Children's activity books recalled
The books recalled were the Amazing Baby Look and Play and Amazing Baby Touch and Play activity books, and the Rattle, Rattle board book. These children’s books were sold nationwide from May 2003 through November 2005 for about $16 for the activity books and about $6 for the board book. If you own one of these books contact Advantage Publishers Group at (866) 748-3731 for a replacement.
Christmas wish list: Disney personal DVD player
I was torn between making this an "over-the-top" gift or a wish list gift. But then I decided that if I were about
10 -years old and I heard about these cool personal DVD
players from Disney, I would be begging my parents for one. And, as electronics go, this one is not so pricey,
retailing for about $139. These gadgets have a 3.5" screen and can be used to watch DVDs or listen to CDs. There four
different themed players: princess, flowers, Mickey Mouse and Mickey Mouse comics.
There are lots of other portable DVD players out there, not to mention the video iPod, but this product seems to be
aimed at the elementary-school crowd. I can only hope that they've built these personal DVD players as durable as
possible (and hopefully scratch-, water-, and crayon-resistant!).
SippySnacker makes for mobile snack time
The other day while checking out some of the sippy cup offerings at Babies "R" Us, I came across the Gerber
SippySnacker. It's a sippy cup and snack holder that snaps together to create one handy accessory. I thought I'd give
it a try, because my evening commutes now involve taking a toddler on the bus, and anything that can make the trip
easier would be fine by me. I have been using the
Snack-Trap, which works great, but can be a little
messy (thanks to my son).
We gave the SippySnacker a try today during my many various errands. It was handy to have the snack and drink in one
place, so I could just throw it in the stroller and go. My son also seemed to think it was a pretty neat contraption. I
have a few issues with the SippySnacker, however. One is,
as I've mentioned before, Gerber sippy cups tend to
be a little leakier than the rest. Not a big deal, as long as it's upright. The other is that it's not super easy to
get the two pieces apart and then back together again. Especially if you only have one hand free. The biggest complaint
I have though is that the snack portion opening is too small for my son to reach in to get the snack, so I either have
to help him pour the food out or he just shakes it all over the place and makes a mess. The small opening also makes it
impossible to put bigger snacks inside (we're fans of the
Veggie Booty).
We'll keep using the SippySnacker, but I'll probably always reach for the Snack-Trap first. My son can work the
Snack-Trap himself, and that is really handy when you're doing things like grocery shopping.
Pictures with Santa: Not my son's idea of a good time
I should have called this post "I paid 20 bucks for a picture of my son crying." I took my 18-month-old son to see
Santa today at a local mall. We were one of the first in line, and I made sure my son could see the two little girls in
front of us sitting on Santa's lap so that he would see it wasn't scary. Unfortunately one of the little girls (I'd
guess she was about my son's age) cried through the whole thing. My son still seemed to think this was all very
interesting and enjoyed watching the little animatronics toy the photographer had to make kids smile.
Well. Then it was our turn. We went up to Santa, said hi for a few moments and then I put my son down on Santa's lap.
Instant waterworks. My son was Not Happy At All with this situation. I was literally two feet away but he continued to
cry. The photographer, the assistant, Santa, the animatronics toy and I all tried to get him to smile (or at least,
stop crying). But I gave up after they took a few photos. Even if he had eventually started smiling, it would have
still been a photo of tears streaming down his cheeks.
Learning Cube from Target recalled
About 12,000 Little Tree Mini Learning Cubes have been recalled by the CPSC because of small wooden pegs on the toy that can come loose and pose a choking hazard. Target, the company who sold this toy, received reports of incidents involving children who put the wooden pegs in their mouths, and one child had to be taken to the hospital after swallowing a peg. The learning cubes were sold through Target stores nationwide from June 2005 through November 2005 for about $15. If you have one of these toys, you can take it back to Target for a refund.
Peru's "little mermaid" baby doing well six months post-surgery
Earlier this year we brought you the story of Milagros Cerron, a baby from Peru who was born with a rare condition called sirenomelia, or "mermaid syndrome." In June, doctors operated on the little girl, in an attempt to separate her fused legs. Six months later, doctors are optimistic about Milagros's recovery. Milagros is now nineteen months old and making good progress, though doctors say it will probably be another few years before she's walking and she will need more surgeries and rehabilitation into her teen years at least.
Baby doorway jumper recalled
The CPSC announced the recall of about 14,000 Bounce Bounce Baby! Door Jumpers because the clamp that holds the jumper to the door frame could break and cause a baby to fall. Kids II Inc., the distributor of the jumpers, received nine reports of the jumper clamp breaking. The jumpers included in this recall have the model number 6753. The jumpers were sold nationwide from January 2005 through November 2005 for about $20.
If you own one of these doorway jumpers, contact Kids II at (877) 325-7056 for a free replacement.
Hit-and-run driver turns out to be a 7-year-old
Police in Kentucky were tracking down a van after a hit-and-run accident, only to find that there was a 7-year-old
behind the wheel. The boy was actually sitting on his dad's lap, steering the wheel, while his "semiconscious" father
worked the pedals. Police finally caught up with them on a highway. According to the report on CNN, the father told the
police that they were on their way to Florida and that his son was going to get them there. The man's other son, age
three, was also in the van.
The dad now faces charges of resisting arrest, carrying a concealed weapon, leaving the scene of an accident and
driving under the influence. The boys were taken into custody by social services.
Pregnant woman survives skydiving mishap
Two months ago an Arkansas woman doing her 10th skydiving jump experienced every sky diver's worst nightmare: her
parachute wouldn't open. 21-year-old Shayna Richardson said she didn't know what to do when her parachute failed and
was sure that she was about to die. Her reserve parachute eventually opened, but not entirely. Richardson hit the
ground face, face first. Amazingly, she survived. Even more amazing is the fact that when she got to the hospital
emergency room doctors told her she was in her first month of pregnancy.
Richardson suffered from a broken leg, a broken pelvis, and many broken bones in her face, and spent more than two
weeks in the hospital. She's now 12 weeks pregnant, and her baby is apparently doing just fine.
Tips for divorced parents during the holidays
Holidays can be stressful for kids of divorced parents. The Today Show's Dr. Ruth Peters offers tips to
divorced parents on how to keep the holidays focused on family and make them as smooth as possible for kids. Many of
the tips seem obvious, like staying civil if you are on bad terms with your ex-spouse and trying to keep the tension
out of family gatherings. She also reminds parents to respect the other's religious beliefs.
Peters recommends planning holiday activities well in advance, and sticking to prearranged plans, especially when it
involves kids spending time with one side of the family and then the other. Coordinating gifts is also a good idea so
that there is a balance, and not a competition, between each parent's gifts to the children. With newly divorced
families, she suggests starting new holiday traditions to make it different, yet still fun. Most of all,
parents—divorced or married—should remember that kids most appreciate attention and time shared during the
holidays.












