HOWTO: Make a baby

Very cute project. NOTE: This video is PERFECTLY SAFE for work, school, kids, etc.

How to Make a Baby from Cassidy Curtis on Vimeo.

NY Times: Kid Busted For Bringing Utensils To School

A 6-year-old boy was suspended, sent to 'reform school' for 45 days as if he were some sort of drug dealer or gang-banger.

In point of fact, his sole criminal offense was bringing a Cub Scout utensil set to school, perhaps similar to the one pictured, and he was 'sentenced' under a 'zero-tolerance' policy for weapons possession.

Interesting thing, though: The mutli-utensil kit he's holding in the photo accompanying the NYTimes article doesn't appear on the official scoutstuff website.

I don't have a problem with a kid getting in trouble for having a knife on school grounds, but is a SPORK really a threat? And why have we thrown out all responsibility by adopting 'zero tolerance' policies? Don't we have school administrators to make decisions based on facts, circumstances, and 'priors'?

Chad Love at Field and Stream sums up the situation far better than I;

That's not garden-variety school administration stupidity. Nope, that kind of cosmic dumbassery occupies a temporal plane of ineptitude and lack of reason so profound a Zen master could spend a lifetime meditating upon its philosophical consequences. It's that stupid.

Amen.

Personally, I have ZERO TOLERANCE for ZERO TOLERANCE policies! The kid has been sentenced without a trial and has been scarred for life by this. Mom is home-schooling the boy for now.

I for one say "You Go, Mom!" These administrators clearly can't be trusted to look out for your son's best interests. Probably best for Zachary if he stays out of that school!

Mom set up a website, helpzachary.com, but it appears to have been crushed, either by the sensational amount of traffic generated by this outrage, or by threat of lawsuit by the school officials embarrassed by this debacle.

What's In A Name: Adolf Hitler Campbell?

It seems the Campbell family in Holland Township, NJ chose their kids' names very poorly, for the following reasons;

(1) They cannot get a personalized birthday cake for their son Adolf at the local supermarket, (msnbc link) and
(2) It appears that the kids have been taken from their parents by the state Division of Youth and Family Services for the "Nazi cannotations" their names carry (msnbc link).

I for one think little Adolf's parents are idiots - cruel idiots - to tag their precious son with a name like "Adolf Hitler Campbell," knowing full well the historical baggage a name like that pulls with it. And little "JoyceLynn Aryan Nation Campbell" is going to have some steep hills to climb in her future with that moniker, as is her sister, "Honszlynn Hinler Jeannie Campbell."

Lapses in name selection judgement aside, I think there'd better be more to the story of these kids being removed from their home than their strange names alone. Otherwise, kids like the little boy living down the street from my folks, 'Wolfenstein Lawrence Gibson," runs a risk of winding up in state custody.

At least Heath and Deborah Campbell have probably managed to secure unique user names on Facebook, MySpace and RocketMail for their children.

Episode 401: Stalkers, And Cancer, And Bears -Oh, My!

News Headlines:
Infection in fluid linked to preterm birth
Older fathers blamed for bipolar in their kids
Sleep deprivation for kids with TVs
Digital drugs delivered to your earbuds
SPECIAL INTERVIEW SEGMENT:
Barbara Probst, author of "When The Labels Don't Fit", shares some of her helpful tips and advice on raising a challenging child, and teaches us how to properly employ "the magic coin!"

We have a new ToonTest, and a contest to win Barbara's book! Listen to the podcast to learn more...

Evan's Mommy in 'Battle of The Band Games'

Cindy was recently a guest on Tech Talk For Families, a tech podcast we've had the privilege of corresponding for a bit.

Digital Dale hosted a roundtable discussion about the various band games for all the popular game consoles, called 'Battle of The Band Games'. In this installment, they discussed Rock Band, Guitar Hero, and Cindy discussed her true wish: Guitar Hero Bassoon Edition.

Mark Rogers: Hero and Father In Need

THIS LINK is to a news report of a man who risked his life to save his wife and two children from their car, involved in an 8-car wreck. The car was full of fire, burned to the ground, but not before Mark, a 2-tour Iraq War veteran and explosives expert, used his training and bravely kicked out the windshield with his knees and pulled his family out of the inferno.

This daddy needs our help. He's in a burn unit, undergoing surgery to repair burns covering 60% of his body. His family is also being treated, all will make it...but they need your help.

Please follow THIS LINK to their MySpace page, where a donation button has been set-up to help cover expenses during this traumatic experience.

Props to a real hero, and one great dad, Mark Rogers. Get better soon, buddy! Our prayers are with you.

Happy Birthday, Evan!

This amazing illustration was drawn by a co-worker of Evan's mommy as a gift to celebrate Evan's 8th.
(click to enlarge)

It is something we know he'll treasure for sure.

Pictured is Evan - if he were anime - with the Pichu Brothers and Pikachu in his lap (for you non-Pokemon folk).

A very special thank-you to Nanette for sharing her immense talents and making Evan's birthday a special one. And a personal thank-you from me for lightening Cindy's spirits while Evan is away at the ranch.

Bailey June McManus: 1996 - 2008

Yesterday, while the rest of us were wondering where to go to celebrate Friday, a brave little girl said goodbye to her mom and sister, and left this world for one much better.

I know its better, because she is there, and leukemia is not.

The beautiful ramblings of a family friend describe it far better than I can...but I warn you...it is moving, wonderful and painful to read, and I thank its author for sharing that moment.

Baby wipes do NOT wipe away tears. I tried. I wish they were a magical cure for cancer, but they aren't.

Daddy Panel 18: Dark, Viscous Fluid

This time out, our panelists – turned daddy pundits talk about the jackass effect – kids behaving like the TV they watch, discussing the real world with your young kids, we ask the rhetorical question: who is the doctor in YOUR family, we get a book pick that could make this whole episode moot, and we wrap it all up with a post-Christmas mission de-briefing.

So please welcome James, Dale, Greg, Kevin and me playing host as we convene the daddy panel!

Dennis and Evan On The Air!

Every dad needs to pass on some family tradition. In this video, you can see Evan getting his first skydiving lesson, followed up by dad trying to relive his misspent youth when he was known to leap from perfectly good airplanes.