Strollerderby : Denver

4 Year Old Calls 911 - Saves Mom

Brett Singer — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:00:00 GMT

This is too cool.

We had the OctoMom 911 call. That's depressing. This one, however, has a happy ending.

Jennifer Roller was making lunch for her 4-year-old son TJ when she just collapsed. TJ didn't freak out. He called 911 and calmly told the operator, "My Mommy's sick. Can you please come over here?"

In writing, it actually sounds worse than it does when you actually hear it. (Visit TheDenverChannel.com to hear the call.) Jason Vigil, the 911 dispatcher, also deserves major props for keeping the kid calm while gathering information. "We're sending friends over," sounds much better than "The police are coming!!!"

TJ sounds like any other kid. "What are you doing?" "I'm watching a movie." It's worth listening to. TJ was honored by the fire department on Tuesday for his actions, which officials say saved his mother's life.

The mother has a medical condition that hasn't been revealed, and she has briefed her young'uns on what to do if she has a problem. Or, as TJ put it: "She told me whenever she gets sick ... call 991." Luckily, he knew the right number to dial.

Source: TheDenverChannel.com

Read more:

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Was Trig Palin drugged?

Brett Singer — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:30:00 GMT

This comes from a reader, who asked what I think is an interesting question that I haven't heard anyone else ask: how exactly is the Palin family getting Trig to stay so calm while in the public eye?

I've forgotten (or blocked out) some of what my kids were like at that age. I can say, though, that I can't imagine either of them being that calm in the face of so much clamor and activity.

One explanation is that the kid is, well, drugged. Now, I don't mean Quaaludes, just a little Benadryl or Tylenol. I freely admit that I've done the same thing, although not recently and only in certain situations, like on an airplane. The idea of doping the kids wouldn't have occurred to be except that our pediatrician suggested it. So this isn't a judgment thing, unless you want it to be.

Another possibility is that baby Trig (short for Trigonometry?) is just a mellow baby. They do exist, although in my experience they are almost as rare as unicorns. There are babies that work in television, or even theater: I saw one in a play who, much to my amazement, managed to stay quiet during a very long and loud scene.

So it's possible that the kid is just naturally low-key. But wow, talk about good behavior.

Me, I would've maybe not put the kid on camera quite so much, but that's a separate issue. (Some say that Trig "has definitely become a central prop in [the McCain] campaign," which unfortunately seems to be true.)

For those of you who currently have children that age, or who haven't erased that period of time from their memory banks, how do you think your little one would have withstood the tumult of a political convention?

image: bagnewsnotes

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Sarah Palin Nude?!

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Palin family online - real or fake?

Brett Singer — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 19:45:00 GMT

If the Internet is to be believed, John McCain has chosen a running mate whose family life is just thisclose to being a full season of The Jerry Springer Show. However, as we all know, not everything you read (online or in print) is true.

So in the interest of being fair and balanced (ahem), we present to you a list of what we've found out regarding the veracity of the various blogs, photos and assorted Palin hoo-ha.

Levi Johnston's blog: FAKE
This is clearly fake, but amusing (well, slightly). The tone is pretty close to what was on Levi's now gone MySpace page.

Willow Palin's blog: Unknown
This one could be real but seems very fake to me. I haven't seen any official debunking of it but I can't imagine the Republicans would allow anyone in the Palin family unfettered blogging rights at this point.

Bristol Palin party pics: Unknown

If I had to guess, I would say that these are real. These shots are more than a little bit creepy since Bristol is 17, and may have been younger when these photos were taken. However, if they are real, she posted 'em. I really hope MySpace and the rest have gone the way of other dot-bombs by the time my kids are old enough to care about them. If not, I think I'm going to have a little chat about not posting any and all photos online for the world to ogle at.

Sarah Palin nude shots: FAKE
Let's go one by one:

SO fake. But funny.

The Naked Shot
Click here to see it (not safe for work). Nerve says this looks like Julia Louis Dreyfus, and after seeing the photo they link to, I kind of agree. HOWEVER, Snopes (a good source for all internet fakery) says even that one is a phony. Damn you, Photoshop!

This shot of Palin in a mini-skirt isn't too racy, although someone did Photoshop it onto a Playboy cover.

Alas, Snopes says that one is fake as well. They don't offer as much evidence of said fakery as they do for the other pics; all they have is a shot of Palin with the same facial expression, hairdo, etc. I’m not saying it's real, just saying the evidence isn't as compelling. It's probably fake.

Less widely circulated is this shot from GrizzlyBay.org of Governor Palin with, um, Vikings:

That one is real. I think.

So now y'all know who to vote for, right? What? This doesn't matter at all? Oh…

Images/Sources: Nerve, GrizzlyBay, Snopes, Facebook, et al.

Sarah Palin Nude?!

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Levi Johnston (aka: Mr. Bristol Palin) Meets McCain ... With Pics!

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Proof That Baby Trig Is NOT Sarah Palin's Son?!!

McCain, Palin oppose teen pregnancy aid and sex education

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Palin’s Daughter’s Redneck Baby Daddy: “I Don’t Want Kids!”

'Palin Should Go Back to the Kitchen' and 4 More WTF Comments About the VP Pick

Introducing Young Mr. Bristol Palin

Trig and Bristol: Palin Family Names Run Amok

Political Nanny: Obama Tells Reporters to 'Back Off' Palin's Pregnant Daughter

McCain, Palin oppose teen pregnancy aid and sex education

Brett Singer — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 14:20:00 GMT

Ah, running for President. Everything you've ever done is fair game. But hey, stay out of their personal lives! But hang on – this is about their political views? Oh. Um. OK.

"Republican John McCain, whose running mate disclosed that her unmarried 17-year-old daughter is pregnant, has opposed proposals to spend federal money on teen-pregnancy prevention programs and voted to require poor teen mothers to stay in school or lose their benefits."

Palin herself wrote in a questionnaire during her gubernatorial campaign in 2006, "The explicit sex-ed programs will not find my support." (Not sure what she means by "explicit sex-ed" -- plaster genitalia are out, but bananas are cool? Use "va-jay-jay" and "hey-nonner-nonner" instead of the word "vagina"?)

Some have said this is a "karma's a bitch" situation, but that seems unfair to me. Stuff happens, regardless of your personal beliefs. At best, it's ironic (don'tcha think? Sorry, couldn't resist). One good result of this particular scrutiny is that it shines a spotlight on McCain's voting record, and also on statements made by Palin. That sort of information is what people should be basing their voting decisions on, not whether or not Ms. Palin would be better off at home making brownies, rather than running for veep.

source: Yahoo News

Sarah Palin, Sportscaster

Palin’s Daughter’s Redneck Baby Daddy: “I Don’t Want Kids!”

'Palin Should Go Back to the Kitchen' and 4 More WTF Comments About the VP Pick

Trig and Bristol: Palin Family Names Run Amok

Sarah Palin, Sportscaster

Brett Singer — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 16:00:00 GMT

Before she entered politics, way back in 1988, Sarah Palin was known as Sarah Heath. She was, as you may have heard, a sports anchor for KTUU-TV in Anchorage, Alaska. Video was bound to surface eventually; I'm actually surprised it took this long.

It's not all that remarkable. She reads sports scores, makes less than snappy patter with an anchor that Deadspin describes as, "a weird amalgam of Ron Burgundy and Carl Monday," and she has big ol' 80's hair. There's also that voice, which I think is verrry close to Frances McDormand's in 'Fargo.'

Before I'm accused of "bashing" her, I'm not. That said, I think when the McCain campaign (McCampaign? Hmm...) tells us that she was a "journalist," that's pushing it a little bit.

Enjoy.

Source: Deadspin

Like father like son

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Political Nanny: Scrapbooking the Election -- Sasha and Malia at the Convention!

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Dadcentric endorses Obama

Brett Singer — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 23:30:00 GMT

In a move that will shake the foundations of political pundits more than John McCain's choice of running mate, the blog DadCentric has chosen to endorse Barack Obama for President. (full disclosure: Famecrawlerer Whit Honea writes for Dadcentric. We support our own.)

The endorsement amusingly compares the Bush Administration to Applebee's, and takes great pains to point out that John McCain is not an inherently evil man, somewhat like Mr. Obama did in his speech last night. It will be interesting to see if the McCain campaign (the McCampaign? Nah, doesn't work) does the same at their convention next week.

Read the full post – and the remarkably vitriolic comments – here. And make sure you register to vote. This is an election year, people.

image: Droolicious

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Political Nanny: Scrapbooking the Election -- Sasha and Malia at the Convention!

Madeline Holler — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:56:00 GMT

A side benefit of having young candidates for president is that they also have young kids. And young kids = cute. Here are some Babble favs of Sasha and Malia from the convention last night.

Sasha's a fun one to watch!

We hear you, Sasha, we hear you. Late night ...

Send links to your favorite convention pics of the girls to strollerderby tips (see link at the top). Political Nanny will post more later today!

Photos: Yahoo.com

Political Nanny: Arena Obama

Madeline Holler — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 12:04:00 GMT

Another fun night of convention watching and not just because Obama was great and Stevie Wonder sang a recognizable song (the second one, not the first). And not just because Al Gore did that growly thing he can do with his voice when he hits a particularly powerful point regarding injustice and global warming.

Last night was also great because of a guy named Barney Smith and other people like him with a story to tell.

These speakers were normal, run-of-the-mill, sometimes Republican people. Not delegates, not party operatives, but odd looking people from all around the country who had something to say about the American dream and it's all-too-common counterpart lately, the American nightmare. These people stood up in front of, what?, 80,000 people and told four-minute stories of themselves, their families, their battles with healthcare and lost jobs.

They were human stand-ins for Obama's dream of inclusion, and maybe you think they were pawns, but who cares. They were great.

Political Nanny loved the Ohio woman who clapped through her own speech, no doubt reading "applause" on the teleprompter. Or the small business pet store owner from Florida "by way of Long Island, N.Y. -- whoohooo!" who can't get health insurance. That lady could fist pump! Also, the Republican from North Carolina -- she's been voting for the right since Nixon! -- who lived the American dream until she lost everything to her husband's health crisis. She wasn't sad. She was pissed. She's voting for Obama.

And let's not get too down: did you see the woman from New Mexico, whose illiterate grandparents worked with her and pushed her in education and now she has a PhD. She got everybody chanting "Si, se puede!"

Yes, we live in the age where everybody wants to get a spot on reality TV, so it probably wasn't hard to find people who would come forward. Still. These guys had guts to get up there and speak loud and be themselves. The crowd loved them.

Of course, the best of these live vignettes was Barney Smith, whose factory job got shipped overseas. He delivered the line, "I want a president who puts Barney Smith before Smith Barney." You go, Barney, you go!

This convention will be a tough act to follow, and not just in Political Nanny's estimation.

Beau Biden almost made me cry

Photo: cnn.com

Shawn Johnson, Democrat? (UPDATE: Now with video)

Brett Singer — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 01:00:00 GMT

While Michael Phelps is buying condos and making out with Australian swimmers (not that I blame the guy for having some fun, mind you), adorable pixie-person Shawn Johnson is in Denver, leading the pledge of allegiance at the Democratic Convention. The L.A. Times points out that Johnson hasn't declared an official party affiliation, "but the point is somewhat moot -- she's too young to vote." Jennifer Hudson ("Dreamgirls") sang the national anthem. (UPDATE: see the video below.)

As for why it looks like the event has moved outside, that's because it has. Obama's speech is taking place at Invesco Field (where the Denver Broncos play football) in order to accommodate a larger audience. The campaign expects 75,000 people to attend.

And yes, that's Al Gore standing with Shawn Johnson. He is tall and she is very short.

image: amny.com

Beau Biden almost made me cry

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Political Nanny: Don't ... Stop ... Thinking About the 90s

Madeline Holler — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 12:34:00 GMT

Now THAT was a night at the convention! Fleetwood Mac thinking about tomorrow. Bill Clinton talking about yesterday. Joe Biden's son making us cry. A "surprise" appearance by Barack Obama (and the delightful surprise: a full-mouth kiss he gave Biden's wife ... did you catch that?). Whew! Surely Political Nanny wasn't the only one thinking we, the U.S., might actually move out of these dark, dark years and into something more fun! More exciting! More 1992!

The first two nights of the convention, well, they were kind of ehn. Michelle was fab but rushed. Hillary Clinton's speech was fine, great really. But also sounded rushed. Plus, the tension. Did she say enough? Did she mention his name? It was just nice to get it over with.

But then last night, Bill ... President Bill Clinton ... got pissy. Yes, yes, he praised Obama, said the young senator was ready, called on all Democrats to come together and vote and to ignore anybody who calls him "inexperienced" or "not ready to be commander in chief." We'll ignore for a moment that his wife said those things. And riffing on Fleetwood Mac, we'll think about five tomorrows to the Republican Covention where this will be a mantra. However! Clinton argued the same was said about him, back in the day, back in 1992 (ahhhh, '92 ...).

Since anger at the Bush administration can be so moving, and since no one does anger like Joe Biden, Political Nanny couldn't help but enjoy the senator/VP nominee from Delaware (or Scranton, Penn., or, as CNBC had him listed, from Maryland!). Of course, his son's intro to the Senator got everybody juiced up on love and agony (Biden's first wife and daughter were killed in a car wreck just after he won his first election ...).

Finally, Biden was unleashed. He upbraided the Bush administration and its supporters (ahem! McCain). Oh, and praised his super old mom for raising him to punch back. Yow! We're looking forward to lots of Joe in the near future (clearing the calendar for VP debates for sure).

We all kind of knew Barack Obama would show up at the end. Nice touch and apparently unprecedented. A few too many shots of John Kerry (who had to have been thinking of his own lackluster convention ... except for that one super shining moment when that one junior Senator from Illinois brought down the house). But that's history.

Back to thinking about tomorrow (or the 90s ... same difference, perhaps?).

Photo: CNN

Hiking With Kids

Karen Murphy — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 13:35:00 GMT

The other day I was going on again to my kids about my recent fabulous trip (without them) and all the hiking I did while I was there. It dawned on me that I hadn't really been hiking in years. And years. Years coinciding with the ones in which I always had a baby in tow. The youngest, Eric, is now three and I can't imagine him hiking yet; he's still not that steady on his feet and he goes the way he wants to and doesn't follow trail markings. Or anything else, really.

So either I forgo hiking (with kids) another few years or I strap him to me somehow. Yay. I wore him in a sling for years (eons, really. Each hour wearing a baby in a sling is like a month of real time) but he was smaller then. What about now?

Why, baby backpacks of course! And it'll be quite a workout.

This article in a Denver paper recommends using jogging strollers as an alternative, and while I respect the outdoorsy nature and amount of hiking done by Coloradoans (I used to live there), I can attest that jogging strollers suck for hiking. You can take my word for it. Unless your kid likes off-roading. And unless you have forearms the size of tree trunks.

The backpack alternative, though, is something I haven't tried, but should work for kids up to 50 pounds. And if you've ever lugged a 50-lb pack around you'll know what I meant when I said it's a great workout.

So that takes care of the littlest one; what about the others? General rules of thumb to think about when kids are involved include: take plenty of water; don't forget snacks; be generous with sunscreen; dress in layers for changing temperatures (and sweating due to that heavy baby-in-a-pack); and keep your expectations about distance very, very low.

Are we there yet?

Drunken Mommy Chronicles: The Airplane Edition

Karen Murphy — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 15:54:00 GMT

I guess there's new meaning now to the phrase "The Mile-High Club." Except this club should actually be called the "Mommy Gets Drunk and Beats Her Kids on an Airplane" club. Bet there's not a whole lot of members of that club.

The charter member of this dubious new club is Californian Tamera Freeman, who appeared with her two children aboard a Frontier Airlines San Francisco-Denver flight. Apparently Tamera hung out awhile in the airport bar in San Francisco, or maybe just drank on the plane, because she reportedly threw a drink at the foot of a flight attendant and then pointed her finger, and also yelled at and hit her children during the flight.

When the plane got to Denver the kids were handed over to a relative, and Tamera faces potential felony charges (interfering with a flight crew is apparently worse than beating one's children).

I'm still wondering why more wasn't done about the hitting. Hello? Other passenger-people on the flight? Where were you?

Denver Buses to Ban Video Game Ads Deemed Too Violent

Karen Murphy — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 17:17:00 GMT

Oh dear. The Denver RTD (Denver's public transportation, the Regional Transportation District) evidently didn't read my earlier post about video games and violence. If they had, they would know that a sociologist says there's no causative link between violent video games and violent teens. But maybe the RTD did read Dad Gone Mad's post last December citing a study which says, definitively, that violent video games do cause a violent reaction when played.

So what's a bus line to do? Why, ban the suckers, of course! Parents of teens (would those be angry, violent parents of teens?) have requested that the RTD ban ads for violent video games on their buses and trains. The controversy was sparked by ads placed last fall for the game "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories," a game like the ones linked to the Columbine school shootings. Which took place near Denver. So I'm thinking people are still sensitive to the notion over there.

Bait and Switch: "Vacations" with Children

Rachael Brownell (Redsy) — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 17:25:00 GMT

As Denver makes way for the 2nd snow storm in less than a week and the nice people at Denver International make preparations for the next group of live-ins with their cots and sponge baths and mugs of Starbucks, I wonder once again what fool would ever travel by plane in winter, let alone with children. Then I realize, that fool is me. And about 2 million other people each day.

Hope springs eternal at the beginning of most vacations. You pack the bags (and bags and bags), you make the arrangements for time away from work, you bid farewell to the same old routines and look forward to the something new every vacation offers. For most of us vacationing with kids, we realize this "something new" won't most likely involve Paris or the Caribbean, but we make peace with the fact that at least the loving grandparents might watch the kids so we can go out of an evening.

The biggest mistake one can make is to believe this vacation will be restful in any way. Kids, lovers of routine, often don't sleep well, eat well, or behave well when in a new and different environment. Add in sugar, showing off, more sugar, and sleep deprivation and it's a wonder any of us survive at all without serious vacation-induced drug and alcohol problems.

Add to that the cheery helpful articles in every vanilla magazine for parents, and you have a recipe for serious motherfucking rage. I don't need a checklist to know that if my flight gets bumped and it takes us 13 hours to travel a distance that should have only taken 6-8, my kids will be strung out and I'll be in a terrible mood for a week.

We'll survive this trip, like we've survived the others. But next time, we're leaving the kids at home.