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Win this contest and you're golden at the Glazer Children's Museum
I remember waking up early one morning many years ago and meeting my sister and my little niece so that we could be among the first to walk into a new Target store in Tampa. It was crazy wild -- people buzzing to get in, hoping for a freebie and eager to see what the shiny new store had to offer. ... Read more
Family boycotts all things Disney
Lisa Ray and her family are conducting an experiment to boycott Disney for a year — and not just the theme parks and movies. On July 1 they gave up the whole corporate giant, from ABC, ESPN and Marvel Comics all the way down to the kids’ princess backpacks and old Winnie the Pooh books. She's chronicling this experiment on her blog, A Magical Year Without Disney.
The reason has less to do with Disney itself and more about showing that as media empires get larger and larger, consumers have fewer choices. She has her reasons for being mad at the company (the Disney Princess line with its emphasis on looks and landing a prince, the Baby Einstein flap, the product recalls). You can read more about their story here, in a story I did after I first heard about her.
When the small advocacy group that pushed for the Baby Einstein refunds got booted from its Harvard offices, she declared that the last straw. “I wish I could just boycott Disney,” she said one morning. Her 12-year-old’s response: “Why don’t you?” And so their experiment was launched. But not without some very hostile reactions, even being called un-American. ... Read more
Evos delivers to schools
Hey, in all the craziness of getting the kids ready for school each morning, I didn't know if you saw this little story. It's about how Evos is trying to break into the school lunch market. The self-described healthier fast food option is delivering meals to about 40 bay area schools with just about all of them being private, magnet or charter schools. According to the story, the Evos program is "designed as a healthier alternative and hassle-free fundraiser for schools that get 10 percent of sales." The lunches cost $4 to $5. Parents can order and pay online and the lunches are delivered to the schools by lunchtime. ... Read more
Free, cheap family fun this week
How did the kids survived the first days of school? How about you, Mommas? If everything went according to plan, then you should be ready for a little fun this weekend. We have some good ideas for you. ... Read more
President Obama to give another back-to-school speech
Do you think people will get riled up again over this? I just got a press release that President Obama will deliver his "second annual" back-to-school speech on Sept. 14, calling it an opportunity to speak directly to students across the country. So it sounds like he intends to give one every year, telling kids to study hard and stay in school.
“Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide,” President Obama said to students last year. ... Read more
Quote of the Day: Elin Nordegren
"My immediate plan is for the kids and me to continue to adjust to our new situation. I am going to keep taking classes, but my main focus is to try to give myself time to heal." -- Newly divorced Elin Nordegren, speaking to People magazine in what she says will be her only interview, on her life post-Tiger Woods. Nordegren, who is studying for a college degree in psychology, says that despite everything that has happened, "I also feel stronger than I ever have. I have confidence in my beliefs, my decisions and myself."
Every parent's nightmare -- your child has a heart condition
This is one of those things that as a parent, you don’t really talk about until you’re safely on the other side.
You become superstitious despite all of your recently acquired scientific knowledge and sometimes find yourself knocking on wood despite knowing full well that it won’t really help your 14 year-old son’s heart condition.
He’s healthy, active -- on every sports team at school. There are no cardiac issues in our family. He passed his physical in the fall with flying colors, and has rarely seen the doctor with the exception of a rogue sinus infection or a broken bone. So when he complained one night before Christmas that his heart was racing for no apparent reason, we took notice. ... Read more
We tested the lunchbox workhorse: insulated containers
Just as we are getting back into the school routine, the busy elves over at our food writer Janet Keeler's kitchens have tested the insulated containers to see if they keep soup hot or if the leftovers were only lukewarm.
Her buying advice after all that testing: Buy the best container you can afford and make sure it suits your needs. Open it up at the store and look at the serving cup lid. Does it come with a spoon (and can you keep up with it)? Inspect the opening and make sure it's wide enough to clean and load. Ask yourself: Is it the right size for my child's lunch box? Does it hold enough food for my teenager? Will my kindergartener be able to open it easily?
And, lastly, crank up the heat on the food before it goes in. That way, no one will eat tepid gumbo again. ... Read more
Navigating the dreaded school car line
The one back-to-school feature I am least happy to see is the return of that S@#$%! car line in front of the school. It makes me hate humanity.
There's the vehicles the size of aircraft carriers with one tiny tot inside that cut off a parent patiently waiting to make a turn. There's the always-late parent who skirts the school's traffic pattern to sneak into the parking lot by going the wrong way from the back and shoving their kid out to run across the parking lot before the bell rings. There's the always-early mom who parks in the car line, gets out to chat with the other early birds and even runs into the classroom for "just a sec" while the line waits ... and waits ... and waits.
Here are some tips to help make the school's car line move along more smoothly: ... Read more
Emma Thompson: Quote of the Day on discipling children
"Rudeness we don't like. If it happens, stern words will occur. We don't do punishment. Conflicts can be resolved in a quieter manner." ~ Actress Emma Thompson, discussing how she handles discipline with her 11-year-old daughter, Gaia, while chatting up the Philadelphia Inquirer about her new film Nanny McPhee Returns.
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Raising children isn't easy. Whoa, Momma! is here to help you with parenting tips and discussion of all parenting issues. We think there's no such thing as TMI, so our blogging moms aren't shy about the hot topics and won't back away from a good debate. Bottle or breastfeed? Public, private or homeschool? And sex -- it's all open for comment. Don't sit on the sidelines -- pull up a bouncy seat and join the chat.
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Sharon Kennedy Wynne has sunscreen in her blood. She may have been born in Buffalo but she got here as fast as she could, in time for kindergarten. She grew up in St. Petersburg, graduated from the University of Florida journalism school, and even got married at Sunken Gardens. She's one of the few adults we know who actually loves taking her kids to the beach. She has two sons and with 10 years of parenting under her belt, she's starting to feel a little less out of her league. She comes from a large family and loves to debate, so brace yourself when the hot topics come up.
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Freelance writer Courtney Cairns Pastor wasn’t so sure about having kids and how she would balance child-rearing with her journalism career. It turned out that her journalism training went to good use. As the mom to a funny, active toddler, she learned to handle him like she did her sources. Never ask yes or no questions (the answer will always be no), get him to be specific (are you crying because you’re wet or your tooth hurts?) and be prepared for anything because no two days are the same. When she’s not playing trucks, Courtney crams for her book club, trains for races and occasionally bursts into showtunes. E-mail her at 
Suzannah DiMarzio has it bad for the Mouse. Although she grew up outside of Boston, she took her degree in tourism management down to Orlando just to work at Disney and the travel industry. Of course, when she married her high school sweetheart, the reception was at Disney. She’s now a seasoned stay-at-home mom to two tweens and a toddler – and yes, that is as crazy as it sounds. Suzannah has her own blog, Comment Policy
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