English, baby! Daily Podcasts

Skiing used to be many people’s idea of a fun winter sport, but snowboarding has become much more popular recently. What is it that makes snowboarding seem so much cooler? Is it the brightly colored gear? The similarity to skateboarding? Even if you’re an expert snowboarder, there’s a good chance you’ll end up wiping out at some point. But people who love extreme sports don’t care if they fall. Learn English and hear Vanessa explain why she loves snowboarding so much in this English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Difficult situations require courage. Not everyone can wait quietly and see how things turn out. Someone has to step up and help. When you step up, you volunteer to do something important. Others will depend on you to do a good job. This idiom is similar to “man up.” However, “man up” implies that you do not hide from responsibility, and “step up” means that you actively seek it. The phrase comes from baseball, because throughout the game, each player must step up to the plate and take his turn at bat. But you can step up in almost any aspect of your life. If your mother is sick, you can step up and take care of her. If an army needs someone for a dangerous mission, a good soldier will step up. Jeff recently learned that Marni is pregnant. Learn the English phrase “step up” and see what Jeff is ready to step up for in this English lesson video. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

For some people, the commute to and from the office is the most stressful part of the day. Driving a car, waiting for the train, or taking a bus just to start work can take up lots of time. Working from home avoids that step and sounds very relaxing. Now that technology enables many people to do their jobs outside the office, more and more people are working from home. But trying to do your job away from the office can pose some problems. Learn work English and hear Sara and Mason discuss the challenges of working from home in this English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Getting married is one of the biggest events of anyone’s life. While being engaged can be fun, many couples face religious and cultural expectations for a wedding. It can be tempting to run away and get married in secret, or elope, especially if you dislike or can’t afford a traditional wedding ceremony. A bride and groom can elope all by themselves. Some couples invite a small group of friends and family along on a wedding trip. Learn English and hear Mason and Vanessa discuss some friends who eloped in this wedding English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

If you are walking around an American town on Halloween, you are sure to see jack-o’-lanterns glowing in the darkness. People of all ages enjoy the annual ritual of carving a pumpkin into a work of art. Then they place a candle inside and watch their creations glow with fire light. The most traditional jack-o’-lanterns have scary faces on them, but designs can be more creative, too. Witches, bats, or spooky scenes can all be fun designs to carve into a jack-o’-lantern. Find out what Jason and Vanessa plan to carve this year in this Halloween English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

What’s the worst job you’ve ever had? Did you have a terrible boss, who made your life miserable? Or were your co-workers just awful? Was the work too hard, or too easy, or the commute too long? We’ve all suffered through bad jobs. Sometimes we stay longer than we should because the salary is good, or because we think the jobs will help our careers, or because we just feel stuck. Hear Sara and Dale discuss what makes a job go from bad to worst. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

There you are, in the hours between lunch and dinner, and it happens. You want a snack! There’s not necessarily anything inherently wrong with snacking, but, if you start snacking on lots of junk food, it can be a slippery slope. Is the answer to make sure that you only keep healthy snacks around, like carrots or apples? Or can you eat some food that’s bad for you, as long as you limit how much you allow yourself? Hear Mason and Vanessa discuss the ways they avoid, and indulge in, snacking. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

“He really is a hopeless romantic....All I said is that I really want to see Titanic again.”- Actress Selena Gomez, talking about the time her boyfriend Justin Bieber rented LA’s Staples Center for a private screening. (Us Weekly) -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Keeping a journal, or diary, can be a great way to document your life. Many people use a journal as a place to write down their feelings, adventures, or just their daily lives. It can be especially rewarding to come across a journal that you kept when you were younger. Suddenly, all these memories that you might have otherwise forgotten are there for you on the page. In a way, with a journal, you can have the opportunity to live through those experiences again. Hear Marni and Devan discuss what it’s like to keep a journal. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

So you meet a great person that you want to date, but there’s just one catch: he or she lives in another city, or another province or state, or even another country. But you really like the person, so what are you going to do? Start a long-distance relationship! Long-distance relationships can have their benefits, like allowing each person to be independent, but they also have plenty of drawbacks. Can they work out in the long run? Hear Dale and Amy discuss the pros and cons of long-distance relationships. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

For many people, the American Dream involves owning their own house. But while home ownership comes with plenty of perks, it also has a big downside. If anything breaks or goes wrong with the house, it’s up to you, not a landlord, to fix it. Some people are very handy and enjoy making their own home repairs. But for others, a leaky faucet or broken stair means one thing. It’s time to call a handyman. Hear Marni and Amy talk about what they do when something has to be fixed in their homes. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

“I don’t feel any competition with Britney. I’m like, come on, the more the merrier.” - Singer Christina Aguilera denying a rivalry with her fellow singer and reality competition judge Britney Spears. (Parade) -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

This fourth movie in the blockbuster Bourne series offers a new twist. This time around, Jason Bourne is out of the picture. Instead, the movie focuses on a new rebellious agent: Aaron Cross, played by Jeremy Renner. Cross has been part of a secretive program that gives agents special medication to enhance their mental and physical abilities. When the government decides to shut down the program and kill the agents, Cross goes on the run. What follows is two hours of action, chases, and the question that the Bourne movies always bring up: is the US government the good guy or the bad guy? Hear Mason and Sara discuss this hot new film. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Not everyone needs to know everything. Privacy is important. Timing is important, too. It’s best to deliver big news at the right time, and sometimes that means keeping things under wraps for a while. When you keep something under wraps, you keep it a secret. You don’t tell many people, and those you do tell, you ask not to tell anyone else. You might say, “We are keeping this news under wraps for a while.” Marni has a secret, but it isn’t one she can keep under wraps much longer. At least, not without some bigger clothes. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Do you know where all the foods on your dinner plate came from? Do you think it would taste better if you did? The local food movement is gaining popularity in the US right now. It is all about eating locally-grown fruits and vegetables, and buying meat and dairy products from locally-raised animals. People who believe in eating locally say that local foods are fresher, healthier, and better for the environment than foods that have to travel long distances to get to your plate. Hear Marni and Amy’s take on this new trend. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com