LilSugar

Outtakes: Baby With the Best Belly Laugh

babysugar — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 12:00:00 -0800

We know you have the cutest kid in the world, but this lil boy will give all kids a run for their money. One look at this video and you're sure to fall in love with him, or at least his belly laugh.

Toddler Solves Rubik's Cube In 114 Seconds

GeekSugar — Fri, 25 May 2007 10:00:46 -0700

Thought you had real Rubik's Cube talent? Check out the video below of a three-year-old solving the cube in less than two minutes! The video, which was featured on Spluch, is absolutely remarkable.. and I can't help but wonder if a Rubik's Cube was her first toy or if she has some sort of inherited Rubik's Cube gene. Maybe she should go head to head with speedcuber Tyson Mao, who taught Will Smith how to cube for the movie "The Pursuit of Happyness."

Whatever her secret is, be it hard work, Rubik's Cube genetics or talent, I think her parents should make her a giant Rubik's Cube cake for her next birthday!

Non Voyage: Bringing the Deep Heart of Texas Home

LilSugar — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 12:00:39 -0700

As our non-voyage moves across the country, we head on south to the great state of Texas where cowboy hats and boots abound. The destination offers up a number of kid-friendly activities that can be experienced right at home.

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center introduces both kids and adults to wildflowers and other native plants. Pack up the kiddos for a lil hike and see just how many different flowers they can find on the trip.
The Alamo may be one of the main attractions in San Antonio due to its historic place in the Texas Revolution and the role Davey Crockett played in the battle. Help tots re-enact the battle by building a real-life backyard fort. Allow them to eat, sleep and play in the fort for a day and see how creative they can be with their limited space.
Austin is known for its live music festivals like Austin City Limits and South by Southwest. Check your local calendar to see if there are any live shows planned for your area. If not, start your own! Gather up the neighborhood kids, have them each pick a song they want to "perform" and call all the parents around for an evening of fun and music as your tots take the stage. To make the evening even more festive, consider adding some colored lightbulbs to the lamps.
You can't get more Texas than a little line dancing. Grab your tots and swing them round with an afternoon of toe stepping just for them. Either search for some line dances on YouTube, or use a video as your guide.
If the plains of Texas are calling out to you, consider recreating the ultimate ranch-hand experience with these ideas.
Chowing down has never been more fun than when you let your kids build their own meal. Tex-Mex-style items like burritos, tacos and fajitas are delicious and nutritious. See who can include the most colors in their creation.

Have You Tuned In to Toddlers & Tiaras?

LilSugar — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 13:00:00 -0800

Every week I turn to TLC for my Jon and Kate Plus 8 fix, but after a recommendation from BellaSugar I dedicated an evening to Toddlers & Tiaras. The documentary series follows different families on the quest for beauty pageant crowns and glory and sheds some bright lights on the realities of pageant life: rigorous training, painful hair and beauty regimens, and plenty of positive affirmations. It's sort of a modern day, reality TV influenced Living Dolls. While BellaSugar was shocked to see a 7-year-old be fitted for fake teeth and a little girl sob as she gets her first spray tan, I was more aghast by the parents' expectations and outlandish remarks. You can watch the series in parts on YouTube or tune in on Tuesdays at 10 p.m.
Photos courtesy of TLC

Should Dad Who Had Tots Duke It Out Lose Custody?

LilSugar — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:00:29 -0800

Siblings have their spats, but when push comes to shove most parents step in. This was not the case when one father's 2-year-old tot came to blows with another child his age. The dad, a special operations soldier at Fort Bragg, picked up a camera, egged on the fight, prevented an older child from stepping in, and posted the footage on YouTube. I am not posting the video because it is so hard to stomach. The father only cut the tape and ended the altercation once the boy was bleeding. Do you think this dad deserves to lose custody of his small son?

Toy Box: Muppet Whatnot Workshop

babysugar — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 10:00:07 -0700

It is always an exciting afternoon when the FAO Schwarz holiday catalog arrives. While I may still be planning my Halloween activities, it is never too early to sit down and thumb through the book of extravagant toys for children of all ages. This year's edition was filled with massive stuffed animals and a $10,000 military ATV, but what really caught my eye was the new Muppet Whatnot Workshop that is due to open next week.

You know the extra Muppets you see when watching Sesame Street or old versions of The Muppet Show on YouTube? The ones that are in the background and rarely have any big lines? Those are Whatnots and now you and your lil one can work together to create a custom puppet of your own. To see how the process works, and how much this creation will cost, read more.

After choosing a body, eyes, nose and hair style, you can select the appropriate clothing and submit your design online. Approximately a month later, your personal Whatnot arrives in the mail. The kits ($130) will be sold exclusively through FAO Schwarz and include reusable stickers of each of the design options, as well as a gift card to cover the cost of the design, creation and shipping of your puppet.

While the price may sound a bit steep, the idea of having a Muppet of my own has me actually putting this on my holiday wish list.

Blogging About Baby: What to Share

LilSugar — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 04:00:19 -0700

So you've decided to create a website to share stories and photos of your child. Now what? After you spend some time deciding if you should purchase a specific domain name and who you expect will read the site it's time to start writing! Here are some suggestions for what to include:

Memorable moments - Family websites are the perfect place to share ultrasound pictures, birth announcements and those hilarious kid moments. You can send the link to all your friends and they can comment on the site instead of in an email.
Photos! - I cherish the photos of my children and can't help but want to share them with all our friends and family. I suggest including all those magical individual pictures of your children on special occasions, silly moments or even weekly or daily pics.

For more ideas, just read more.

Share your photo service page - If you don't want to spend time uploading pictures to your website consider using Flickr or Picasa to share your pictures with family and friends. You can upload them in a flash (often you can use an uploading tool and get hundreds of photos online in a matter of minutes), tag them, give them captions and best of all allow your family and friends. You can always link to your photo service page on your blog or website.
Video - You can upload your video footage to TeamSugar or YouTube and send the link to friends, or use the embed code and put the video on your site.

Source

Middle Schoolers Engage in Oral Sex During Math Class

LilSugar — Tue, 20 May 2008 09:00:51 -0700

A substitute math teacher in Connecticut didn't put two and two together. Under her supervision in math class, two eighth grade students at Pulaski Middle School in New Britain engaged in an oral sex act. As classmates watched, one supposedly taped the act on a camera phone. The footage is now rumored to be on YouTube. While the students' conduct was wildly inappropriate, the teacher must have had blinders on. Who do you think is to blame?