Archives › 2007 › January
Kids’ Toys from the Hardware Store: Watering Can and Squeegee
From Ru at Hedda Dabbler comes the idea of a watering can for kids. She notes, “It is so versatile – a purse, a planter, a container of any sort really – and best of all, it is intended to do that most exciting of all things – pour water!” Ah, yes, the perpetual fascination [...]
WNBA Rule Changes for 2007
Fresh from their mention in this week’s L Word, the WNBA has announced four new rule changes for 2007. I won’t bore the non-sporties among you by listing them all, but I will note that the new backcourt rule, requiring offensive teams to bring the ball across the midcourt line in eight rather than 10 [...]
Fertility and Pregnancy News
Two recent news items on fertility and pregnancy, for those of us creating our families that way: A new technique for screening eggs could boost IVF pregnancy rates. Using a method normally used in cancer research, researchers mapped the number of chromosomes in an unfertilised egg to predict which eggs will produce embryos least likely [...]
Interview with Cathy Sakimura of the National Center for Lesbian Rights
A little over a week ago, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) launched its Family Protection Project (FPP), to improve access to family law services for low-income LGBT families and to offer training on LGBT issues to the attorneys who provide those services. Attorney Cathy Sakimura, Equal Justice Works Fellow at NCLR and manager [...]
The L Word Season Four, Episode Four: The Parenting Perspective
Viewers of this week’s episode are likely still chuckling over the first scene with Alice (which I won’t spoil for you if you haven’t seen it), or the part where Alice is trying to teach Helena to play basketball. The best line of the episode for me, however? Kristanna Loken’s character Paige, telling Shane “Sometimes [...]
Reminder: Freedom to Marry Blog Carnival
As January winds to an end, I want to remind readers that I will be hosting a “Freedom to Marry Blog Carnival” on February 14, in conjunction with Freedom to Marry Week. Any blogger who writes in support of marriage equality between now and then is invited to submit a post by leaving a comment [...]
Adventurous Young Eaters
The New York Times today has a fun article (registration required) on parents who are trying to share a sense of culinary adventure with their kids, leading to a growing number of resources for them. More and more restaurants, including higher-end gourmet and ethnic ones, have children’s menus. Culinary centers are offering kids’ classes. Home [...]
Gay Dads on Oprah: Forums Ignite
I mentioned on Friday that gay dads Mark and Andy Sutherland-Travino, along with their children and great niece, are going to appear on the Oprah Winfrey Show tomorrow, January 29, in an episode titled “Fascinating Families” (previously titled “Extraordinary Families”). The message boards on Oprah’s Web site are ablaze with the usual prejudiced comments, along [...]
Ohio Court Rules in Favor of Lesbian Custody Agreement
An Ohio court ruled yesterday that a custody arrangement between two lesbian parents is valid despite the state’s constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. The couple had signed a court-approved joint custody agreement, and then split. One of the women refused to let the other have contact with their son, and claimed their agreement was invalid [...]
Reminder: Gay Dads on Oprah
A reminder that gay dads Mark and Andy Sutherland-Travino, along with their children and great niece, are going to appear on the Oprah Winfrey Show this coming Monday, January 29, in an episode titled “Extraordinary Families.” Check local listings for the exact time of airing. The Sutherland-Travinos are members of the Family Pride Coalition’s OUTspoken [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
Lots of stories this week. In U. S. federal news: Colorado Republicans Sen. Wayne Allard and Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, who sponsored the failed Federal Marriage Amendment twice before, say they will not try a third time. Vice President Dick Cheney called CNN newscaster Wolf Blitzer “out of line” for asking him to comment on a [...]
Kids’ Toys from the Hardware Store: Duct Tape
The third installment in this series brings us to duct tape. This isn’t a good toy to give young children directly—it’s hard to handle and can hurt when pulled off skin—but it can be used by you to make all kinds of other toys. I’ve covered an empty two-liter soda bottle with it to create [...]
If the L Word Characters Ran the Government
Maybe I shouldn’t have watched the L Word replay the other night after listening to the State of the Union. It got me thinking: what if the characters on the show were members of the U. S. government? What roles would they play? Here are my suggestions; comments and additional ideas welcome. (Warning: Spoilers below.)
Parentography Launches Social Site for “Families on the Go”
Yet another social networking site for parents, Parentography, launched today. Like babysitting/nanny network CareSquare, which I wrote about a couple of weeks ago, Parentography aims at a practical niche of the parenting spectrum—this time, family travel. Users can submit two types of content: “Reviews” of specific destinations and “Excursions,” which can be less specific ideas [...]
A Positive Spin on the State of the Union
I can say three good things about President Bush’s State of the Union speech last night: He didn’t say anything about the need to “defend marriage and the family.” He only said “NU-kee-ler” (as in power and weapons) three times. Coverage was followed by a repeat of this week’s L Word.
Family Concert by Boston’s Gay and Lesbian Freedom Trail Band
Passing along an announcement for a family concert by Boston’s Gay and Lesbian Freedom Trail Band: When: Saturday, February 10, 2007, at 3:30pm What: Family Concert Where: The First Parish of Watertown, 25 Church Street, Watertown, in Watertown Square. Description: Boston’s Gay and Lesbian Freedom Trail Band is presenting a Family Concert at the First [...]
New Jersey School District Under Fire for Video Showing Same-Sex Parents
Some parents in the Evesham School District of Marlton, New Jersey are up in arms about part of the diversity curriculum that includes a film showing same-sex parents, reports WCAU-TV/NBC 10 Philadelphia News. Garden State Equality has posted a clip of the coverage to YouTube. The film shows children and their parents, with the children [...]
Evaluating Schools
As those of you know who have been reading this blog for a while, my family and I are in the process of moving from New York to Massachusetts. One of our prime considerations in choosing a new town is the quality of the schools. Luckily, there are a number of online resources for comparing [...]
The L Word Season Four, Episode Three: The Parenting Perspective
(Warning: Some spoilers below.) Shane took the parenting lead this week as she attempted to enroll her nine-year-old half brother Shay in elementary school. She’s still awkward about her new-found parenting role, but is making a genuine attempt to try, motivated by her own dismal childhood sexperience in foster care. We’re still waiting for her [...]
No Name-Calling Week
Today marks the start of No Name-Calling Week, “an annual week of educational activities aimed at ending name-calling of all kinds and providing schools with the tools and inspiration to launch an on-going dialogue about ways to eliminate bullying in their communities.” The event was created three years ago by GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian, and Straight [...]
Blog for Choice Day
Today is the 34th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in the United States. It is also Blog for Choice Day, so I’m going to venture a little off my usual topics in this post and talk about reproductive freedom as I see it.
The L Word T-Shirt Contest
Want to show Ilene Chaiken your sense of style? Showtime is running an “‘L’ements of Style” t-shirt contest, with the final round judged by Chaiken, model/designer Honey Labrador and Jennifer Schonborn, Executive Editor of ELLE.com. Submit ideas “inspired by The L Word” to Showtime by January 28. The Grand Prize winner receives a 3 day/2 [...]
Why Are Pregnant Lesbians Scary?
An article in the Mail & Guardian newspaper of South Africa asked this week, “Why are pregnant lesbians scary?” Umm . . . because we’re hormonal and know how to use power tools? The article itself is a rehash of the Mary Cheney pregnancy and why gay and lesbian parents are as good as any [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
Deb Price of the Detroit News examines House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s child-laced photo-op, and calls on Pelosi to use her new clout to protect gay kids from harassment. The Arizona legislator who filed a bill calling for a new vote on a revised same-sex marriage amendment, has said he made a mistake and requested that [...]
National Center for Lesbian Rights Launches Family Protection Project
Low-income, same-sex parent families may soon have an easier time finding family-law services geared to their needs. The National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) launched its Family Protection Project this week, which aims to “help low-income LGBT parents protect their relationships with their children by increasing and improving the capacity of legal services organizations and [...]
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