Shawn (00:05.876)

welcome everyone to episode one, season one of the Find Your Challenge podcast.

 

Shawn (00:16.312)

My name is Sean Stringham with Game On Live Studio. I'm joined here with my first guest of the podcast. is extremely appropriate that it's my better half, Melissa. Welcome, Melissa. How are you? Are you pretty excited and pretty nervous?

 

Thanks. I'm nervous. What are you nervous for? I don't know.

 

So, Melissa, this is kind of a new experience. We've been on a journey for, we just passed our 32nd year anniversary. Is that true?

 

31 coming up on.

 

Do want to? Coming up on sometimes when, you know, like, do you lose the track a little? You're together. The love is just so great that it's just like, all you need is love, right?

 

Melissa (00:53.934)

But yours just...

 

Melissa (01:01.504)

Of course.

 

Um, so Melissa, thanks for joining. I appreciate you being here. I know this is outside of your comfort zone. Uh, we're trying new things. We're trying to kick off this podcast. Um, we're talking about the whole emphasis of the podcast is about challenge and finding challenge. So I want you to think about that. Um, but I also kind of want you to think about over the last five years with game on live studio, as we have been doing, as we have been going down this pathway and building this organization and this company together.

 

What do you feel like has been the greatest challenge that we have overcome as a company? And also maybe something that we have overcome the two of us personally.

 

Oh, that's a one.

 

feel like you're always overcoming challenges with the company. That's kind of what day is it? Yeah. What day? What internet are we trying to solve for? What?

 

Shawn (01:59.223)

which did.

 

Melissa (02:08.791)

It just feels like trying to find the right...

 

right thing to solve for whatever problem presents. It just feels like those.

 

Can you think of a time maybe where we've been, you know, any event or any kind of thing where it's like, oh man, like that is the end, right? Like that is gonna be, like how are we gonna get through this type situation? And like how are we gonna pull the rabbit out of the hat this time? Can you think of anything? Two years ago.

 

Is that the first NAI 7s? the stage. What were you?

 

That was, we all, we've gone the day before and tested all of the internet and then we, and it all worked and we went to go live and none of it would go live.

 

Shawn (03:06.114)

I think I scarred you emotionally that day.

 

He did. He did. That was awful.

 

You kind of, because what happened is that like in that scenario, like you said, is that we had tested it all. had tested every single one of those internet connections and the city had turned it off that night. Like we didn't know and didn't know. And so we, that event started with, I think we had, was it all of them? can't remember if it was all of them or was it like we had like two or three.

 

got to, but I think we're running those off of, like we had brought.

 

So that's right. the fields that we were like field one and then all of those 14, 15, all of the fields that were running on their internet were down. And it was not pretty. It was terrible because we were supposed to go live at nine and I don't think we got everything live until 11 ish, right? Because I remember going over to the trailer and getting on with the IT people and amazing like how quickly.

 

Melissa (03:53.912)

Right. Right. No, was terrible.

 

Shawn (04:12.514)

That's one of the things that like one of the secrets of this job is that the IT people can do it quickly. They just need the right motivation to do it quickly. Right. Right. But they came back to us and essentially said that they had switched off or the timer had gone off or any of those kinds of things. But what do feel like in that, in that moment? Are there any specific memories of like problem solving through that, that like stand out to you?

 

I mean, we got it figured out in the end, but just the pressure and the stress of that and having people be so angry and upset that it wasn't live and knowing it wasn't our fault, but...

 

people still very, very, very frustrated. Can you think of what are some of the top moments in the last five years? Like what are moments that you look back and see as a couple that we've done together or within Goals itself? Like what's something that you are the most proud of from a game on my studio perspective? We'll talk about that.

 

Yeah.

 

Melissa (05:13.87)

Talk about that. I don't know. That just kind of feels like every time we.

 

complete a big event, you know, like you, talked before about how with JOs you went from two pools to four pools to last year doing 20 like that. That's awesome. And rugby in Florida to get everything there, get it staff, get it set up. I it just feels like a big accomplishment once we get through.

 

Once we get through it, yeah, once we get through it. Do you love that? Do you like that? Do you hate that? Like, how do you feel like in the moment with those?

 

I love it when it's done. You love it when it's done? it's done and it was successful. Okay.

 

Yeah. Okay. as opposed to if it starts, doesn't start on time and you don't love that. Yeah. you, you love it when people, yell at you at the chat though. That's the, can you think of your, one of your favorite chats of all time when we, over the last five years or like moments of like,

 

Melissa (06:03.694)

One of my favorites, yeah.

 

Melissa (06:12.47)

I had to stop wicking at the chat.

 

Do you remember the time when the guy sent us the this is how the internet works

 

yes, but that's happened more than once. Yeah. Yes, trying to explain to us.

 

All those people in the chat really just are, just have our best interest in heart. That's true. Um, okay. Fantastic. So, uh, from a, I want you to think back across your, maybe your life. Maybe that's a big picture. Maybe it's not too, like, do you, what is, what is one of the things, can be anything. What are you, one of the things you're most proud of as a woman? All right.

 

Always.

 

Melissa (06:53.346)

My kids.

 

Talk to me about your kids, our kids, should say. I shouldn't talk to him about them that way. What do you love about your kids? Why are you so proud of them?

 

I just think it's been one of the most rewarding, hardest, being a parent is one of the hardest and most rewarding jobs. I don't know what to call it. That's just awesome to see them become their own individuals and see what they do. And our kids are awesome.

 

Yeah, that's a draw.

 

Shawn (07:27.758)

Our kids are pretty cool. Like you have to be careful. You don't want to brag about your kids, but we're going to maybe brag about our kids here a little bit. Think of, want you to, and maybe what, so I want you to talk about this. You are an incredible mom, right? You are, you're an incredible mom. You have always been actively involved in their scholastics, all of those kinds of things. What are, what are the things that you, you consciously do?

 

to feel like that you've had an influence on your kids. Like what's one of the things over the last, our oldest son, Jonas is 27 years old. Like in the last 27 years, like the thing that you focus on monthly, weekly, daily, to make sure that the kids feel like they have our support or your support.

 

Melissa (08:22.296)

don't know what you see that I do. That's a hard... I feel like I try to pick up anytime they call. try to... I just try to let them know that I have their back all the time.

 

How do you do that?

 

answering every time they call. When they come and want to talk.

 

How did you? So if you, if I were another mom of that was 25, 26 years old, just starting to have babies, right? What advice would you give them?

 

Melissa (08:56.426)

advice will I give them.

 

I don't just, just be there and try to enjoy it. Like it's interesting. think that I, I enjoy Peter more than I enjoyed Jonas, not because of Jonas, but because I'm able to be more relaxed about everything. Or just able to enjoy it more as opposed to being worried about every, everything that could happen or might happen.

 

Okay.

 

Shawn (09:28.598)

Right. Do you, how has your parenting style changed then? How come?

 

way more relaxed.

 

Melissa (09:35.83)

because I think I have a better, big, big picture view that some of those little things that seemed so important aren't.

 

What do you think, name one or two of those things that back when we were having babies for the first time, Jonas's four or five, six, that you felt like, man, this is the biggest deal of all time. now, felt like now, and now, you know, 25 years later, you look back and go, yeah, that was like, that, I shouldn't have stressed of that.

 

Most things, most things. I want my kids to be kind. I want them to be, you know, good contributing members to society. want them to feel like they, they have to put in some work, but they need to treat people well. And most of the rest of it.

 

Okay.

 

Shawn (10:30.286)

Would you still enforce a 730 bedtime?

 

Maybe. Maybe.

 

Would you like, what, and so, mean, and I want to be careful saying this, like we're bragging about our own kids, but like, they're pretty, they're pretty cool human beings, right? Like we've done an okay job. Like we're not going to sit here and pat ourselves on the back, but like five for five, definitely kind of moving in the right direction, making good choices for the most part, all of those kinds of things. Like what are, but I'm curious. Like I'm, I'm the, I'm the mom sitting across the table. Like what's something specific?

 

that seemed totally overwhelming at the time, right? As a mom, that you would say to that new mom, like, man, this is how you should, like, this is, like, this is how you should chill about it. Okay?

 

grades, which I still feel are super important, but they're not everything. And once kids graduate, no one ever asks their GPA again. And it doesn't reflect on who they are.

 

Shawn (11:33.526)

And do you think that like, so do you feel like you hurt relationships because of focus on that? And how would you like, what, what's a specific strategy? Like you don't want your kids to fail out, right? But like, what, what would you do as a, as a parent of a new parent who's a kid, has a kid in fifth grade, right? and they're coming back and they're not turning in assignments or they're not doing like, how would you, how would you encourage.

 

The other? Yes.

 

Melissa (12:01.87)

figure out how, how to support, figure out why, why they don't want to turn in assignments rather than just being upset that they're not doing it. Still more into the why.

 

Got it. I want to ask you this question because I think this is something that you've been amazing at, right? As a mom is what you're a voracious reader. You love to read, right? All of those. What do you think that that has come naturally to our kids? Or do you feel like they're something that you did, something that we did? Cause pretty much five out of five, they're really enjoy reading, right? Like how.

 

I'm on.

 

Which I think is unique, right? Which I think, which I feel is unique in the world now. Like is there, what are some of the things that, cause that's definitely your department, right? Like what, how do you feel like you brought that out of them as children?

 

read all the time, went to the library all the time, like it was just part of our routine. That you'd go to the library and you pick books and you... I don't know, it just was fun. We had like, I don't know, we did like readathons in the summer, you know, let them pick their treats, let them... I don't know, but they have for the most part just liked to read, so.

 

Shawn (13:10.776)

And how do you make a m1?

 

Shawn (13:23.64)

But do you think that that is nature or nurture?

 

Some of both, probably.

 

Um, the, think one of the things that's interesting, um, to me is that, I mean, we tease about it in our family one way the other of like teaching your kids to read in a hundred days. Did, I mean, do you think that those early intervention type things, preschool, having them, like you had a goal as a mom to have them be able to read by the time they got to kindergarten. Yeah. Is that fair? Is that true? Do you think that those, that kind of stuff has impact?

 

Yeah. So I think they started school with confidence in their ability to do that already.

 

Cool. what like, expand from that, like you have worked in as PTA president, you've worked on every community council for years and years and years. Like what are some of the things that you have done personally to advocate for that kind of stuff for, uh, for our school, for the school system, for the schools that like the school our kids have attended.

 

Melissa (14:28.046)

I don't know. I don't know if that's one that we've done. I look at it now. It just isn't emphasized as much. might still be in elementary schools, but it is not emphasized as much in high school. Kids don't read in English the number of books that we used to read. They don't write as much.

 

How can we change them?

 

I've been about that all the time. don't know. I don't have the answers yet.

 

What are some of you have that like.

 

unanswered, but do you have like, like one thing like, again, now you've now because again, like you think of Samantha, right? Samantha went through a phase, which totally I feel like, personally, like influenced her future where was it fourth, fifth, sixth grade right in there where she started reading Harry Potter and like, war literally wore out the entire series of the rights, right? Is that do you? How do you how do you

 

Shawn (15:23.904)

Are there ways to, for the school system or for parents or for moms or for dads to encourage that?

 

We're combating phones. Kids don't have the attention span to sit and read like that anymore.

 

Do you think we should take their phones away? Okay. Cause you've, mean, for your community council, some of your community council stuff, like that's a new thing. Right. And is that what, what's some of the, what's some of the pushback and or pop pros that have come from that, like in terms of, creating that additional literacy. So that may be the right word to say.

 

I do.

 

Melissa (16:08.084)

Well, we haven't worked so much on creating additional literacy. We worked a little bit on having phones not be available during school so much.

 

And what's been your, has there been pushback to that?

 

sometimes parents are worried they won't be able to get ahold of their kids, won't be able to send them messages or let them know. But overall within the school, it's been a positive impact. Less, less fights, less meeting in the bathroom for bullying. They, kids, you know, junior high level, they can't have it at lunch. So they talk more at lunch, play more at lunch. It's, it's all been positive. Right.

 

do you have any other, think about like, again, think about your involvement in the school system and the community council. Like are there other big challenges? Find your challenge, right? Are there any big challenges that you're facing as a, in the community that you feel like, like what's the question like that are effect that are, that are, impacting kids now.

 

AI within schools is a big one. Okay. Because kids are, are using AI as opposed to writing their own, coming up with their own ideas. Like they're losing the ability to do that on their own.

 

Shawn (17:34.772)

losing the ability, but are they taking away the ability to learn that new tool for the workforce? Or is it they're just using it to write it as opposed to use it as a way to correct

 

Right, I think there's a difference. I think we could work to teach how to use it as a tool, but not as a substitute for doing your own work.

 

Right. No, for sure. And so is it, I don't know, right now, is AI banned in schools now?

 

They try. I mean, they have, they have tools that are supposed to pick up when it's being used and you can have repercussions from that, but how good those are, don't know.

 

What do you feel like of

 

Shawn (18:19.488)

out and maybe AI is the answer, right? Like, what do you feel like our, let's do it this way. Maybe this is a cool question. What do you feel like our older kids didn't have to deal with that maybe our younger kids do, right? And that like, if you were a parent today of a five-year-old or a six-year-old, what would keep you up at night?

 

our older kids didn't have social media, which was good. I mean, they didn't, they didn't have that pressure also of like, everyone else has a phone. don't have, I, phones are still a big, big part of it and what you can access. And, and I think people give their kids phones way too young. I think we did with a couple of our kids.

 

Gave him phones too young? huh. Who do think we gave them too young to?

 

Probably both Amelia and Megan.

 

Okay. What's your time? When do think it should happen?

 

Melissa (19:22.786)

not before high school. mean, having a text, being able to text would be one thing, but not a smart phone.

 

Do feel like we did, was okay with Peter though?

 

Yeah, he wasn't happy though. Right. Yeah.

 

And that's all right. I think that's a, I think that's one of my parenting. I think so. Yeah. I mean, I've, think that I think it's interesting now, like Jonas, the oldest kid. mean, when an iPhone came out, like he was a tween, right. At that time. Right. So it really wasn't even like, we're going to buy an iPhone for this 14 year old or 13 year old at the time. Right. Right.

 

Do you think we did a good job with that?

 

Shawn (20:06.894)

And I think it's interesting, like the relationship with social media, to that phone, like, I mean, Jonas and Samantha don't love social media, don't participate in it at all. Um, Amelia and Megan both do and Peter probably sneaks it. Let's be honest, right? Probably sneaks it, like, uh, so I mean, think it's been interesting to see their different relationships with social media. mean, really Amelia. Right.

 

begins off of most.

 

But I think it's also been interesting to watch to see how they have kind of dabbled in it and they decided like, don't want to do that. Why do think that is? mean, you have a lot of conversations with them. Like, why do you feel like they choose not to participate?

 

because they end up having hurt feelings or feeling left out when they see things that they weren't invited to or a part of. And so it's just easier that and recognizing that it's sometimes just a big time waste.

 

Right. Yeah. That's interesting. It'll be interesting to see what happens in social media, right? If you fast forward 10 years from now to see how it's used, where it's being used, all that kind of good stuff. How's your relationship with social media?

 

Melissa (21:24.494)

It's a love-hate relationship.

 

Say more.

 

I hate that I get sucked into, but I like it for being able to see, you know, my kids who do have social media. I like to see them post and see what they're doing. But yeah, it's a time sucker.

 

Right. What do you think, I going to ask. What do you feel like, if again, so go back to being Melissa, the teacher, right? Melissa, the mentor of a new mom, you've got a new mom coming in, they have four or five kids coming up, maybe two or three kids coming up because families are smaller. What, when would you say get a phone? Like high school? High school. As a ninth grader? How, like,

 

Gab phone? iPhone? What's your show?

 

Melissa (22:21.87)

Definitely start with one of those that Gab or I don't remember what the other is called, Froomy or something that has texting capabilities but doesn't have all of the other.

 

Yeah.

 

Shawn (22:33.454)

Cool stuff. All right. All right. I have a couple more questions, but do you want to ask me some?

 

What's the thing you're most proud of, I guess? Took us off on a whole tangent.

 

What's good? was a good comment though. What most proud of of our kids.

 

No, you asked me what I was most proud of in my life, and that was my answer. So what are you?

 

I mean, I can legitimately say I am very proud of our kids. I think that they're amazing. I think that we have done an okay job of not ruining them. Like, think that that's, I like that. I think it's fantastic that we are 31.

 

Melissa (23:09.954)

That's still the best scene.

 

Shawn (23:22.102)

call it 32, 33 years into a relationship and that we still really like each other. I think that's amazing, right? And I say that there are definitely times where I think we always love each other. I don't think that's gone away. There are definitely times in the ebbs and flows of like, sometimes I'm really hard to like and sometimes you're really hard to like, but that I feel like we do a pretty good job of managing that.

 

I'm proud of that. I do think that there's still more things that we can do better, but I am really proud of what we've built with goals. that's, it's been exhausting. I'm excited for the next five years. Probably more so than I was like in October of 2020 where the five years that we've been through, like,

 

I think that we, as we move forward, like, you know, we, we did that silly thing last week where we made the hundred year, the 50 year plan, right? Of what we're looking at. Um, I think that when we're 85, we look back to the time when we're 48 to 52 and go, Whoa, that was a life changing period of time. Right. Um, I'm really.

 

I feel really proud of how we, the opportunity that we created coming out of COVID, because that was like that whole thing where I left Orion in December of 2019, went to incorporate massage, helped rebrand to Zenovate, that kind of dried up. I mean, we were stuck with nothing at that point. so I think that's really cool. The other, I think another thing that we,

 

that deserves talking about in terms of things that we should be proud of is what we built with Olympus Aquatics. mean, think that's pretty amazing to look at, right? And the impact that we've had both in our community as well as in the state and the ability to kind of grow and do cool things and have great athletes come out of that, right? And great human beings. So that's what I'm proud of. I'm proud of our kids. I'm proud of Mitty. I know you're not.

 

Shawn (25:46.99)

Mitty is our eight month puppy and he like, he's the best trained dog we've ever had. know he's not perfect. He still has, like considering comparison to our other dogs, like, um, I, and I think it's interesting, right? Like looking at me, like that's a challenge. We decided to go into that and, um, like, uh, but it is, it's, it's like a little microcosm, right? Of like, we talk about this all the time. Like he, the dog, Mitty.

 

He still has

 

Shawn (26:16.43)

thrives on being trained. Right? He thrives on like, hey, I want that structure. I want to heal. I want to sit. I want to go to place. I want to do all of those kinds of things. And when he's not being stimulated, maybe is the wrong word, where he's not being, he's not constructively involved in something, like that's when he pees on the floor, you know? Like I think that's, I think that's really, or choose a book.

 

Thanks.

 

Shawn (26:44.266)

in any of those things. And I think that that's, I think that's very insightful and can be applied to other stuff as well, right?

 

What other questions do you have?

 

You were, you were asking the questions.

 

You're the host now for the net you have two questions.

 

Shawn (27:08.033)

Anything?

 

Shawn (27:12.014)

Okay. Let's talk about our 55 year old plan. 55 year plan. Can we do that?

 

I mean, you, mostly drew that out. So that's your shore.

 

Okay. So, one of the things that we have been very focused on as a couple, throughout our lives, I would say, but like, we have really tried to focus on more in the last couple of years is our own health and wellness. so what we're, what's the, do you have a physical accomplishment? Like just that you're

 

I don't know if I keep coming back to most proud of, like, what do you look back into and say like, man, this is really been good for us or good for you or good for me from a health and wellness standpoint to be where we are now is 50 somethings.

 

The exercise is always good. I wish I loved it more, I guess. I don't know. I guess just that we've mostly maintained that over the years. It's hard, hard to do with kids and jobs and travel and-

 

Shawn (28:21.283)

Yeah.

 

Shawn (28:26.892)

Why do you think it was easier? Maybe I'm putting words in your mouth here. Why do you think it was easier as 30-somethings with small kids than now with adult kids?

 

cause everything had to be so tightly scheduled then. Like you knew you had to get up and exercise before the kids got up. That was your only opportunity. Now it's easier to say, I'll, I'll do that later today.

 

So sometimes it's easier to, it just had to be done that way in those years.

 

Do you, so you have a master's degree in exercise physiology. what that is, that's pretty amazing, right? That's pretty cool. I.

 

I'm proud of that too, I guess.

 

Melissa (29:13.62)

Just because I was the first one of my siblings to get a master's degree, so.

 

And you did it in 18 months?

 

That was a challenge.

 

Talk about that a little bit.

 

well, I mean, what started school and then.

 

Shawn (29:31.598)

So it's kind of interesting, like we went to Oregon, and we could talk about this for ages, right? like, would you say we went to Oregon on a whim? Like I applied to three or four schools, right? You had just finished in 1996. I applied, we got into Oregon, we got into a couple, we decided, hey, you wanted to go to the Northwest, so we run up there. We had no guarantee that you were gonna be in graduate

 

I would write like I had, I had graduated from the university of Utah in 1995. Uh, I had worked that next year, kind of took a gap year until 96. You graduated at 96. I enrolled fall of 96. You took that. Year that year. Yeah. That worked that year up there. Um, and then like I was on a two year program and we had no guarantee really that you were going to.

 

get into school up there or what you were going to do. I mean, talk about like life just kind of happening. Yeah.

 

I didn't even think about that. Did I? I don't remember thinking about that. just, I don't know if I just assumed. Right. That I would get in. don't know. We just kind of went with- Hindsight after looking at, you know, having Samantha go through graduate school applications, I'm kind of like, should I have been more concerned about that? I don't know. I just, I don't remember that being a huge issue. I just assume? I don't know. Right. I I graduated with

 

decent grades and stuff, yeah, in hindsight, maybe I should have been more concerned.

 

Shawn (31:08.826)

I like we, as we went through that, it was, cause I had gone through an entire year of school. You came in that following fall. Right. And didn't you do it? You would have to have done it in a year because we both graduated at the same time. We at the same time.

 

Yeah, I had to finish classes that summer though. did well with you, still. Yeah, because I didn't finish my.

 

in our couple classes.

 

That's right. So because we walked in my

 

Ops, two weeks before Jonas was.

 

Shawn (31:37.014)

Right. And so for all of you listeners out there, I'll brag about her. She not only did all of this, but did it while being pregnant with Jonas for the last, for nine months, right? The last nine months of her graduate degree. And you finished comps and did everything literally like 10 days, two weeks before Jonas was born. Was that a challenge?

 

Yeah, yeah, it's not, I wouldn't have chosen to do it that way. Like that wasn't the plan to do it that way.

 

Right. Cool. Good job. I'm proud of you for that. think that's, think that's the stories like that. That's amazing. I think that was amazing about you, right? Is that you have that just super quiet grit that a lot of people could learn from, from you. Thank you. What do you, so let's go back to like exercise, like exercise. We've, we've been putting, we've been putting a lot of effort on that. We feel like we have.

 

I feel like we've done a pretty good job of building a routine, both separately and together. What are, let's focus on the positive for a second. We'll go with the Sean string and mode of eternal optimism, as opposed to the Melissa string and mode of like, realism. What, what do you love about that process? I'll talk through the process. Like, what, and what do you love about it? Like in terms of the systems that we're building.

 

Realism.

 

Melissa (33:12.212)

It's just good to have systems, to have a routine, to have something that you fall back on or just do because it is automatic at this point.

 

Do you feel automatic in it? We kind of had that conversation this morning or yesterday.

 

It's snow, it's still a choice, but you know, still have to decide to do it every day, but it's set up to be.

 

And talk about your routine right now. Like what are the things that you're trying to focus on? What are the things that as a 50 plus woman, mom of five adult children, well, four adult children, one teenager, like what are you trying to focus on and why?

 

lifting, mainly, just because all that's what all the studies show for, for longevity, for extended.

 

Melissa (34:08.504)

What's the right terminology?

 

to extend your good health, your health span as opposed to your lifespan. that building muscle is one of most important things.

 

Right. guess. Your health span.

 

Shawn (34:24.141)

So if we were to go into Dr. Peter Atiyah mode, who I love you Dr. Peter Atiyah.

 

that we want to encourage and grow that health span, right? That overall health span so that that marginal decade, that final decade is stronger, right? Than not. And I think like, it's funny to me, like we mentioned this a little bit this morning, or we talked to, you can tell that we talk about it a lot, because what Peter said to you this morning, right? Like it's not a typical 16 year old who comes up to you and says, well,

 

was having a hard time. I was dressed to go out to the gym and workout and said, I'm just struggling to go out there. He says, I understand it. And then he turned and said, you should go out there so that you are not sitting in a nursing home all by yourself with no visitors. And then he did say, wait, I would come and visit you, but it would be better if you went to workout so that I didn't have to come visit you in a nursing.

 

So words from the babes, right? Like to try to build that out. So I built the plan. I sat down and again, because of, from the 60 minute interview that I saw with Peter Attia, I've said like, it comes into distinct focus of what you're training for when you map out the last 50 years of your life. Right. And so I sat down for an hour last Sunday and did that. like, okay, here I am at 53. Here's

 

Jonah Samantha Amelia Megan Peter, here's Melissa, where we kind of thought about, it was kind of a fun, it was kind of a fun, we texted all the kids or called all the kids and said, who do you think is gonna get married when? None of my kids are married yet. For those of you who might be listening, it's a whole different podcast, but let's get that taken care of, or not all of them, but let's start moving down that pathway a little bit. Who's gonna get married when? When are they gonna start having kids? And so we kind of did some guesstimation across like,

 

Shawn (36:16.686)

Oh, we should expect to have our first grand kid in, I can't remember, within, within, it feels like within five or six years, maybe like that seems manageable. And so you have your oldest grand kid then and how old are you in five or six years? Well, I'm almost crap six. Like I'm almost 60 at that point. Right. And then they start having all these kids and we kind of said, well, we asked each of the kids like, how many kids do think you want to have? Right. Like some say one, some say.

 

three or four, like you don't know. So I think the number we came up with, there's the average number, typical number, like most likely was like 10 to 15 grandkids, right? And so you look then and you fast forward, like go down that pathway of like, where are you when you're 80, when are you 85, right? One of the other kind of key things is that people...

 

of 50.

 

Shawn (37:10.442)

One of the things that has been said is like people fall off the ledge at 75. Like, can you stay healthy and active until 75? And then from 75 on there, can you put yourself in a situation where you are, you can be functional, right? In your eighties and nineties. my intent, right, is to live into my nineties. My grandparents have lived into their nineties. Got good genetics. We've got to keep the Alzheimer's at

 

they there a little bit, right? but we, as we worked that out and I put this hashtag on that Instagram post that I put this morning is that, do it for 105 because our 105th. So if you add up us to our kids plus their spouses, and then you take our grandkids and add their spouse, their spouses.

 

There it's very likely that if you can, if that will work out that that we would have our hundred and fifth to see. Yes. Austerity. Because the grandkids then start having kids. So your great grandkids, like a couple of grandkids by 97 is when you would hit 105.

 

So you want to live long enough.

 

Shawn (38:31.106)

That's every day's on. It's got to stay on the plan. But like it's, interesting to look about, like you think about like, do you want to have influence on those kids? Do you want to have an opportunity to have a relationship with those kids? Right. Do you understand like, so like helps to answer, I think helps to answer quite specifically, like what are you training for? Like just do it so that you can know that kid. Right. anyway, what other important things, are you focusing on?

 

now, right now that you feel like you're doing like, maybe you're not doing a great job at but you like you feel like there's some serious upside if you can continue to maintain that habit.

 

Other than exercise in general?

 

Melissa (39:17.358)

Still having a desire to learn, learning new things, new skills.

 

Okay.

 

What are some of the topics that you want to learn about?

 

I do a lot of, it's about exercise and nutrition right now.

 

But that's always interest to you, right?

 

Melissa (39:34.278)

I don't know, at this point I'm kind of like, oh, what skill do I want to learn? What new thing do I wish I had learned that I haven't yet, that now that I maybe have some more time, I'm taking ideas right now.

 

dry.

 

drop a bomb, like what's something that you don't think that I know about that you want to learn about?

 

I don't know, there is something else.

 

or every something like

 

Shawn (40:01.718)

Is there a skill or something fun or like something that you want to learn about that I don't know about?

 

Not that I can think of. You have something that I wouldn't know about. Yeah, I know that. That's what I'm, you're asking me to come up with something that you don't know.

 

No. Well, you know I wanna surf.

 

Shawn (40:18.714)

That's what's something that you, maybe I do know that you want to do.

 

Melissa (40:28.322)

want to go back to school. want to knit. I want to knit.

 

and you wanna learn to knit?

 

Shawn (40:35.054)

Grandma Melissa wants to know how to, wants to be able to put out throw pillows. it. Okay, cool. Well, what else should we talk about? I have lightning round questions. I texted the kids and said, all right, I'm doing a mom, I'm doing a mom interview. Give me some lightening round questions. So I don't even know what we have here, but we're going to go through a few of them here. Let's see.

 

You were good for this.

 

Melissa (41:01.964)

create.

 

there's the good ones here. All right, from Samantha. Are you ready? No. Samantha's asking, who's your favorite child?

 

no.

 

I knew that was going to come up. They are all my favorite.

 

They're all your favorite. Are they all your favorite simultaneously or do they kind of ebb and flow based on their current situation?

 

Melissa (41:20.502)

love them all equally but this sometimes you like some more than others

 

And what are the things that they do that make them not be like? Let's give a teaching moment to these five humans. Okay.

 

they're just punks. It's just their normal...

 

I do want to ask this question. One of the things, one of the amazing things about Melissa and her relationship with her daughters especially, her sons live with her, so that's, what do you feel like you have done to, like, this is an amazing thing and I'm only, I have lots of gratitude is that they want to talk to you every single day. Why do you think that is?

 

Melissa (42:03.406)

It's, I don't know, just, it's always good to touch base to.

 

What have you done to foster that? Because they're the ones who initiate it over and over, right?

 

I don't know. I just try to always, I've always tried to be involved in their lives. Want to know what's going on and support them. And I think they've always liked to come and tell me.

 

And so, and so again, go back to that. You're a mentor of these other young moms as what do you feel like now as college kids, all three of them are away at college, right? What do you feel like you did in as a five, six, eight, 10 year old relationship for them to say? Like what's something specific that you feel like you did that makes them want to

 

Show interest in what they're interested in, even if I'm not. There are some things that they love that I could care less of, but let's try to show, I mean, even now it's like, you know, one of them will mention this show and it's like, okay, I'll start watching the show so we can, or they're reading a book. So I'll read the book so we can talk about it. Like, just try to stay involved in what they're doing. Cool.

 

Shawn (43:16.13)

All right, Jonas lightning around question here is, what is your least favorite holiday?

 

Melissa (43:28.802)

Maybe it's Halloween? I don't know for sure.

 

It might be Halloween, might be my least favorite.

 

your least favorite.

 

don't know, it always is so much work and...

 

It was a lot of work this past year. No, it was.

 

Melissa (43:46.19)

I know it isn't anymore, maybe it'll become a favorite.

 

I don't know. I don't... My...

 

And it doesn't, my favorite ones are like Thanksgiving and Christmas, you know, but it's more, oh and Easter ones that are more family and gratitude oriented and Halloween just doesn't have that.

 

On the the on the holiday theme though follow-up question What are your what is one or two of your favorite of our favorite? How holiday traditions across all the holidays? Do you have any one or two that like just you would? Never want to let go of

 

This is from, our. do you have an answer to that? well, you're going to have to answer it too.

 

Shawn (44:30.191)

That's a follow-up. No, because I'm asking you.

 

Melissa (44:45.354)

I don't know if there's something that I would never give up if I if it being replaced with something good. I just like whatever

 

has everyone together. Like, you know, I like our beignets. like our just things that bring the kids home.

 

I think

 

I like the things we do, but I don't know if there's anything that if you didn't offer a replacement, I'd be like, no, I'll never give that up. I'll have to think about that one.

 

Okay. All right. What about you? I think one of my favorite is beignets for sure. that has turned into something that's been very cool, right? Where we do those on conferences and then at Christmas. I think that's really important. I love, and you'll be surprised with this, I love things like March 4th. Like the little holidays. Non-holidays of where like it's just us doing string of things that are a little bit crazy.

 

Melissa (45:25.112)

Chris.

 

Shawn (45:42.67)

Right. March 4th, for those of you who don't know, is we find mops and whistles and turn on John Philip Sousa and march around the house because you have to. March 4th. March 4th. March 4th. On March 4th. From Amelia, you ready? What's a hill you will die on?

 

you

 

Melissa (46:15.406)

Yeah, I still put two spaces after my period two spaces and I'll shut the period. I don't know if I'm supposed to stop it though. no, I know. That's so true. I'm trying to break that habit, but I have to think about it. a hill that I will always die on.

 

Way to go, boomer.

 

Shawn (46:30.968)

Okay.

 

Melissa (46:47.896)

think relationships are the most important thing.

 

Okay.

 

mean, like, if it's someone that you really care about, then whatever has happened or whatever they're doing or whatever wrong you see, the relationship is the most important thing. That's awesome. I'm getting to figure out how to overlook, move forward.

 

Yeah, cool, very cool. You'll be surprised to know that Megan didn't respond.

 

Nope, not surprised at all.

 

Shawn (47:16.27)

Melissa, thanks for being here. This is kind of, this is fun. I really appreciate you being willing and being brave. think that we, you are not my greatest challenge. I know that I am one of your greatest challenges. So I just want to just really express gratitude for, for helping me, dealing with me.

 

putting up with me and it's a tall order and a big task and I just want to let you know that I love you. So, appreciate it.

 

Glad that you are the one who gets to be in front of the mic most of the time.

 

I think we're going to make this part of the show though, you think? Ask Melissa, we'll see. We'll see what we can do. All right. I'm going to give you, do you have any parting thoughts?

 

No? No.

 

Shawn (48:08.046)

Okay. Hey, Sean Stringham here with Melissa Stringham and episode one of the Find Your Challenge podcast. Wow. I'm sure that we'll look back at this and laugh in many, many years. Hopefully, if you've made it this far, you're probably our parents. Let's just be honest. And if you haven't already, make sure you like, follow, subscribe, all of those kinds of things.

 

Shout out to Chloe Chaney here who's doing our audio video sound We're thrilled to have her be a part of the team. Thanks Chloe and Great start let's move forward from here peace