Talking the Creator Accountability Network with Sarah Tulien
The Family Skeptical
We begin the episode talking about a change we made to the kids’ screen time, and then we speak with Sarah Tulien, Executive Director of the Creator Accountability Network. I know there are a million places that need our support right now, but think about adding the Creator Accountability Network to your list. Even small donations make a huge difference to newer, growing organizations. CAN represents something we need to see more of in the world right now - efforts to take responsibility and repair harm instead of covering it up or sweeping it under the rug. Here how to connect with...
info_outline
The Wicked Of It All
The Family Skeptical
We start out talking about the kids experiencing their first religious service. Then we delve into Candace Owens’ Erika Kirk conspiracies. And we finish up with the discussion about body size that has emerged around the stars of Wicked. How do we want to talk to the kids about body size? How do we think about it in the first place? In the Candace Owens segment, we did a terrible job giving context around some of the people we brought up, so I included links for them. And here they are: The Family Skeptical: We’re a married atheist...
info_outline
2025 Review (Heads Up - More Santa Talk)
The Family Skeptical
We start the episode with an announcement from Go, and then we talk about 2025. How do we feel? At sea, I would say. And we finish up with some thoughts from the kids. The Family Skeptical: We’re a married atheist couple raising two wonderful, strange children. We ask big questions, dissect weird parenting moments, and examine how society ignores or misrepresents families like ours. If you’re any stripe of non-believer who’s involved in raising children, welcome! You are our people. Our kids are Reader (12!) and Jaeger (9), and if you want to find out how we arrived at these peculiar...
info_outline
Talking Atheist Christmas with Betsy DeVille
The Family Skeptical
It’s beginning to look a lot like Atheist Christmas. We start the episode with a story about the Tooth Fairy, and then we talk with Betsy DeVille about her book, Christmas for Atheists, and what to think about when celebrating as a secular family. Listen to the end for some amazing gingerbread house tips. Now to links: () Betsy DeVille on by Aliki by Mauri Kunnas (the Korvatunturi book!) The Family Skeptical: We’re a married atheist couple raising two wonderful, strange children. We ask big questions, dissect weird parenting moments, and...
info_outline
Forgive Us
The Family Skeptical
We start out talking about our new Halloween tradition. Then we get into Trump’s latest anti-atheist activity and end up talking about him more generally. If you’d rather skip it and ignore his existence for a bit, honestly, I get it. That segment runs from 14:55 - 37:50. Then we talk about forgiveness. Are we forgiving? Does religion help to be forgiving? I think I needed this conversation more than I knew. Now the links: (get on their email lists for news updates) Thank God I’m An Atheists’s Episode: with the story of the Mormon fundraiser Star Trek: Strange...
info_outline
Weirdos!
The Family Skeptical
We begin the episode discussing Alex Jones’s epic facial hair fail. Then we discuss Ryan Walters’s exit from Oklahoma schools. And we finish up talking about weirdos, and how to think about what to do when your kid is trending weird. Now the links: Our episode, Professor Neil’s The Family Skeptical: We’re a married atheist couple raising two wonderful, strange children. We ask big questions, dissect weird parenting moments, and examine how society ignores or misrepresents families like ours. If you’re any stripe of non-believer who’s involved in...
info_outline
All. The. Updates.
The Family Skeptical
This episode became one big family update somehow. We start out discussing our new pronoun situation. Then we get into Moms’s current mental health or lack thereof. And we finish off with a discussion about Go’s thoughts on death and how we’ve discussed death more generally. (And if you want to see the picture we discuss at the end, check out our social media.) Now the links: Our episode on the move: Our episode, The Handsome Podcast: The Family Skeptical: We’re a married atheist couple raising two wonderful, strange children. We...
info_outline
Camp Quest Was Awesome and How Did We Teach the Kids About Religion?
The Family Skeptical
Oh brains are fun. This was a bit of a hodge podge. We started out the episode discussing the great time the kids had at Camp Quest and how it’s led into a family Dungeons & Dragons game. Then we talked about the new Catholic AI chatbot, Catholic Answers. And we finished up with a discussion of how we did and did not teach the kids about religion. Now the links (so many links): The about my disastrous religious camp experience Our about whether or not your kids should be able to pick Jesus out of a lineup Dan McClellan on...
info_outline
We Saw Superman
The Family Skeptical
We start out talking about the kids being away at Camp Quest. Then we discuss the new Superman film. And we finish up observing how complex it can be leaving the house. Now the links: The Family Skeptical: We’re a married atheist couple raising two wonderful, strange children. We ask big questions, dissect weird parenting moments, and examine how society ignores or misrepresents families like ours. If you’re any stripe of non-believer who’s involved in raising children, welcome! You are our people. Our kids are Reader (11) and Go (9), and if you want to find out how...
info_outline
Let's Overanalyze Everything!
The Family Skeptical
Moms begins the episode talking about her mental health, and a question she has about communicating with Reader’s therapist. Then we dive into a particularly bad argument made on Alisa Childer’s podcast, and finish up discussing a response in Slate’s Dear Prudence that might have missed some big questions about a kid attending his friend’s church. Now the links: Dear Prudence: (Apologies if this is behind a paywall. But also, Slate is great, and if you can, it’s worth supporting them for the extra segments on Care and Feeding alone.) The Family Skeptical: We’re...
info_outlineWe’re back - again with questionable audio issues. If my computer noises are too much for you, skip to the 31:00 mark because they basically resolve in the last topic. We begin by talking about how we choose movies for the boys and use Common Sense Media - probably not as it’s intended. Then we briefly return to the topic of posting the 10 Commandments in public schools. And we finish up discussing Oklahoma and Ohio who are both trying to get in on the “let’s-shoehorn-religion-into-the-public-schools” bandwagon. Guess what - it’s all gross.
Now to links:
-
Some Kind of Wonderful is the John Hughes movie that you probably haven’t seen but should. Two words: Elias Koteas.
-
And if you haven’t dug into David Cronenberg’s back catalog - what are you doing with your life?
-
Oklahoma’s plan to make all schools teach the bible might not be working out as planned actually.
-
And here’s the law that Ohio is trying to pass to allow children to leave school for religious education during the school day.
-
And to end on something happy: Camp Quest.
The Family Skeptical: We’re a married atheist couple raising two wonderful, strange children. We ask big questions, dissect weird parenting moments, and examine how society ignores or misrepresents families like ours. If you’re any stripe of non-believer who’s involved in raising children, welcome! You are our people.
Our kids are Reader (10) and Go (8), and if you want to find out how we arrived at these peculiar pseudonyms, go back to Episode 1.
Please reach out to us at momsandpops@thefamilyskeptical.com and tell us everything we got wrong.
See a list of our episodes here.
Follow us on Instagram @thefamilyskeptical for more weird stories that Moms can’t figure out how to fit into episodes.
The Family Skeptical Cover Photo is by Jesse Valvasori Photography
Our theme music is by Jonathan Zalben and First Frame Music
Thanks for listening! If you want to support us, subscribe and tell a friend to check us out.