Parenting Creative is a podcast that explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues.
Our goal is to build community and connection for those living deep in the struggles of caring for others while at the same time prioritizing their own creative lives.
Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
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Welcome to Parenting Creative, a podcast that explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues.
This spring we’ll be launching our first season, where host Nikko Snyder will delve into the creative lives of parents making art that ranges from theatre and music to poetry, journalism and craft.
Our goal is to build community and connection for those living deep in the struggles of caring for others while at the same time prioritizing their own creative lives.
Parenting Creative resists the pressure to buy more, hustle harder, and chase the impossible standard of ‘perfect’ parenting. We believe parents deserve to be fully realized humans—and that prioritizing our creative lives makes us better parents.
Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
Visit parentingcreative.com to sign up for our email newsletter, so you can find out when we launch and when new episodes come out.
Nichole Huck: An Introverted Uber Driver's Worst Nightmare
Season 1 · Episode 3
Thursday, April 3, 2025 • Duration 55:39
Nikko Snyder talks to journalist, dancer, photographer and parent of four, Nichole Huck, about parenting in community; creating meaning by sharing each other's stories; the power of everyday micro-connections; jazz as a metaphor for parenting; listening to people even when you disagree with them; giving ourselves permission to enjoy the different seasons of life; raising boys in the age of impossible masculinity; high-fiving strangers; and the curative properties of Bison heart.
Nichole shares her insights on the role of current events in family life, navigating masculinity with children in today's society, and the power of curiosity in fostering connections with others. The conversation highlights the beauty found in everyday life and the significance of listening to diverse voices. In this conversation, Nichole Huck shares her insights on parenting, community, and the importance of micro connections in daily life. She discusses her experiences as an extroverted parent, the dynamics of raising children with varying personalities, and the significance of community support in parenting. Nichole emphasizes the need to let go of perfectionism and embrace the beauty of small interactions that can make a difference in people's lives. The conversation highlights the importance of finding joy in the chaos of parenting and the value of creating a supportive network for both parents and children.
Beautiful Mess - A series created by Nichole that tells the stories of diverse parents and their hard-earned wisdom.
Parenting Creative explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues. Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
Nikko Snyder Gets on Stage to Play the Damn Gig
Season 1 · Episode 2
Thursday, April 3, 2025 • Duration 10:58
Summary
In this episode, Parenting Creative host Nikko Snyder shares her journey of launching Parenting Creative and exploring the intersection of creativity and parenting. She reflects on her personal experiences, the challenges of maintaining a creative identity while raising children, and the importance of community support for artist parents. Throughout, she emphasizes the need for connection and the value of diverse artistic expressions.
Parenting Creative explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues. Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
Visit parentingcreative.com to join our email newsletter, or follow Parenting Creative on Instagram and Bluesky. You can also support the podcast by leaving a tip or becoming a founding member.
Parenting requires nothing short of Herculean fortitude.
Tough times are precisely the time when artists go to work.
It's easy to lose track of your creative self as a parent.
Art is vast. It's music, craft, storytelling, film, dance, gardening... everything.
You don't need formal training for your creative life to be legitimate.
Life is short. Try the weird hobby.
Diversity and communicating across our differences matter.
Community changes everything.
We cannot and must not be reduced to consumers.
Marya Folinsbee is Unapologetic in Art & Parenting
Season 1 · Episode 1
Thursday, April 3, 2025 • Duration 01:04:04
In this episode of Parenting Creative, host Nikko Snyder talks to theatre artist Marya Folinsbee about the relationship between creativity and parenting. They talk about resiliency, absurdism in life and in theater, sneaking up on writing, finding magic in the mundane, perseverance and how art insists upon itself (sometimes over years!), the role of solitude and retreat, redefining creative work and productivity, and Marya's new play, The Mosquitos.
Marya shares her journey as a theater artist, the evolution of her work, and how her experiences as a parent have shaped her artistic expression. The conversation emphasizes the importance of process, the value of modeling resilience and failure to children, and the transformative power of play in both parenting and creativity. Marya emphasizes the value of community and the importance of modeling independence and self-care for children, and she shares practical strategies for navigating creative challenges and redefining what counts as artistic work.
Parenting Creative explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues. Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
Visit parentingcreative.com to join our email newsletter, or follow Parenting Creative on and . You can also support the podcast by leaving a tip or becoming a founding member.
Sally Titasey offers music as medicine
Season 1 · Episode 4
Thursday, April 10, 2025 • Duration 50:37
On this episode, host Nikko Snyder talks to musician Sally Titasey, who is a member of Oh Pray Tell, a stomp, clap, and vocal harmony-driven trio. In their conversation they explore giving yourself permission to prioritize creative life, even when you know that will take you away from your kids. They also talk about centering connection over perfection, homeschooling, platonic life partners, using art to help children process and understand the world, making art with our children, creative process as a way to move through stuckness, songs as medicine, and reframing creativity as an offering to whoever needs to receive it.
Parenting Creative explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues. Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
Visit parentingcreative.com to join our email newsletter, or follow Parenting Creative on Instagram and Bluesky. You can also support the podcast by leaving a tip or becoming a founding member.
Nikko Snyder talks to Regina SK-based interdisciplinary artist, musician, poet, and parent Amber Goodwyn. In our conversation, Amber and I talk about parenting when parenting isn't central to your identity, the universality of birth and death, clear divisions of labor, performing parenting on social media, prioritizing art and refusing to feel bad about it, the final deadline (otherwise known as death), releasing perfectionism and the need for perfect conditions, and becoming ready by simply doing the thing.
Parenting Creative explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues. Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
Visit parentingcreative.com to join our email newsletter, or follow Parenting Creative on Instagram and Bluesky. You can also support the podcast by leaving a tip or becoming a founding member.
Sarah Beatty on embracing your weird
Season 1 · Episode 5
Thursday, April 17, 2025 • Duration 58:39
summary
Host Nikko Snyder talks to ceramic artist Sarah Beatty, full-time working artist and parent of two school-aged children. Sarah's business, Objects and Feelings, focuses on functional pottery and explores interactions and dynamics between people. It's also worth noting that Sarah's pottery business is currently the primary source of income for her family due to her partner's disability.
In our conversation we talk about the pressures of making art for money, especially when your family relies on that income. We also talk about disability visibility, living with ADHD and neurodiversity, not having the brain space available to make the art you want to make, but making art anyway, kin keeping or invisible labor, the value of deadlines, the boringness of perfection, enjoying your own individual weirdness and taking yourself seriously enough to follow through and not listening to the voices that say you're not good enough.
Parenting Creative explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues. Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
Visit parentingcreative.com to join our email newsletter, or follow Parenting Creative on Instagram and Bluesky. You can also support the podcast by leaving a tip or becoming a founding member.
Season 1 is a Wrap & Season 2 is Coming Soon!
Season 1 · Episode 8
Thursday, May 8, 2025 • Duration 04:53
In this mini episode, host Nikko Snyder wraps up season 1 and ties a bow around it with special thanks to season 1 guests, listeners, and supporters. She also outlines how best to support season 2 of Parenting Creative:
Keep listening (and make sure to follow or subscribe to the podcast!)
Tell a friend (or 10)... word of mouth is everything, especially when you're on a micro budget
Leave us a review (Apple podcasts or podchaser.com are good places to do this) - it only take a couple minutes, but it helps others discover the podcast and trust that it's worth a listen
Follow Parenting Creative on social media (IG, Threads, and Bluesky @parentingcreative), but BETTER YET sign up for our free email newsletter for sneak peeks, behind-the-scenes bits, guest announcements, resources and recommendations, and deeper reflections into each episode.
If you're in a position to do so, send us a tip to support our independent podcast. You can do this in USD at Support Parenting Creativeor by e-transfer directly to info@parentingcreative.com.
Thanks for listening, and come back next week for the launch of season 2!
Single Parenting on the Autism Spectrum w/ Melissa Boulianne
Season 1 · Episode 7
Thursday, May 1, 2025 • Duration 50:11
summary
In this episode of Parenting Creative, host Nikko Snyder speaks with poet, songwriter, teacher, and single parent of two Melissa Boulianne about the intersection of creativity and parenting. Melissa shares a lot of beautiful and vulnerable poetry on social media that explores her journey with single parenting and parenting a child on the autism spectrum. In their conversation they talk about the transition to single parenting, autism spectrum disorder, normalizing neurodiversity, living and writing with constant interruptions, using screen time to stay sane, learning to relent, confidence or lack thereof, when writing saves your life, and growing in ways you never imagined growing.
Parenting Creative explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues. Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
Visit parentingcreative.com to join our email newsletter, or follow Parenting Creative on Instagram and Bluesky. You can also support the podcast by leaving a tip or becoming a founding member.
Parenting and creativity often collide, leading to unique challenges.
Single parenthood can be abrupt and isolating, impacting emotional well-being.
Writing poetry has been a therapeutic outlet for processing emotions.
Teaching can be both draining and creatively fulfilling.
A child's mental health journey (Kris Alvarez Part 1)
Season 2 · Episode 1
Thursday, May 15, 2025 • Duration 01:10:40
If you or a young person in your life is struggling with mental health, know that you are not alone and that help is out there. If you are in crisis, you can call 9-8-8, ANYTIME, 24/7.
Part one of a two-part conversation with theatre artist, community magic maker and parent of two young adults, Kris Alvarez. In part one, host Nikko Snyder talks to Kris about fighting for the space to play - and not the pretend or performed play that a lot of adults do with kids, but the real serious play that has zero agenda apart from simple shits and giggles. They also talk about the fundamental importance of kindness, the gift of mentorship, and paying that forward. And they talk about navigating the serious mental illness of a child, processing that journey by making art, and how the experience can blow your capacity for unconditional love wide open.
And that's just part one! Don't miss the next episode where Kris talks about creating theatre with non-performers (including her own parents), being the child of immigrants, the integration of art into all aspects of life, and the importance of great snacks.
Parenting Creative explores the places where creative life and parenting collide, and all the magic and mess that ensues. Through deep, honest conversations with diverse artist-parents who are walking the walk, we explore both the struggles and the real, practical ways to make creativity and parenthood work—on your own terms, in ways that sustain and inspire you for the long haul. And we do it in community—because neither parenting nor creative life can thrive in isolation.
Subscribe to our free email newsletter for sneak peeks and guest announcements, behind the scenes stories and deeper reflections on each episode. Follow Parenting Creative on Instagram and Bluesky, and visit our website at parentingcreative.com.
You can also support the podcast by leaving a tip at the following link or by sending an e-transfer to info@parentingcreative.com.
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Visit parentingcreative.com to join our email newsletter, or follow Parenting Creative on Instagram and Bluesky. You can also support the podcast by leaving a tip or becoming a founding member.
