Back-up plan

It's nice to know that if Kayla becomes a pain in my ass when she reaches puberty, I can just drop her off at a police station in Omaha and get on with my life.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/03/us/03omaha.html?em

Way to encourage independent thought

The perfect way to say, "Hi! We just had a baby five minutes ago and have already started projecting our political view on her!"

http://babyshere.com/Littlest-Democrat-Girl-Birth-Announcement.html

Gross.

Lines and Tiggers and Buffoons, Oh My!

You know Winnie the Pooh's friend Tigger? While standing on line at Babies-R-Us I witnessed the following.

Winnie the Pooh and Tigger costumes hang from a rack near the check-out lines in Babies-R-Us. Golden bears that say "Winnie" across the front, and orange cats that say "Tigger." The mom on line in front of me grabs one of the Tigger costumes and holds it up to her 2 or 3 year old daughter and says, "Look, honey! A tiger! Do you want to be a tiger for Halloween?"

I wonder if she realizes that's not really a tiger costume, but the character Tigger. Surely she'll notice the name on the front momentarily.

She did notice. And as she pointed to the T-I-G-G-E-R, she said, "Look, honey! Tiger! Can you say tiger?"

Wait... does this woman think...

"Say tiger, honey!" (pointing to the letters on the costume) "Tiiiiiiiiiigeeeeerrrrrrr..."

*sigh*

Girls & Boys According to Feetie Pajamas

Went to the mall yesterday to buy feetie pajamas in anticipation of the autumn chill. The store had a "boys" rack and a "girls" rack. The pajamas on both racks were identical in terms of fabric, cut, and sizing. The differences were in theme.

On the boys rack: trucks, robots, puppies, spaceships, cars, and sports.

On the girls rack: hearts, flowers, kittens, crayons, more flowers, and more hearts.


Just sayin'.

Girls & Boys According to Catalogs

Some facts about a children's clothing & fantasy/dress up catalog I got in the mail:

Dress-up/Pretend Themes featured:
astronauts, beach, clowns, cowboy/cowgirl, dinosaurs, eco-adventure/rugged terrain, fairy, fire fighter, monsters, pirate, princess, auto racing, rock band, tea party

Total images of Boys in the catalog:
55

Total images of Girls in the catalog:
62

Percent of Girls in skirts or dresses:
87

Themes which featured NO boys at all:
fairy, tea party

Themes which featured NO girls at all:
astronauts, dinosaurs, fire fighters, monsters, auto racing


Just sayin'.

Pornography

Old News: You've probably already heard about the controversy surrounding a 2006 BabyTalk Magazine cover pictured here. I just came across it myself and thought I'd weigh in a few years too late because after all, the internet is for complaining to anyone who'll listen. This particular image is quite old, but the debate on whether nursing (be it live or in pictures) should be on public display is as lively as ever.

I want to make clear that I think this type of display is totally inappropriate.

As one mom put it, "I don't want my son or husband to accidentally see a breast they didn't want to see." Amen, sister! After all, you wouldn't want them to get confused and think they were about to have sex.

Another woman shed light on the male psyche. "Men are very visual... When they see a woman's breast, they see a breast, regardless of what it's being used for."

It's true. When a man sees a breast, he does indeed see a breast. This is indisputable.

Some have tried to justify allowing this kind of trash on newsstands by comparing it to other magazine covers, claiming that it is tasteful by comparison and not nearly as graphic. I believe this to be an attempt to deceive and confuse concerned citizens like myself, and would like to clear up any confusion on the issue right here and now.

See the difference? The magazine cover on the left is NOT offensive or sexually charged, because this woman is an ATHLETE. Any exposure of her body is obviously purely for academic purposes.

Here's another example.


Ah, TV Guide. Now THERE'S a magazine every God-fearing American should have a lifetime subscription to. The issue shown above is the Family Values Edition, featuring J-Love's mind-blowing all-nude talk show. I feel guilty displaying it next this "baby" (UGH) "eating" (GROSS).

Let's do one more just to make sure we're all clear on what constitutes acceptable newsstand material.


I hope that the folks over at BabyTalk, their sister publication Parenting Magazine, and their parent company Bonnier Corporation understand the depth of their mistake in putting such an offensive image on the cover of a mainstream magazine. Hopefully they won't make a habit of such displays, or people may actually come to see nursing as a natural, normal part of motherhood rather than the shameful act of lewdness that it is.