Disney MP3 Players

Many tween-age kids don't want toys anymore; they rather have cell phones, Playstations, portable video players and iPods. Disney finally caught on to the trend and released these Mix Sticks music players for 6-12 year olds. They look similar to the $99 iPod shuffle, but cost $49. They play WMA files, or ripped CDs, and but not iTunes songs (iTunes is by far the most popular). Though Mix Sticks do feature plug-in memory cards with pre-recorded songs for parents, or kids, who just don't want to deal with the computer. I'm a little wary about these, my 10 and 12 year old niece/nephew and their friends all want iPods like the rest of the world. My guess is that these would fair well with my younger 6-year-old niece or just plain Disneyfiles who want anything Disney. But then again, I do really like the chrome one...

Disney Mix Stick Player

Photos @ Cnet

Energy Drinks for kids... and toddlers?

As if kids already don't drink enough caffeine in sodas, Starbuck Frappacino's and the occasional smuggled Red Bull or Throttle ‘sport’ energy drinks. This company called Advocare comes along and makes a kid one called "KickStart Spark". Now they don't have to sneak it around in the alleys anymore. The really frightening thing is that they're marketing this children as young as 4 and pushing the "health" benefits such as vitamins, minerals and...caffeine?! I guess your already hyper kid can use it as a chaser it after popping his Ritalin pill.

KickStart SPARK

ABC News: What's the Buzz on Energy Drinks for Kids?

Names: My baby shall be called...?

One of the hardest parts for me about having a baby was choosing a name. My wife and I had a girls name but just couldn't agree on a boy’s. After months at the bookstore and on the baby names sites she wanted what, at least to me, were not strong 'masculine' names like Sebastian and Nicholas (Those names to me are just a neon billboard to get beat up on the playground). I always imagined my sons name to be a strong one along the lines of Gwar, Zeus, Axel, or just Chuck. But on the day of our second ultrasound, all bets were off when we found out we were having a girl. And we went with the pre-agreed upon name of Gillian. Now that she is 2 months old, we both still talk about a boys name for that one day in the future that could possibly come.

Baby Name Suggestions Wizard

Lullabub Crib Rocker: When a car (or parent) just isn't good enough.

So your baby cries because she/he's either hungry, pooped, has gas, or just wants to be held right? At least my little one does. This company in Australia created a crib (or 'cot' as they call it 'down under') rocker that moves your crib emulating a ride in a car - or a parents rocking arms. It also has a remote control so you can get it started without having to get up from the TV missing the 'big game’, which in turn prevents you from spilling any beer. This has to be my favorite line our their website "Happier Hubby, to happier workplace, ~Happier children, in a way that they are not listening to their parents argue over who’s attending to the Baby in the middle of the night".

Lullabub Cot Rocket

FEMA Rap for, ya' know, Kids!

There's just things you come across that seem to be made-up. I expected this to be on The Onion, or something similar. I wonder if our friends at FEMA all now drive those 'pimped' out Escalades with those cheesy 'spinners' on the tires.

FEMA Rap for Kids

Hotels and their Suites for kids.

What's furnished with Pottery Barn kids furniture, board games, stuffed animals, evening milk and cookies, and a bedtime story from "Captain Cool" conciege? Omni hotels here in California does at $350 per night - just for the kids room, not the adults. Still not 'civilized' enough? The Ritz-Carlton in Boston has a Children's Suite furnished by B.B. Kids and FAO Schwarz at $795 per night and even has an adjoining room that the nanny can sleep in while your out smoking contraband cigars with the boys. What will they think of next?

The Ritz-Carlton Boston

Omni Hotels- California

Argh, Happy "Talk like a Pirate day"!

That's right! In case you didn't know today, September 19th, you'll have an excuse to swagger all day, send enemies to walk the plank, and eat at Long John Sliver's. The idea was conceived in 1995 by John Baur and Mark Summers and didn't become "official" until humor columnist Dave Barry wrote about it in 2002. Now millions and billions of chumbuckets celebrate around the world. Well, at least not yet.

International Talk like a Pirate

Garbage Pail Kids Movie on DVD

It's about time! And why not? Tony Danza was given a TV show again, Martha Stewart is more popular than ever, and I even saw the Golden Girls TV show on DVD at Target the other day. What does all mean? Absolutely nothing. I remember seeing this movie long ago in the late 80's and the puppets scared me. Come to think of it, that kid from Facts of Life was in this and look where it took his career. Need I say more?

Amazon-GPK Movie

IMDB-GPK Movie

My Baby is a real Einstein

Guess what? According to this health article, strap on a head cap 'geodesic-net' of electrodes (similar to Doc Brown's in the “Back to the Future” movies) and you may find your baby pursuing a methodology to perform very basic mathematical operations like adding and subtracting through these ERP's. I think its all crazy talk; everybody knows it's the junction between cognitive psychology, developmental psychology and neuropsychology! Or maybe the baby's just gone poop.

Israel21c: Discovering the real baby Einsteins

Great! Now Britney's a mother too?!

Just what this town needs - another crazy celebrity mother for the paparazzi to run down at the Disneyland or Beverly Center parking garage. I'll likely see everything about this poor kids life at the supermarket checkout line scanning the tabloid headlines. Shaking my head as I pay the cashier thinking "what a bunch of freaks!" and "that Oprah is looking chubby again".

E! Online-Britney Spears: Mother

Celebrity Baby Blog "A baby boy for Britney?"

Newborns and Music Therapy

I came across something interesting; apparently playing Mozart to newborns babies helps alleviates stress. According to a music therapy project done at the Kosice-Saca Hospital in Slovakia, they claim it "stimulates their mental and physical functions". I wonder if this will calm down my daughter when she gets gas. Just turn up the Mozart and the cries go away. If only it were that easy.

Sify News-Mozart helps ease birth trauma for newborns

How to WIN at Carnival Games!

If you’re like any normal American, chances are you've played some type of carnival game. And lost good money trying to pop a balloon with a dull-dart or shoot a hoop with an over-inflated basketball with some carny laughing at you while trying. Well this site is why God created the internet! Well, not really. Now anybody can get the inside tip from rehabbed ex-carny's on how to win that 5 foot tall, made in Tijuana, lime green Pooh knock-off stuffed animal you've always coveted.

Retro Crush-How to Win at Carnival Games

It's (Deep Fried) L.A. County Fair time!

Summer's over, kids are starting school, and leaves are falling (in other places). That means it's time for the L.A. County fair! Where you can see exotic animals such as cows, horses, rabbits, and chickens that play the piano for $.25. It also means time for farm fresh county-folk food; the kind people ate way back in the 1800's. Like deep-fried Twinkies, Snickers bars, pickles, Oreo cookies, deep-fried beer-battered avocados, deep-fried artichokes, deep-fried tomatoes and deep-fried apples with real whipped cream. And 1800's pioneers also ate things on a stick too- like corn, beef, pork chops, cream puffs, and meatballs. Maybe this year they'll finally have that deep-fried butter on-a-stick cart!

L.A. County Fair 2005

How to Make Fried Oreo Cookies!

Harry Potter iPod

I'm a huge fan of Apple products and of the Harry Potter series, so when Apple had their media event yesterday this little known product was somewhere in the background. The Harry Potter iPod has the Hogwarts crest laser engraved on the back, no special color or special look like the U2 iPod and is a whopping $548 for the iPod and 6 complete audio books. My guess is with that price, the only kids with that kind of allowance are J.K. Rowling’s.

Apple Store-Harry Potter iPod

Crazy stuffed creatures

Why get a 'normal' stuffed animal when you could get a crazy looking creature. Creature Co-Op has some pretty cool looking hand-made stuffed animals and other things like hats and bags. My daughter just loves her angry monkey Julio Gonzalez! Mr. Gonzalez to those who don't know him on a first name basis.

Creature Co-Op

Punky Brewster had a Girl!?

Funny, I didn't even know she was pregnant or even married. Soleil Moon Frye (aka: Penelope 'Punky' Brewster) and me go way back. Not only did I watch Punky Brewster as a kid on more than one occasion, but in my college days she tried picking up on my friend Steve (who happens to be gay) at a candy shop near the old Burbank 14 theaters. Just to think - things could have turned out differently but not even Punky Power could have changed him.

E! Online-Punky's Brewster's New Poet

Kids clubbing down at the BabyDisco 'til 5am

As if kids these day aren't already getting older younger - some French Dj’s and artists recently put childhood into hyper drive. BabyDisco is an "adult" trendy looking nightclub specifically designed for 4-6 year olds. Furniture and even the poles (yes, that kind) have been scaled down for toddlers to dance the night away with their Raging Bulls in hand. Rooms are designed for 10-12 kid parties, enough room for Brittany and Madonna's kids to show off their pole-twirling skills to the other kiddies. There's only one location in France right now, but you can be sure to see this here in L.A. sometime soon. Gone are the days of miniature golf and pizza parties when this hits the town.

BabyDisco

Outsourcing the Baby Sitter to India

With all the talk these days about outsourcing, it was only a matter of time before the baby sitter's job was sent overseas too. This place in India has all the workings of what a good employer, or parent looks for when looking to outsource. Good software, 24/7 call center, contact you when a problem is about to occur, and costs less than the kid next door. Parody today, tomorrow a reality.

Baby Sitter Outsource Center