PODCAST · kids
Mom Wars
by Ricochet
Bethany Mandel and Kara Kennedy are taking on the mommy wars head on; talking the latest hot topics in parenting, relationships, dating and more.
Episodes
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Cornell and Other R-rated Subjects
Bethany and Kara dive into the Cornell case, and what it says about sex. This isn’t an episode to listen to around your kids or our family members!
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Betrayal
This week, Bethany sits down with her old Ladybrains co-host Mary Katharine Ham to discuss the viral New York Times Magazine essay about how Nikole Hannah-Jones betrayed her daughter by sending her to a failing New York City public school. Note: This episode was recorded before the release of the...
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Skipping School
This week, Kara and Bethany are joined by Dixie Dillon Lane, the author of the book Skipping School: A history of American homeschooling and how it went mainstream. They talk... homeschooling, you guessed it.
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Sucked into the Algorithm
This week, Bethany is joined by Theresa Payton, the CEO of Fortalice Solutions. They discuss how the algorithms on social media gave us Lindsay Clancy defenders and Luigi Mangione fans. Theresa, who was the first female White House chief information officer (serving under President George W.…
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Turning Kids into Readers with Ann Koffsky
Bethany is joined by Ann Koffsky, one of her children's favorite authors. Ann has written over 30 Jewish books for children, and they discuss the Jewish holiday season, and some tricks for raising a reader. Note: This episode was supposed to debut right before Rosh Hashanah but could not because…
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Classically Instructed
In this episode, Bethany sat down with Julie Apel, the Assistant Headmaster of Hillsdale Academy to discuss classical education and some of the incredible things that Hillsdale has to offer parents passionate about educating their children, homeschooling or not. You can learn more about…
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A Head Start with Mr. Adams
This week, Bethany is joined by Assistant Secretary Alex Adams to discuss changes to the Head Start program and address critics of the announcement. They also discuss progress on the work to prevent states from seizing the Social Security survivor benefits of children in foster care, updating a...
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Strictly Katharine Birbalsingh
This week, Bethany is joined by Katharine Birbalsingh, Britain’s Strictest Headmistress and the host of the new podcast Strictly Education. They discuss parenting philosophy and how parents can tighten the reins at home and school to create a more pleasurable experience for the entire family.
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American Parents Coalition
This week, Bethany sat down with Alleigh Marré, the Executive Director of the American Parents Coalition, to discuss how to keep families safe from trans-mania at the gym, the pediatrician's office, and more. If you or someone you love is a member of the YMCA gyms or send a child to sleepaway…
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Grande Conversations
In this week's episode, Bethany sits down with DailyWire's Upstream editor Madeline Fry Schultz to talk about the last time they got together in person—in labor and delivery—and how we should be talking about Ariana Grande.
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Houston, We're Solving a Problem
This week, Bethany sat down with Houston Independent School District's Superintendent Mike Miles to discuss how the urban district is turning things around, providing a model for other struggling school districts across the country. You can read Bethany's reporting about Houston's success in the...
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Nach Yomi (A Very Kosher Episode)
This week Bethany sat down with Adina Shmidman, the Director of the Orthodox Union's Women's Initiative and the queen of a daily learning program called "Nach Yomi" to discuss daily Bible study and how moms and all women can delve into text learning, Jewish or not! Bethany has been participating…
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A New Chapter House
This week, Bethany sat down with Josh and Hannah Centers, the publishers of a new publishing imprint called Chapter House Books, to talk about the state of children's literature, reading, and how parents can raise enthusiastic learners. You can enter to win the first two volumes of their new…
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Glenn Beck Carries a Torch for America
Bethany and Kara have the honor to sit down and talk to Glenn Beck (yes, that Glenn!) about his incredible new initiative for patriotic families, The Torch, and about what families need to do to equip their kids to grow to love America, especially in our 250th year. Happy Fourth of July! Excerpt...
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Fables for the American Republic
Bethany sat down with Professor Matt Mehan, Associate Dean and Associate Professor of Government at Hillsdale in DC about his new book, The American Book of Fables, that was released last month. We have a wide-ranging conversation about the importance of fables, homeschooling as the Founders…
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Kara's Comeback
Kara makes a triumphant return to the podcast after her chaotic maternity leave, ready to talk about the birth of her second daughter, Sloane. She and Bethany discuss life with two under two, and how life with two feels somehow harder than life with six
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Are the Kids Alright?
Bethany is joined this week by Emily Elkins, Vice President of the Cato Institute and a mother of three. She dives into reams of data she's acquired about how kids these days are doing. Buckle up, it's a bit depressing.
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Poisoned Ivies
This week Bethany is joined by Congresswoman Elise Stefanik to talk about her new book, Poisoned Ivies, about how parents can navigate *these times* with their toddlers and young adult children alike, and what it it's like as a young mother serving as a Member of Congress. You can read Bethany's...
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Bridget Phetasy
In this episode, Bethany is joined by writer and comedian Bridget Phetasy to talk about how becoming a late-in-life mother was transformative, and how our culture gets the narrative wrong on motherhood. Phetasy is the host of the podcasts Walkins Welcome and Dumpster Fire.
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With Six You Get...
Bethany is joined this week by a fellow mother of six, Katie Carney, to talk about growing up in a big family and deciding to have one as well. Katie is married to the pro-natalist crusader Tim Carney, author of Alienated America and Family Unfriendly.
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Open Marriages Never Work
Bethany is joined this week by the Free Press's Kat Rosenfield to talk about the situation in young adult publishing and the polyamarous craze, and her column on Lindy West.
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Staying Sane
In this episode, Bethany spoke with Christina Smith, a mom of 1.75 and the Consumer Center Director for the Taxpayers Protection Alliance, about how American moms who are MAHA can also stay sane.
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Mom in a Time of War
In this week's episode, Bethany sits down with Senior Political Correspondent at Jewish Insider, Lahav Harkov, talking about what it's like to be a mother in Israel amid yet another war. With her husband serving in the military reserves, Lahav is juggling parenting 3.75 children while also...
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Infertile but Fruitful
It’s Bethany’s first episode driving solo with Kara out on maternity leave. Mazal tov and welcome to Sloane! Bethany sits down with Leigh Fitzpatrick Snead, author of the new book, Infertile but Fruitful. A Catholic adoptive mom of three, Snead talks about her infertility journey and her advice…
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Freely Sober
Bethany and Kara welcome in Ericka Andersen, author of the new book Freely Sober, how a former "Wine Mom" came to the realization that she needed a way out of a habitual and destructive relationship with alcohol.
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Abortion Boom and the Sandwich Generation
This week's episode was inspired by a couple of pieces Kara wrote, including "The British Baby Bust" for The Free Press. Bethany's book link this week: Act Natural: A Cultural History of Misadventures in Parenting by Jennifer Traig
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The Doctor is In
Pediatrician Dr Ali Carine rejoins the show where we discuss and break down the new CDC vaccine schedule changes and the controversial updated food pyramid emphasizing meat and whole milk with reduced grains. The Moms and the Doctor are in.
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Is There Kosher Food at Ben-Gurion Airport?
We're back to answer some burning questions, such as "Should you date someone you don't want to marry?", "Is it ok to hate prenatal yoga?" and more importantly, "Did you pick up my keys?" The ladies recap their holiday trips as Kara does "A Pregnant Woman's Christmas in Wales" and Bethany…
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Boy Moms and Gentle Parenting
Bethany is packing six kids for Greece and Israel, Kara has just imported sausage rolls via Belgium and sent her husband to Alaska on a whim, and somehow that all leads to… Grandma Jan and the daughters-in-law she tries to leave at home during her family vacay. The moms unpack the viral “grandma...
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Call the Midwife
In this week’s episode, we kicked things off by swapping midwife horror stories and debated the question every expectant mother eventually faces: to doula, or not to doula?
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Fat Jabs and Pelvic Floors
In the latest episode of The Mom Wars, Bethany talks us through her weightloss journey with Zepbound, and the girls discuss the latest postpartum body discourse.
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Redemptive Birth and Restorative Reproductive Medicine
Madeline Schultz rejoins the Mom Wars after the birth of her second baby, which she calls redemptive. She dives into her latest piece about Restorative Reproductive Medicine and how it found itself in the culture war up against IVF. Washington Examiner artucle: Why is the Right fighting over IVF?
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New Friends and Free Births
In this lively and intimate episode, Bethany Mandel and Kara Kennedy are joined by Arden Jamison, a woman she recently bonded with on a homeschooling apple-picking trip — the kind of instant connection that happens when you realize someone else also wrangles a throng of kids.The trio dives deep...
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Born Lucky
"Dad will tell you he believed fixing me was only possible because of my 'intelligence,' but I would counter and say it couldn’t have happened without his love." So writes Leland Vittert, anchor at NewsNation and former foreign correspondent for Fox News. Diagnosed with what we now understand as...
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Home Schooling and Guilty Pleasures
Second-generation homeschooling mom Caitlin Francis (@MrsCMFrancis on X) joins the program for a wide ranging discussion including what everybody is watching on television - with and without their husbands.
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With Six You Get Savings
This is a much requested episode about finances for six kids and how Bethany saves and invests for each of them. We also discuss a very interesting and dramatic longform piece in Wired about surrogacy. And, of course, gossip about our lives.
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Influentially Jewish
Melinda Strauss (@therealmelindastrauss) is a New York-based Jewish content creator and influencer with over 1.6 million followers on TikTok and Instagram. She is celebrated for her engaging and educational content, which explores Orthodox Judaism, kosher recipes, Jewish history, Antisemitism…
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Resilience
This week, Bethany and Kara are joined by Brielle Persun, a beloved book influencer whose passion for reading has built a vibrant community online. Earlier this year, Brielle experienced the sudden loss of her husband—a life-altering tragedy that could have silenced her spark. Instead, she’s…
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Defending Education
This week Bethany and Kara are joined by Nicki Neily, the President of Defending Education. They discuss how the madness usually associated with higher ed has now filtered down in the world of K through 12 and what you can do about it. Neily is the President & Founder of Defending Education and...
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Classically SAHM
Abby Roth, aka, Classically Abby, joins Bethany and Kara to talk about being a "First-Generation SAHM" (Stay At Home Mom) Check out Abby's new Substack at thefirstgensahm.substack.com
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Pregnancy and Antidepressants
According to the CDC, almost 10% of American women of child bearing age are on SSRIs - Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors - a class of antidepressants that include such medications as Lexapro, Prozac and Zoloft. But are they safe to take during pregnancy? Tracy Beth Høeg, MD, PhD and Senior...
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House Call from Nurse Kate
Kate Johnson, an RN who spent most of her 10-year career working in critical care at a Washington, DC trauma center and who now devotes herself to promoting preventative care and living a healthy lifestyle, drops by to discuss MAHA and the wonders of living in Florida. You can follow her on...
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Mom-Mobiles and Sleepover Stories
Bethany and Kara are joined by fellow mom of six and television booking producer Daniella Tasca Taylor. They discuss how to exercise trust in big families when it comes to letting your kids have an independent life, and how that sometimes backfires.
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Unadvertised Joy
Another TMI episode we hope our husbands don't listen to. Bethany and Kara discuss the unadvertised joys of childbirth and about when Bethany ran into the SLOTUS last weekend. Also, Kara shares some news...
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Keeping Abreast (or Two)
After being on the road on their summer holidays, Bethany and Kara catch up and discuss how they’ve been keeping their kids entertained in the heat. As always, the conversation soon shifts and Bethany explains the dramatic story of how her and Seth met.
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Cry It Out
In the latest episode of the Mom Wars Bethany and Kara discuss sleep training methods and how you should probably just cry it out. Also: the experts are all nuts and the toxicity of mommy spaces.
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European Vacation
Bethany and Kara catch up after Bethany's trip to London with five kids and no husband.
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Secondary Infertility
Madeline Fry Schultz, the Contributors Editor at the Washington Examiner talks about the myth of “family planning” and the realities of secondary infertility.
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The Family That Flies Together
In this episode we discuss Whether families should pay extra for airplane seats together Britain's push to ban all ed tech in classrooms How having babies codes right wing Also: Bethany's love letter to her menstrual cup (so male listener discretion is advised,)
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Moms War at the Supreme Court
This week on the Mom Wars podcast Bethany and Kara discuss Montgomery County and the Supreme Court, the Trump administrations pro-natal incentives, and RFK Jr and vaccines. Plus the big question right now: would you leave your kid in a hotel room?
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Mom Wars have?
Mom Wars currently has 55 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Mom Wars about?
Bethany Mandel and Kara Kennedy are taking on the mommy wars head on; talking the latest hot topics in parenting, relationships, dating and more.
How often does Mom Wars release new episodes?
Mom Wars has 55 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Mom Wars?
You can listen to Mom Wars on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Mom Wars?
Mom Wars is created and hosted by Ricochet.
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