PODCAST

Gotta Love Family Podcast

Mary Ann Johnson

Learn how to connect everyday in everyday ways.

kids & family parenting

All Episodes

06:29

Learning Play – Creating a Rain Stick

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/09/28

I was watching Jack, almost 3, and Mary, who was 10 months old. It was getting crazy. I was trying to write an article and keep the Christmas Tree from tipping over for the third time that day. I began asking myself, “What can I get Jack interested in?” We have a large rain stick in the living room, so I got it out. Jack was fascinated. Join me as I share how I helped these very young children create and then enjoy a rainstick. We had a ball, and Jack learned so much. A great time!

10:57

9-21-25 Smarter Moves: Budget-Friendly Home Buying...

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/09/21

Most of you know that I live in a four-generation home. What caused that to happen almost fifteen years ago was my granddaughter, Maggie. She was born with severe cerebral palsy, which requires a lot of one-on-one care. It finally made sense to live together rather than having our daughter, Jodie, call for help and us driving to give it. We began by sharing a regular home. We lived in the basement apartment, and all the kids, except Maggie, could come and go as they pleased. We put in a ramp to make

06:55

Nurturing Leadership Skills in Children: Parent-Led...

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/08/31

Today, I'm sharing an article written by my friend, Laura Pearson. I've watched my daughter, Jodie, do much of what Laura has shared in this well-written article, so I can appreciate the value of the counsel. I know this information will be helpful to both you and your children. Enjoy. : ) "Leadership isn’t reserved for boardrooms or political arenas—it’s a skill set that can begin forming in the sandbox, the classroom, and the kitchen table. Parents hold a unique position to influence this growth,

08:27

A Series of Conversations – The Dissolution of a Story

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/08/24

As I’ve mentioned before, there’s a story that has caused me grief. I’ve worked on rewriting it, but it continues to morph as I move into my 9th year of caregiving. Despite the work I’ve done and the changes I’ve made, it still rears its ugly head and causes negative emotions. When it does, I take immediate control and look at how the story has changed. It’s annoying and sometimes exhausting to rework an old story, but this one has been particularly tough. I suspect that’s because, as a caregiver, I

05:22

8-17-25 Learning Play - Sewing

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/08/17

In 2012, the week after Christmas, Don and I traveled to Colorado to visit our grandkids. We loved and missed our daughter and her husband, but we went to see the grands! I’m always grateful for the time we took, in those early days, to spend time with them. Ashley, the grand in this story, is now in her mid-twenties and a wonderful hairdresser. They grow so fast, and you can’t reclaim their childhood. Hence, the perilous drive in the winter. : ) Ashley was nine and needed a bag to carry her

09:26

8-10-25 A Series of conversations - Step Out of the...

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/08/10

A few days before my 54th anniversary, May 28th, I spoke to my good friend, Joy. I had been down with bronchitis for three weeks. I was challenged to keep up with caregiving and was feeling down, not at all like myself. At the time, I was reading the book Master Your Mindpower. One exercise was to make a list of 100 things you would like to see happen in your life. I didn’t know if that was possible. Caregiving requires a lot of time and emotional and mental energy. I had given up my former life as

06:05

8-3-25 Learning Play – Chemistry Via a Child’s Spark...

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/08/03

Here is part 2 of the wonderful experience I had with my Colorado grands in the summer of 2012, as we embarked on our chemistry adventure. If you haven't listened to part 1 of this amazing learning play saga, you can find it here - https://five.libsyn.com/show/episodes/view/37552330

06:06

Learning Play – Chemistry Via a Child’s Spark - Part 1

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/07/27

The wonderful experience I had with my Colorado grands in the summer of 2012 is too long for one article, so I am breaking it into two parts. When we had this adventure, Ashley was eight, Lizzy was six, and their little brother, Parker, was three. I asked Lizzy and Ashley if they wanted to help me put some family mementoes into my hutch. It was fun work and led the girls on our chemistry adventure because of something this job sparked in them. This was such a fun experience, I know you will enjoy

13:23

7-20-25 Learning by Doing – Immersive/Experimental...

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/07/20

Learning by doing is a powerful way to teach children. When they experience something new or exciting, it’s an effective way to absorb information and to learn. Join me as I share numerous experiences I have had, and that my friend, Joy, has had, as we have helped children experience the power of immersive learning. It will assist you to give your children more powerful learning expereiences.

08:01

7-13-25 Learning Play - Dragonflies and Katydids

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/07/13

Sometimes something happens that dictates what you introduce to your children or grandchildren. Don and I sat on the balcony to enjoy the fall sunshine one afternoon. Right there on the deck was a perfectly preserved dragonfly. These happen to be my FAVORITE insect, next to the Cat Spider, which isn’t an insect. LOL A few days later, while I was walking to the car, there on the sidewalk, in plain sight, was a magnificent and dead katydid. Eureka, what an amazing find!!! You don’t see them often. I

03:14

A Series of Conversations - Do you Need a Reminder to...

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/07/06

On my daily worksheet, I have ‘smile’ in the section titled Care for Self. Yup, I must remind myself to check in and see if I've made the effort to smile during some of my busy and often chaotic days. Recently, I had a conversation with my friend, Livia. She has an alarm set on her phone that reminds her to smile. Whew, I am not so weird. The truth is, we need prompts to remind us to do the things that often get left behind in the business of the day. Join me as we explore how to make that

07:51

A series of Conversations – Get Lost, Herkimer!

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/06/29

Once a month, I talk with my friend Joy Petty. I LOVE these calls. They are interesting and resource-filled. Sometimes I share something that helps her, and she does the same for me. We both go away elevated. On one of our recent calls, the subject of how I have been feeling about writing came up. The reason it happened was that Joy said a recent article was just what she needed. She was going to be teaching a class on forms, the old word for systems. Some of what I wrote about systems was helpful

04:33

Learning Play – The Nothing Special Day

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/06/22

I have shared some wonderful Learning Pay Days. But I don’t want you to get the idea that Learning Play always requires a lot of thought or special activities. Sometimes you just get together, play, and learn. It doesn’t always require fabulous, well-researched information. There are times when we want to kick back and rest while remaining consistent in our efforts to bond, enjoy, and learn. Then, there are times when an intervening circumstance requires that we do something that takes less planning

08:29

A Series of conversations - Start Where You Are, Use...

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/06/15

A few Sundays ago, my husband tuned in to a show my mom likes to watch, Music and the Spoken Word. The episode he pulled up for her was from Jan. 12, 2025. It was an interesting and thought-provoking 30 minutes, and Don and I had a conversation about it. We had experienced what was shared. Our experiences weren’t as dramatic as the one shared in the program, but they were powerful for us, nonetheless. Join me today as I share the power of starting where you are, using what you have, and doing what

06:56

Learning Play – Inventions and Inventors

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/06/08

One day in 2011, I found the most amazing book at the library!!! I happened across it accidentally. It was about Leonardo Da Vinci and the amazing visions he had. But that wasn’t all. The book showed how, in time, all his inventive ideas were created by other people and who those people were. Oh my gosh, I wanted to share this with my grands. Join me as I share what we learned about and the Super-duper Rocket-propelled Robot we invented. You are going to love the story of when the lights went on for

09:07

5-11-2025 Do you Yell? Become a Student Learning to...

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/05/11

Recently, while rereading an article I had written in 2011, I read a note I received from a mom who wondered how I had stopped being a yeller. Here’s what she asked: “I wanted to thank you again for a great class. I wondered if you could tell me more about the yelling you used to do. I grew up in that type of household, and swore I would never be like that… but guess what, I do? I’d love to hear how you mastered that part of your life. I didn’t do it when I only had 1 or 2 children and they were

06:58

Learning Play - The Circus

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/05/04

A couple of weeks ago, I introduced 'learning play' in an article called Learning Play - Cows. It tells how valuable immersive learning is for all ages and helps you begin by learning about cows. Join me today as I share what we did to immerse ourselves in the world of the circus and the tremendous fun we had learning all about clowns, circus food, how to walk a tightrope, and how to juggle. I am sure it will help you decide to have a family activity that will be rewardingly fun and help build

11:19

4-27-25 Effective Family systems – Tips for success

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/04/27

This week, as I walked with my friends Livia and Alysia, the conversation turned to their teens and the issues surrounding accomplishing things at home. At one point, Livia mentioned the need for successful systems. I told them how interesting the conversation was because I was working on my article for today, and it was about creating systems that work. Life can be so serendipitous. : ) When I began speaking and teaching, I met a woman who became a friend and mentor, Kim Flynn. She was a systems

09:28

4-13-25 Introducing 'LearningPlay' - Cows

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/04/13

When I first began writing and publishing articles, it was in 2010. My grands, the ones I still live with, were all under five. As their grandma, I wanted to find ways to play and connect. I'm not a board game person! Tea parties and dress up are not on my list of fun things! The truth is, I like learning. I always have. I thought a lot about how I could ‘play’ with my grands and make it work for all of us. What I came up with was learning for fun. I’ve been moving articles from my old site to this

09:07

4-6-25 An Example That Will Bless Our Children

Gotta Love Family Podcast ·

2025/04/06

Your love of learning and growing is a legacy you leave for your children. But how can you find the time to read, study, or write while raising a family? It can be a challenge, but I know it can be done becuase I am doing it now, amid the chaos of a four-generation home, caregiving, and a busy life. This is something we can all do. Join me as I share an example of the importance of giving your children an example of learning and growth. This can be done by anyone, no matter your circumstances. Let

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