Like all great childhood illusions, at some point, even the most dedicated of believers are bound to become skeptics of the good old Easter Bunny. As a parent, chances are, you want to prolong their innocence as long as possible, and while some kids are very accommodating, others are onto the giant treat-toting bunny from the start. We want to know: How did your kids find out the cold, hard truth? Join in the conversation, and share your best stories below!
It's always fun to get a sneak peek at a product before it hits the market. That's exactly what I'll be doing this week while attending the ABC Kids Expo in Louisville, KY. Last year, we observed the convention from afar, but this year, I'll be meeting with the designers and execs from both the biggest and most established baby and kid brands, as well as the new ones that are debuting products for the first time. Want to come along? While I can't take you to Louisville, you can follow me on Instagram at lilsugar1 to see all of the new products, just like me!
But before I hit the convention floor, tell me, which of these products interest you the most?
We've all had those moments — right after getting dressed and ready for the day, you reach for baby to get her settled before heading out the door and end up with spit-up all over your clean shirt. So you do what any other mama would do. You get yourself cleaned up and reach for baby again, hoping there won't be a repeat. And if you're lucky, everyone happily continues with the day.
Not all parents are just going about their day. Some are sharing their distress over everyday baby dramas by baby shaming. It's simple: you take a picture of your little one with a note in front of her sharing her repeat offenses of bad behavior. Often it's something silly like crying every time baby is set down, dumping cereal down heating vents, or not sleeping. Baby shaming is essentially putting the words in front of your baby that she can't say expressing to others her naughty doings. Then parents share the pictures via social media for a bit of a laugh.
But is baby shaming harming your little one? It was a recent topic of discussion on the Today show with some feeling that it's humiliating instead of a parent's way to blow off steam over silly behaviors. Taken from the popular dog shaming, some blogging moms who find the concept totally acceptable and darn-right silly are even hosting baby shaming contests to see whose little one has been the most unruly.
What do you think? Is baby shaming funny or taking it too far? Chime in below!
Imagine heading to an event — say a wedding, grown-up Halloween party, or even a friend's big birthday party — and knowing that when you dropped your tots off in the kiddie area they might have more fun than you do. That's the idea behind Lucky Lil' Darling's Kid Zone, an NYC-based private event babysitting service that may have Mama wishing she could sit at the kids' table.
Just give LLD's sitters some space and they'll set up a "pop-up child center" that will entertain kids for hours on end. Expecting babies at the party? They'll bring infant toys and seats. Have a few arts-and-crafts lovers? They'll set up a jewelry-making station. Want to transport the kids to a fantasy world? Princess, safari, and fairyland entertainers will help them imagine they're there. And when the kids look tired — but the adult party still rages on — they'll get the kids cozied up for a midnight movie fest. With a one-to-three sitter-tot ratio, kids are carefully watched while Mom and Dad party the night away. But all of this fun comes at a cost — a high cost. Kid Zones start at $500, and the prices quickly climb as more activities are added to the package.
If you're the proud parent of a growing boy, you've seen it happen. One minute he's playing with a stick, turning it this way and that, and the next there are serious sound effects and shotgun action. And it's not just boys that are curious about guns; girls are exploring imaginary play with bow and arrows and other play weapons. With Halloween right around the corner, and kids excited about dressing like their favorite superhero, is it OK to allow tots to play with pretend weapons?
There's no denying that watching a little one point a pretend weapon at another child and pull the trigger is unnerving. Many are quick to point a finger at the connection between allowing the playful behavior to school shootings and other early-adolescent violence. Over 40 percent of US homes house guns, which are hopefully being kept locked away from kids with ammunition stored separately. So do pretend weapons desensitize kids to the reality of real ones?
With pretend weapons popping up all over the place this time of year, do you allow your kids to play with them? Are they harmless or hurtful?
Here's a post from our partners at BabyCenter! Every week, we bring you the best parenting and lifestyle stories from the experts at BabyCenter, including this post from Stacie Lewis about dress codes for teachers.
One of my friend's children started school last week and was stunned upon meeting the teacher to find her teetering on stilettos. The teacher was, shall we say, more appropriately dressed for clubbing than a first-grade classroom. Her skirt was very short; the kind of skirt that makes it near impossible to squat down next to a five-year old without revealing more than the secret to long division.
Is this teacher a rarity? I am a teacher and I have seen it myself. Many times. Admittedly, some of the women have been amazing teachers. Amazing teachers with a very liberal approach to the dress code.
Related: 5 Lessons From Kourtney Kardashian's Birth Video
This past summer, as the temperature rose quite a few skirts rose as well — along with a few eyebrows. At my school, all female staff were gently reminded that there was a school dress code and it should be adhered to. Our dress code for women: no spaghetti strap tops or dresses, dresses/skirts of a reasonable length, no see-through or very low cut tops and no flip-flops.
My 2012 teaching self says, "Yes, that sounds right." My 2000 teaching self says, "It's hot. I'm wearing spaghetti straps and some flip-flops!" I wore jeans every day to work in my first teaching placement. Oh yeah, and a tongue piercing. That stayed in for five years and I never once heard a complaint (to my face).
Today, I go to work every day in a dress or skirt. I'm short so I wear heels. Usually a wedge of some sort. This places my teacher look firmly in the "smart" category.
I would never try to look sexy at school. I would never dress like I used to dress back in 2000. And, I'm old enough and conservative enough (and prudish enough?) to wonder why any teacher would.
Which of the following teacher looks would you be happiest to see? And, do we judge a teacher by the length of their skirt or the quality of their teaching?
More great reads from BabyCenter:
Do kids belong in bars?
How many children complete your family?
The very silly secret to getting your kids to eat kale
6 things every new mom needs in her closet
My most embarrassing pregnancy moment — ever
Is there a definitive point in a child's life that indicates when it's OK for him to use a public restroom on his own? As Summer winds down, I find myself looking back at my kids' accomplishments over the past few months, and among them is my eldest son going to the restroom on his own on an airplane. It took much coaxing and confidence-building to get him to do so — I made sure I could see the door the entire time in case there was an issue with the lock — but in the end, it was a milestone that we both celebrated.
It's also one that I don't plan to replicate in all public spaces, as the thought of sending my son into a men's room on his own in a high-traffic area terrifies me. At the same time, he's reaching that age where it's becoming uncomfortable for him to use the women's room with Mom. So what's a mom of boys to do? Is there a magic age when Mom just has to let go?
If you thought the backlash against mom-centric Facebook updates was limited to funny Tumblrs, think again! The latest way Facebook users are raging against moms who constantly post photos of their lil ones in various poses is rather stealth.
Unbaby.me, a Chrome extension, allows users to remove baby photos from their newsfeeds and replace them with pictures of "awesome stuff" (the default option is cats, but anything from a food item to your own Instagram feed can be placed in the "tag" field). So when your best friend posts yet another picture of her 2-week-old sleeping, you can see a picture of the tastiest cupcake or shirtless Olympians instead, and your friends will never know! Would you add Unbaby.me to your browser?
Researchers in Amsterdam just wrapped up a recent study that has some moms buzzing. It finds no connection between daily caffeine intake during pregnancy and hyperactivity in kids. A group of 3,400 moms participated in the sturdy, sharing details about caffeine consumption during their pregnancies. When their children turned 5 or 6, the same group answered questions about their child's behavior and health, with teachers filling out an identical survey. Well, the news is out — there's no link that a cup (or two) of morning joe will lead to hyperactivity in kids. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) suggests moderate caffeine is OK, up to 200 milligrams a day, which is equal to one 12-ounce cup of coffee.
Will the study change how much coffee you drink during pregnancy?
Oops, someone's done it again! This time it's not a store or a restaurant offending breastfeeding mamas, but a new baby bottle company that has moms and dads manning their battleships. This weekend BittyLab, maker of the soon-to-be released BARE bottle, launched a social media campaign insinuating that men feel pushed aside and sexually deprived when the mother of their child is breastfeeding. According to their tweets, this new bottle will help men "reclaim your wife." See if for yourself here:
The company's Twitter feed and Facebook page immediately lit up with both moms and dad expressing their disgrace and the company issued an apology this morning saying the "messages had nothing to do with putting a [husband's] needs before the baby's needs, it was more about having a little extra time for the rest of the family." What do you think — was it just a very poorly executed campaign, or was the insinuation meant to draw up controversy?
