English, baby! Daily Podcasts

Did you have a security blanket when you were little? Something that you took everywhere and needed to fall asleep? Security blankets are comforting to children, especially if they’re scared of the dark. Some kids believe their blankets will keep nightmares away. Other kids become attached to a favorite teddy bear or pacifier. Do you remember yours? Adults seem to keep security blankets for mostly sentimental reasons. Maybe people like remembering a time when all of their problems could be solved by hugging a blanket or bear. It’s fun to look for childhood mementos in old boxes and experience the nostalgia. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

“You can see their passion. The service they provide is so in their blood.”- Actor Gerard Butler on working with US Secret Service agents (Parade) -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Back in the day, children collected stamps and coins. It was common for families to pass down collections from generation to generation. When it comes to this popular hobby today, the sky’s the limit. If you can think of it, someone probably collects it. Baseball and Pokemon cards, seashells, stickers, action figures… anything and everything is collected, sometimes obsessively. With the invention of online shopping, it’s all too easy to spend time and money searching for rare additions to one’s collection. What do you collect, if anything? -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Sometimes winning an argument is just about applying pressure. It’s about pushing a little harder than the other person. Let’s say you really want to go out one night, and your partner really wants to stay in. You go back and forth about it for a bit, and then you say, “Please?” And then you say, “Oh, pretty please?” And then you say, “If we go out tonight, we can stay in all of next weekend.” That’s really putting pressure on your partner. You call that kind of pressure twisting one’s arm. If you were in a physical fight with someone, you might stop them from hurting you by pinning their arm behind their back. But the way to really get them to give up is to twist their arm, so it hurts, and then they have to declare you the winner.Mason still feels stuck about a disagreement he’s having with Amanda, but is it right to twist her arm? Find out in this relationship English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

The 20/20 Experience is the newest album by pop artist Justin Timberlake. It’s his first album since he went on a musical hiatus in 2006. The album incorporates many musical styles, including older and newer styles of soul music.What does the title mean? When your doctor tells you you have “20/20” vision, she or he means that your vision is perfect. Maybe this means that JT thinks that after his time off he can now see perfectly? But does perfect vision mean perfect songs? Hear Greta tell Lily what she thinks of this comeback album in this music English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

It’s important to show your mom that you love her every day, but Mother’s Day is particularly important. In the US, Mother’s Day occurs on the second Sunday in May. On this holiday, you may express your feelings to your mom by making her a card, or giving her flowers, or taking her out to brunch. Or maybe she’d prefer breakfast in bed!When a woman becomes a mother, Mother’s Day changes. In addition to celebrating her mom, her children and loved ones begin to celebrate her. Find out how Marni feels about her first Mother’s Day as a mom in this holiday English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

“I’ve heard all the horror stories, and it can’t possibly be as bad as they say it is!” - Actor Josh Duhamel on becoming a father (Us Weekly) -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

In the United States and many other countries around the world, something funny happens to the clocks twice a year. In the fall, on a particular day, you set your clock back an hour. And in the spring, you set it forward. To help remember when to do what, you might use the phrases “spring forward” and “fall back.”This phenomenon is called daylight savings. Originally, it was done in order to give agricultural workers more daylight to work in during the darker months. But is daylight savings still relevant today? Find out what Lily and Greta think in this time English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Have you ever had a really difficult decision to make? You have two choices, but neither feels right. In fact, if you choose either one, you feel as if something will go wrong, or you’ll miss out on something important. You feel trapped. You’re caught between a rock and a hard place.And it really does feel like that. It feels as if you were exploring a cave, and then a rockslide occurred. Now a rock blocks your entrance. Behind you is only the hard cave wall. Both choices are bad: push against the heavy rock, or try to find some way through the hard wall.Amanda is faced with one of those difficult decisions right now. Find out what she considers the rock and the hard place in this choices English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

The sitcom Two and a Half Men is one of the most popular TV shows in the world. The show features two adult brothers who live together. One likes to party, and one is uptight. The uptight brother has a teenaged son, and he worries that the partying brother might be a bad influence.Originally, the two brothers were played by Jon Cryer and Charlie Sheen. Sheen left the show after some scandals involving drug use and other bad behavior. Now Ashton Kutcher has joined the cast. Find out what Amanda and Jeff think about the new cast in this television English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Do people ever really change? If someone treats you badly, does he or she deserve a second chance? Take Chris Brown. He beat up Rihanna, but then she took him back. Is she wise to trust him? Does he really deserve a second chance? If you’re the kind of person who holds a grudge, you’re probably not likely to give out many second chances. But if you trust people and are forgiving, you’re more likely to give someone the benefit of the doubt. You just have to hope that you don’t get burned again. Find out what Mason and Lily think about second (and third) chances in this friendship English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

“I thought it would make me look more intimidating…You see a freshman in high school and he has a mustache-I don’t want to go up against that guy.” - Actor Steve Carrell on growing facial hair (Us Weekly) -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Frank Ocean is one of the hottest new artists around. He started out writing songs for pop stars like Justin Bieber and John Legend, and last year he released his first full-length album, Channel Orange, to critical acclaim. Critics and fans love his innovative approach to R and B music. He has even won over some listeners who don’t typically listen to R and B. Frank Ocean also made headlines when he came out as bisexual. He wrote a message on his blog explaining that his first love was a man. His announcement got lots of support from other members of the R and B world, including Beyonce and Jay-Z. It was a brave announcement, since not that many R and B musicians have come out. Hear what Jeff and Sara think about Frank Ocean in this music English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

If you listen to the news or read the newspaper, you will surely find out about all the terrible things happening in the world. Wars are being fought. Children are going hungry. Animal species are going extinct. Sometimes it can be overwhelming. But sometimes you find yourself getting angry, and that makes you want to take action. Yes, these terrible acts exist, but maybe you can do something to help stop them. Maybe there is some way that you can help out and make a difference in the world. There are many ways to make a difference: writing letters to politicians, going to demonstrations, writing editorials for the newspaper, and more. Sometimes it can feel as if one person can’t do much, but it takes many individuals deciding to act to truly make a difference. There is an issue that Greta feels strongly about, and she’s ready to try to make a difference. Find out more in this week’s activism English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Taking a train, riding the bus or subway, driving a car, walking, and cycling are the transportation options that people in land-locked areas or areas with a lot of bridges have. However, for people that live in areas surrounded by water, another option may exist: ferries! A ferry is a large boat, or vessel, that transports people and maybe even their cars or bicycles across short distances in the water. For those people who rarely get to take a ferry, it may be an exciting adventure to get on board the large vessel and sail majestically down the sea, river, or lake. On the other hand, for those people who rely on ferries for their daily transportation, taking the ferry may lose its charm after a while. For some people though, taking a ferry will never get old. What do you think about taking the ferry? Join Sara and Marni’s discussion on taking the ferry in this English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com