ADV #239: The Patron of Podcasts
Saying Goodbye to Jody
In case you missed this last week, we had a very emotional few days last week as our family dog, Jody, suddenly got sick and made a turn for the worse.
Celebrating St. Max
As we recorded on his feast day, we share how instrumental St. Maximilian Kolbe was in the ongoing success of Rosary Army and SQPN, and how he continues to inspire us to this day by his love of others, Mary, and the use of technology to evangelize in creative ways.
The Assumption and Hector's Anniversary
We also discuss the importance of this week's Holy Day of Observation, which coincides with both the first day of school, as well as the third anniversary of Jennifer's dad's passing.
Don't Miss Out!
And lastly, a reminder to make sure you sign up for our FREE online course before it's too late!
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Yesterday was a Tough Day
Yesterday was a tough day for our family.
You see, on January 1, 2007, our family took a huge leap of faith. I'd just resigned from my career in the IT industry so that Jennifer and I could work as full-time media missionaries, creating podcasts and video and other fun resources to help people through life.
Given that we'd just taken a huge financial risk by giving up health insurance and a steady paycheck, we're still not sure what compelled us the next day to adopt a rescue dog.
But this 9 month old black dog named Jody just seemed to pick us, as if we were already hers. As we were deciding what to do, she even let our then two-year-old son Tommy slowly lead her along by a leash, staying by his side with each step. She was gentle and playful and there was just something about her that made our entire family know she was supposed to come home with us.
Soon after, we began producing our That Catholic Show series and Jody played a major role in the very first video (but my favorite Jody appearance was her cameo in episode 7).
In the ensuing years, Jody's occasional barks and jangling chains made many appearances on various podcasts and our former radio program on SiriusXM.
She watched over our daughter Lily when she was born in 2009, and was there with us every step of the way through future job changes and two cross country moves.
When Jennifer's mother moved in with us a couple years ago, she and Jody -- now over a decade old -- developed a certain kinship, these two elderly ladies regularly resting within close proximity of each other on the main floor of our house.
Then earlier this week we noticed a large mass on Jody's right side, and she suddenly became lethargic and stopped eating. When we took her to the vet on Tuesday, it was suggested that a series of medications could bring down the inflammation in her kidneys, pancreas, and stomach. But two days later, the mass had nearly quadrupled in size and the doctor confirmed what we already suspected. The mass was inoperable and there was little we could do to ease Jody's pain.
So while Jennifer and our son, Walter, stayed at the vet, I drove home to get the other kids and my mother-in-law so they could say their goodbyes. Even though Jody would soon turn thirteen, we were all in complete disbelief that her end was already here.
We all gathered then around this suddenly very old dog who never stopped acting like a puppy until this very week. We said a prayer and thanked God for our time with Jody, and for giving her to our family. And we sat with Jody as the doctor administered two shots and our good girl took her last breath.
We knew this day would happen. Animals and humans all come to their inevitable end. But still, we were as shocked by our grief as we were by Jody's sudden illness and death.
When we returned home, we put away her dog dishes and swept the floor. We saw her everywhere we looked.
As the day progressed, we were all very, very tired. We made the obligatory Facebook post and were comforted by the kind words that so many people shared.
Jennifer, exhausted from grieving with the children and from her own sadness, went to bed at 8:00, an unusually early hour for her. Our younger three kids began prepping for bed shortly thereafter as Walter and I attempted to distract ourselves with an inane 1990's Adam Sandler movie (Billy Madison, for those who are curious).
But then something completely unexpected happened.
Around 9:30 PM Walter got a text:
"Hey, we're outside."
He jumped up and went to the front door where three of his friends stood in the dark bearing gifts: two pizzas, and boxes of cookies and muffins.
They'd seen Walt's own Instagram post from earlier in the day and came to cheer us up.
So Jennifer got out of bed. The other kids came back downstairs. Tommy brought his rabbit, Hazel, to the living room, and our cat Marty came in to see what all the commotion was about.
For the next hour we ate and laughed and played with our two remaining pets. Our children forgot about their grief for awhile, as they laughed with Walter's friends.
And so did we.
We were comforted by others who Jennifer and I barely even know. These three teenagers, all recent high school graduates, had the character and thoughtfulness to seek out and comfort not only their friend, Walter, but his family, as well.
Some people may say Jody was just a dog, and that perhaps we were taking it too hard. But these three teens saw what yesterday truly was: an opportunity to bring joy to the lives of others.
I went to bed last night thinking not only of our good fortune at having had such a good dog in our family, and from experiencing the unconditional love of one of God's creatures in this mutt of various breeds. But more than anything, I found myself so grateful that three wise teens showed up at our door late at night bearing gifts of food, compassion and love.
Who do you know that could benefit from an unexpected phone call or visit from you this weekend?
Your sudden appearance may mean more to them than you will ever know.
Yesterday was a tough day for our family. But it was a very blessed one, as well.
ADV #238: Rocky Mountain High
It's Not a Tumor
This week's show kicks off with a conversation about how well we've indoctrinated our children to appreciate classic movies, as well as continually introduce them to highly quotable movies. Speaking of great quotes, we also explain why we were so incredibly proud of our son Walter for the awesome movie quote he chose for his senior yearbook quote.
Greg's New Amino Acid Protocol
We were a day late in recording because Greg got a wee bit queasy from the amino acid nutrients he's started taking to build up his neurotransmitters. We discussed the first day of taking TWENTY-FIVE pills (!) and what our hopes are going forward with this new therapy.
Jennifer's Whirlwind Colorado Trip
And lastly, Jennifer recounts her excellent visit back to Colorado and some much-needed mother/son time with our oldest child, Sam. They hit up a concert (check out the artwork Sam did for the band, Aloris), saw some old friends, hiked so much that Jennifer sprained her ankle, and visited three different churches.
Happiness On Demand FREE COURSE Now Available!
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Desperately Seeking Truth
Happiness On Demand FREE Course NOW AVAILABLE
To start off this week's show, we're super excited to announce that registration for our brand new FREE video course, Happiness On Demand, is now open for a limited time!
In this course we'll challenge you to ask if happiness can be "on demand" or controlled, and show you how greater happiness leads to greater success in your relationships, work, and personal life. Greater happiness makes it possible for us to do things we never knew we were capable of.
We'll show you how to get more happiness in life through simple tools and exercised that result in huge changes.
Sign up now to get the FREE Happiness on Demand course right now!
Voicemail No More
We kick off the show by sadly saying goodbye to our voicemail line. After many years of service, it just got too pricy and too problematic. Going forward, if you'd like to share your beautiful voice with us, just record a message on your phone or computer and email it to us at feedback@gregandjennifer.com.
Additionally, you can find our snail mail and contact form here.
Cardinal McCarrick Resignation
Next, we share the news about Cardinal McCarrick's resignation over the weekend, and what that means for the laity going forward.
In a nutshell, the Church needs cleaning. But as always, we need to start with ourselves. How much do we allow ourselves to be challenged? How much do we question if the "truths" we hold are actually true, or if they're just things we'd like to be true?
Books That Changed Our Lives
We wrap up the show by sharing some of the books that have changed our lives, and the reasons why. Next week we'll continue this discussion by diving into the specific faith-based books that made the biggest impact.
The books we mentioned this week include:
NON-FICTION BOOKS
Hemingway: A Life without Consequences by James Mellow
Jeff Herman’s Guide to Publisher’s, Editors, and Literary Agents (2000 edition)
Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
NOVELS (Both Fiction and Historical)
Lay Seige to Heaven by Louis de Wohl
Empire strikes back novelization
The Little Friend by Donna Tartt
Watership Down by Richard Adams
Replay by Ken Grimwood
The World According to Garp by John Irving
Happiness On Demand FREE Course NOW AVAILABLE
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Pulling Weeds in the Church
Revisiting the controversial topic of Cardinal McCarrick, we go full-throttle in this episode as we candidly share some of the ugliness in Church leadership from an insider's view having worked for Archdioceses and other organizations over the past decade. In doing so, we wrestle with when it's prudent and helpful to challenge Church leadership and when is it spiteful and hurtful.
From there, we give an honest update on how things are going with our family during our transition to working for ourselves full-time, and the difficulties that go along with it, which lead to our asking two pointed questions at the end of the show:
- If we could teach you how to do ONE thing, what would you want us to teach you (either both of us together, or separately)?
- If we could make ONE non-churchy product (i.e., no Bible studies, etc.), what would you want us to make that you'd actually pay for?
Leave your comments below and let us know!
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Addressing Cultural Appropriation
Jewish Roots of the Eucharist
Jennifer has been diving deeply into Dr. Brant Pitre's book, The Jewish Roots of the Eucharist, which has lead to more frequent daily Mass attendance for both Greg and Jennifer.
The discussion of the book swerved into the more sensitive topic of the melting pot of cultural appropriation, and the modern-day difficulty of appreciating other cultures without accidentally offending those to who the culture belongs.
Lastly, Lily's interest in cross country has provided inspiration for perseverance both in health as well as our faith lives.
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The Miracle of Parkinson’s Disease
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Blast from the Past
On this week's show we're joined by our old buddy, Michael McCaughey, who we became great friends with during the first year of our marriage. Greg and Michael first met at a network gaming party in 1995 and shortly thereafter they shared adjacent cubes while working at LOTUS software's tech support division.
Over the next few years the three of us went to tons of concerts, movies, and even vacation together. Michael was the first person to ever encourage us to go into business for ourselves.
As we started having kids and moved to another part of Atlanta, our visits with Michael became fewer and farther between. Then, around 2008, Michael was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. Over the next several years we lost contact with each other for various reasons, finally reconnecting last fall.
During the intervening years, Michael sought non-traditional ways to not only overcome his Parkinson's, but discovered groundbreaking ways of addressing a multitude of neurological disorders including depression, anxiety, and more.
Given the way our 2018 has been, it's been a Godsend to have Michael back in our lives. And for the 4th of July, Michael came to visit us and meet some of our children for the first time.
On this episode we share Michael's medical miracles, his regained health after being completely disabled by Parkinson's, and his quest to help others battling neurological challenges.
If you or someone you know would like more info about Michael's treatment and how it could help you, click here to send him an email.
As promised, here are some photos from our heyday with Michael, in the few short years before we became parents:
Greg, Jennifer, and Michael (sometime around 1996 or so).
Greg, Jennifer, and Michael (2018)
One of our many late-night jam sessions at Michael's place. Interestingly, Michael is playing one our guitars and Greg is playing Michael's.
Inside joke pose while on vacation in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida (February 1997).
Another jam session pic. The woman in the plaid shirt was actually Jennifer's matron of honor when we got married. Another fellow LOTUS friend, Andy, is on the colorful bass guitar.
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5 Ways to Avoid the Mid-Day Crash
Episode #233: How to Fight the Mid-Afternoon "Crash" when sleepiness tries to take over!
You have work to do, grocery shopping that needs done, kids demanding attention.
And you're tired. Wiped out. Physically and mentally tapped.
But you don't have time to take a nap, and need to wake up NOW!
In this episode we dive into 5 Ways to Avoid the Mid-Day Crash:
- Rethink how you think about breakfast, lunch, and dinner
- Wean away old habits
- Practice quick switch activities
- Switch your sweets
- Evaluate what and why you have unhealthy habits
ALSO: We've had the chance to spend a lot of time visiting our friend Kyle Heimann on his radio show. Here are links to listen:
Episode 467 - Mary, Podcasting and More
Episode 445 - Rosary App
Episode 291 - Tied in Knots
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ADV #232: Get the Log Out
We celebrated Jennifer's 48th birthday with a family road trip to Lake Michigan, we shared new ways to stay in touch with our co-producers, and discussed the frustrating news of Cardinal McCarrick's recent removal from ministry and what it means for the future of the Catholic Church.
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ADV #231: Happiness On Demand
This past Saturday Jennifer's mother went back to Atlanta to visit family for a few weeks, leaving us to re-acclimate to being in our house with just the kids. But we're still incredibly busy, nonetheless, and talk about the importance of setting goals, of dreaming big, and trusting with all that we've got.
We also talk about how to flip our own internal switches to generate more happiness in our lives whenever we need it.
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ADV #230: Jennifer’s Obstinance
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What started as a conversation about the difficulty of keeping up with mowing the grass in Indiana turned into a deep dive into what it means to completely surrender yourself to Jesus through Mary, which in turn brought up those perennial Catholic questions:
How is Mary a model for us?
Why do Catholics pray to Mary?
Why not just go straight to Jesus?
By looking at our relationship with Mary, we further talked about how God is taking us deeper into better understanding our own need for greater humility and trust in our current circumstances of trying to build up a business.
Along with all that, we also share how much fun we had creating our new co-producer video.
Want to be a Co-Producer? Check out this video to learn how:
Rosary Army App Downloads and Reviews
And lastly, don’t forget to download and review the all new Rosary Army Mobile app! Details and links to download can be found here.
ADV #229: Two Down, Three To Go
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Walt’s graduation brought up some interesting conversations with our son Ben, we ate a lot of tacos (and other junk), and ponder about the possibility of moving again (and how that would most likely destroy Jennifer).
If your days are filled with more uncertainty than stability, more worries than dreams, Exceptional You is custom made to help you overcome your specific problems and limits to finally experience the EXCEPTIONAL life you were made for.
Maybe your emotions are out of whack and uncontrollable from one day to the next.
Maybe you feel like you totally missed your calling and purpose in life and now feel unsatisfied and frustrated with your job and finances and how you spend your time.
Maybe your relationships feel like they’re on autopilot.
Maybe you feel this overwhelming pressure building up inside of you that just doesn’t feel right. It feels like it’s going to pop and something has to change. But you’re not quite sure what.
Your future depends on what you do today. But past failures, pains, and more keep can keep you locked into beliefs that worked in the past, but don’t work anymore. Transform your future, discover more joy, and become the person you are meant to be.
Exceptional YOU is a self-paced journey of discovery to walk away from everything that’s holding you back so that you can discover the life that’s been waiting for you.
Registration for Exceptional YOU is NOW OPEN and the online sessions will unlock to those registered on June 11, 2018.
Registration for the next Exceptional TOGETHER Online Marriage Conference has begun accepting early registrations and access to those sessions will be available July 9, 2018.
Don’t miss out on this exceptional opportunity!
Rosary Army App Downloads and Reviews
And lastly, don’t forget to download and review the all new Rosary Army Mobile app! Details and links to download can be found here.
ADV #228: Off the Walter
Our 18-year-old recent graduate joins us on the show to share the ups and downs of transferring to a new school, making friends, and now launching his own video editing company, Off the Walter. We’re very proud of this boy, especially considering the numerous challenges he’s had to overcome and sacrifices made over the last couple of years.
Additionally, we dive into a huge stack of awesome email in response to Greg’s new self-employment, our Exceptional Change programs, and the recent positive launch of the official Rosary Army Mobile App.
And as a reminder, registration is now open for the June session of EXCEPTIONAL YOU.
If your days are filled with more uncertainty than stability, more worries than dreams, Exceptional You is custom made to help you overcome your specific problems and limits to finally experience the EXCEPTIONAL life you were made for.
Maybe your emotions are out of whack and uncontrollable from one day to the next.
Maybe you feel like you totally missed your calling and purpose in life and now feel unsatisfied and frustrated with your job and finances and how you spend your time.
Maybe your relationships feel like they’re on autopilot.
Maybe you feel this overwhelming pressure building up inside of you that just doesn’t feel right. It feels like it’s going to pop and something has to change. But you’re not quite sure what.
Maybe it’s one or all of these things, or some other nagging thought in the back of your head that’s constantly whispering:
“You’re unhappy.”
“It’s never going to get better than this.”
“You made mistakes and now you’re stuck with them.”
Spurred by the amazing response to our Exceptional Together program, we’ve launched a second installment of Exceptional Together in July, but REGISTRATION IS OPEN for the first Exceptional YOU Online Conference!
Your future depends on what you do today. But past failures, pains, and more keep can keep you locked into beliefs that worked in the past, but don’t work anymore. Transform your future, discover more joy, and become the person you are meant to be.
Exceptional YOU is a self-paced journey of discovery to walk away from everything that’s holding you back so that you can discover the life that’s been waiting for you.
PLUS – The first TEN registrants for Exceptional YOU will also get up to one hour of personal coaching with Greg and Jennifer!
Registration for Exceptional YOU is NOW OPEN and the online sessions will unlock to those registered on June 11, 2018.
Registration for the next Exceptional TOGETHER Online Marriage Conference has begun accepting early registrations and access to those sessions will be available July 9, 2018.
Don’t miss out on this exceptional opportunity!
Rosary Army App Downloads and Reviews
And lastly, don’t forget to download and review the all new Rosary Army Mobile app! Details and links to download can be found here.
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