School shopping is just around the corner. If you're looking to dress your daughters in long prairie dresses and long underwear, then I have just the site for you.
When the 400-plus children of the Yearning for Zion ranch were removed by child protective services earlier this year, the sect's clothing was a major topic of conversation in the media. The enterprising women of the FLDS are building on that attention and have started their own website, where parents can buy princess dresses, overalls, and long underwear for the whole family.
The website started as a way for child protective services to clothe the children in their custody, but is now being turned into a business to help mothers pay bills related to their legal battles. Many have been advised not to return to the ranch, and are having to pay for rent and utilities.
Four months after giving birth to twins, Jennifer Lopez looks fabulous. We know she looks fabulous because she has been photographed plenty since the twins were born in February. She and hubby Marc have been spotted at movie premieres, art galleries, fashion shows and more. But wait. Where, exactly are those twin bundles of joy while mom and dad are out on the town? Lopez has insisted that she does not have a nanny, so just who is minding the children?
Former Hollywood nanny Suzanne Hansen says Lopez' nanny denial is all about semantics. She may not have an on-staff person who she refers to as 'nanny', but she sure as heck isn't hiring the teenager next door to watch little Max and Emme while she hits the town. More likely, she is making use of her other household staff to keep an eye on the tots while she and Marc socialize.
"She probably has other people-not called nannies-who are taking care of her children," Hansen says. "She has assistants, housekeepers-someone like that who probably also likes kids and who is likely keeping an eye on them."
Hansen goes on to say that by denying that she has a nanny, Lopez is insulting our intelligence. I don't know about you, but I do not feel insulted. What I feel is closer to, oh, I don't know - envy? Lopez can call it what she wants, but I know that if I had a gazillion dollars and a mansion, I would have some hired help, too.
I made a to-do list this morning of things that MUST get done tomorrow; it includes going to the grocery and the cleaners and the UPS store, paying the bills, and writing three thank-you notes. Oh and I also have to work. And I may have promised to take my kids to the pool in the afternoon as well.
I have no idea how I'm going to get everything done.
Fortunately, if I were so inclined, I could outsource some of my list; according to an article at CNN.com, more and more Americans are doing just that, hiring virtual personal assistants to book doctor appointments, pay bills, and shop for gifts for them. The price is apparently less than you might expect, particularly when weighed against what you would be earning if you were actually WORKING instead of waiting in line at the toy store to pay for that birthday present or crafting that thank you to Aunt Mary for sending dinner over when you were sick.
I like the idea of outsourcing, and I've done some myself -- I have automated bill pay for regular bills, and the dry cleaners picks up and drops off our laundry each week. I can think of a few more things I would like to turn over to someone else -- the grocery shopping, for example, and the cooking, at least a couple of nights a week. But I wonder about things like gift giving and thank you note writing -- don't we lose something if we hire that out? And what does that teach our kids about being gracious and polite?
For most parents, outsourcing errands is less about being able to work more and more about having that time with the family. Have you outsourced anything recently? What do you wish you could turn over to someone else? And what would you do with the time that not dealing with the UPS store or the grocery would free up?
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have donated $1,000,000 to charities in Iraq and the United States. Through their Jolie-Pitt foundation, the power couple's donations will focus on the needs of children affected by the war.
$500,000 was given to three charities in Iraq to support children's education. Another $500,000 was donated to give aid to children whose parents were killed in the war or who have a parent in the military. The $1,000,000 will provide educational supplies and counseling to children.
Jolie is a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations. Pitt has made a name for himself building homes for those devastated by the flooding in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It's nice to continutally be able to report on celebrities doing GOOD! Thanks, Ange and Brad!
Actress and Blue Lagoon star Brooke Shields knows a thing or two about the paparazzi. Having been a child star and a young person in the constant eye of the media storm , Brooke has taken it upon herself to teach her children how to handle the media.
Brooke's daughter, Rowan, who is five, knows what to do when the paparazzi strikes. Says Rowan, when asked by her mom what to do when the media strikes, "Well, I look straight ahead and I don't look them in the eye." Shields is sorry her daughter even knows what the word 'paparazzi' means.
Shields says that teaching her children to ignore the press is a healthier way of handling them. The actress knows the paparazzi will be there no matter what she does, so better to ignore them than give them what they want, I guess. Shields is also mom to daughter Grier Hammond, two.
If you could request one thing from your employer, what would it be? Permission to work from home? A flexible schedule? On-site childcare? All of the above?
Much of it boils down to what Karen calls "form over function." When employers require that employees sit at their desks from 8 AM to 5 PM every day, are they really cultivating productivity? Karen says no, and I have to agree.
Page Six is reporting that Michelle Williams, Heath Ledger's ex and the mother of his daughter, is boycotting the July 14 premier of "The Dark Knight," Ledger's last film -- not because she's anti-Batman, but because she's concerned that Ledger's family are mismanaging his estate.
At the time of Ledger's death, his will had not been updated to include daughter Matilda; everything goes to his parents and sisters, with his father as the executor. The Ledger family have said that they will take care of Matilda, but Williams appears to be uncomfortable with this whole set up.
Ledger's death was a tragedy for a lot of reasons, but it serves as a good reminder for all of us: if you have children, you need a will, one that specifies who gets custody and who manages the money, particularly if you have insurance or property, or if you have previously designated a beneficiary other than your spouse or child.
Despite being a big star, Ledger had very little in the way of cash when he died, but he owned a home and had a deal pending for royalties on the new Batman film. Hopefully, his family will honor their word and provide for Matilda, but it's easy to see why Williams might be nervous. Don't leave your kids in the same situation; make sure your affairs are in order now, just in case.
A recent New York Times article calls attention to a humorous bumper sticker: "I'm spending my children's inheritance." While that sentiment may be a funny one, it turns out to be true in more ways than we know. Our parents, who may have had something to give us at one point, are now spending what they once might have earmarked for us. And it's a trend we'll probably be continuing with our own children. Never mind the Paris Hiltons of the world, who are sure to inherit a fortune if not the earth itself. What about the rest of us? The economy is tanking, and there's no quick financial solution to that. Those of us with retiree parents are finding our parents need what they have just to contend with inflation.
Many parents are doing what my grandparents made a veritable hobby of years ago. They give away their furniture, jewelry and other assets while they're still alive. According to the AARP, 21% of folks interviewed who were born after 1964 thought they'd receive an inheritance, not Grandma's fiesta ware. So what stops the inheritance buck here? Things like the fact that people are living longer than ever, that social security is dwindling and will probably end, that medicare stinks and will probably get worse. Fewer people have pensions and more of them have soaring healthcare costs. All of this and more contributes to a lack of inheritance.
As for me, I'm probably never going to make any money any way, so I won't have anything but a wiener dog and an old Honda CRV to pass on to my kids. I will try to instill in them to instead save, save, save. The American dream is capitalism, and the old American way used to be inheritance. The new American way is to save--because no one is going to do it for you. And while I may not be able to pass on any money to my kids, I've made sure my husband and I won't be passing on any debt either.
What about you? Do you have an inheritance coming, or do you plan on setting one up for your children?
Join the club, Ange! Being a mom rocks--it's the greatest. Not without its intense work, but the payoff is the absolute ultimate.
Angelina Jolie recently revealed that she, like millions of other non-celebrity moms, prefers motherhood to working. The Oscar-winning actress also commented she enjoyed traveling for work and getting to work in the field with refugees.
Ange says that rather than having the attitude of getting to work next that she and Brad take turns with one working while the other one gets to stay home with the kids. Says Jolie, "I love being a mom." It's a good thing she does! With four kids and two more on the way, Ange and Brad are on their way to becoming the next John and Kate Plus 8!
If it seemed like the kids emptied out the Froot Loops faster than usual, you're not just imagining things. Kellogg's has decreased the size of their boxes of Apple Jacks, Cocoa Krispies, Corn Pops, Froot Loops and Honey Smacks brands cereal but are keeping the price the same. (General Mills, maker of Wheaties and Cheerios, reduced their box size last year.)
A spokesperson for Kellogg's says the smaller size is an effort to "offset rising commodity costs for ingredients and energy used to manufacture and distribute these products." I loosely translate to "because gas prices have gone up and corn is being grown for fuel instead of food (or floating away in poor, waterlogged Iowa) the glory days of boxed cereal are over and you might have to dust off the toaster and frying pan and get a refresher on how to make oatmeal."
And it's not just cereal boxes that are shrinking in size, an investigator found everything from the size of a bar of soap to the number of sheets on a roll of paper towels getting smaller. (Perhaps THAT is why the toilet paper roll is constantly empty at my house!)
As our economy continues to tank, so another alarming trend seems to rise. Consumers, parents readily included among them, are resorting to shoplifting. Recently a man in Massachusetts was apprehended with his daughter attempting to steal shrimp and baby formula.
No longer is it a case of the simple thrill of the five-fingered discount. Experts weighing in say what we all know to be true too well: salaries aren't rising at the same rate as inflation. This, in turn, leads to temptation. What's being stolen has changed, too. More often, regular grocery items are being pilfered.
According to the National Retail Federation, among the 116 retail stores surveyed, 74% felt the incidents of shoplifting had increased from 2006. Retail theft is responsible for $4.5 billion per year, which means increased prices for non-shoplifting customers in the future. When you have a family to care for and feed, I can see how tempting it might be to swipe an extra can of ravioli. if you're caught, though, are the penalties worth the risk?
What would you do if your five-year-old got an application for a credit card in the mail? Well, just for fun, you might have your kid fill it out and maybe even send it in. That's what Amy Christiansen of Aurora, Illinois did. Imagine her surprise, then, when her son was actually approved and received his very own credit card.
Yes, despite the fact that young Bennett Christiansen correctly filled in his income (none) and birthdate (in 2002) in what could only be a child's handwriting, Bank of America issued him his very own credit card with a six hundred dollar limit.
"How can somebody who is an adult who has a job get a credit card denial, and a child who has no income and no assets get one?" asked Mrs. Christiansen. "I would think that they should at least, at the very minimum, look at the income and the birth date of the people applying, and use some sort of common sense," she added.
I hope for the Bank's sake that this was indeed an anomaly and that most such applications would be denied, but it surprises me that even one got past the software checks that one would expect to be in place.
Kate Hudson has it all. She's an actress with a good track record in Hollywood, she has celebrity parentage, she was married to a rock star and had his baby, and her kid is as cool as she is. Not content to just enjoy that success, Kate has taken it upon herself to save the world, one beautiful tress at a time.
Hudson and long-time hairstylist, friend and probably co-conspirator in all things fabulous, David Babaii, have created a haircare line that promises to be kind to the environment as it cleans and beautifies your hair. The products will also be cruelty free. More than just putting her money where her mouth is, Kate also served as the test subject for all the ingredients in the products.
The line will be called David Babaii for WildAid and is set to be affordable as well as conscious. Ten percent of the profits will be donated to the WildAid animal conservation group. While on the surface a link to parenting might not seem apparent, I would go so far as to say that she is making the world a better place for her son.
Has success gotten to Alec Baldwin? Is he ready to throw in the sweaty, tear-soaked towel of Hollywood and make a go of it elsewhere? Quite possibly. Recently Alec, the eldest of the famous Baldwin brothers, took stock of all that has happened to him over the course of the last several years and feels he might be ready to say hasta la vista to Tinsel Town.
Between Alec's never-ending divorce from actress Kim Basinger, the ensuing very ugly custody battle, and some behavior Alec is ashamed to call his own regarding his daughter Ireland (he, uhm, referred to her as a selfish little pig, in case you don't remember), Alec has still found time to act and basically steal a show away from Tina Fey. Now, though, he is reconsidering what it's like to deal with the media non-stop and getting through it all just to act.
According to Alec, who recently spoke to the New York Post (which, by the way does nothing to ease your troubles in the media zealousness area), said that if you have four bad days in four years that is essentially all the public gets of you from the media. He also feels the business has changed and that there are other things outside of acting he'd like to get into. Alec also has repaired his relationship with his daughter and is looking for someone to love. Sounds like someone is having an epiphany!
When Leona Helmsley died last August, a lot of people were appalled to learn the details of her will. In it, the so-called Queen of Mean bequeathed a $12 million trust fund to her dog, Trouble, while leaving absolutely nothing to two of her grandchildren.
Apparently this didn't sit well with those grandchildren, who claim that Helmsley was not of sound mind or memory when she signed that will back in 2005. A New York judge agrees and has taken it upon himself to alter the will. The Manhattan judge slashed Trouble's inheritance to a mere $2 million and directed the estate to pay the remainder to charity. As for the grand kids, 40-year-old Craig Panzirer and 37-year-old Meegan Panzirer Wesolko will now receive a total of $6 million of their late grandma's money.
Now, I am of the opinion that a person should be able to do whatever they wish with their money, even if it is as ridiculous as leaving it to a dog. But the judge probably made the right call in recognizing that a 9-year-old dog would be hard pressed to spend $12 million dollars before going to that big doghouse in the sky. But altering the will to include family members who were deliberately excluded for "reasons known to them" seems wrong to me. While I can certainly see how her family members would all want a slice of that billion dollar pie, I don't see how they are entitled to receive it against her wishes.
School shopping is just around the corner. If you're looking to dress your daughters in long prairie dresses and long underwear, then I have just the site for you.
Four months after giving birth to twins, Jennifer Lopez looks fabulous. We know she looks fabulous because she has been photographed plenty since the twins were born in February. She and hubby Marc have been spotted at movie premieres, art galleries, fashion shows and more. But wait. Where, exactly are those twin bundles of joy while mom and dad are out on the town? Lopez has insisted that 
I made a to-do list this morning of things that MUST get done tomorrow; it includes going to the grocery and the cleaners and the UPS store, paying the bills, and writing three thank-you notes. Oh and I also have to work. And I may have promised to take my kids to the pool in the afternoon as well.
Page Six is reporting that 
If it seemed like the kids emptied out the Froot Loops faster than usual, you're not just imagining things. 
What would you do if your five-year-old got an application for a credit card in the mail? Well, just for fun, you might have your kid fill it out and maybe even send it in. That's what Amy Christiansen of Aurora, Illinois did. Imagine her surprise, then, when her son was actually approved and received his very own credit card.
When Leona Helmsley 
