tending to baby

North Carolina mom Lisa Pagan is going to be given some type of an honorable discharge after she reported for military duty with her two young children. The mama of Elizabeth, 5, and Eric, 3, has been out of service for the past four years and said she has no one to care for her children if she is shipped out as her husband travels for business. Do you think military moms deserve exemptions for this reason?

We all live with the hope that our caregivers would give life or limb for our child in the event of an emergency, but rarely does a situation come to the point where the person needs to do so. One of the most miraculous stories to come out of the massacre in Mumbai last week was the heroism of Sandra Samuel, the nanny who risked her own life by whisking two-year-old Moshe Holtzberg to safety in the immediate aftermath of the attacks. After spending the night of the bombings hidden in a storage closet, Samuel heard the toddler calling for her. When she found him, he was standing between his unconscious parents, with serious bruises on his back. After safely arriving at the Israeli consulate, she and the toddler were transported to Jerusalem, where they are living with Moshe's family's community. Samuel says she intends to stay with her charge as long as she is needed.

Mommy Dearest,

I'm a stay-at-home mom with a part time nanny that helps out when I need to run errands, work out, lunch with friends or take a night out with my husband. She watches our two sons, ages 5 and 7, for $20 an hour. My best friend and I usually go to the gym together so she drops her six year old off at my house and the children play while we are away. He's well behaved and they get along great. My nanny always welcomes him, but told me yesterday that a playdate is one thing and my friend dropping her child off on a daily basis is another. She is willing to watch him, but expects to be compensated for it. I was taken back because we've had this arrangement for about a year and she never seemed to mind. Is it fair for her to ask for more money now?

— Should Nanny Get Compensated

To read the response from Mommy Dearest, read more

Parents in a panic sometimes abandon their infants in unsafe environments. To avoid that practice and ensure the safety of the babies, many states have safe haven laws that allow moms and dads to drop their offspring off at specific destinations like hospitals without the fear of being prosecuted. Nebraska recently instituted such a law in July, but extended the age range to include all minors. And, as a result 17 children including teenagers and one from out of state have been relinquished.

ABC reported:

"Safe haven legislation is designed to prevent infants from being left outside or left unattended," said Nebraska Gov. Dave Heinman. "Safe haven laws were not designed to allow families having difficulty with older youth and teenagers to abandon their children or responsibilities as parents."

Do you think Nebraska should tighten its terms to only infants?