Vindication! For years I tried to convince my younger sister that she had it easier. Mom and Dad let her slide, I was sure of it. Now, a study by a Johns Hopkins University sociology professor has my back. The study has found that first-born children are subjected to stricter parenting, more discipline and higher expectations and that they receive less money from their parents than younger siblings when they dropped out of school or teenage girls got pregnant.
OK, so the latter two don’t apply to me. But hey, for years I complained pretty loudly when I heard the “you’re older, you should know better” line. Not to mention all the things I couldn’t do — wear makeup at 13 (No!), date at 14 (No!), drive at 16 (No!) and have my own phone line and TV in my bedroom throughout my high school years (Not a chance!) — that my sister, who is my junior by 2 1/2 years, got to do. It wasn’t really favoritism. It was parental testing of the waters. Once they saw how my wearing makeup, dating and driving didn’t tip their world upside down, it was a lot easier to be more flexible with my younger siblings. Still, my sister didn’t see it that way. Now, maybe she’ll have to.
Just spotted these “Pregnant Paper Dolls” and we can’t stop laughing. Wondertime Mag has a bunch of fun Mother’s Day gift suggestions in its May issue - including a laminated wallet by Orla Kiely and a polka-dotted apron from Domistyle which is beyond cute - but this one? Very, very funny.
OK, truth time… It’s TV Turn-Off Week, so you’re probably inundated with little notes from school, urging you to turn off the boob tube and read. Hey, don’t they know “Grey’s Anatomy” is back at last?
Crayola Crayons just unveiled eight new crayons for its 50th anniversary and the names, we’re told, were picked by kids. “Super Happy” yellow. “Fun in the Sun” orange (wait, shouldn’t that be yellow?), “Famous” hot pink. “Happy Ever After” blue. “Giving Tree” green. “Bear Hug” brown.
Like, what kid picks a name like that? Turns out the 20,000 kids voted from an online list, so we’re fairly sure marketing gurus created the names - or at least vetoed any suggestions involving poo.
It’s certainly easier to sell a color named after Shel Silverstein’s neon green “Giving Tree” than, say, boogers. But we’d have voted for StrollerDerby’s suggestions, especially Troll Booger Green. So, go ahead. Vote. Or click “comments” and add your own suggestion.
Are you a Sandra Boynton fan too? We’ve always been ridiculously enchanted by her sweet penguins and elephants. (Our fave is “The Going to Bed Book” - pictured left - what’s yours?)
Remember prom? The glamour, the glitz, the fabulous dress? If there’s a fabulously stylish prom dress languishing in your daughter’s closet, the Princess Project wants it! This wonderful community service group has provided free prom dresses and accessories to more than 6,800 high school girls who couldn’t afford them. If you’ve got something wonderful hanging in your closet, purchased after 2002 and in excellent condition, go get it dry-cleaned, and bring it to one of the Bay Area collection sites. Many high schools - Acalanes, Campolindo, College Prep and Bentley, for example - are conducting their own prom dress drives, and boutiques and malls are serving as collection points too. Even Children’s Hospital is taking in frothy gowns for the cause.
Don’t have a gown, but you love the idea? VESTIA, the Volunteer Emergency Services Team in Action for Contra Costa County, rents tuxedos and buys prom dresses for teens in foster care who would like to attend those iconic high school events - prom and senior ball. It’s a rare foster parent who picks up the tab for expenses like that, so VESTIA tries to help, but they need donations to do it. E-mail Anne Struthers or call her at (925) 335-2193 for info.
So, J Lo and Marc Antony had their twins early this morning, and now, there’s a big payday ahead. Apparently, People Magazine has offered up to $6 million to snap the first portraits of Max and Emme, or Moonbounce and Starstruck, or whatever their names are. That’s a highwater mark for what has become a bizarre celebrity pregnancy ritual.
Rather than spend his life in a wheelchair, 9-year-old Nick Nelson choose to have his right leg amputated in November. On Friday, he showed off his new prosthetic leg on the Today show. Inspiring? Heck yeah.
Nick was born with a rare birth defect: popliteal pterygium syndrome, which hindered his ability to extend his legs. His left leg showed improved mobility, his right didn’t. So, in an incredibly mature and profoundly brave move, Nick asked to have his right leg removed and fitted with a prosthetic. He wanted to be free to run around and live his life, even if that meant major changes. So far his only complaint: “It makes a weird, clicky sound when I walk,” he said on the Today show. “Now I can’t sneak into my sister’s room.”
Carina Chiodo of the Contra Costa Times’ Life in Perspective board gives a teen’s perspective on parental text messaging. Apparently, we’re the butt of our kids’ jokes when we attempt to text.
Vindication! For years I tried to convince my younger sister that she had it easier. Mom and Dad let her slide, I was sure of it. Now, a study by a Johns Hopkins University sociology professor has my back. The study has found that first-born children are subjected to stricter parenting, more discipline and higher expectations and that they receive less money from their parents than younger siblings when they dropped out of school or teenage girls got pregnant.
