News and Culture Five
What we’re reading today:
1. A new collector Barbie has pink hair and a sweet chest plate of a tattoo. Is this inappropriate for kids, or is it merely reflective of the women a young kid might come across? We can think of quite a few awesome moms and dads with a whole lot of ink. Mary Elizabeth Williams made a good point in saying that while this doll isn’t specifically meant for little kids, it’s ‘s not a bad way to promote the idea that blond and All-American isn’t the be-all and end-all of beauty.
2. Adoption: Giving a child up, or placing a child with a family that can care for it better than you? Prudie FTW.
3. Shy kid? Relax, it’s not a social phobia.
4. We linked to some sort of discussion earlier this week, but that babies and screen time conversation just doesn’t go away. Read more...
News and Culture Five
What we’re reading today:
1. Kids love TV. Efforts to get kids to watch less TV and generally spend less time looking at screens have thus far failed.
2. New water treatment rules in Ontario. Less wading in pee, but with non-circulating water pools needing to be drained and refilled every four hours, it means more waiting around.
3. There is a ton of pain and discomfort when you’re pregnant/giving birth, but at least you didn’t have to give birth to a 16 lb. baby. OK, you moms of twins or more know what it’s like to have 16 lbs-worth of baby in your uterus, but still — wow.
4. An arty photo David Beckham snapped of his wife Victoria while she was pregnant and sunbathing has the Motherlode discussing the pregnancy photo chronicling thing. Read more...
News and Culture Five
What we’re reading today:
1. Crystal Smith at the Achilles Effect transcribed a bunch of toy commercials and created word clouds for “girl” toys and “boy” toys. The above word clouds were the results. So yeah, basically G.I. Joes for boys and Barbies for girls, just like it’s been for the last generations. Via BoingBoing
2. A recent study found that new moms are missing out on their vegetables. Also, exercise. New dads had no change to their diets. Via Jezebel.
3. The Hospital for Sick Children says it’s a bad idea to let your toddler eat in front of the TV. Dr. Catherine Birkin who led the study said, “Research has shown that greater amounts of screen time are linked to delayed language development and aggressive behaviour, as well as cigarette smoking and obesity later in life.” Via Parentcentral.ca Read more...
News and Culture Five
What we’re reading today:
Seinfeld actor Len Lesser, better known as Uncle Leo, has died. Reportedly, he went peacefully in his sleep. He was 88. Uncles are pretty great. We think this is a good opportunity to call your uncles and tell them so.
We were so happy when Alyson Schafer said you’re not a bad parent if you don’t limit screen time. And her not limiting screen time led her 15-year-old daughter to build a website and do some volunteering in Africa. But some parents aren’t sold. Australian mom Susan Maushart convinced her three teens to go without their electronic devices for six months. SIX MONTHS. You can read about their wireless adventure in her book, The Winter of our Discontent. Via GeekMom Read more...
