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Mill This Over: Babies Can Eat What You Eat

We�re right in the baby food stage again, and while my daughter enthusiastically ate whatever we spooned into her cute little mouth, my son is a little more picky, even doing the �clamp the lips shut and go un-unhhh� thing.He�s really all about the big people food. He�ll reject his gooey little pureed meals and then practically knock the fork right out of my hand in an interception attempt if I am eating something that seems to appeal to him. Since he�s only seven months and just had his first two teeth break through just this week, though, I am not ready to give him even very mushy teensy morsels of grownup food no matter how much he might want it. �Get some teeth, then we�ll talk,� I tell him as I fend off his advances on my dinner with one hand and balance him on my lap with the other.

In today�s New York Times, father Keith Dixon talks about how he and his wife got around the baby food issue and raised a pretty adventurous eater in the process...

Posted Oct 01 2008, 04:02 PM by Amy Kuras with | with 8 comment(s)

Filed under: feeding kids, new york times, baby food, food mill, meals for children, little itsy bitsy foodies, Keith Dixon, gourmet baby food

Kurt Warner, family quarterback

We hear a lot about football players who behave badly, so it's always nice to read about those that don't. Kurt Warner, the Super Bowl winning quarterback who is currently having a late-career resurgence in Arizona (he's 37, which is old for the NFL) is also a father. A father of seven. Two of the seven were from his wife Brenda's previous marriage; one of those two has special needs (not mentioned in the Times article).

Warner is a great sports success story; he was stocking shelves at a supermarket before joining the Rams and leading them to a Super Bowl. He's living proof that NFL players don't have to be highly touted, heavily recruited college athletes in order to play well. If the Times article is to be believed, he and his wife Brenda are also pretty good parents.

Posted Sep 28 2008, 11:00 AM by Brett Singer with | with no comments

Filed under: parenting, father, mother, discipline, fathers, mothers, sports, new york times, football, NY Times, rules, manners, NYTimes, Brett Singer, NFL, kurt warner, brenda warner, arizona cardinals

Muppet Op-Art

In a piece in the NY Times today called "Puppet Government", beloved balcony boys Statler and Waldorf trade quips about the Presidential debates. The jokes, written by Hugh Fink, Scott Ganz and Andrew Samson, were obviously written before McCain threatened not to show up, so I'll add one: "John McCain says he won't show up for the debate until Democrats and Republicans stop arguing." "Guess there won't be a debate!"

I wonder if this is part of Disney's Muppet Master Plan. I would say no because it's a political topic. But the jokes are non-partisan and The Mouse House doesn't exactly have a track record of allowing writers to do whatever they like with Disney-owned properties.

Source: NYTimes
Image: Muppet Wiki

Read more:

Ailing Companies as Bad Children

More stuff my 3 year old broke

Disney trying to revive The Muppets

Disturbing Origins of 5 Nursery Rhymes

The Babble List: 25 Great Children's TV Shows That Aren't On DVD

Dora the Conservative

Clay Aiken Comes Out

Posted Sep 26 2008, 11:20 AM by Brett Singer with | with no comments

Just to Totally Freak You Out � Little Patients = Big Mistakes.

You know what I hate? Hospitals. The only time going to one is a joyful occasion is when your there to have a baby. All other times you�re there is because something is wrong or trying to keep something from going wrong. When you have kids, their health is of the utmost importance, so just to totally freak you out, the New York Times published a piece called Small Patients, Big Consequences in Medical Errors. Yeah, like you don�t have enough to worry about... (click thru for more...)

Posted Sep 16 2008, 12:45 PM by SunnyChanel with | with 2 comment(s)

Filed under: health, hospitals, new york times, medicines, wellness, Dennis Quaid

6 Food Mistakes Us Parents Make with Our Kids

Who doesn�t love a big old bite of parental guilt? Oh right, no one. One struggle most parents have to deal with, and one which is completely tied into our children�s health, growth and wellbeing, is making sure your offspring is consuming the right kinds of foods not to mention eating at all. Many of us struggle just to have some kind of sustenance pass through their lips...

Posted Sep 15 2008, 04:25 PM by SunnyChanel with | with no comments

Filed under: food, eating, new york times, diet

Sarah Palin Has A Penchant for Really Beautiful Scarves and More Tidbits For Those Obsessed

Yeah, I know, I know. You�re sick of hearing about Sarah Palin. If that's true, just don�t click on this post and scroll on down to the next fascinating tidbit in Strollerderby land. But if you�re anything like me and totally fascinated by the skeletons that could be perhaps lurking in her closet and the mysterious circumstances of her family life, well join me for a wee bit more Palin-landia won�t you? First off, you gotta check out this Sarah Palin Pregnancy Decision Map I spied via Gawker today. Truth is, it�s not only you, me, and a crafty chart maker who are obsessed, as mentioned in the Babble "Morning News", the New York Times assigned three journalists to delve into Palin's life and the birth of her most recent child Trig, her juggling of being a mom to five and doing a little something like running a state.

Here are some other highlights from the piece...

Posted Sep 08 2008, 08:13 PM by SunnyChanel with | with 4 comment(s)

Filed under: politics, new york times, election, sarah palin, Vice President

Teaching Evolution as Theory not fact

An article in last week's New York Times discussed a major hot-button issue in schools across the country: evolution vs. creationism, or its offshoot, intelligent design.

It's a long article, and certainly worth reading. I won't try to summarize the whole piece in this post, but the big surprise for me was that it was less about two competing theories/beliefs, or even about science versus religion. It was about a teacher who, in my opinion, has the patience of Job.

Posted Sep 07 2008, 11:00 AM by Brett Singer with | with 5 comment(s)

Filed under: news, school, religion, new york times, high school, florida, NY Times, conflict, intelligent design, controversy, God, evolution, NYTimes, election 2008, creationism, Brett Singer, catholic, christian, david campbell

Do Doctors See Young Women as Baby Machines?

The New York Times unwittingly opened up a can of worms when they wrote about a recent report on the health risks of sharing prescription drugs. The warning was targeted mainly at women of child-bearing age, since drugs can pose a risk to a developing fetus. Many women commented on the article, but not because they cared a whit about the health issues discussed.

Rather, they were outraged that the danger of sharing prescription drugs was framed as specifically problematic for women of child-bearing age. �Not all women are �pre-pregnant,� one reader wrote.

Posted Sep 02 2008, 09:30 AM by Hannah Tennant-Moore with | with 3 comment(s)

Filed under: babies, new york times, reproduction, childless, women, doctors, choosing not to have children, gynecologists, health concerns, baby machines, women's issue, reproductive organs, pre-pregnant, uterus

Why the puppy games are better than the Olympics

OK, that's not true. But if you haven't seen this dopey show on Animal Planet, you're missing out on something very cute.

Posted Aug 24 2008, 03:00 PM by Brett Singer with | with 1 comment(s)

Did Michael Phelps actually win 8 medals?

Usually when an athlete is accused of cheating, it's a doping issue: this year alone, at least four athletes have been caught using banned substances. But in Michael Phelps' case, there may be something else going on.

Posted Aug 21 2008, 03:00 PM by Brett Singer with | with 6 comment(s)

Other Old Olympians

Dara Torres is 41, and Oksana Chusovitina is 33 (and saved her son from leukemia), but they aren't even close to the oldest Olympic athletes in history, or even this year. Most aren't in the more physically strenuous events, but competing in anything at their age is pretty impressive. (And yes, this photo is of a multi-medal winning Olympic athlete.)

Posted Aug 21 2008, 11:00 AM by Brett Singer with | with 4 comment(s)

Love Blooms on "Sesame Street"

There hasn�t been a Sesame Street wedding since Maria and Luis's back in the early 1980s sometime. At least not one we�ve seen. However, a couple weeks ago, Annie Evans, one of the show's writers, and Martin Robinson, the puppeteer who plays Snuffy, Telly and Slimey the Worm, were married on the steps of 123 Sesame Street.

The story in the New York Times "Vows" column is simply adorable --- the couple, who met in 1993 and were good friends for years (even through Martin's marriage and divorce), began dating in 2002. Oscar the Grouch (given life by puppeteer Carrol Spinney) helped officiate the ceremony, and guests enjoyed dancing on the Sesame Street set. Click the video on the link

Posted Aug 20 2008, 11:02 AM by Amy Kuras with | with no comments

Filed under: sesame street, new york times, children's TV, puppets, Oscar the Grouch, Carroll Spinney, Vows, Annie Evans, Martin Robinson

When Your Kid Wants To Quit

After about 800 intoxicating hours of Olympic coverage, I'm sure I'm not the only parent imagining myself in the stands cheering my kids on as they pursue Olympic gold in swimming, or tennis, or track, or gymnastics, or beach volleyball (although I'm not a huge fan of beach volleball - if the swimmers don't have to compete in bikinis, is it really that necessary for the volleyball players???)

But what do you do when your kid says to you - as my seven-year-old said to me last month - "I don't want to do swim team anymore"?

Posted Aug 18 2008, 04:34 PM by Amy S.F. Lutz with | with 5 comment(s)

Filed under: new york times, piano lessons, Alina Tugend, swim lessons, quitting, giving up

Dara Torres inspired two current Olympians

Back in the year 2000, Dara "Superwoman" Torres was at a swimming camp in California. Two sisters, Sandra and Danielle Fong, were fascinated by her, and the medal she had just won at the Santa Clara International Invitational. So she did what anyone would do: she gave them her medal.

Posted Aug 18 2008, 09:00 AM by Brett Singer with | with 1 comment(s)

Jobs you don't want � Camp Parent Liaison

The Times article about parental over-involvement at summer camp mentioned a job that was new to me.

Posted Jul 30 2008, 04:00 PM by Brett Singer with | with no comments

Filed under: children, parents, new york times, summer camp, NY Times, camp, summer, Brett Singer

How to be an annoying camp parent

Inspired by a recent New York Times piece about parents of children who go to sleep-away camp, here are a few tips for those who want to emulate their behavior.

Posted Jul 29 2008, 03:00 PM by Brett Singer with | with 6 comment(s)

Filed under: children, parents, new york times, summer camp, NY Times, camp, summer, Brett Singer

When Granite Attacks

Those shiny granite countertops in your kitchen may be emitting harmful radiation, as well as radon, a radioactive gas.

Yes, you read that correctly. According to a piece in today's New York Times, "there have been�reports of 'hot' or potentially hazardous countertops" in recent years. Granite countertops have become extremely popular in homes across the country.

Posted Jul 24 2008, 04:00 PM by Brett Singer with | with 11 comment(s)

Filed under: health, Cancer, dangerous, new york times, NY Times, kitchen, home, House, NYTimes, radiation, gas, Brett Singer, radon gas, living room, geiger counter, granite, radon, health risk

Louise Brown is 30

Given my super-sensitive mom ears, I can hear you asking the question now. "Who," you are muttering, "is Louise Brown? And why the heck should I care?"

I can also hear what you're planning to do to your brother. Stop it right now, missy.

Posted Jul 21 2008, 10:30 AM by Adrienne Martini with | with no comments

Filed under: new york times, Louise Brown, IVF, infertility, Peggy Orenstein, test tube babies

Stay out of my room or I'll pee on your tree

I've tried to write a summary of this story but I haven't been able to come up with a better intro than this one (from the New York Times):

When the men of the Phoenix Country Club saw their feeding ways in peril, they did not tarry. Some sent nasty e-mail messages, hectored players on the fairway and, for good measure, urinated on a fellow club member�s pecan tree.

As you can probably guess, it was that last one � the whole "urinating on a tree" thing � that grabbed my attention. What caused otherwise civilized men to make pee-pee on the pecan tree?

Posted Jul 10 2008, 10:00 AM by Brett Singer with | with 5 comment(s)

Here's to the laddies who lunch

An article in the New York Times Style section discussed a group of men who got together for breakfast after dropping their kids off at school. The men are Manhattan-based primary caregivers, and one of them describes their jaunts as "like 'Sex and the City' with coffee instead of cosmos."

Here are a couple of other possible descriptions:

"Like 'Sex and the City' with more body hair."

"Like 'Sex and the City' only we don't talk about penises."

Wait � actually, they do! The article details the dads discussing...

Posted Jul 08 2008, 05:00 PM by Brett Singer with | with 3 comment(s)

Filed under: kids, preschool, new york city, news, father, school, Times, dads, fathers, new york times, fatherhood, NY Times, NYC, dad, sarah jessica parker, sex and the city, styles, NYTimes, Brett Singer, Carrie Bradshaw, tri beca, nyt styles, tribeca, sex and the city movie

The U.S. of A: Fertility Capital of the World

If you've got at least 20 minutes to spare and a few cups of coffee to drink, take some time to read this week's cover story in the New York Times Magazine. The subject: The fact that the birth rate in Europe is declining so drastically, particularly in places like Italy and Greece, that the world may run out of Europeans in the not-too-distant future.

Personally, I zeroed in on the portion of the story that attempts to explain why America's birth rate is higher than pretty much everywhere else in the developed world. (This section is located on page six of the online version, for those of you reading along at home.) Several potential explanations are offered, but Carl Haub of the Population Reference Board believes the most significant factor may be -- and do try not to spit up your coffee as you're reading -- the flexibility that exists in the American workplace.

Posted Jun 30 2008, 08:33 AM by Jen Chaney with | with 5 comment(s)

Filed under: new york times, work, Italy, career, greece, low birth rates, government subsidies, workplace, population growth

Dick Cheney whispering hush: Goodnight Bush

"Goodnight Bush" is a new take on an old classic, but probably not something you'll be reading (and reading, and reading, and reading � what is it about "Goodnight Moon"?) to your kids at bedtime.

According to the New York Times, the book was an unsolicited manuscript...

Posted Jun 22 2008, 11:00 AM by Brett Singer with | with no comments

Filed under: news, dick cheney, books, new york times, george bush, parody, Bush, Goodnight Moon, election, NYTimes, president, Brett Singer, 2008, sfgate, george w bush, goodnight bush, Erich Origen, cheney, Clement Hurd, dubya, Gan Golan, Margaret Wise Brown

Are bananas the new oil?

Everyone who thought bananas were this wonderful and inexpensive food that we stumbled onto here in the States � you were wrong. Very wrong.

At least that's what Dan Koeppel said in the New York Times this week. His OP-ED piece, "Yes, We Will Have No Bananas," is currently the most emailed article at nytimes.com. According to this extremely interesting essay, bananas are more exotic than we realize and shouldn't be so cheap. Fruit stands on the streets of Manhattan typically sell the yummy yellow-skinned fruit at 3 or 4 for a buck, which is a great deal by New York standards.

There are various reasons, Koeppel writes, why bananas...

Posted Jun 20 2008, 10:00 AM by Brett Singer with | with 2 comment(s)

Filed under: new york city, food, health, business, new york times, NY Times, fruit, banana, NYTimes, Brett Singer, Dan Koeppel, bananas

Greenhouse: Tuning Out "Green Noise"

You've probably experienced at least one of these things:

1) You use plastic cups at a picnic (your friend brought them) and bring them home, fully intending to wash them out and recycle them. But you're tired, it's been a long day, and the idea of washing one more damn dish makes you want to lay your head on the counter and weep. So, screw it, you think, as you toss them in the trash.

2) You spend precious minutes at the grocery store or farmer's market agonizing over which produce is better: locally grown but on an industrial farm, or organically grown but trucked from God knows where. Again, the "screw it" reaction kicks in, and/or the weeping.

3) You are trying to:

Posted Jun 18 2008, 11:02 AM by Amy Kuras with | with 4 comment(s)

Filed under: new york times, organic, government, greenhouse, corporations, green noise, Nalgene, confliciting information, locavore, green fatigue

Have a C-Section? Pay Higher Insurance Premiums

To add insult to injury, some women have to pay higher health insurance premiums after having c-sections, according to a report in today's New York Times.

As more and more people are no longer covered by employer-covered group health insurance, they might be surprised to find that finding individual coverage is more of a challenge.

And apparently, this is especially so if you've had a c-section.

Posted May 31 2008, 08:10 PM by Rachael Brownell (Redsy) with | with 1 comment(s)

Filed under: Babble, new york times, strollerderby, health insurance, c-sections, uninsured, underinsured, cost of healthcare, health insurance crisis, cesarean section, individual plans, vaginal birth, women and health, maternal health

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