the scoop

Steve and Jeri Wakefield must be the most popular neighbors in Dallas. Nine years ago, the couple had architect James Culver design and build a fantastic tree house in their yard for their grandsons. Replete with storybook details like gables and window seats, and sheltered by a majestic pecan tree, the magical house grew even more fun over the years with new features like a zip line and suspension bridge. Now, as The Huffington Post (via Houzz) reports, the Wakefields' grandsons are too big for their backyard masterpiece. It's by no means neglected, though; the couple simply invites the neighborhood kids over to play.

Make sure your own kids aren't looking when you click through to see the full tour, or you'll be on the hook for something similar!

Talk about inspiring — this 13-year-old quadruple amputee has not only overcome his disability to be able to play his favorite sport, lacrosse, but he is also now helping Boston Marathon victims who have lost limbs.

As reported in the Huffington Post, Michael Stolzenberg was only 8 years old when an abdominal infection led to a quadruple amputation. Despite the odds, the boy survived and didn't let this new challenge stop him, and he is now able to run, play lacrosse, and more.

After hearing that several victims of the Boston Marathon bombings suffered amputations, Michael and his brother Harris decided to help. With their website Mikeysrun.com, they aim to raise $1 million as Harris trains for his first long-distance event: the 2014 Boston Marathon.

This incredibly inspiring story, out of San Jose, CA, illustrates one of the many things we love about having kids: they remind us what's really important in life.

Kenna Reeder recently lost her mom, Robin, to breast cancer. But she somehow knew, as NBC News describes it, the "right recipe for dealing with the loss." As the young captain of a team that will participate in the Cambrian Relay For Life, she has already raised more than $16,000 to fight the disease — more than anyone else.

She and her sister's secret? "They work the hardest and are the cutest," says NBC News reporter Garvin Thomas. And perhaps, as Kenna's grieving father points out in the video below, the girls understand, intuitively, that their efforts matter in more ways than one.

Parents in Readingtown Township, NJ, are outraged by a recent ban on strapless dresses from the local middle school's upcoming eighth-grade dance. As USA Today reports, in response to objections from parents, many of whom have already purchased strapless dresses for their daughters, Principal Sharon Moffat explained that without straps, dresses sometimes slip down while the wearer is dancing. She also told parents that the style is "distracting" to boys.

One upset mom, Charlotte Nijenhuis, has written to school superintendent Barbara Sargent to complain about the ban in general and about this rationale in particular, "because it suggests that boys are not able to control — or ought not to be required to control — their behavior when in the presence of girls wearing strapless dresses."

Would you buy your daughter a strapless dress for a school dance?

Does your child have one special item that means the world to him? If so, this story will warm your heart!

As ABC News reports, Delta has helped reunite a 7-year-old boy with his most treasured possession: his deceased father's t-shirt. Cole Holzer's dad Brian died tragically when Cole was 5 years old, after falling while hanging Christmas lights at their family home. Since then, the shirt Brian was wearing when he fell goes with Cole everywhere. Unfortunately, Cole left the shirt behind on a Delta Airlines plane during a family vacation last month. But this story has a happy ending: Delta workers went above and beyond to help, even hunting through the trash until the precious shirt was found.

Would you consider forgoing diapers altogether?

As reported in The New York Times, a growing number of parents are joining a no-diapers trend, choosing to raise their babies completely diaperless. The "elimination communication" potty-training method consists of letting infants go diaper-free and using timing, signals, cues, and intuition to address their need to eliminate waste.

Needless to say, it's not pleasing everyone, and the news has triggered strong reactions from parents around the country who disagree with the controversial potty-training method. What do you think of the trend?

Did you sing lullabies to soothe your newborn? For moms of preemies, crooning those tunes is proving more important that previously realized.

As reported in The New York Times, new research on music and premature babies has revealed that exposure to live music, whether sung or played, can provide significant health benefits for preemies. The Beth Israel Medical Center in New York conducted the study and found that music can calm infants' breathing, slow heartbeats, aid sleep, improve sucking ability, and more — all of which help the babies spend more of their energy on growing and developing.

It's not often you hear about a 6 year old getting detention, especially for something that is not his or her fault. But that's exactly what happened to Brooke Loeffler when her parents dropped her off late at Olympia Elementary in Texas.

Brooke's parents think the punishment is unfair and her mom Erika offered to volunteer at the school in place of Brooke serving detention. However Steve Lindscomb, the director of public information for the school district, says punishment needs to be consistent regardless of age. Lindscomb says the policy has been able to cut tardies down 90-95 percent since the rule was put in place three years ago.

Read more at ABC News.

Heads up, moms! The US Consumer Product Safety Commission has recently reported three significant recalls:

• Huffy has recalled their Slider Tricycles, exclusively sold at Toys R Us, as the handlebar can loosen and pose a potential crash hazard.
• Multiple retailers have recalled high-powered magnetic balls, Buckyballs. If two or more balls are swallowed, they can cause potentially fatal internal injuries.
• Eight different styles of Carter's infant clothing have been recalled, as the zipper can detach and become a potential choking hazard.

If you've purchased any of the items above, check the US Consumer Product Safety Commission website to determine whether your particular models are included in the recall.

We're cautiously excited for Derya Sert, a Turkish woman who received a womb transplant from a dead donor back in August, 2011. Now, as The Huffington Post reports, doctors at a hospital in her native Turkey have successfully implanted an embryo into Sert's womb.

Sert, 22, was born without a womb, and the transplant was the first of its kind.

The development doesn't yet guarantee Sert a successful pregnancy, but we'll be following her story and wishing her luck!

Read more at The Huffington Post.

Did any of your pregnancies require extraordinary medical help?