Archives › 2006 › May
I don’t usually do long political tirades like this, but sometimes I make exceptions. Paul Cameron, chair of the far-right, anti-LGBT Family Research Institute, is using books by members of the LGBT community to “prove” that “Children of Homosexuals and Transexuals [Are] More Apt to Be Homosexual.” If this weren’t enough, he has managed to [...]
Rainy-Day Activity: Instant Fire Truck
It’s been raining a lot this week: Place two kitchen chairs, one behind the other. Seat your preschooler on one. Hand him or her a pie pan for a steering wheel and a vacuum-cleaner hose for a firehose. Instant fire truck. Minimalist? Perhaps. It was good for a whole 15 minutes at our house, though. [...]
HIV Vaccine Awareness Day
It’s the ninth annual HIV Vaccine Awareness Day. Let’s hope there isn’t a need for too many more. The event is intended as a time to thank all the volunteers and professionals working together to find a safe and effective HIV vaccine, and to educate people about the importance of preventive HIV vaccine research. Organizers [...]
HRC Coverage of Blogging for LGBT Families Day
A big thank-you to the Human Rights Campaign Family Project for their piece about Blogging for LGBT Families Day. They call it a “premiere blogosphere event.” (Their words, not mine.) Let’s not prove them wrong. Please pass the word along on your blogs, and ask any bloggers you know who want to share positive insights [...]
Why Straight People Should Support LGBT Rights
An unmarried straight couple with three children in Missouri face eviction because of a city ordinance that prohibits more than three people from living together if they are unrelated by blood, marriage, or adoption, Blogging Baby reports. This is a great example of why even straight couples should be very wary of supporting anti-gay-marriage legislation. [...]
International Day Against Homophobia
Today is International Day Against Homophobia. The organizers see the event as complementary to Gay Pride Month. Pride Month is for celebrating our identities, they say. The goal of IDAHO is geared more towards direct action against homophobia and related violence: To articulate action and reflection in order to struggle against all physical, moral, or [...]
Pre-Pregnancy Guidelines and Lesbian Health
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) led a team that recently released new recommendations for women’s pre-pregnancy health. Most of the guidelines are old hat: treat existing conditions, stop smoking and alcohol consumption, take folic acid supplements, and maintain appropriate weight and nutrition. More controversial, though, is the suggestion that “all health encounters [...]
Rainy-Day Activity: Google Video
Here’s my latest rainy-day activity for a train-obsessed pre-schooler: Google Video, search: “locomotive”. You’ll find lots of short videos (many under three minutes) from around the world, showing all kinds of engines. Also works with fire trucks, horses, and pretty much anything else your child may be into. While there are good reasons to limit [...]
How Much Media Is Too Much for Young Children?
Are children today exposed to too much media, too young? A group of experts convened by the National Institutes of Health discussed the matter today, and came to no firm conclusions. Most seemed to agree that content, limited quantity, and parental involvement were central in ensuring children get the most out of any TV or [...]
Employed Mothers Healthier than Stay-at-Home Moms?
The results of a long-term study indicate that stay-at-home moms are not as healthy as married working mothers. SAHMs had the poorest overall health, followed by single mothers and the childless. Unclear if the study included lesbian moms. The researchers hypothesize that an employed mother’s multiple roles keep her in better shape. I dunno. For [...]
Goodbye, C. J.: The West Wing, Will and Grace, and LGBT Rights in the Media
The West Wing is no more. The show had declined since its Aaron-Sorkin-written prime, but the acting was still solid, even when the script was weak. (The final episode was particularly disappointing, consisting mainly of the characters taking meaningful glances around empty rooms.) Maybe I kept tuning in, though, because it gave me an hour-long [...]
Irrational Exshoeberance
We bought our son a new pair of sneakers over the weekend. He’s moved up a size, and this means we no longer shop on the baby/toddler wall of our local Stride-Rite. We’ve moved up to the big-boy wall. I’m inordinately proud. Silly, isn’t it? He’s done nothing more than grow. I’m going to be [...]
Happy Mothers’ Day
Happy Mothers’ Day to us lesbian moms. Through our lesbianism, we are challenging society’s notion of what women should do and whom we should love. We turn preconceptions around again, however, when we take on women’s traditional role of mother. Neither “typical” mothers nor “typical” lesbians, we must find our own paths while helping our [...]
No State Meets Teacher-Qualification Goals
No state has met the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) teacher-qualification goals for this school year, the AP reports. Nine states, plus DC and Puerto Rico, may lose federal aid because they did not try hard enough to comply by the law’s deadline. I’ve never been a fan of NCLB, but the teacher qualifications seem [...]
Weekly Political Roundup: State News
The California Senate approved a bill requiring California schools to teach the contributions of LGBT people to state and U. S. history. The bill must now pass the state Assembly. Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich used his executive powers to give health benefits to partners of lesbian and gay state employees. Next door, in Indiana, Attorney [...]
Weekly Political Roundup: National News
Two issues dominated the national LGBT political news this week: The aftermath of Mary Cheney’s book launch and Primetime interview. USA Today has a trio of editorials representing the majority of opinions I’ve heard. (Summarized, they seem to be: “Why are you an apologist for a party that not only wants to restrict your rights, [...]
Blogging for LGBT Families Day: Update 1
Thanks to everyone who has signed up so far to join the fun on Blogging for LGBT Families Day. I’m happy to report that participants include lesbian moms, gay dads, adult children of LGBT parents, members of the trans community, and straight allies. There are those who have children, those who are trying to, and [...]
Two new studies question the long-term effectiveness of inhaled steroids for treating asthma in infants and toddlers. Asthma is the most common chronic condition among children, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA). Asthma is also the leading cause of school absenteeism and the third-ranking cause of hospitalization for children. May is [...]
Cooking with Twinkies
While I’m on a roll with the silly posts, here’s a review of The Twinkies Cookbook: An Inventive and Unexpected Recipe Collection from Hostess, courtesy of NPR. The collection includes such . . . ahem . . . delights as Twinkie Sushi and Twinkie Burritos. I think I’ll go bake a loaf of whole-wheat bread [...]
Play-Doh Perfume
That’s right. Play-Doh maker Hasbro is releasing a limited-edition Play-Doh perfume to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the squishy stuff. (Thanks to Blogging Baby for the nose up.) I say why buy the perfume for $19 when you can just rub a piece or two behind your ears?
The Lesbian Mom’s Brain
The lesbian brain has made headlines recently. Scientists at the Center for Sapphic Studies in Lesbos, Greece, have taken this research a step further in a study of the brains of lesbian moms. Below is an image from their latest paper, “Lesbian Mothers of Toddlers: A Neurologic Analysis.” Further research may be forthcoming, as soon [...]
U. S. Second to Last in Infant Survival Rates
The U. S. ranks second to last among industrialized countries in newborn survival rates, according to a new study. Not surprisingly, this varies along income and racial lines, with infants born to higher-income, white families more likely to survive. The researchers claim that in the U. S., lack of national health insurance and short maternity [...]
The “Millennial” generation of those born between 1985 and 2004 will “have the final say over full marriage equality” and be overwhelmingly for it, claims Deb Price of the Detroit News. Recent surveys indicate that younger voters are more likely than older ones to support same-sex marriage. “MIllennials” are a big generation, too: the 2000 [...]
Fertility-Tracking Armband
For all of you trying to conceive: the newly invented Ovü fertility tracker, an armband that monitors basal body temperature and plays a tune when the time is right. Gadget site Shiny Shiny suggests that Barry White would be appropriate music. Looks like the device was developed with straight women in mind, but there’s no [...]
More Proof that Sexual Orientation Is Innate
Scientists in Sweden have found further evidence that sexual orientation is innate. They discovered that certain odors produce different responses in the brains of straight and lesbian women. The pattern of brain activity for lesbians was similar, but not identical, to that of straight men. A year ago, the same team showed a similarity in [...]
