Parenting teen and tween daughters brings its own special joys and challenges. So here, from one of our favorite parenting experts, Ksenija Olmer from the John Muir Women’s Health Center, are five tips to help parents of adolescent girls survive the rollercoaster ride:
1. Remember this too, shall pass. (And when it does, try to be the better person and not drag up the embarrassing moments.)
2. Understand that your daughter saves the worst for you because she knows you will love her despite anything. Your friends and neighbors, her teachers are telling you what a wonderful, polite, helpful girl she is. Don’t say, “Are you sure you didn’t mix her up with someone else?” Smile and glory in the fact that, despite your fears, she is growing up to be a responsible member of our society. She is successful in presenting herself in the best light outside the home, so she can fall apart when she makes it through the door. Read the rest of this entry »
It’s beginning to sound like a broken record. A teen idol reveals a bit too much in photographs that end up before the public eye. Quickly, they shift into damage control with an “I’m oh-so sorry” apology. They made a mistake. It was poor judgment. They will learn from this and grow. Etc. Etc.
Miley Cyrus seemed different. She said the right things and was Disney’s poster child as pop-star/TV star Hannah Montana. Until last week, she had come under fire only once, for forgetting to wear her seat belt. Her parents seemed to do an excellent job of keeping her grounded and away from the bad element of Hollywood teen-dom. Then, borderline photos of Cyrus — showing off part of a green bra in one — hit the Internet last week. Now, she’s also apologizing for a phoot shoot in Vanity Fair’s June issue in which she bares her back while holding a silk sheet over her naked chest.
All of this leads us to one question: What happened to all the teen role models? Take a moment to come up with a list of 10. You can start with… Well, maybe… OK, so it’s not as easy as it sounds. Ashley Tisdale is about the only one coming to mind, and frankly, after Cyrus’ recent stumble, I’m holding my breath on her, too. Sad, isn’t it?
Sofia, a kindergartener at Belshaw Elementary in Antioch, loves ‘em all, but fell extra hard for “Fast & Feisty” and “Here Comes The 123s.” “Fast” is our second Princess Katie & Racer Steve CD, and again is filled with preppy little tunes that don’t talk down (or is that sing down) to young music listeners. In between toe-tapping hits such as “Hey Claire” and “We Dress Ourselves” are four “skits,” a bit of fun storytelling. Read the rest of this entry »
In this morning’s Times, we look at video game and internet addiction, kids who get iCrazed and how to spot the warning signs before it turns unhealthy. Wii, iPhones and all the technological gadgetry our kids use today are powerful tools for connecting people 24/7 — and for parents who dive into this technology, it can be a wonderful way to connect with your tweens and teens too. But tech toys can also be tools of addiction. Read the story (there’s an accompanying piece on the toddler tech craze, and a column by Times games columnist Gieson Cacho about his own addiction to Everquest, and we’ve put the warning signs here on the blog after the jump), then click “comments” and weigh in with your thoughts. Do you worry about your kids’ overuse of video games or tech toys? Do you set limits for them? Read the rest of this entry »
Those pouty-lipped, fishnet-stockinged Bratz dolls are no strangers to controversy, so when Parenting Magazine asked moms to weigh in on whether dolls have gotten too sexy, we weren’t completely surprised to see Bratz take some heat. It was the quantity of heat that was striking - some 82 percent gave an emphatic yes and added such comments as “Parents should ask, ‘Do we want our children to start dressing like this?’ Because allowing them to have toys like this says that it’s OK.” On the other side, one mother said, “It’s not that I don’t wince when I see dolls like Bratz, but if you think the toy your kid plays with will make her promiscuous later, you might want to think more deeply about the issue.” Another asked where the outrage was over overly macho boy dolls. What do you think? Take a sec and click a side, or hit “comments” and weigh in at length.
Body parts from toes to noses are the featured topic on KidsHealth’s cool, just-updated web site, “How the Body Works.” Click on the body parts, then explore articles (everything from “Cerebral Cortex” to “What’s a booger?”), activities, puzzles, experiments, even an animated movie on your nervous system - which, you’ll soon discover, is “large and in charge.” Plus, did we mention our new favorite superheros, Glandman and Col. Lucy Leukocyte, commander of the body’s immune system?
Two thumbs up for educational value and kid-appeal, and if you’re going to let your youngster wile away his spring break online, this is wayyyy cheaper than Webkinz. (P.S. We had trouble loading the site with Firefox, but it worked fine using Explorer.)
Martha Stewart, eat your heart out. There’s a new DIY/reality show out that’s all about children’s celebrations. Fine Living TV’s new “Cool Kids’ Parties” series offers eyepopping ideas for putting pizzazz into birthday fetes and classroom parties. Some of them are ridiculously Martha-esque, and they all include those icky confessionals, beloved by reality show editors, where the viewer gets to hear the same inane thing twice. (Voice Over: “But Tiffany wondered, as a mother, if she’d be able to handle 35 birthday guests.” Tiffany: “I wonder, as a mother, if I’ll be able to, you know, handle 35 birthday guests.”)
That said, there are some great ideas in there. One episode offers ideas for a Mad Scientist party, complete with crazed scientist, cool decorations and amusing activities. (It airs again this Saturday and Sunday at noon.) Our fave was a surprise tea party for a beloved teacher that included the best teacher gift idea ever: ye olde coupon book with a classroom twist. One coupon was for “instant silence.” Adorable. We’re sold. Read the rest of this entry »
“As a father of 2 Girl Scouts, I find this program completely offensive. The central GS committee makes most of the money — the local troup makes very little. While the program does help the girls develop sales & interpersonal skills, there are other ways besides exploitation to achieve those goals.”
Happy Birthday, Legos! It was 50 years ago today that the Lego brick was born in all its colorful plastic wonderfulness, and we, for one, would like to say thank you, Big L, for all those sleepy summer afternoons spent snapping together the little onesies and 2×6s to make spaceships, houses and other fantastical creations. Today, there are enough Legos out there to build 10 columns tall enough to reach from the Earth’s surface to the moon. Lego factories churn out 620 new Lego sets a minute, and the population of Lego people will soon outstrip the number of humans. So when we heard about Steve Klusmeyer’s inspirational little tract, “All I Ever Needed to Know I Learned From LEGOs,” we just had to share:
Size doesn’t matter. When stepped on in the dark, a 2X2 LEGO brick causes the same amount of pain as a 2X8 brick.
All LEGO men are created equal (1.5625 inches tall). What they become is limited only by imagination.
There is strength in numbers. When the bricks stick together, great things can be accomplished.
Disaster happens. But the pieces can be put back together again.
And every brick has a purpose. Some are made for a specific spot - most can adapt almost anywhere - but every one will fit somewhere.
Check out Frontline’s Growing Up Online, which aired on KQED Channel 9 Tuesday night and repeats several times this week (TV listings). Although the program slipped into the clichéd dangers of the internet at times, it had some interesting nuggets on how this generation is different.
Parenting teen and tween daughters brings its own special joys and challenges. So here, from one of our favorite parenting experts, Ksenija Olmer from the John Muir Women’s Health Center, are five tips to help parents of adolescent girls survive the rollercoaster ride:
