On this week’s POD, our hosts are back from a recent boys’ trip to Spain, and are still trying to catch their breath! The conversation centers around food, friends, and the families waiting at home. Eventually, the discussion pivots towards corporate complexities, incentive structures, and the mind-melting effect bureaucratic nonsense has on the population at large. Other topics include: the recent rise in cigarette coolness, vintage shopping abroad, redefining the term “bathhouse,” and paternity leave as a small-business owner.

Welcome back to Child of Dog! On today's episode, the boys take questions and commentary from a few listeners. One wonders why Stephen is so unwilling to discuss conspiracy theories on the pod, and another wonders what the hosts think about Valentine's day. In their usual back-and-forth manner, Stephen and Ben reflect on the best and worst holidays, age-old questions like: can you see the "man in the moon" and do people have a good side and a bad side? Other topics include: childhood levitation, Stephen's aversion to cherubim, the best Reese's holiday shape, fruit and nuts in dessert, the end of summer, "Sunday scaries," and exposing children to extreme temperatures in the pursuit of mental and physical fortitude.

Welcome in 2026 with Ben and Stephen! The boys are back to recap holiday chaos, and decide to try out a small format change, with one of the hosts' presenting a question or topic for discussion each episode. Now responsible for creating their own family's holiday cheer, Ben and Stephen reflect on their childhood experiences of Christmas Day and how that compares to today. Other topics include: Ben's recent concert, the peach and the pit of the most recent holiday season, aversion to chanting in unison and anytime groups of people say the same thing at the same time, the movement to keep Christ in Christmas, the dreaded toddler hitting phase and strategies to manage, what keeps us up at night, and the sudden loss of gravity.