Strollerderby : Telegraph

Woman Gives Birth to Twins Minutes After a Heart Attack

Madeline Holler — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 22:06:00 GMT

Labor is hardly a walk on the beach and maybe even doubly so when giving birth to twins. But still, having a heart attack before giving birth -- to twins -- and being told you're going to die has got to pretty much wreck the whole event to say the least.

First-time mother Nina Whear, 38, experienced all that -- including saying good-bye to her husband before her predicted death -- just before delivering Evie and Alfie, who weighed 3lb 11oz and 4lb 10oz.

Shortly after the twins' birth, doctors performed heart surgery. And get this -- mother, Evie, Alfie, daddy -- everybody's recovered nicely!

Whear suffered a massive heart attack on her due date and was rushed to the hospital, where the babies were delivered via c-section. A chaplain was dispatched to her room -- doctors had only given her a seven percent chance of surviving. She said good-bye to her husband and then was wheeled in for heart surgery.

Here's what she thought following the surgery (from the Telegraph):

"When I woke up after the operation I couldn't talk, but I tried to signal to the nurse to say that I couldn't believe I was alive, although I don't think she understood what I meant.

"I was so shocked that I didn't even think about the fact I had just had twins, I was just amazed to be alive."

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Photo: Telegraph

Morning News: D.C.'s Lovin' Gay Families

Madeline Holler — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 13:00:00 GMT

The walls of intolerance appear to finally be crumbling. It even seems like states -- and non-states -- are scrambling to show gay families the love.

On the same day that Vermont became the fourth state to recognize gay marriage, the Washington, D.C. Council voted to do the same. The Council's vote is the first step in passing a big fat gay marriage bill, which is just really exciting (and shhhhh, don't tell the Mormons!). All of this comes a week after Iowa (Iowa!) approved gay marriage. Man, when Iowa says gay marriage ain't no thing, doesn't that make California slap it's forehead once or twice?

Oh, oh, and as if recognizing gay marriage wasn't enough (and it's not, actually), those crazy Obamas invited a bunch of gay families to participate in the annual Easter Egg Roll. They've set aside tickets just for gay and lesbian families as a part of their effort to "reach out." Of course, with all this support and recognition of gay and lesbian families, the whole my-two-moms thing is going to lose some of its cool. Huh. Progress.

Speaking of losing one's cool, a couple of Gisele Bundchen's body guards apparently fired shots at photographers during Bundchen and Tom Brady's wedding. Costa Rican police are investigating.

Think Tom Brady had to give Bundchen a gift just to get her to sleep with him? We ask, because the Telegraph is reporting on a new study that says chimps will have sex for gifts and of course, we mean logically!, it follows that women put out for trinkets wrapped in pretty boxes. Oh, female primates. We're so simple!

We can also detect body odor better than men. Were just sniffing out biological information, the story goes (and also looking for a cute new purse!).

In bad economy news, the Juilliard School's program for poor students has been drastically slashed. While 50 students will return for a second year in the fall, the school won't be holding auditions for a new incoming group. The program was held up as a national model and is suffering the fate of so many arts programs.

The death toll from Monday's earthquake in Italy just keeps going up. The latest number is 228 -- many are young children.

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Photo: MSNBC.com

Little-Boy Dad Inspires Sex Ed for the Very Young

Madeline Holler — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 22:05:00 GMT

Dozens of primary schools in the U.K. have begun talking about sex with kids as young as 7 thanks to Alfie Patten, the boy-faced 13-year-old, who is one of his country's youngest fathers.

Next year, those lessons will be aimed at even younger pupils -- those who just started school.

The newly introduced lessons are part of a now compulsory sex-ed curriculum for all school chidren, including 5-year-olds. The new lessons were supposed to start in 2010. However, school administrators, worried about Alfie's contemporaries also procreating, have stepped up the facts-of-life discussion to reach kids before they hit puberty.

The very youngest children won't be getting all the details on how babies are made. But they will begin to talk about bodies and feelings, which sets the stage for the details that will follow.

I think this is great and would love to see body/health/sex talks start much younger in schools here in the U.S. What do you think? If 5 years old simply too young?

Photo: DailyMail.co.uk

Baby-faced Boy Becomes Dad

Ex-Employee of OctuDoc Shocked He's Still in Business

Madeline Holler — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 19:28:00 GMT

A woman who worked for Michael Kamrava, the fertility doctor made famous after the birth of Nadya Suleman's octuplets, told the UK Telegraph she's shocked he is still in business.

Embryologist Shantal Rajah said she left the clinic after working there only three weeks, due to the secretive nature of Kamrava and the lack of regulation.

Some more revelations about the doctor:

Dr Kamrava, who has described himself as a medical pioneer, is known in Southern California for promoting techniques to improve pregnancy success rates, including placing newly created embryos in a capsule and cultivating them inside the vagina for a few days before transferring them to the uterus in hopes of achieving a pregnancy.

Federal records suggest that his clinic in Beverly Hills has a low success rate. Of the 61 procedures Dr Kamrava conducted in 2006, there have been only five pregnancies and two births.

Well, 2008 was certainly good for his stats. Nadya Suleman became sucessfully pregnant with octuplets. Another woman, who underwent treatment shortly after Suleman, is due with quadruplets in a few months.

Octuplets' Fertility Doctor Strikes Again!

Photo: LA Times

Octuplets' Mom Done Making Babies, Plans to Survive on Loans

Madeline Holler — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 19:02:00 GMT

First reaction? Well I should hope so! Second reaction ... hmmm, think she means it?

Nadya Suleman told Ann Curry in her interview for NBC's "Dateline" that she's done having babies. She said the octuplets were "a sign from God" that she should stop.

Perhaps she's getting her signals mixed up ... because the 33-year-old also thinks she's going to support her 14 kids on the student loans she takes out in order to finish up her master's degree -- in counseling, of course.

Oh, Nadya! Nadya, Nadya, Nadya.

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Photo: msnbc.com

Octuplets' Grandma Calls Daughter 'Unconscionable' as Babies Introduced to the World

Madeline Holler — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 19:01:00 GMT

The grandmother of the California octuplets (plus six others) turned on her daughter, Nadya Suleman, calling her unconscionable for undergoing IVF yet again -- the pregnancy that conceived the now famous eight babies.

The grandmother's change of heart comes after Suleman told the press she had a sad, dysfunctional childhood. On the Today show this morning, Suleman introduced to the world babies Malia, Nariah, Isaiah ...

... Noah, Mcai (where's his letter 'h'?), Jonah, Jeremiah, and Josiah.

Grandmother Angela Suleman told reporters that she and her husband pleaded with their daughter to stop having babies. When she wouldn't, they went to the doctor that had treated her for her six other children and begged that doctor to stop. Daughter Nadya, according to her mother, just went to another doctor. Nadya told NBC's Ann Curry, in an interview on the Today show, that she had the same doctor for all her pregnancies.

The grandmother of 14 didn't sound terribly happy even with life with the six oldest grandchildren, explaining they were up all night, kids clothes were all over the house, and that everyone's squeezed into bunk beds in their small two-bedroom house. In an interview with Radar Online, she says that she doesn't think Nadya is capable of caring for all 14 children. They also posted photos from inside the house.

Also from the Today interview, we learn that Nadya's 14 children were conceived with sperm from the same donor. He has not met any of her 14 children. Here's what she said:

When asked his reaction to the amount of children she had, Nadya revealed: 'He was shocked. He didn't know what to say.

'He needs time. So in the future, somebody day maybe, he would be open minded to knowing them... This probably makes him feel a little bit worried and scared and apprehensive, you know, to be in their life right now. And it's maybe just not the right time,' she said. 'Someday, he will.

But she added firmly: 'I'm not going to say that I am hoping or relying on that... This is my choice to be a single parent.'

The doctor that preformed this latest embryo transfer is now being investigated by California authorities. Ethicists, too, are concerned that a single clinic might be responsible for all of the children born to this single mother with no job.

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Photo: Daily Mail

Why the Octuplets Mom Went For It

Madeline Holler — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 21:34:00 GMT

Finally! An explanation why the woman with no job, no partner, no home of her own -- but with four sons and two daughters - would undergo IVF to conceive. As we're all aware, that pregnancy resulted in the birth of octuplets -- six boys and two girls.

Her mom spoke to the press explaining the seventh pregnancy:

She was "hoping for just one more girl." So she asked fertility doctor to transfer eight embryos to increase the chance of a girl.

The grandmother of 14 defended her daughter. From the LA Times:

Suleman stressed that her daughter "is not evil, but she is obsessed with children. She loves children, she is very good with children, but obviously she overdid herself."

Reasonable?

Photo: LA Times

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Reports: Mom of Surprise Octuplets Already Had 6 Kids

Madeline Holler — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 18:01:00 GMT

So, the woman who had been expecting septuplets but actually gave birth to eight already had six other children at home (including a set of twins), newspapers are reporting.

This hasn't been confirmed, but the U.K. Telegraph tells us that people claiming to be the grandparents called into a radio talkshow and spilled the beans. At least one fertility researcher is cautiously outraged:

From the Telegraph:

Michael Tucker, a researcher on fertility treatment in America, told reporters: "If a medical practitioner had anything to do with it there's some degree in inappropriate medical therapy there.

"When we see something like this in the general fertility world, it gives us the heebie jeebies."

Us too. Still, the other children report has not been confirmed. Whether the woman had fertility treatments has also not been confirmed (though, come on, what are the chances?).

CBS news talked to an unidentified acquaintance of the woman, who also said there are six other children at home, four boys and two girls. Asked whether the additional eight could be supported, the acquaintance hedged.

"Well," she responded, "so far, they've been fine with the six they have. Fourteen I don't know."

The acquaintance also said the woman is young, lives with her parents in a house on a cul-de-sac where homes are mainly two- or three-bedroom. Tight!

Feels a little out of control, huh?

Photo: AP

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Separate Planes: Sensible Idea or Touch of the Crazies?

Madeline Holler — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 19:25:00 GMT

Back before I had kids, a friend told me how her parents, who traveled frequently overseas, always booked separate flights. If one of the planes went down, they reasoned, their children wouldn't be orphans.

I thought their gloomy scenarios were a little over the top -- did they also always take separate cars? Then I became a parent.

Suddenly, their precaution seemed entirely reasonable. Though I've never intentionally booked separate flights for my husband and me, leaving my kids without either of their parents was what I thought about the few times we've flown without our kids -- how could I have been so careless and cruel ...

Am I right or am I crazy? And before you answer, know that this year's favorite actress Kate Winslet and Sam Mendes not only think it's NOT crazy, but they go the extra frequent flier mile and refuse to get on a plane together -- ever. They've got some 9/11 and threatened hijacking near misses to fuel their insecurities.

Has this ever crossed your mind? Do you and your partner fly separately? Come on, Kate, Sam, my friend's parents' and I can't be the only ones, right?

Photo: telegraph.co.uk

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Nature Lovers Also Annoyed About Children's Dictionary

Brett Singer — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 17:00:00 GMT

Who knew kiddie dictionaries were so controversial?

First Christians were peeved because the Oxford Junior Dictionary removed words such as "bishop" and "abbey." But they also removed "beaver", "heron" and "magpie."

I could maybe see getting rid of magpie. Other than Heckle and Jeckle, one doesn't encounter too many magpies, and as far as I know, Heck and his homie are not in heavy Saturday morning rotation. But otter? Not that I see them in the wild but otters are at the zoo. They're on Bob the Builder all the time. Plus they're cute.

It's the same problem as before. The publishers took out the nature words in favor of "modern" terms like mp3 player. My feeling on this hasn't changed — it's a dumb move. But it does show that, despite what some in England were saying, that the changes are not an attack on the Christian faith. It's just plain stupid.

Methinks some smart publisher could step in with a better kid-friendly dictionary and take away some of Oxford's business. I know I won't be buying a dictionary that thinks mp3 players are more important than otters.

Source: Canadian Press via Google News

Image: Amazon.com

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Christian Words Removed From Oxford Junior Dictionary

Brett Singer — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 16:00:00 GMT

This is a very odd story.

The Telegraph is reporting that Oxford University Press has removed a number of words from their Junior Dictionary. The words were removed "to reflect the fact that Britain is a modern, multicultural, multifaith society," according to the publisher. So "mistletoe", "goblin", and "minnow" are out. "Celebrity", "broadband" and "tolerant" are in.

Many of the words relate to Christianity, such as "bishop" and "abbey." Professor Alan Smithers of Buckingham University (could he have a MORE British name?) is quoted as saying, "We have a certain Christian narrative which has given meaning to us over the last 2,000 years. The word selections are a very interesting reflection of the way childhood is going, moving away from our spiritual background and the natural world and towards the world that information technology creates for us." While I understand Professor Smithers' (that name!) point, it ignores the other words that got axed. "Minnow" isn't specifically Christian as far as I know.

I'm all for multiculturalism. But how is it multicultural to remove words that relate to existing culture? Why not add some? And "celebrity"? I'd be perfectly happy if my kids didn't learn that word until they were old enough to be irritated by it.

Interestingly, the changes were discovered by Lisa Saunders, a Northern Irish mother of four. Apparently she "painstakingly" examined various editions of the Junior Dictionary and noticed that many words had been taken out, mostly since 2003. Ms. Saunders is particularly upset about the Christian word deletions. "The Christian faith still has a strong following...To eradicate so many words associated with the Christianity will have a big effect on the numerous primary schools who use it." Hopefully even schools that aren't as concerned about Christianity as she is will consider a different dictionary. Plenty of time for kids to learn the word "mp3 player" on their own.

Regardless of whether or not you feel this is an attack on the Christian faith, I think this may be a book to avoid. (It's meant for children 7 and up.) The Junior Dictionary from the storied publisher (keep in mind that this is Oxford University Press, not Johnny Bluejeans Books N' Crap) still contains 10,000 words. But the words they took out and added seem like really dumb choices.

Source: telegraph
Image: Amazon.com

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25 Things You Don't Know About Barack Obama

Madeline Holler — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 16:31:00 GMT

Who is this president-elect, Barack Obama? "Oh, now you ask," bleat the GOP strategists who couldn't get that whole "we don't reeeeeally know him" strategy to work.

It's never too late to ask. Here are 50 things you might not know about him yet. Sure, they're pretty trivial, but fun to know anyway. Like, did you know he could bench press 200 lbs.? Not bad for a skinny dude, not bad.

Also, he collects Spider-Man and Conan the Barbarian comics.

Some other favorites:

• His favourite meal is wife Michelle's shrimp linguini

• He won a Grammy in 2006 for the audio version of his memoir, Dreams From My Father

• He is left-handed – the sixth post-war president to be left-handed

• He has read every Harry Potter book

• He owns a set of red boxing gloves autographed by Muhammad Ali

• He worked in a Baskin-Robbins ice cream shop as a teenager and now can't stand ice cream

• His favourite snacks are chocolate-peanut protein bars

• He ate dog meat, snake meat, and roasted grasshopper while living in Indonesia

• He can speak Spanish

• He promised Michelle he would quit smoking before running for president – he didn't

• He visited Wokingham, Berks, in 1996 for the stag party of his half-sister's fiancé, but left when a stripper arrived

• He applied to appear in a black pin-up calendar while at Harvard but was rejected by the all-female committee. (I'll bet they're regretting that decision now!)

• He enjoys playing Scrabble and poker

• He doesn't drink coffee and rarely drinks alcohol

• He would have liked to have been an architect if he were not a politician

• He repaid his student loan only four years ago after signing his book deal

• He says his worst habit is constantly checking his BlackBerry

• He uses an Apple Mac laptop

• He wears $1,500 (£952) Hart Schaffner Marx suits

• He owns four identical pairs of black size 11 shoes

• He has his hair cut once a week by his Chicago barber, Zariff, who charges $21

• His favourite fictional television programmes are Mash and The Wire

• His speciality as a cook is chilli

Go here for 25 more facts about the president-elect you might like to know.

Guy Changes Name to Captain Fantastic

Brett Singer — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 17:30:00 GMT

The Telegraph is reporting that a "teenager" named George Garratt has changed his name to – wait for it – Captain Fantastic Faster Than Superman Spiderman Batman Wolverine Hulk And The Flash Combined. I think "The Flash Combined" is a Jewish name that means, "Please don't hire me for this job."

I'm putting "teenager" in quotes because the guy is nineteen. When did we decide that it was still OK to call nineteen year olds "teenagers"? Is it based on how immature they are?

Anyway, The Nitwit Formerly Known As George Garratt changed his moniker because he, "wanted to be unique." The thing is, Elton John already used the name Captain Fantastic, something the Telegraph article oddly doesn't mention.

The Captain's grandmother isn't speaking to him anymore, which seems a little shortsighted. If there's one thing this kid needs, it's a good talking to.

What would you do if your child came home and said they had changed their name to something dopey like this? Or this?

Source: Telegraph

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Narcissistic Ass: Men Made to Work, Not Parent

Madeline Holler — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:01:00 GMT

There's been a load of backlash in the U.K. at a new E.U. policy that extends paid maternity leave for mothers from nine months to a full year after the birth of a child -- and at 90 percent pay. Even the head of a group that sets out to get equal rights for women has lashed out at the new scheme, saying it makes women less attractive hires for the workplace and so on. Instead, she proposes men get full parental rights, meaning an extension of paid paternity leave as well. There's a nice discussion over at Salon's Broadsheet.

But enough of the policy wonking. Let's get right to what one guy says is the problem with extending paternity leave to fathers: men are made to work, not parent. Can I first say, my, what a lucky wife he's got!

He "reasons" this is so because of a former (and debunked in the comments) hunter-gatherer generalization. The problem is that being a man I have a typically male perspective. What that male perspective tells me is that however nice and rewarding it is spending quality time with your children, it's no match for beavering away in your office earning extra money.

First, lots of us like, um, beavering, so a little job protection is nice. As is a little extended (and paid) time to slide into our roles as mothers and fathers without also being responsible for clients and the bottom line. Second, who says child-rearing is so damn rewarding ... or unrewarding? Can't we just agree that it's both! For both parents! Or anyone else involved!

I mean, it's not just parenting rights that should be extended to the fathers, it's the expectation that they also parent, that they have a role to play, whether changing diapers in the beginning or attending the screechy concerts; the interminable badly acted plays; the dismal nativities where your child swallows their only miserable line; the grisly PC non-competitive sports events where all must have prizes, the guy describes. Moms can roll their eyes as much as the dads. Dads can applaud with abandon just like a mom. There's nothing biologically sex-specific about being a narcississtic ass like this guy or a sappy, drippy, sentimental parent like other moms and dads that I know.

He tries to prove his point and say "see, told you so," because his daughter tells him he'd be an embarassment if he were to show up at her sporting event. Sounds like a teen to me! Guess that's because I'm a mom, a woman. I can intuit a child's mental state just by reading a quote.

Here's an interesting take in quite the opposite direction.

Photo: dailymail.co.uk

Single Mothers and the Power of One

Rachael Brownell (Redsy) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 16:03:00 GMT

"Marry someone. Anyone!" if you have kids or plan to seems like sage advice for straight people. And while children with married parents are better off economically and arguably otherwise, dual parent households are on the decline.

Leave it to the Brits to celebrate, or at least happily acknowledge that many single parent households are quite happy, thank you very much.

The article features the stories of single mothers and their children, told in their own words. Honest and touching, the stories tell of heart break, resolve, and uncertain finances.

The best remark: "Compared to other children, I think we do more cleaning."

For more on single parenthood in the UK, go here.