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Strollerderby
Ignorant prank or blatant racism?
Parents packed into a Utah high school last night to discuss racism allegations at Alta High School. Members from Canyons School District and a member from the federal Department of Justice fielded questions from the public at the meeting.
The Canyons School District has been investigating what they are calling very serious cases of alleged racism at Alta High School after a white junior, during a March 17 spirit assembly in which juniors wore white, donned what looked like a Ku Klux Klan hood, which had holes for his eyes. Continue reading »
I did a lot of work with teenage girls before I became a mother. I was in my twenties. The reverb of adolescence was still ringing in my ears. Together with friends, I wrote some very honest, and consequently, very controversial, books for teenage girls, some of which really freaked out the parents of teenage girls. Now I’m the mother of a girl myself, and a boy who’s on the edge of tweenhood. They’re still little, but I can see the teenagers inside them, fighting for independence, demanding the right to their own point of view.
I might be particularly inclined to look for teenagery traits in my kids because of my background. But I don’t think it’s just me. I think the idea of the teenager is such a powerful one that it’s been spreading in both directions, creating both early and extended adolescence.
Boys and girls present different parenting challenges.
My sister and I have had a long-running debate about who is harder to raise, boys or girls. She’s the mother of three boys ranging in age from 6 to 18. I have two girls, one is almost ten, the other 28. Over the years, we’ve gone back and forth and have finally come to the conclusion that boys are harder when they are little and girls are harder when they are older.
And it would seem that the experts agree with our assessment. Boys and girls are harder in different ways. And a lot of the differences have to do with their stages of development. Continue reading »
38-year-old Debra Ayala Tapia is pregnant with a fourth child, which normally would be cause to celebrate. Problem is, Debra just got out of prison on $100,000 bail and the baby’s father is a 15-year-old neighbor boy. Oh yeah, she’s also married. Continue reading »
Fear of SIDS. Autism. Learning disabilities. Anxiety is a constant throughout every phase of parenting. Worries about sickness and freak accidents dominate parents’ lives when their kiddies are tiny. But come the teen years, your child’s behavior can and will introduce a whole new set of nail biters. Vicki Iovine, author of the Girlfriends’ Guides series, weighs in on what causes her the most angst in her upcoming book Girlfriends’ Guide To Teenagers:
A teenager from New Zealand successfully defended herself from a shark attack recently, escaping without even requiring stitches. As a shark-o-phobe and avid beach swimmer, I find this news both terrifying and reassuring. Continue reading »
Laura Dekker, the 14-year-old Dutch sailor famous for going to court to gain the right to be the youngest to to sail around the world solo, was found on the Caribbean territory of St. Maarten after being reported as missing last Friday.
Laura fled the Netherlands after withdrawing 3,500 euros ($5,000) from her bank account and leaving a letter for her father. Her boat, Guppy, was left behind.
After her unsuccessful attempt to circumnavigate the world solo made headlines early this year, Laura had been placed under the watch of Dutch child care authorities until July, meaning she could not leave the country without their permission. Apparently she was determined to try again when the period of supervision was lifted and had the support of her dad but not her mom. Her parents are separated.
Thankfully, the kid is fine and plans are underway to bring her home. The thought of a 14-year-old on her own in a small boat in the ocean terrifies me, no matter how qualified she is. What is her father thinking?
Image: AP
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