Strollerderby : april fool's day

Happy April Fool's Day

Jen Chaney — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 22:33:00 GMT

In the spirit of April Fool's Day, I thought I'd pay homage to Will Ferrell's daughter Pearl by posting the classic funnyordie video, "The Landlord," which celebrates its one-year anniversary later this month.

I know it's bad to teach a little girl to say the b-word. I know it is, I know it is. And yet, it's so dang funny.

The Landlord on FunnyOrDie.com

Top 100 Best April Fool's Day Hoaxes EVER

Amy S.F. Lutz — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 21:01:00 GMT

This post is real. I mean, it's an April Fool's Day post, about April Fool's Day, but I didn't make any of these amazing pranks up, I swear!

As you can tell from other posts that went up today, April Fool's Day can inspire the world's greatest minds to tremendous heights of creativity. Which is probably necessary to trick people who should, on this one day a year, be expecting numerous attempts to dupe them.

What else besides pure imaginative genius helps make a prank successful? Well, it certainly doesn't hurt if you're a famous expert in your field, so the public is more prone to believe whatever crazy announcement you come up with. And the more esoteric your field of knowledge, the better - I mean, when a world-renowned astrophysicist claims that the alignment of Jupiter and Pluto has caused a reduction in the earth's gravitational field, is Joe Schmoe really going to challenge him (see Hoax #10)?

Click here to see the other 99 best April Fool's Day hoaxes ever, courtesy of museumofhoaxes.com.

Johnson & Johnson Sued for False Adveritising

Jen Chaney — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 20:03:00 GMT

A mother in Spokane, Wash., has filed a lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson. Why? She says their recent series of commercials, featuring the slogan "Having a baby changes everything," amount to false advertising. She is seeking $2.5 million in damages for what she calls pain, suffering and "a whole medicine cabinet full of Soothing Naturals Baby Wash I don't want to use."

"Look, giving birth to my son Nathan changed a few things," said Sheila RosenRosen, 36, during a phone interview. "I never sleep, the house is messier and I learned what a nipple shield is. But pretty much everything else stayed the same. My husband still refuses to get the water heater fixed. The women in my stupid book club still think Nicholas Sparks is an awesome author. And that show 'Two and a Half Men' still isn't funny. So that's not everything, okay?"

At this point, RosenRosen suddenly began to weep.

"And that no tears promise is a whole bunch of b.s., too," she added through her sobs. "I've been crying ever since that damn kid got here."

When a reporter pointed out that "no tears" refers to the effect that Johnson & Johnson products have on the baby, she said, "Oh, he cries all the freakin' time. So that's a bunch of crap, too."

A spokesperson for Johnson & Johnson said the company would vigorously fight the lawsuit, which he called "without merit and without any regard for the extraordinary healing powers of Soothing Naturals Baby Wash."

This is not the first time Mrs. RosenRosen has filed such a suit. Her court case last year against Taco Bell, in which she accused the company of fraud for its inability to make her think outside the bun, was dismissed by a judge. However, RosenRosen noted that he was eating a gordita at the time.

Image: Businessweek.com

Turns Out TV Boosts IQ

Amy Kuras — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 17:03:00 GMT

Now here's a study that just makes my day: children who watch at least four hours of television a day see at least a 10-point jump in IQ, and later, in SAT scores.

It doesn’t matter whether the TV is educational or not, either – researchers from the Society for Lenient Childrearing found that it was time in front of the screen, not the content of the programming, that made the difference.

"To our surprise, we found that exposure to everything from Little Einsteins to mommy's stories had a salutary effect," said lead researcher Dora Marquez. "The take-home message from this is that parents should watch whatever TV they wish, for as long as they wish, and not worry about what their children are doing."

Watching TV with the children and discussing it actually lessened the positive effect.

Researchers did express concern that many of the children who watched the most TV showed lower weights than those who watched little to none. High-calorie snacks, especially those with large amounts of high fructose corn syrup, reversed this effect.

As with much about parenting, the earlier the TV-watching commenced, the better. Marquez suggested beginning in the hospital, if at all possible, and certainly immediately on arriving home. "It's a good use for those two a.m. feedings," Marquez said.

An American Academy of Pediatrics spokesperson said the group is scrambling to revise its recommendations posthaste. "Wow, we called that one wrong," she said.

Political Nanny: Obama Drops Family Issues From Agenda

Madeline Holler — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 16:03:00 GMT

Posted by Political Nanny

Barack Obama has decided to reach waaaaaay across the aisle and meet Republicans 98 percent of the way on domestic policy issues. He said this morning he would scale back -- if not fully eliminate -- some of his bigger ticket items. In particular, those geared toward helping out middle class families.

"Look, kids are a pain, they're expensive. I should know -- I have two young daughters," Obama said at a town hall style meeting along Philadelphia's affluent Main Line. "But Michelle and I brought them into this world -- actually, Michelle will tell you SHE brought them into this world -- and it's up to us to take care of them not the American taxpayer."

He called universal pre-K a "Hillary thing" and said that kids whose families can't afford college can learn a trade or work for Starbucks. As for single parents struggling to make ends meet: "Find some grandparents! They're really helpful and they sort of owe you."

John McCain's campaign staff is scrambling to keep the attention of independent voters who thought "the Maverick" would be the man to continue the stranglehold on all but the super-rich in the U.S. Unnamed aides have said they're coming up with a plan to raise taxes on super-poor and Latino voters in an effort to reassure the Republican base that the American Dream is still alive and well and only achievable by the very special few.

La Leche League Leader Accused of Fraud

Madeline Holler — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 13:09:00 GMT

Star Randolph, a La Leche League leader, was stripped of official duties after six members of her Portland-area group accused her of fraud.

Her crime? A cabinet full of Enfamil baby formula and about a dozen well-used Dr. Brown's Natural Flow bottles.

The half-dozen weekly attendees of Randolph's La Leche group meeting for nursing moms with newborns (0-6 months) filed a grievance with the LLL head offices after they discovered the formula. They're accusing Randolph of fraud and misrepresentation.

One of the moms at the meeting discovered Randolph's secret stash when she had gone into the kitchen for snacks.

From MedLaw:

"I opened the cabinet and the shelves were lined with cans of the stuff -- all of it. Soy, lacto-free, the stuff with the DH-whatever in it. I couldn't believe it!" Lana Wilson, Portland mother of an 8-week-old, said.

The women say they feel not only betrayed but misguided by Randolph, who they said was "never really that into it."

"I mean, she'd organize these meeting and send out countless reminders -- to where you felt totally obligated to go," said another of the complaintants who asked that her name not be used. "But she really couldn't help me with anything. I had sore nipples, she'd say 'fix the latch,' they'd still hurt, 'fix the latch.' I'm like, YOU fix the latch, Star, you fix it!"

In the deposition, the women claim La Leche League knowingly allowed Randolph to lead group meetings and offer advice, even though she was apparently less than dedicated to the womanly art. "I don't think I ever saw her nursing -- her baby was always 'upstairs napping.'"

Another LLL leader, who joined the nursing moms in the complaint, claimed she overheard Randolph at the statewide LLL meeting tell a convention hall organizer, "Breast is total bullshit."

LLL officials were unavailable for comment.

April Fool's Day on Strollerderby!

Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 03:26:00 GMT

We hope you enjoyed reading our April Fool's Day posts as much as we enjoyed writing them. Our goal was to "fool" as many readers as we could. We do know that we "got" some of you; those comments speak for themselves, people. (You know who you are.)

To everyone who fell for our prank posts: "You got punk'd!" And to those that didn't: "Doh! We'll try harder next year."

In case you missed it, here's the round-up:

Apple Releases iPod for Babies

Peanut Butter and Babies Equals Crazy Delicious

Czech Civil Unions Produce Baby Boom

Trend: Waldorf School Students Going Military

Top 5 Ways to Ensure Your Kid Is Cool

Similac Releases Two New Formula Flavors: Mayan Chocolate and Vanilla Chai Spice

New Study: Everything is Harmful to Children

Organic Foods Found to be Poisonous for Children

Potty Mouth Kids Have Higher IQs

Brad and Angelina: Why So Secretive?

Britney Spears Tries to Adopt Russian Orphanage, Is Turned Down By Orphans

April Fool's Day: Punk Your Kids

Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 17:31:00 GMT

April Fool's Day is coming up, and if you haven't given it a thought, don't worry. With Strollerderby's help, you don't have to resort to the old "Kids, we're not your real parents" schtick.

Here's a list of resources to ensure that on every prankster's favorite day, you have the last laugh.

Kids' Turn Central—tons of links to April Fool's Day sites

Family Fun—the best April Fool's Day meal ideas I've ever seen. (The photo is not chicken nuggets and mashed potatoes and gravy...)

Kidzworld—Jokes, pranks, and gags.

Kids' Party Fun—party ideas and more.

Teachnet.com—Fun ideas for teachers that parents can do, too.

Top 5 Children's Books about April Fools Day

Have fun getting your kids punk'd!