Bunchland

What the cool parents are reading today:

1. Hey remember when you had to transition your kid from a crib to a big-kid bed? Ulgh, that’s fun right?

2. One woman contrasts the story of her birth, with a drugged up mom who was given a shot of estrogen so she wouldn’t lactate, versus her own crunchier motherhood full of birthing tubs and breastfeeding. (This is another take on the Elisabeth Badinter philosophy)

3. McDonalds is now putting yogurt in their Happy Meals and have slashed fries down to a mini 100 calorie size. Do these changes make you more inclined to take your kids to McDonalds?

4. How do you help your kid reach a healthy body weight without making them self-conscious about it?

5. Speaking of healthy eating habits, sometimes you just got to make your kid eat all their vegetables, no matter how unimpressed they are:  Read more...

What we’re reading today:

1. In case you missed it on our Facebook page yesterday, that mom who fat-shamed her 7-year-old into dropping 16 lbs. has been given a book deal. What do you suppose the book’s called? How to Provide Your Daughter With a Lifelong F*cked Up Relationship With Food? Please Buy My Book So I Can Afford My Daughter’s Future Therapy Bills? No More Pizza Fridays: My Daughter Will Thank Me Later… Maybe? Actually, the working title is Heavy.

2. The right way to prevent childhood obesity? Encourage kids to move more! New recommendations say kids up to 4-years-old need three hours of activity each day. For babies this means tummy time and reaching and grabbing things (your hair, necklaces, earrings) and for toddlers it means crawling, walking, go up stairs and just generally playing. Once kids hit five, they should have a solid hour of “energetic play” which includes running, biking, skipping, jumping and sports-type activities.  Read more...

What we’re reading today:

1. Gawker is not down with the mommy bloggers.

2. An 8-year-old was taken away from his mom because he weighed over 200 lbs. Is this child abuse?

3. Oh those parents get so excited and intense about their kids’ first play-off game and pep talk!

4. Did you hear about the Ottawa boy who’s raising money for Movember? (There is still time to donate!!)

5. Mall Santa Musical, brought to you by Improv Everywhere:

Photo by asmith62873 via Flickr

What we’re reading today:

1. JC Penney was selling the above t-shirt in the little girls department. Because it’s always a good to instill the idea that girls only have to be beautiful little fools and nothing else matters. If you click on the item listing, you can see it’s no longer available.

2. Bummed about the end of summer? Us too. Here are some suggestions to beat the end of summer blues.

3. Are traditional playgrounds contributing to childhood obesity?

4. The Guardian looks at the bond between fathers and daughters.

5. Go Planet!

What we’re reading today:

1. Kids don’t really need Gatorade, unless it’s really hot and they’re running around a lot.

2. One San Francisco mom was a little scared away by “mommy makeovers” being promoted in her otherwise helpful new mom newsletters, what with the multiple plastic surgery procedures you get all in one go, so she started making her own clothes.

3. One author says that parenthood is swallowing marriage.

4. How to raise a socialist.

5. Social Family news: Soldier dad can’t be there for the birth of his son, so he watches the whole thing on Skype:

Photo by r3v | cls via Flickr

What we’re reading today:

1. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day is coming soon to a theatre near you! Maybe! Kids Are All Right director Lisa Cholodenko is in talks to direct a live action adaptation of the classic storybook. Via Jezebel

2. After the death of their son, two grandparents meet the granddaughter they never knew existed. Alan S. Kaufman shares this story on Salon.

3. Author Mel Robbins thinks moms should just quit. Don’t just take Mother’s Day off, just stop doing the all the domestic chores altogether. (We’re guessing Robbins doesn’t count those mothers whose families all fairly contribute to the household duties.)

4. A new study says that families who sit down to eat dinner together stay slimmer than their eat apart counterparts. Why? Maybe kids are more likely to make healthy choices when they’re around Mom and Dad.  Read more...

What we’re reading today:

1. Is your kid an Kapha, Veda or a Pitta? If you want to parent your kids according to India’s 5,000-year-old “Science of Life,” Ayurveda, you need to that figure their mind and body type. Get on the Ayurveda train before Madonna (or similar) does! On Huffington Post.

2. Can the Very Hungry Caterpillar teach kids about healthy eating?  The American Academy of Pediatrics is handing out copies of the classic kids’ book to pediatricians hoping that the caterpillar, who consumes a whole bunch of fruit and then a whole lot of junk food, subsequently getting a tummy ache, can teach kids that too much ice cream et cetera leaves you feeling less than 100 per cent. Diet Blog via Jezebel  Read more...