McDonald’s to Open in Louvre

Before we had kids, my wife and I listed as one of our goals that we would not take our kids to fast food restaurants such as McDonald’s.  Note that I said goals; it’s a laudable goal, I think, but not very realistic in the real world.  There have been times when we’ve found ourselves in the situation of needing something right away that the kids would eat and in those times, chicken nuggets and, yes, a toy gets the job done.
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PETA’s Unhappy Meals- Cruelty to Kids?

All kids love a Happy Meal. They get food from questionable sources that, for some reason, delights most kid’s tastebuds. It comes in a cute box. And they get a toy! What’s not to love? Well in Albany, New York - outside of a McDonald’s restaurant -PETA will be giving out kid’s meals for free. But these aren’t the fun delight usually offered, these are “Unhappy Meals.”

Given out by a adult dressed as a chicken the package includes a “menacing, knife-wielding’ Ronald McDonald cutout, a ketchup packet disguised as chicken blood, a plastic chicken covered in ‘blood’ and a ‘McCruelty’ t-shirt.”

Deceiver.com brings up the question that although PETA is against animal cruelty but how about cruelty to kids?  Continue reading »

On the Road: What to Feed the Kids?

Next weekend I’ll be putting two kids in the car and driving 10 hours to visit the grandparents.  Whenever I’m faced with any kind of day-long (or longer) travel with kids I spend at least a week preparing.  One of the main concerns I have is food.

How to eat healthy and roughly on schedule while traveling is a puzzle for the ages.  The kids need to stay relatively close to their routine and eat food that’s not going to make them crazy (in our family that means no sugar), so they can sit in the car longer than nature ever intended children under eight to do.

I’ve assembled a little chart here of travel food options, complete with the pros and cons.  I invite you to add your own suggestions and experiences in the comments! Continue reading »

McDonalds Star Trek Happy Meal - Vintage Video

The McDonald’s Happy Meal was introduced in 1979, which means that the thing turns 30 this year. (See? I can do math.)

We seem to be on a nostalgia kick at the moment, so its not a surprise that my brain immediately warped back in time to…

The Star Trek Happy Meal.

A quick search reveals not one, but TWO television commercials for the McDonald’s Star Trek Meal. It appears that they were not technically called Happy Meals, but I don’t really care. That’s what I remember, and there are even web sites that call it the Star Trek Happy Meal. So there! (Clearly my maturity level has also warped back in time.)

Here are the two ads I found on YouTube. Both of which, now that I’ve seen them, I recall vividly. Continue reading »