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Strollerderby
Remember the good ol’ days, when summer sun used to be something to worship and frolic in without a second thought? When sunburns were a rite of childhood passage, and post-beach Noxema slatherings were par for the course? Our generation grew up thinking about the sun the way our parents grew up thinking about cigarettes. Now, thanks to that dumb hole in the Ozone and all that annoying information about cancer, we must be ever-vigilant about protecting our children from the potential harm of the sun’s deadly rays.
After all, just ONE BAD SUNBURN more than doubles your child’s future skin cancer risk. Got that? ONE SLIP UP and your kid has twice the chance of getting melanoma as an adult. So while you’re longing for the sun-ignorant days of yore, make sure your children are covered by double checking these seven spots that parents often forget to protect. A little extra time and attention can prevent pain, risk and a whole lot of parental guilt.
The Markov family enjoying a trip to Sofia, Bulgaria, which did not make the list but should.
Sure, popular destinations like Disneyland or beach resorts take some of the pain out of travel with your little ones — kid menus at restaurants, free hotel cribs, playgroups or swim teachers so parents can get some alone time. But popular destinations also come at a price — not just one with lots of dollar signs. Rather, being surrounded by hundreds or thousands of other out-of-towners can leave you with the feeling that, after all those hours of flying or driving, you didn’t really go anywhere.
Travel & Leisure magazine has a list of the world’s most underrated cities — the places people don’t often think of when they’re planning a vacation. It’s a great list and a great idea, especially if you’re traveling with kids. Some will have the conveniences of popular destinations, only with more eye-contact and rapport with actual locals. But get ready for a lot of confusion — maybe even concern! — when someone asks where you’re vacationing this summer and you tell them, “Detroit!” Continue reading »
This low cost carrier was ranked the best in quality in 2010. Who knew?
Southwest Airlines had the fewest number of passenger complaints in 2010 compared to the 16 major airlines in the U.S., but it still doesn’t rank as air carrier with the best quality, according to a study.
Things won’t likely turn around this year, either.
After Southwest Airlines flights were canceled this weekend when inspectors found cracks in at least three of their jets (not to mention the emergency landing of one which lost part of its fuselage skin in flight), it’s possible the low-cost airline’s No. 1 ranking in fewest customer complaints will plunge on the list and send more passengers over to the overall best airline, another low cost carrier: Continue reading »
At the pool the other day, a few of my fellow parents were enjoying a little rant about what might make our rather dilapidated swimming spot a nicer place to be. Umbrellas were mentioned. A slide. Bathrooms that don’t require shower shoes. I listened, and nodded, but what I was really thinking of was a line I stole straight from that New York Magazine piece we were all talking about last week: What this place really needs is a bar.
Bear with me here.
I just think I would be a better, happier, more delightful mom at the pool if I just had a well-made margarita in my hand. Continue reading »
A heat wave has blanketed much of the nation today, but if you’re surfing the Internet, chances are you’re indoors enjoying a cold blast of air conditioning. Many Americans, such as the elderly, or those residing in desert climates, literally could not live without it. But should we be using as much AC as we do?
Stan Cox has written a book titled “Losing Our Cool: Uncomfortable Truths About Our Air-Conditioned World (and Finding New Ways to Get Through the Summer),” that calls us Americans out on our energy-hogging ways. Salon’s Ryan Brown interviewed Cox, and reports that, “Nine out of 10 new homes in this country are built with central air conditioning, and Americans now use as much electricity to power our A.C. as the entire continent of Africa uses for, well, everything.” Continue reading »
Be happy! School's out!
Are all these end-of-school parties teaching our kids that school’s a chore? We don’t just celebrate graduations anymore, but everything about the end of school, from the last test to the last day to the last slam of the last locker door. Everyone loves summer — but aren’t we effectively telling our children that school’s a major drag?
Summer’s here, and the warm weather brings the bugs out. In addition to the summer joys of mosquitoes, wasps and black flies, parents get to worry about lice hitchhiking home from summer camp on their kids’ hair.
The New York Times’ Well blog estimates that Americans spend $1 billion a year on lice treatments to get rid of this persistent, itchy bugs. That’s a lot of dough to deal with the critters.
There’s good news though: you don’t have to take your kids to a “lice salon” to get rid of the infestation. While you can drop $300 a head on a professional nitpicker to clear out your child’s hair, there are home remedies that work just fine for a small fraction of the cost.
Joslyn Gray 
Amber Doty 
Julianna Miner 
Monica Bielanko 
Sierra Black 
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Sunny Chanel 
Madeline Holler 
Wendy Michaels 
Rebecca Odes 
Danielle Smith 
Danielle Sullivan 
Katherine Stone 
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