Parenting isn’t a polished formula, it’s a series of experiments, regrets, do-overs, and unexpected grace. In this episode, Nick kicks things off with an honest confession: he’s failing his way through this dad thing… and maybe that’s exactly how it’s supposed to be.

From there, he walks through three snapshots of real life in the trenches:

• The Waiting Year – the long, confusing season of trying to get pregnant while it seemed effortless for everyone else, and the quiet lessons learned about timing, trust, and hope.
• The War Year – the brutal stretch after their daughter was born: no sleep, postpartum depression, simmering resentment, and a marriage that felt like it was coming apart at the seams… and what it took to start finding “us” again.
• The Crab Incident – a late-night emergency room trip at the beach, a very dramatic four-year-old, a “self-inflicted injury,” and a hallway full of nurses laughing at Nick’s unfiltered dad moment.

Through the humor and the heartbreak, Nick comes back to one simple truth: failure isn’t proof you’re a bad parent. It’s proof you’re still trying, still showing up, and still loving your kids on purpose, even when you feel like you’re walking like a crab through the chaos.

Parenting is humbling. It’s beautiful and hilarious and hard—often all in the same fifteen minutes.

In this first episode, host Nick Schall introduces the heart behind Raising Humans—a podcast for parents who are learning, laughing, and growing right alongside their kids. From late-night hallway whisper-yelling to small moments that stop time, Nick shares real stories about the mess and meaning of raising kids while becoming better humans ourselves.

You’ll hear why this podcast exists, what to expect from future episodes, and how the upcoming Raising Humans Conference on November 8th ties into it all.

No formulas. No judgment. Just honest, hopeful conversations for real parents doing their best to build strong families in a noisy world.

New episodes every two weeks beginning 11/20/25