Build The Circle That Raises Your Kids

A single bad influence can derail a kid fast, but the right people around them can change the whole story. We sit down with Jennifer and Richard Randall and talk honestly about what it takes to build a “village” that actually helps raise your kids, not just babysit them. From friend groups that pull kids into trouble to the adults who step in with real guidance, we break down what support looks like when parenting gets messy and personal.

We also get into the real friction between school and home, especially when you are living both roles at once. Jennifer shares what it is like being a teacher and a mom in the same building, including the moment the principal calls and you know you cannot walk in as “teacher mode.” We talk consequences, fairness, and why it is so hard to separate emotion from structure when your own child is the one in trouble.

From there, the conversation opens up into teen decision-making, online friendships that surprisingly turn into mentorship, and the day-to-day reality of supporting a child with hearing loss and cochlear implants. We talk accommodations, sensory overload, and how technology can help kids connect, learn, and laugh out loud at things they could not even hear years ago.

We close with a powerful topic: foster care and adoption, including the need for families willing to help older kids who too often get overlooked. If you care about parenting, teen friendships, special needs support, mentorship, and building a strong community around your family, this one will stick with you. Subscribe, share this with someone raising kids, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway.

Transcript

Cold Open And Quick Banter

SPEAKER_01 0:43

Would we wait will we rather what?

SPEAKER_03 0:46

Pope in the sink or sink in the poop.

SPEAKER_00 0:50

I that's your boy. That's your son, and I'm not I'm not so What a way to start out.

Meet The Hosts And Guest

SPEAKER_01 1:12

That's a little weird. That well, I mean, you know, that's just humans that it is honest. It is what it is, I guess. What's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, everybody. Welcome back to a brand new episode of the Almost Brothers Podcast. As always, we got Richie Rich.

SPEAKER_00 1:26

Yes, sir. I'm here. I'm happy to be here.

SPEAKER_01 1:30

He's super excited. Zeke, the Zekester. What's up, what's up, what's up? Ty Tai is is AWOL. Is not really A-Wall. Oh, he has leave. He has leave, but he'll be here with us later. Later, later.

SPEAKER_00 1:46

Tater Tater.

SPEAKER_01 1:47

We also have the better half to the Randall family. Yep. Jen Bunny Randall.

SPEAKER_04 1:54

The best half.

SPEAKER_01 1:55

The what'd you say? What'd you say a while ago?

SPEAKER_04 1:57

The most awesomest person.

SPEAKER_01 1:58

The most awesome awesomest person. According according to her. We polled one person. And that was me. And that was you. That is correct. That is correct.

SPEAKER_00 2:12

I'm not gonna say it's a biased poll. I'm just saying probably.

Why Your Circle Matters

SPEAKER_01 2:16

So so we talked, so I want to start this episode. We talked a little bit with with my family on the importance of your circle and who you have around you and and helping raise your kids. So the extension of your family, your teachers, your coaches, you know, people like that. So how important in the Randall household is that to y'all's y'all's kids and your life together?

SPEAKER_00 2:40

It's it's I mean it's huge. You've with any with any relationship circle, you've got to make sure that you have the the right people to build you up and not tear you down. Yeah. So with my kids, I try to, because it's a real bad problem, especially with one of ours right now, that she is making terrible choices in her friend group.

SPEAKER_01 3:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:01

And every time she starts with, I got in trouble for this, every single time you can guarantee the other person that I'm talking about will be in the store.

SPEAKER_01 3:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:10

And it's like you know she's gonna get you in trouble. Why? Yeah. Why do you have to do this? And it's just so important to know who has your back for real.

SPEAKER_01 3:18

Yeah, that's good.

Teacher Mode Versus Parent Mode

SPEAKER_04 3:21

Yeah, ditto, because we are a team, so you know, we work together. But Team Randall. Yeah, we've got big problems with kids at school, and me being a teacher, it's hard to be teacher and mom at the same time. Yeah. As just because you're watching this happen. So you're like, you know, as mom, don't do this, but then as teacher, you can't, you know, certain you know, leave out certain kids for that kind of stuff.

SPEAKER_00 3:47

So that's what me and that's hard. That's what me and Mike were talking about the other day because y'all have the same thing. You have the teacher role and the parent role, so you kind of understand both sides of it.

SPEAKER_01 3:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:58

But I only have the parent role, so I get to just be mad.

SPEAKER_01 4:02

Yeah, yeah. He just like, oh, the teachers stink. And that it's been a lot of those conversations where he's like, oh, you know, the the way they're doing this, the way they're doing that. I'm like, I get what you're saying, Rich, but you also have to look at the teacher side of it and and how they have to do things, you know. Uh because we that was a big thing, it's Blaze, you know, uh, you know, just dealing with Blaze and stuff like that. And I'm like, and I get I'd be upset as a parent too, but as a teacher, you're given this much time, you've got to get everything done.

SPEAKER_04 4:28

You got 20 kids, and it's so it's a hard balance, it really is that do you have you found that hard for you to kind of absolutely especially when my kids get in trouble or something, and the principal will call and she's like, I need you to come to the office as teach as a parent, not as teacher. And I'm like, Oh no.

unknown 4:43

Crap. What happened?

When School And Home Overlap

SPEAKER_01 4:45

Can I come as teacher instead? At least thank you. Yeah, thank you for the warning. Yeah. Zeke, how's how's it for you to be in school and have like teachers or friends that that you know are friends or teachers that are friends with your parents? That's like, oh man, if I do something, I know I'm about to get in trouble.

SPEAKER_03 5:02

Yeah. Um, I remember I used to have this library teacher, and she's she was like close friends with grandma. And like anytime like I'd I'd do something, she'd be like, Don't make me call um grandma Julie, yeah, and everything. And the same with um with my math teacher right now, right? Yeah, uh, Mr. Nolan, he's pretty chill with like with me and everything, because he knows y'all like pretty well. Yeah, that should that should be a strike against you that he knows, Mike.

SPEAKER_01 5:37

And you've been muted. So no, that's a bonus. I saw that coming. How many times do they did they send the your kids to your classroom when they get in trouble?

SPEAKER_04 5:49

Or they uh I've had two of my kids in ISS with me.

SPEAKER_01 5:54

And that's so odd.

SPEAKER_04 5:55

I mean, um blanks with the very first one, which I've never dreamed that would happen.

SPEAKER_01 6:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:00

But yeah, that I've had two of my own in ISS, and it was difficult for them to understand as I'm not mom.

SPEAKER_01 6:07

Right.

SPEAKER_04 6:08

I'm the ISS teacher, you are in trouble. You know, that's why you're in here. So it was hard for them too to understand that.

SPEAKER_00 6:14

But yeah, so they thought it was take your kid to work with you.

SPEAKER_01 6:17

Right, right. Like, oh, we get a day off. Like, no, no, no, no. Hold up now. No, you do not. Which I haven't I haven't taught while Zeke was in my school building. You know, he was in the other building, so we haven't had that interaction yet together. But I have had you know, my niece and nephew, I've had them in class and and having to get them to understand it's not Uncle Mikey in here.

SPEAKER_00 6:38

Well, and we tell them at the school that stop treating our kids differently.

SPEAKER_01 6:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 6:44

You know, just because Jennifer works there, if you would write them up and they weren't our kids, yeah, write them up. Right. Like stop forgetting. Send them out, man. Get rid of them.

SPEAKER_01 6:52

Expel them.

SPEAKER_00 6:53

Wait, no, don't get rid of them.

SPEAKER_01 6:54

You don't do that. Hold up now, hold up, time now.

SPEAKER_00 6:56

But they have to have consequences.

SPEAKER_01 6:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:58

Yeah. I wrote Emily up myself. I walked in the bathroom and she was climbing on the bathroom stalls.

SPEAKER_01 7:03

And I was like, what are you doing?

SPEAKER_04 7:05

I was like, when I get out of this bathroom, I'm writing you up. Mom, are you sort of any other student? I would write them up. Yep. Absolutely, I'm writing you up.

SPEAKER_01 7:15

And you know, we we would be able to well, we would try to hide that. Like if we got in trouble at school, we try to hide that. There's no getting out of that. You're in trouble at school and at home. Yeah, oh, I'd love to see. Well, I know, yeah, like what was her excuse? Oh man.

SPEAKER_04 7:28

I wasn't doing that.

SPEAKER_01 7:31

You're imagining things. Really?

SPEAKER_04 7:36

She was climbing on the stalls to play with this same child that Vicky was been talking about again.

SPEAKER_01 7:42

Yeah. So uh you know, it's yeah, so man, and that's and it is it's such a hard thing. That's what we try to do with with our kids, especially now Zeke's a teenager, is is get them to understand. We can't always filter what kids you hang out with. Right. You know what's right and what's wrong, and then he's kind of started moving away from certain kids that aren't that aren't acting right, you know. Is that hard for you to kind of see in your friends and be like, well, I kind of distance myself from them.

SPEAKER_03 8:12

You don't have to name names or anything, but just not really, because like I could I could really like I could just go through school just like by myself and just be myself. Yeah. And it'll be it'll probably be easier because I'm not getting in trouble as much.

SPEAKER_01 8:32

That's always a good thing.

SPEAKER_03 8:34

But also you want to have friends so you could actually like talk to them, or like if the teacher says partner up or something, yeah. You don't want to sit, you don't want to be just like alone during partner time. So I got like so I I choose my friends carefully by like you could be serious, or if like you could be funny, but also be serious.

SPEAKER_01 8:59

But also know when to stop. Yeah. Yeah. And I know, you know, you're a homebody anyway. You're you're you're good with being kind of by yourself for the most I mean to the point where we have to make him leave the house. Play two days. Yeah, like we went to Brittany's graduation last night, and and he was like, Well, do I have to go? It's like, yes, let's get out. Right. You know, which we found out that his girlfriend had a softball game he wanted to go to, but um it's like, yeah, let's get out of the house. Come on, man, get out of your room. It's okay to be social. I mean, I get it, he he's a homebody, he likes to be at home, but also let's let's get out of among some people.

SPEAKER_03 9:33

Also, I forgot to say this in the other episode. Oh Lord. But um, I played 2K with like these certain people, right? It's like it's four different people. Yeah. And then it's me. And they they live in like North Carolina.

SPEAKER_01 9:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 9:49

And I've got to like this group. I've got to like talk to them so much that they've basically became like like brothers, basically. But they're like, they're like 23 or something like that years old. They're in their 20s and everything. Yeah. And they like give me life advice when I'm texting them. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 10:10

That's very cool. As long as it's good life advice, that's fantastic. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:13

Yeah. Which again, we you you you kind of raise your kids to the point to where they can they can kind of think for themselves in those. So it's like, hey, you should know pretty quickly if these are good people to be talking to or not.

SPEAKER_00 10:25

Well, and that's that's something that Zeke has that a lot of kids his age don't have is that maturity to know, okay, I don't need to be around you if you're gonna be doing nonsense. You know, it's that not every kid his age has that.

SPEAKER_01 10:36

Right.

SPEAKER_00 10:37

None of our kids have that, except Emma. She does pretty good.

SPEAKER_01 10:40

Emma don't play. Emma just tell you what's on her mind. Like, I yeah.

SPEAKER_00 10:43

She said she lost a friend yesterday for telling her what was up.

SPEAKER_01 10:47

So and I remember, I remember she was kind of growing up. You know, I was like, man, I I I really thought I was like, man, Emma's gonna be the problem child. Like, Emma's gonna be the one that, like, because I seen, like, man, she's got y'all two under her film. Like, man. And I could not be more excited to be completely wrong.

SPEAKER_02 11:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 11:05

I mean, it is, it just seems like she, which of course every kid gets in some trouble, but it it just seems like she is so level-headed. She's a pretty good kid. Like, it just seems it just I never have to get on to him. Just like, she's usually got a good attitude. It's like, man, she's awesome. If if only Luke could just get some of that, you know, it'd be Luke's doing better, isn't it?

Supporting A Child With Hearing Needs

SPEAKER_00 11:27

He really is. Come on, that's what I'm talking about. He's starting to, we're we're getting him to understand that he has to listen with him. Yeah. And that's his problem. He just does not listen to what he's doing.

SPEAKER_01 11:35

And I know we were, and I know we were talking about, I know we were talking about like with Blaze, we're gonna try some stuff at the church to really accommodate. Right. You know, is that hard for y'all to accommodate for his you know, disabilities as a as a family? Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 11:48

Yeah, most definitely, because it's he we want to treat him like uh his own, you know, like uh all the other kids. Yeah, then again, we have to stop and remember that some stuff is way too loud for him. Some stuff, you know, some stuff we go to he we need to bring earphones or you know, something that we don't think about that because you know, just it's hard. It's hard to and then we have to bring chargers and stuff for his equipment.

SPEAKER_01 12:14

Yeah, and for and for the listeners, it's deaf. Yeah, for yeah, for the listeners, he's he wears cochular implants, you know, for his ears, and and it's been awesome to watch him start to talk and start to interact, you know, because for years he didn't he didn't do that, you know. So um I I know that that brings its own different set of of having to deal with, you know, especially as as a kid getting into trouble. It's hard to discipline them right when sometimes he can't he just can't hear you.

SPEAKER_04 12:40

Yeah, and he don't he doesn't understand the stuff to his age level.

SPEAKER_01 12:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 12:45

Because he was so he's so far behind from being, you know, for not being able to hear for so long, and he's so far behind. So when you tell him something, he's just looking at you with a dead stare like I have no clue.

SPEAKER_01 12:57

And he's gotta, he's he's gotta, that's gotta bother him that he because it may he may not be able to understand what makes him different, yeah, but he knows that he's different somehow from everyone else, you know, and and that's gotta be frustrating for him. You know, so getting those people around you that can help, that can understand that, that understand how to to deal with them, how to talk to them, because you just you do have to treat him a little bit differently because he may not have heard you, he may not have heard that you you told the whole group, hey, don't do this, you know, and and so he may not have heard you, so you have to kind of you know accommodate for that.

SPEAKER_00 13:31

And and now he you know he has this new equipment, so he comes directly to his iPad. Yeah, and it's just amazing because every once in a while he'll just start laughing at whatever he's watching. Oh, yeah. He's just such a happy kid all the time. Yeah, he has every reason not to be happy.

The Village That Keeps Kids Safe

SPEAKER_01 13:46

And isn't it cool that technology has gotten to the point to where that can happen? You know, you know, 20 years ago that wasn't an option, you know. So it's it's cool to have that be a part of it. Uh, how important is y'all's y'all's friends, Jennifer and Richard, y'all's friends in helping you even raise kids?

SPEAKER_00 14:03

Oh dude.

SPEAKER_04 14:04

Yeah. If it wasn't for our friends, then I I don't know where we would be. I think we would just be just lost, yeah. Lost actually.

SPEAKER_00 14:13

Well, we wouldn't go anywhere. Yeah. Right. There's just there's so many complications with a family our size. It's a bunny rabbit. With a family our size, that we can't just go and do anything, you know unless we have that village to help us. Right. It's it's huge.

SPEAKER_01 14:30

Yep. And that's the same with you know, with us that we talked about is is, and we have two in the house, you know. So even that is is super important to have just that little circle to help keep our kids in line when they're out of our sight. You know, we talked about talk to Coach Stucks and we talked to uh to a few people on on even that extended teachers and coaches and and uh you know church family, it helps you raise the kids, helps keep everyone in line and helps you keep an eye out where where maybe you can't, you know. So it's important to have that circle.

SPEAKER_00 15:01

But I don't know, I don't know how many times I've heard you know one of our church family get on to our kid or I've had to get on to Zaley or whatever, you know. Yeah, and it's just nothing because they know that any adult that they know they can trust. Yeah. So if if it's just really, really good to have a group of people that you can trust around you.

Foster Care And Adopting Older Kids

SPEAKER_01 15:20

Yep, and being part of that. Absolutely, man. Yeah. Absolutely. So so are y'all ready to adopt another child?

SPEAKER_04 15:29

Dog? Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 15:30

Dog, is that what you said? Dog? Oh, would you say absolutely? I was waiting for an absolutely not, really. Oh man, oh yeah.

SPEAKER_00 15:37

She would have three more kids today. I would.

SPEAKER_04 15:40

I would and it's not it's not the point of having more kids. Yeah. It's the point of helping kids that need to be able to do that. Yeah, that need it. That need the help.

SPEAKER_01 15:49

So me and Jamie have talked about this, uh, about the possibility of maybe very slim chance, but maybe because that that's that's where I'm at. And for me, it's not smaller kids. Right. Because everybody is is trying to adopt, you know, four-year-old, five-year-olds, six-year-olds. It's the 12, 13, 14-year-olds that have sat and watched family after family come in and get kids and babies.

SPEAKER_00 16:12

And well, we adopted five at once. Yeah. So it was, you know, we had a range of like, what was it, seven to sixteen when we adopted?

SPEAKER_01 16:20

Age seven to sixteen. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:22

Man. Yeah. Yeah, it was a it was a wide range of ages, and it, I mean, it's been it's been very rewarding. And it, I mean, when you foster and you hear some of the stuff that these kids come from, yeah, it's impossible not to want to help more and more kids. And even now, we have a space for a kid. You know, we could foster a kid, and I really would like to. I just don't think I have the energy anymore.

SPEAKER_01 16:46

Right, well, and and and then that starts coming into it where you kind of age out at some point to where you may be helping emotionally, but even physically playing with them and teaching them is harder to do, you know. And that that's where our not the age so much, but the the the time ability that that a kid would need. That's the big thing for us is trying to see if we have time to even be able to do that.

SPEAKER_00 17:11

Yeah. You know, so um it's definitely something that's an important, important, important, important part of the state's, you know, taking care of these kids because there's way more kids that need help than there are foster parents. Yep.

SPEAKER_04 17:24

Yeah for sure. It's a big thing, it's at the school, you know, you see all these children that that need a you know, need someone to help them. Yeah. And you can hear all the horror stories and all the, you know, and all that, and it's just it's difficult to see each child and you know what they're coming home, you know, coming from. Yeah. And it's just, you know, so you try to do your I well, I try to do my best as to, you know, talk to them and smile at them and give them all the encouragement I can while while they're there.

Mentors Who Show Up And Stay

SPEAKER_01 17:53

Right, while you have them like even at school. Well, and that's what Zeke said, you know, he's got younger kids that kind of look up to him as an older, a bigger brother, you know. So even the impact that he's trying to make at school and the time he gets with these kids is something that we all kind of strive to do and and be a part of is is helping because some of these kids don't have a uh you know a stable home to go back into, you know, so that's that's super important. See, who's some some friends that maybe you had in school that did that for you? That kind of were those big brothers or whatever for you, or even in youth group, you know, you had the Randall boys, you had, you know.

SPEAKER_03 18:27

Journey is definitely one of them.

SPEAKER_01 18:29

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 18:29

Um Tristan, Easton, all of them, Hunter.

SPEAKER_01 18:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 18:33

Um, they like I kind of like looked up to them and like all that. Like, I'd go for Journey for help for like basketball or anything, and you'd like cheer me on and everything during a game.

SPEAKER_01 18:47

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 18:47

So yeah.

SPEAKER_01 18:48

I know I and and you could see that as soon as you got excited when he showed up to your game. I mean, you were pumped.

SPEAKER_03 18:54

Same with that's the same with um uh Papa Frank. Yeah, you know, when he shows up to my games, I'm excited and trying to do everything.

SPEAKER_01 19:05

Yeah. Yep, and it's it just shows that importance of people being there and being being present in in your life, even outside of just your parents or your siblings and and your household, you know.

SPEAKER_00 19:17

Well, and that's that's the thing that I wish everybody would get as a whole, is just be a positive influence on somebody. Yeah, there is somebody in your life that looks up to you. Yeah, just be that mentor, be that teacher, be that that positive influence in their life that they can look up to and really strive to be.

Be A Positive Influence

SPEAKER_01 19:37

Absolutely. Yep, and that's our time to get out of here.