PlayStation nights
By Jodi A. Shaw
I cringed this past Christmas while purchasing a PlayStation 3 for my husband. It didn’t exceed my budget and the shopping experience was quick and easy, but I was disgusted with myself for finally giving in.
I’ve long had a distaste for video games and have been unapologetically vocal about it. The [...]
In Kate’s corner
By Rachel Krueger
“Yes, hello, Kettle + 8? This is the Octo-Pot calling. Stop sucking away at my 15 minutes of fame.”
I’ve never been a fan of TLC’s “Jon and Kate Exploit Their Eight” (or whatever). Being party to their marital spats and exhausted parenting makes me feel uncomfortably like an 11th wheel. [...]
What about the kids?
By Bev Schellenberg
Now here’s a thought: According to the crown prosecutor in the case of Christopher Pauchay, the father of two children who froze to death while in his care, it’s important that people care for the children they have. Marylynne Beaton says the three-year sentence handed down on Friday, March 6th, sends an important [...]
Babies bag big bucks
What with her three adopted children, recent birthing of twins, and husband Brad’s increasingly haggard mug, the rumors that Angelina Jolie is pregnant again have compounded an already drama-riffic life. Everyone is sick of hearing about this lippy femme and her do-gooding and her cat-fighting and her award-winning and her baby-making, but no one [...]
Alberta delivers on midwives’ potential
By Jodi A. Shaw
I prefer not to know the finer details of child birth. Instead, I’d rather wait my turn to experience it, and find out the good, the bad, and the ugly of pregnancy and delivery. A pregnant co-worker, however, has been spoiling some of the secrets for me . . . and [...]
Thankyou, Robert Fulghum
By Bev Schellenberg
Students young and old have returned to school, a yearly phenomenon as certain in September as rainfall in Vancouver. Depending on where you stand on the conveyor belt of life, you likely fit somewhere between ecstatic-that-school-has-begun (as in the case of most parents, some students, and some more senior mall-frequenters) to unfazed-and-basically-unaware (as [...]
Psst, kid, wanna buy some eyeliner?
Recently I met a mom who’s had enough. I was in a mall washroom when I noticed the media-awareness.ca sticker on the tote bag of the woman next to me at the counter. I asked her about it, and got a quick lesson in what it’s like to raise children in a media environment that’s [...]
Muzzle your kids
Bev Schellenberg
Which of the following causes the most harm to a child?
A) Secondhand cigarette smoke in vehicles B) Lead content in spiral journals, jewellery, and paintC) Magnets and squeakers from toys D) Moose burpsE) All of the above
Well, let’s see. Doctors at the annual Canadian Medical Association meeting in Vancouver on August 22nd agreed [...]
A job only parents can do well
Marni Ko
Last week, “Living” looked at the newest study to conclude the obvious — little kids do best when taken care of by the loving, involved parents who brought them into this world in the first place.
It’s not the first study, nor will it be the last, on this important issue. For over 10 [...]
Babies need Mother Care, not Other Care
Marni Ko
It’s not much of a surprise. On March 26, 2007, the findings of a United States study, the largest, most comprehensive, and longest running study ever undertaken, were published by the National Institute of Health. It concluded that the more hours a pre-kindergarten aged child spent in daycare, the more likely teachers would later [...]