DVDs and videos such as “Baby Einstein” and “Brainy Baby” may hinder, rather than help babies acquire language skills, according to a new study published in the Journal of Pediatrics. The scientists found that for every hour per day spent watching baby DVDs and videos, infants understood an average of six to eight fewer words […]
Yet another in what is becoming a series of online games for kids that aren’t mean to be kids’ games (see also Tiny Drum Machine and Blue Man Art): Floorplanner is a Web-based application for room layout and design. You can click and drag furniture, plants, rugs, walls, and other objects to plan the home
From the world of science comes further proof that gender is a mysterious and fluid subject. Neuroscientists at Harvard found that by blocking female mice’s ability to smell pheromones, they exhibit much more “masculine” behavior, “without any significant rise in testosterone or other steroid hormones.” All the thinking until now was that female brains can
Last week’s Happiest Gay Couple episode was mostly unmitigated silliness. Rick and Steve’s cat Pussy somehow decided the fetus growing inside Dana was really a mouse, and enlisted all the neighborhood cats to stalk her. It’s amusing for those of us who have ever puzzled the mysteries of feline behavior, but misses that “I’m laughing
(I’m very pleased to bring you this guest post by writer and mom Sara Whitman, who has graciously agreed to let me crosspost some of her work. This piece originally appeared in the Huffington Post. Thanks, Sara!)
Two great online shows for your viewing pleasure today: Family Pride has compiled a slide show of family photos submitted in response to their e-newsletter request. It’s inspiring viewing. If you’d like to add your own family photo, send it to them by e-mail. Courtesy of Gay Rights Watch comes a video produced for Let
Less than two months after a widespread recall of Thomas the Tank Engine trains because of high lead content, another major toy manufacturer is issuing a similar recall. Fisher-Price says various figures and toys manufactured between April 19, 2007 and July 6, 2007 should be taken away from children and returned for replacement vouchers. Toys
Reader Erin was kind enough to send me some pictures of the musical PVC pipe set she made with her older daughter and her daughter’s friends, based on my Musical Pipes post. They gave the set to her younger daughter’s school—which is a great idea, since I admit it is a little large to keep
(Originally published in Bay Windows, Family Week Supplement, July 26, 2007.) R Family Vacations, profiled in the HBO documentary All Aboard: Rosie’s Family Cruise, caught some flak (but also some praise) earlier this year when they removed Bermuda from their July cruise. A group of protesters had threatened to meet the ship, and R Family
Preacher’s Sons, a new feature-length documentary by C Reed and Mark Neely, looks set to make a significant contribution to the awareness and understanding of gay families. The film follows the lives of Stillman White and Greg Stewart, partners for over 20 years, and the five “at risk” boys they adopted. When it begins, Greg,
