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Thursday, July 29, 2010
Do you let your kids dress themselves?
Enter the When Kids Dress Themselves photo contest: Do you let your daughter walk out the door wearing mismatched socks? Do you get a kick out of your son wearing an Aloha shirt with his plaid shorts? Upload photographs of your kids when they have dressed themselves and you could win a $500 Gap gift certificate. Submit photos here.
Enter the When Kids Dress Themselves photo contest
You should have seen the look on my mother's face when my 7-year-old daughter marched out the front door in a beautiful party dress paired with black, fur-lined snow boots.
She rolled her eyes, pursed her lips, and feverishly shook her head back and forth in disapproval.
I know that look too well. When I tried to wear cherry red long johns under a jean skirt in elementary school she gave me that look. When I bought 100 black, plastic bangles and put them all on one arm, she gave me that look.
And most of the time she also said, "You're not wearing that out the front door!"
But with her granddaughter she holds back and keeps her mouth shut.
I love my mom dearly and I appreciate the endless things she did for me. She taught me to cook; she gave me music lessons; she attended almost every single one of my sporting events. And now, she's doing these same things for her grandchildren. But I resent how she ruled over my wardrobe.
My mom dressed me in wool plaid kilts, wool plaid Bermuda shorts, and wool plaid slacks. She had a thing for tartan, and I quickly came to loathe it.
And so I've decided that my daughter can wear whatever she wants (within reason, of course). I figure that by allowing her to dress herself she can freely express her creative personality. I think it gives her self-confidence to discover her own style. (This might all change once she hits her tweens, of course.)
Generally my approach works out quite well.
As a preschooler, my daughter tended to put together fabulously colorful outfits--a pair of hot pink leggings under a polka dot skirt with a striped long-sleeve shirt worn under a short-sleeve floral one.
And now that's she's 7, it's all about leggings, oversize T-shirts, and snow boots. She so desperately wants a pair of Ugg boots that she sees girls wearing around but I've told her she has to save her allowance and birthday money for the $100 boots. In the meantime, the snow boots suffice. And while I think they look silly, I try to prevent my eyes from rolling.
Do you let your kids pick out their own outfits? Be sure to join the discussion in the SFGate forum by clicking here.
Related story: Should kids get to decorate their own rooms?
| Jul 29 at 10:33 AM
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Kids with lice can now go to school
The American Academy of Pediatrics issued new guidelines this week saying that kids with lice should be allowed to stay in school. The organization also said that a lot of the common treatments for killing the bugs are no longer as effective because the pests have developed resistance to them.
Shutterstock/Jaimie Duplass
After my daughter started kindergarten, I spent two months battling the bugs that invaded her little head. Maybe you remember my blog post about the day I shaved the back of her head to destroy the pesky critters' home.
She missed some school because the San Francisco School District lice policy requires infested kids to stay home. Paris also didn't see her best friend, who goes to a different school, for a solid month. Her friend's mom was so afraid about her daughter catching lice because her private school requires infected kids to stay home for two weeks.
But school policies will probably change this fall. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released new lice guidelines on Monday saying that kids with lice should stay in school. A statement from the AAP says:
Head lice are not a health hazard or a sign of poor hygiene and, in contrast to body lice, are not responsible for the spread of any disease. No healthy child should be excluded from or miss school because of head lice, and no-nit policies for return to school should be abandoned.
Though head lice pose no definite health threat, the bugs are an annoyance for children and adults alike.
Why the change? For one thing, lice doesn't spread disease--they're simply disgusting and make your head itch, although not everyone even gets the itchiness. Also, transmission within schools is thought to be relatively low. Many school outbreaks, which typically first show up in October, are left over from the summer, Cynthia Devore, the chairwoman-elect of the Council on School Health for the AAP, told the WSJ.
What's more, children are typically diagnosed several weeks after infection. It takes about a month for the scalp to actually start itching. Most of the transmission of lice happens before the child is even aware she has them. Once a child is diagnosed, she's typically instructed to stop hugging friends and sharing brushes, hats, pillows, and bike helmets--and transmission stops so it doesn't make sense to pull her out of school.
The new guidelines are based on a report in the Pediatrics journal that says many of the commonly used over-the-counter lice treatments are ineffective because the pests have built up a resistance to them.
The Wall Street Journal reports:
Families that succeed in treating the condition with popular products such as Rid and Nix may have to apply the pesticidal creams as many as three times to get rid of the pests. Previous guidelines recommended parents do two treatments with a topical agent, about a week apart, to kill their children's head lice.
The pediatricians group also suggested that parents might want to try alternative treatments that don't rely on pesticides. Among these is "wet combing," or wetting the hair with water or other fluids and combing out the lice and eggs, or nits, with a fine-toothed "nit comb." Another possible treatment: applying the skin-cleanser Cetaphil and letting it dry on the hair overnight to suffocate the head lice.
Anywhere from 6 to 12 million U.S. kids, mainly between the ages of 3 and 12, have head lice annually. Parents spend some $1 billion on treatments, ranging from special shampoos to professional nit-pickers.
Find five tips for combatting lice at LilSugar. Also, check out BabyCenter's Head Lice Survival Guide.
| Jul 28 at 02:29 PM
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Latest teen fad: Vampire teeth
Last week teens were wanting Lady GaGa eyes. This week they're jonesing for "Twilight" teeth.
Shutterstock/Bliznetsov
Vampire veneers--the latest teen trend.
Vampire-obsessed teens are giving their mouths extra bite with fang-shaped veneers, offered by a handful of dentists across the country for about $200 a set.
"It is indeed a new dental trend, but I can't imagine it will spread beyond the fringe groups -- teens who love 'Twilight' and 'True Blood,' people in the goth scene, and members of the modern-day vampire subculture," says Jim Du Molin, a dental marketing expert based in Tiburon, Calif. "However, many people seem to view their teeth as a fashion accessory these days, and they're decorating them accordingly -- rappers with gold teeth and grills, party girls with sparkly tooth jewels, and now this."
Many, especially the media, are saying this fad is part of the "'Twilight' craze," but some fans scoff at the veneers, saying the vampires in the books and films don't sport fangs. Others argue that teen heartthrob and "Twilight" star Robert Pattinson is the inspiration. He plays the vampire Edward in the movies and his canine teeth are naturally pointy-shaped.
Dr. Clint Herzog, a dentist with five offices in Houston and Dallas, offers vampire veneers and told Fox News (video below) that they're in high demand, especially in the Texas suburbs. He says the procedure is simple and painless.
Robert Pattinson: Do his canines look pointy?
"It's similar to the material that we use to bond braces on the teeth," Dr. Herzog explained, "so it can be put on and taken off very easily with no damage to the teeth."
Taylor Wilkins, a 16-year-old Twilight fan who recently went in for a pair at Dr. Herzog's office, told Fox, "I was really excited to get them. It didn't hurt at all."
Beverly Hills dentist Dr. A. Patric Cohen started offering vampire veneers about a year ago, and now he advertises the service on his Web site. In the past six months, requests for the fangs have increased from about three a month to a dozen or more. The majority of patients are teenagers or twenty-somethings.
At first, Dr. Cohen was reluctant to offer the veneers but when he heard about teens filing their own teeth to become fang-like, he realized it was safer for a professional to do the job.
"What I do is reversible," Dr. Cohen says, "and the veneers only last a couple months. But filing your teeth to a sharp nub is permanent."
SFGate tried to track down a local dentist who offers fangs but had no success. Haight Street Dental in San Francisco says they recently received a phone call from a patient asking for fangs but their office doesn't offer the cosmetic procedure. Pope Dental in Walnut Creek also got a call just last week but isn't offering vampire veneers.
| Jul 27 at 10:33 AM
Monday, July 26, 2010
Betty Draper: Is she as bad as she seems?
January Jones will certainly admit that Betty Draper is a bad mom.
Last week, on Live With Regis and Kelly, Jones said, "She's straight up crazy I think. She's not a great mother, no."
Yes, Betty is known for punishing her kids by shutting them in closets, and most of the time she completely ignores.
In season four of "Mad Men," there's new hope for Betty who has left Don Draper and embarked on a fresh start in a marriage with Henry Francis. But in last night's season premiere, she was the same frigid mother. At Thanksgiving dinner, she stuffs sweet potatoes into her daughter's mouth, "as if she's trying to make her daughter swallow the new marriage along with it," a Time critic wisely pointed out.
But is this mom who is unhappily trapped in her role as housewife really that bad?
"New York Magazine" put together this video featuring clips of things that Draper has said to her kids over the years.
We've all used most of her lines:
"Go back to bed."
"Stop it."
"What did I just say? You don't listen?"
"Back away from the stove."
"Stop that! You're going to break it."
"What is wrong with you?"
"Go upstairs."
Although a few--"Go bang your head against the wall" and "Sally looks fat"--I'll hopefully never use.
What do you think? Is Betty Draper as bad as everyone says she is?
| Jul 26 at 08:13 AM
Friday, July 23, 2010
Friday Five: Your family weekend guide
Got weekend plans? You'll find lots of family fun in San Francisco.
1) Kimba's Cave, San Francisco. This creepy, funny Saturday morning kiddie show musical extravaganza takes place way down low beneath the surface in Kimba's Cave. It features the show's Host Kimba and his 2 unlikely sidekicks: Pepper, a little marionette devil who acts as Kimba's hot little Howdy Doody; and Kooky, an oversized cuckoo bird who is more than just a little slow. Their quest for cake, cartoons and Saturday morning good times take a spooky turn when the cave walls begin talking and the they are attacked by subterranean spider monkeys! 9th Street Independent Film Center, between Mission and Howard. Sun., July 25, 1-3 p.m. $3-$5. Info: kimbascave.com.
2) SF Symphony, San Francisco. The symphony's annual free concert includes a special tribute to Mexico with an afternoon of musical favorites conducted by rising-star Alondra de la Parra, a native of Mexico City now based in New York. Join the Consulate General of Mexico in San Francisco and the Friends of Mexico 2010 in celebrating the Bicentennial of the Independence of Mexico. Dolores Park. Sun., July 25, 2 p.m. Free. Info: sfsymphony.org.
3) Summer Sunsets: Shipwrecked, Sausalito. Spend the evening with pirates! Argh! Sin sea chanteys, watch a pirate show, and chow down on barbecue. Bay Area Discovery Museum. Fri., July 23, 5-8 p.m. Admission: $5-$8. Info: baykidsmuseum.org.
4) Fly Trap Theater, San Francisco. The Conservatory of Flowers brings its carnivorous plants and tour guides into the Mission District. Learn why and how carnivorous plants are different from other plants, what areas in the world produce plants that eat bugs, why they hunt, and how they attack. Carnivorous plants will be dissected, their trapping mechanisms looked at up close and personally, in order to learn about the different adaptations these creatures use to lure tasty bug dinners into their plant jaws. Sat., July 24, 2-4 p.m. Paxton Gate's Curiosities for Kids, 766 Valencia Street. Free. Info: paxtongate.com.
5) Art and Wine Festival, Alameda. There will be plenty of fun things for little ones to enjoy at this annual event a petting zoo, face painting, and pony rides. Sat., July 24, and Sun., July 25, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Free. Info: click here.
| Jul 23 at 04:03 AM
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Photo contest: When kids dress themselves
Do you let your daughter walk out the door wearing mismatched socks?
Do you get a kick out of your son wearing a striped shirt with his plaid shorts?
Do you love the outrageous clothing combinations your kids put together when you set them free in their closets?
This photo contest is for you!
We're inviting parents to upload photographs of kids who have dressed themselves into our new photo gallery. Share pics of the little monster in the closet: Your child, picking out ridiculous outfits and committing funny fashion faux pas. The most creative dresser wins!
We got great prizes from Gap!
The grand prize winner receives a $500 Gap gift certificate. Two runners-up will receive gift certificates for a free pair of jeans ($69.50 value). Gap recently released its latest collection of 1969 Premium Jeans made especially for GapKids.
Click here to enter.
Contest ends August 7. For complete contest rules.
| Jul 22 at 02:53 PM
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Do little girls belong in 'super skinny' jeans?
Last year it was high heels. This year parents are fretting over skinny jeans. Those tight-fitting pants that hug the body all the way from the waist to the ankles are now being made for 4-year-olds.
The popular children's clothing companies are releasing their fall lines and skinny jeans seem to be the hot fashion item.
These pants are typically stretchy and easy to run around in like leggings, but they're made with thicker denim fabric so they should last a little longer.
Everyone from Gymboree to Children's Place is offering these jeans that Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie made so famous.
Hanna Anderson is selling a "Not So Skinny Jean" for $28 while Gap has a "Super Skinny" on the racks for $34.50.
And Old Navy has created quite a stir by embroidering the words "Super Skinny" along the back of the inside waist line of it's jeans that sell for $19.50.
Some mom bloggers are questioning the message this sends to impressionable little girls who are just learning about body image.
In a blog post titled "Do Super Skinny Girls' Jeans Encourage Eating Disorders?" over at MomFinds, Jeanine writes, "I get that super skinny references the style of the jeans, but you can't help but wonder what little girls will think every time they slip these jeans on."
Eating disorder? It's hard to imagine that a 5-year-old is going to pass on a piece of cake at the birthday party so she can fit into her skinny jeans. I just might pick up a pair for my daughter because she loves wearing leggings but they have holes in the knees after three or four wearings.
What do you think? Are skinny jeans appropriate for young kids?
| Jul 21 at 09:16 AM
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Video: Watermelon baby
Need a place to put your squirmy, wormy baby while you're making dinner? Forget the baby swing. Forget the Bumbo seat. Try putting him in a watermelon. At least that's what some parents who posted a video of their baby on YouTube did.
The video has gone viral on the Internet and everyone is asking, Why is this baby in a watermelon? Maybe his parents are big fans of Anne Geddes.
| Jul 20 at 08:43 AM
Monday, July 19, 2010
Why Tahoe?
Our family weekend getaway in Tahoe hit a low point on Saturday night at the Beacon Grill.
The scene at this South Lake restaurant was what you'd expect to find on Del Playa, UCSB's famous party row--a place that I found fun at age 19 but not at age 36 with young kids.
Women wearing shorts so short you could see their butt cheeks trotted around holding plastic cups filled with slushy Rum Runners, the restaurant's signature cocktail. Red-faced men sporting tank tops were pounding beers and aggressively hitting on anyone showing a little skin.
When I spotted both my husband and my 5-year-old son ogling the soft, round bottom of a woman walking by in heels so high I'd probably fall over wearing them, I was tempted to say, "Let's go." Instead, I decided to embrace the moment and called out to the waiter, "Rum Runner, please."
Yes, other families were having dinner as well, but the party crowd dominated the scene with their spectacular displays of drunkeness. One guy stood up from his chair, and then fell flat on his bottom. His friends cheered when a waiter rushed over and lifted him off the ground.
How did our family end up here? I choose the restaurant because I wanted to dine on the lake. Neither my husband nor I are familiar with Tahoe--outside backpacking in Desolation Wilderness--and so I did a Google search on my iPhone and the Beacon Grill came up and was advertised as being a favorite spot among locals. The reception was poor on my phone, and I didn't have the patience to look up reviews, though I'm not sure they would have forewarned me of what was to come.
Shutterstock/Dellyne
Tahoe always looks beautiful in photographs, but is it all it's cracked up to be?
Just as we were about to dig into our overly dressed salads and burned-to-the crisp burgers, my daughter said, "Mommy, why are those girls spitting at each other?"
"Girl fight!" a drunken man screamed from a nearby table.
A security guard quickly jumped in between the two women, who looked as if they were about to go after each other's hair.
The girl's boyfriend jumped into the scene and screamed something along the lines of, "You're so obnoxious!"
That's when my husband looked at me and said, "Why Tahoe? Why do people come here?"
Call us San Francisco snobs, but this is what we wondered throughout most of our trip. We had come to the lake in search of a relaxing family vacation and a chance to expose our kids to the outdoors, but we kept encountering crowds, traffic, and falling-down-drunk people.
First of all, the drive on Friday night was a nightmare. It took us seven and a half hours to travel from San Francisco to South Lake Tahoe. The traffic was so bad that my husband nearly wanted to turn around. We knew we were headed for trouble when we left at 3:30 p.m. but we didn't want to miss our kids' 3 p.m. dance performance at camp--so we decided to risk it.
On Saturday morning, we woke up to sunny weather, and headed for Emerald Bay. We stopped at a vista point to take photos and I felt as if I had never seen anything so beautiful. But my husband rushed us along: "We better hurry and get parking."
"Parking? It's 8:30 a.m."
We found the last spot in the parking lot.
We loved our hike from Emerald Bay to Eagle Lake.
We hiked four miles, stopping at a pretty, little mountain lake and climbing to a mountain top where we took in sweeping views of Lake Tahoe.
My son spotted patches of snow. "I want to hike to the snow," he pleaded.
We were out of water and didn't pack lunch so we headed back down.
By the time we returned to the parking lot at about 12:30 p.m., a line of cars was waiting to get into the parking lot, and cars were parked up and down the highway for at least a half-mile. As we drove back to our hotel, the cars on the opposite side of the road, were stopped in gridlock traffic all the way from Emerald Bay to South Lake.
Our family much prefers quieter Alpine County over Tahoe.
We decided to hit the beach. We found crowds at the beach blanketed with dirty sand and litter. My daughter nearly stepped on a hot cigarette butt. But the kids didn't notice or care, and they had fun splashing around in the water and building a sand castle.
The next morning I woke up at 6 a.m. I sneaked out of our hotel room, where my kids and husband were still sleeping, and walked down to the lake. The water was perfectly glassy and the only person I spotted was a man sitting in lotus position on the boat dock. Finally, I had found peace and quiet...but not for long. A speed boat zipped by and then another. By 7 a.m. the lake was filled with boats and the drone of roaring engines permeated the air.
I was ready to leave Tahoe behind. When the kids woke up, we packed the car and drove Highway 89 to the Hope Valley, near Kirkwood. We stopped at Sorenson's for breakfast and enjoyed bowls of oatmeal with other people dressed in fleece, and then went for another hike. This time, we easily found a parking space.
We hiked along a trailed lined with purple lupine to the top of another mountain peak where we took in more sweeping views of Lake Tahoe. But this time, the lake was much farther off in the distance--and so was the traffic and crowds.
| Jul 19 at 03:36 PM
Friday, July 16, 2010
Friday Five: Your family weekend guide
Got weekend plans? Here are five fun events happening around the Bay Area.
1) Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players, San Francisco. The leader of this kid rock band has been compared to Buddy Holly, Nick Lowe, Weezer and even Paul McCartney. A former Montessori preschool teacher, Justin knows what it's like to be a kid and his high energy pop sound will get everyone in the family on their feet, dancing and singing along. This concert celebrates the release of a new CD, Jungle Gym. Swedish American Hall. Sat., July 17. Doors open at 11 a.m.; show starts at noon. Tickets: $15; $50 family 4-pack Info: cafedunord.com/index.php, justinrobertsmusic.com/tour.php, (415) 861-5016.
2) Free Circus in the Park Day, Oakland. This open air, one-ring circus features contemporary, high-level acts set to an original score performed by live musicians. Dimond Park Fruitvale and Lyman Rd. Sun., July 18, 11:45 a.m. Info: circusbella.com.
3) Free Museum Weekend: Arts & Wonder, San Francisco. Seven museums are welcoming all ages with free general admission, hands-on art making activities and family-friendly performance. de Young Museum free Fri., July 16, 5 p.m.-8:45 p.m.; Asian Art Museum free Sat., July 17, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; SFMOMA, Contemporary Jewish Museum, MoAD, and Zeum free Sun., July 18, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Info: onlyinsanfrancisco.com/target.
4) New Conservatory Theater: Holka Polka, San Francisco. With the help of the Big Bad Wolf and Cinderella, a good little witch sets out to save Fairytale land. This Fairytale mystery puts a new twist on some famous fables such as Humpty Dumpty, Pinocchio, Little Red Riding Hood, The Wizard of Oz and Hansel and Gretel. 25 Van Ness Ave. at Market. July 16 and 17, 11 a.m. Info: nctcsf.org/youngaudiencematinee.htm.
5) Art and Wind Festival, San Anselmo. Two days of live music and performances from the Magic Circus to a Beatles tribute band. Downtown. Sat., July 17, and Sun., July 18. Info: sananselmochamber.org.
Know about other fun things happening this weekend? Please share in the comments.
| Jul 16 at 12:13 PM
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