Respectful Parenting: Janet Lansbury Unruffled · JLML Press

3 Ways to Lift Your Parenting Spirits (with Loryn Brantz)

·34 min·3 clips

Janet Lansbury welcomes Emmy-winning author Lauren Brantz to discuss how her unique background influences parenting.

This episode features parenting expert Janet Lansbury and her guest, author and illustrator Loryn Brantz, a mother of two and a two-time Emmy Award winner for her costume design work on Sesame Street. They discuss Brantz's new book, "Poems of Parenting," and its role in helping parents navigate daily frustrations. The conversation also revisits Brantz's family life, including the experience of raising a child with disabilities and now managing two children with different needs. Brantz shares that her book contains short, relatable poems meant to offer perspective and lift parental spirits. She describes the current dynamic of parenting two children, noting her second child presents different challenges than her first. Brantz openly states she is managing but feels "pretty tired." The discussion explores how parents can feel validated by seeing their own struggles reflected in art. Lansbury highlights the book as a top gift recommendation for Mother's Day or Father's Day. A key insight is that creative expression, like Brantz's poems, can help parents reframe difficult moments and find shared community. Brantz's background in creating for Sesame Street and Jim Henson's workshop informs her empathetic and artistic approach to depicting parenthood. The episode suggests that acknowledging the universal "doldrums" of raising kids is a powerful step toward feeling less alone. Brantz's personal admission of fatigue adds a layer of authenticity to the conversation. The tone is warm, conversational, and supportive, focusing on shared experience and emotional resonance. The style is an informal interview between two parents, one an expert and the other an artist reflecting on daily life. Parents feeling isolated or worn down by daily routines would find comfort and camaraderie in this episode. Listeners seeking strict developmental advice or crisis management strategies might find the focus on poetic reflection less immediately practical.

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