3. An L.A. mom brings her kids to the Occupy protests because, “The children have been aware of our bankruptcy and unemployment problems, and I hoped that seeing other people who have been similarly affected would give them a sense of being part of a larger whole.”
5. Tennis legends as kids is pretty cute, but it feels weird to only show the boy legends. (Yes, we see that it’s for the Stockholm Open which is a men’s tournament, but still. It hasn’t been the best year for woman-friendly tennis ads, and we were under the impression that with a bounty of kickass women tennis stars, it was a pretty gender-equal sport.) Read more...
1. Is there anything funny about the way camp counsellors or fellow campers apply sunscreen? One Maryland camp sent home a sunscreen permission slip after the state sent out a memo about the DOs and DON’Ts of sunscreen application. So, is applying sunscreen to someone inappropriate or is it better to have your kid come home with a sunburn?
2. Do paraents get too into kids’ sports? One mom writes into the NYT Motherlode blog to say she’s discovered that there’s a lot of favourtism and unfairness going on in kids’ sports. (Plus a dad of a girl wants to punch Matt Lauer.)
3. Did you know Israel is the world capital for in vitro fertilization? And it’s free! (for two babies… sorry wannabe-Duggars who need a little help getting pregnant) Read more...
Go! Go! Fight! Fight! Gryffindor will win tonight!
David Beckham. Michael Jordan. Wayne Gretzky. They’re the best of our athletes but they’re no Oliver Wood. Though we go crazy over World Cup matches and Stanley Cup finals, sports without broomsticks just aren’t as fun. Luckily for us non-magical folk, Muggle Quidditch is creeping over campuses across the continent, and you can bring it to your backyard too! To get all the fun of swooping after Snitches and cheering for the Chudley Cannons without worrying about He-Who Must-Not-Be-Named, follow these simple steps:
1. For goalposts, set up hoola hoops at either end of a large backyard or field. You can either hang them on tree branches, or tape them to PVC pipes stuck in the ground. Decide on the rest of the boundaries for the Quidditch pitch.Read more...
Molly Hincka is 20 and runs 10 km everyday. She’s been a competitive athlete for the last eight years and this year she’ll be running in the 3, 000 m and 5, 000 m races at the Special Olympics in Athens, Greece. She can’t wait.
Many of us take up running to get or stay in shape. Unless you’re really into it, running can be like a chore; something that you know is good for you, but something that that you’re making excuses not to do. When we asked Molly what got her into running, her answer was simple:
“I have long legs.”
She says that running is fun and it’s something that makes her feel good everyday. She also competes in the 4 x 400 m relay, plays softball, soccer and swims. (As if distance running wasn’t enough of a challenge.) Read more...
1. New York State officials have deemed kickball, dodgeball, wiffleball and freeze tag “unsafe.” Red rover and capture the flag are also pretty dangerous. (In our experience, red rover seems the most likely of those six to cause injury. Wiffleball? Really?) If a recreational program offers two of these risky activities, they have to register as a summer camp. This means paying a summer camp fee and hiring medical staff. This is bad news for small neighbourhood rec programs.
