you that have followed us for a while know I’m an anxious person. You know one thing that bizarrely doesn’t scare me? Artificial intelligence taking over the world. There's a lot of hills I'm gonna die on. But if there's a zombie apocalypse triggered by AI? Take me first, alien overlords. Penn is extremely worried about artificial intelligence and what could happen if it gets in the wrong hands. So we invited Dr. Helen Crompton, a professor at Old Dominion University and the Executive Director of the Research Institute for Digital Innovation in Learning at ODUGlobal, on this week’s podcast to educate us.Artificial intelligence will continue to evolve in extraordinary ways, but I now have more tools to protect myself and my family against those who are using it for harmful means. How do you feel about AI? You can find more about what we discussed below: How to stop robocalls: https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/stop-unwanted-robocalls-and-textsMore about phone scams: https://www.fcc.gov/document/