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Nancy NeSmith is the ultimate soccer mom. Besides her soccer-playing daughters, she's mothering a whole professional team — the Bay Area-based FC Gold Pride of the new Women's Pro Soccer league. The NeSmiths took a huge leap beyond just being fans, buying into the risky business of professional sports amid a wretched economy.
Chavira Brown isn't the only child to have died because of a dirty diaper.
Twice a year, a program called "Get on the Bus" collects the children and family of inmates — those on good behavior and who apply — from across California. Most wouldn't otherwise be able to afford the visit to Valley State Prison for Women and the Central California Women's Facility.
One of the more embarrassing aspects of having children is that you meet so many people whom you know by sight, but you couldn't recall their names on a bet.
Artist and writer Sandra Tsing Loh is getting divorced.
If you're like most cooks, the hotter it is outside, the less time you want to spend in the kitchen over a hot stove. Luckily, salads provide a wide variety of palate-pleasing textures full of healthy flavors. In fact, this week's family meal menu is a no-cook way to beat the heat. Start with refreshing Saladita-Stuffed Cucumbers, a flavorful Lunch Time Salad and Melon Ambrosia for a touch of sweetness. Serve with ice cold milk and crusty bread for a satisfying meal even on the most sweltering of days.
Tired of "Twinkle Twinkle?" Yearning for an alternative to Brahms? The latest CD from the "Rockabye Baby!" rock and roll line is out and this one features the musical stylings of ... Queen. If you're worried that a little "We Are the Champions" will amp up the bedtime tantrums, fret not. We just listened to this CD and it sounds like Queen on Quaaludes -- all vibraphones, mellotrons and mellowness. It's actually kind of a kick. Not what you'd listen to on a solo road trip, but certainly something to soothe the savage toddler. Rockabye Baby also has albums that feature music from Metallica, the Beatles, Bjork and The Cure. Their country cousins, Hushabye Baby, carry music from Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton and Carrie Underwood.
Summer is one of the nicest times of year to have a baby, the warm weather and slow pace making it that much easier to relax into new motherhood (and, from your baby's point of view, into life!) Here, some names that summon the season:
A parent's job is never done - an axiom that has proven to be particularly true in a deepening recession.
My-5 year-old is really into Star Wars. No. Really. He says he is growing up to be a Jedi. And who can blame him? Jedis are pretty cool. Defenders of peace and justice in the galaxy, they use the force for defense, never for attack (that is straight from the Jedi training oath, by the way). We knew about Jedi training at Disneyland when we took a trip last year, but he was a bit young then at 4 years old. He did pick out a Jedi Training t-shirt and has been talking about it....since then.
My daughter is a miracle. From conception to birth she battled to be born. Even now, as we gaze into each other's eyes when she nuzzles and nurses, I'm amazed she is really, truly here.
Sleep-away camp is a great experience for many kids and parents. New experiences, adventures outdoors (or at the camp mess hall) await. Kids miss parents; parents miss kids; but great memories are formed.
The LED Light Up Wonderball is super bouncy, but it's the flashing light inside each shiny orb that holds the real appeal. Our testers loved tossing the 2-inch-diameter ball after dark, and the strobelike effect adds an extra hand-eye challenge - at least for mom. Ages 5 and up Streamline, $8; karmakiss.com - Ellen Harterwall
Back in the spring, Big Guy was upset that Dad's birthday fell during basic training and all he got was extra push-ups from his drill sergeant. Forty-two - one for each year. Then he had to do it again as the sergeant had the entire company help "celebrate."
The kids complaining about having nothing to do this summer? Suggest these top five books of the summer or do what the children in the first book do Nothing!
He called me into his office and asked me to have a seat. The slight, balding man's face held deep concern. This was no surprise: he was known for his brusque demeanor. This, of course, is a polite way of saying he had a crappy personality. The watery eyes and overlong beard just added to the whole "vermin affect."
The rain hanging over New Jersey for the past 19 of 22 days has driven most of us to a constant indoor status. Good for the beer companies, bad for those of us trying to run off the winter bulge before the town pools are all open. Aside from trying and learning to appreciate all things brewed in Jersey, I have become unusually accustomed to my friends and neighbors decorations.
Meet the new classics.
There are a lot of things in New York City in which parents generally expect to spend "more than the norm". Birthday parties, babysitting, shoes, are a few that come immediately to mind. But following a recent visit to the pediatric dentist, as the receptionist handed me the bill, I wondered whether they use gold in the fillings here, instead of silver.
