Strollerderby : infants

OctoMom's Kid - Bite Mark And Black Eye

Brett Singer — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 21:30:00 GMT

This is disturbing.

Social Services paid a visit to Nadya Suleman's home the other day. Surprisingly, this isn't a regular occurrence. They were there to investigate because one of the OctoMom's children, Aidan, had gone to school with a black eye and a bite mark on his back. After a 45 minute interview, investigators left without taking action.

Orange County Child and Family Services and La Habra police did not comment because, you know, things like this are supposed to be confidential. Nadya, however, did an interview with her exclusive outlet, RadarOnline. (Remember when Radar was this hip and cool magazine? Yeah, not anymore.)

In the interview, she managed to make me question her parenting skills even more than I might have previously, which is impressive if you think about it. She tells the interviewer that the social services visit was her fault, because she didn't see the note that Aidan's teacher had pinned to his backpack asking about the injuries. To be fair, I've missed notes as well, but they weren't asking me if my children were participating in after-school cage fights. The scariest line to me is that Aidan's black eye is from "falling down," something he does because he has autism. There's a moment where Nadya says the black eye is from his meltdowns, and "in the process of throwing him... throwing himself on the floor..." I know, it's just a slip, but it's creepy.

As for the bite mark, Nadya says it's from one of his siblings. (To borrow a line from Robin Quivers on the Howard Stern Show, "They're eating each other!")

In the video, you get to see Ms. Suleman attempt to discipline one her kids as he first hits his sibling, then hits the camera. "We're just starting time outs," she says. Seems to be working great. She also tells us that the officials told her they were impressed with how well the family was doing, and "how well-organized her home was." Wow. I don't believe that statement one bit.

I know. It's not fair to criticize parenting skills. Right? Except that she's making these videos on putting them online. Mostly I just feel bad for the kids. There's no way they could possible be getting anything resembing a decent amount of attention from their mother.

Source: AP via Yahoo and RadarOnline

Suleman Cashing In - Trademarks Term Octomom

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Octo-Mom Home With All Eight Kids - VIDEO

Brett Singer — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 18:45:00 GMT

Nadya Suleman, the Octo-Mom (do we really need to say that anymore?), has "finally" brought the eighth and final octuplet home to roost. Jonah is his name. (Someone less sensitive than I would make a whale joke here. But I won't.)

RadarOnline has the EXCLUSIVE video of Nadya and the children. The kids are cute. There are a lot of them. She already has six. That makes fourteen.

We know all of this, of course. The question is, do we still care?

Is anyone else surprised at how quickly we seem to have become uninterested in Mme. Suleman? I wonder if whoever signs her up for a TV show is prepared for "Denise Richards – It's Complicated" level ratings. I mean, would you watch an Octo-mom show? Maybe at first, but for how long?

Anyway, here's the video for those who are interested. I sort of am. But I think I've reverted to feeling sorry for the kids, and even slightly sorry for her. Not that I think she didn't create this situation, but, as Hannah wrote, she seems like she might be "crazy in a way that requires compassion and serious psychiatric treatment, not a media campaign, and definitely not a fertility clinic." Well put.

Source: RadarOnline

Another Day, Another Dollar, Another Octomom Exclusive Interview

OctoMom's Second Publicist Quits

Suleman Cashing In - Trademarks Term Octomom

The Secret to Octomom's Expensive Pregnancies

Open Letter To The Woman Who Pushed Me While I Was Picking Up My Kid

Family Awarded Millions For Circumcision Mistake

Woman Will Go Free If Son Comes Back To Life

Gloria Allred Sits On A Booster Seat

Brett Singer — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 14:00:00 GMT

Reading this headline might cause you to think that we're being mean. Before you darn me to heck, though, consider this -- it's true.

W Magazine developed a fascination with Ms. Allred not dissimilar to our own. A key difference is that W Magazine's office is in the same building as Allred's, so staff members at the mono-syllabic-named mag popped in on a recent press conference she had regarding the OctoMom. (Nadya Suleman, perhaps you've heard of her?)

Anyway, among other amusing observations, the editors noticed that the "small and compact" attorney (their words) was seated on an actual booster seat. This one.

What seems odd to me is why Allred wouldn't just get a phone book, or a more grown-up version of a booster seat. Like maybe a pillow. The W editors wonder if "Maybe it's something she picked up from the Suleman kids?" Either that or product placement. Only time will tell.

Image: WMagazine.com

OctoMom's Second Publicist Quits

AUDIO - OctoMom 911 Calls Released

The Dr. Phil And OctoMom Show

OctoMom Video Blog at RadarOnline

OctoMom Rejects Angels In Waiting Offer

OctoMom Says Denis Beaudoin is Not OctoDad

Realities of Discharging Octuplets

Jimmy Kimmel And The Octomom

Brett Singer — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 22:00:00 GMT

Now that I'm a parent I find that I don't have time to watch late night TV, but Jimmy Kimmel seems to have gotten pretty funny while I was busy with my brood. Luckily I can catch it all in dribs and drabs online. (Note: these are only sort of safe for work/the eyes and ears of your kids, so proceed with some caution.)

Like the rest of us, Kimmel has been taking pot shots at Nadya Suleman, aka the Octomom. Unlike the rest of us, he has a staff of writers and video people. (None of these are examples of tremendously complex comedy but it probably helped to have, you know, help.)

This video is really all about the wax lips that Jimmy puts on (and eventually eats) when he "plays" Nadya Suleman on his late night talk show. So it's a cheap gag, but still kind of funny.

It is a little gross when Jimmy/Nadya pulls out a Mason jar of embryos and sits on them. But again, it's kind of funny in a Beavis/Butthead sort of way. I'm also not sure whether he's talking about Nadya or Dr. Phil when he says he wouldn't "give money to that lunatic."

Jimmy also has video of the birth:

The babies are flyin'. Look out!

And Jimmy looked at the video of Nadya and her mom:

That little edit at the end didn't happen. It's kind of like the scene in 'True Lies', where Ah-nuld imagines punching out the car salesman who was lusting after his wife. Wish fulfillment. Something tells me Nadya's mom wouldn't mind having a DVD of that clip to watch when things get tough.

Image: DailyTube

OctoMom Says Denis Beaudoin is Not OctoDad

Power Ranger Toys For Babies And Adults

Wolverine Blow Up Toy

OctoMom's Second Publicist Quits

OctoMom Video Blog at RadarOnline

New Rick Springfield CD For Kids

AUDIO - OctoMom 911 Calls Released

RENT Too Risqué For Some Schools

Will Ferrell's Landlord Retires From Comedy

The Dr. Phil And OctoMom Show

Brett Singer — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 01:30:00 GMT

Who needs a publicist? Dr. Phil seems to have decided that he's going to ride the OctoMom Express as far as it will take him.

First, he convinced Nadya to accept help from Angels in Waiting. They may be sketchy, but if Dr. Phil says it's the right thing to do, then that's what

Then he visited the octuplets. Here's a clip:

I like the part where he says, "Oh, of course you see them all the time." Because we need to be reminded of that.

And now he's going to reveal what the arrangement is going to be -- but not until his next show! Because he cares about... ratings.

I understand that Dr. Phil is a TV host and he wants to make money. That's fine. But he pretends that he's being somehow helpful. That's not fine. I mean, he has exactly the same license to practice therapy that I do – none. Nadya Suleman needs actual help, and I don't just mean changing all those diapers. I mean, Angelina Jolie can't adopt all eight of her kids, right?

Source: All over the freakin' Internet

Image: Me and Photoshop

OctoMom's Second Publicist Quits

AUDIO - OctoMom 911 Calls Released

Realities of Discharging Octuplets

OctoMom Video Blog at RadarOnline

OctoMom Rejects Angels In Waiting Offer

OctoMom Says Denis Beaudoin is Not OctoDad

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

Video: Homecoming For Octomom's Babies!

Angelina Jolie Could Always Use an Extra Baby

OctoMom's Second Publicist Quits

Brett Singer — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 03:23:00 GMT

Victor Munoz, the second publicist to take on the OctoMom as a client, has quit. He's also talking smack.

From Us Magazine:

"It just got to be too much," he says. "It's pretty much a free for all over there right now. They are freaking out right now.
"Not to sound arrogant, but those people depended on me for everything," he continues. "You have no idea what I’ve had to do for these people.
"Nadya got real greedy. This woman is nuts," he adds. "This I can say: what ultimately destroyed the business arrangement was personal reasons."

Here's the best part:

Munoz -- who plans to meet with his lawyers Monday to go over the terms of his contract and confidentiality clause -- did not go into further detail.

Oh! Well thank goodness he didn't go into any further detail. And I'm sure we're all thrilled that he's going to see what confidential information he can share.

It was never clear to me why Nadya needed a publicist. Anyone who worked for her should have realized that they were getting involved in a situation that was unlikely to end well. Having worked in PR, I can honestly say that sometimes a client is not worth it. In fact, the only thing that can make a difficult client more bearable is money. In this case, how could there be any money to be had? Suleman's previous flack, Joann Killeen, claimed that she was doing the job gratis, and bailed when she received death threats. Now maybe I'm the crazy one here, but when I hear that about an available job that pays nothing and comes with death threats, my first thought isn't, "Hey! Job opening! Cool!"

I guess Nadya's not the only one who likes the drama.

We now return to... the neverending story...

Source: Us Magazine

Image: Me and Photoshop

Realities of Discharging Octuplets

OctoMom Video Blog at RadarOnline

OctoMom Rejects Angels In Waiting Offer

OctoMom Says Denis Beaudoin is Not OctoDad

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

OctoMom Loathes Being Pregnant

Realities of Discharging Octuplets

Brett Singer — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 19:00:00 GMT

Here's a new twist on the neverending OctoMom story -- reality.

According to the blog Reality Rounds, discharging preemies, especially 8 of them, is always something that hospitals have to take very seriously. Caring for a premature baby is more difficult than caring for a child who was full-term. Even with a mother who isn't a quasi-celebrity, the babies aren't necessarily just released when the mother decides it's time to go.

This isn't always the case, however. Shannon says that when she arrived to pick up two preemies that she was adopting, no one did any due diligence to make sure she was able to take care of them. "I certainly wasn't visiting them and proving I could diaper and feed them daily, as I didn't know they were alive until the social worker called and said 'come and get your baby.'" Shannon wonders if this would have been the case if the babies had been white.

And Jeanne suspects that the real reason behind the hospital's reticence is legal in nature. "With a high publicity case like this, the hospital lawyers must be frothing at the mouth," she said.

(Note: we all chat by email about this stuff, that's where the quotes are from. In case you were wondering.)

When Nadya tells Dr. Phil that she is worried that the hospital won't release her babies, she should really be concerned with how exactly she is going to care for them. Babies are a tough job. Eight preemies? The mind boggles.

Source: Reality Rounds (thanks to Alice for the tip)

Image: Me and Photoshop

OctoMom Rejects Angels In Waiting Offer

OctoMom Says Denis Beaudoin is Not OctoDad

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

OctoMom Loathes Being Pregnant

UPDATE! Octo-Mom Alert! Police Visits and a Child Services Investigation

Octo-Mom Birth Video to Fetch a Cool Million?

AUDIO - OctoMom 911 Calls Released

Brett Singer — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:02:00 GMT

We already know that Nadya Suleman called 911 when she couldn't find one of her kids. Now we can hear it.

"Help me! My son is missing! I'm going crazy! Where's my son? Where's my son?"

(Visit TMZ to hear the call, or listen to it below.)

It's sad to listen to. Bizarrely fascinating but sad. Most parents will relate to the first call somewhat -- Nadya thinks her five-year-old is missing. The thing is, she loses it completely, saying, "Oh my God, I'm going to kill myself." She is then admonished by the 911 operator to not say something like that in front of her children. "Keep yourself under control." When the kid comes back, says "mommy," it's heartbreaking.

This woman is a mess.

Then comes the second call. One of Nadya's kids calls 911 and hangs up. The 911 operator calls back, talks to the kid, who claims to be in charge of the home, eventually admitting that a babysitter is there. That part is kind of funny. The operator really earns her keep by getting an adult on the phone who says everything is OK.

The common thread between the two calls is chaos. I'm not a fan of chaos. With kids, it happens. With six kids, it probably happens a lot. With fourteen? Do I need to say it?

Forget "reality show." Actual reality has crept into this story.

A commenter over on MomLogic has a theory that I wish I could say I don't take any stock in but it's hard not to at this point: "The movie 'The Changeling' in which Angelina Jolie has scenes where she is frantically beseeching to get her lost son back opened on October 24. Trailers for the movie must have been all over the networks for days. This 911 call came in on Oct 27. Total coincidence, I am sure."

Oy. Vey.

Source: TMZ

Image: Me and Photoshop

OctoMom Video Blog at RadarOnline

OctoMom Rejects Angels In Waiting Offer

OctoMom Says Denis Beaudoin is Not OctoDad

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

OctoMom Loathes Being Pregnant

UPDATE! Octo-Mom Alert! Police Visits and a Child Services Investigation

Octo-Mom Birth Video to Fetch a Cool Million?

OctoMom Video Blog at RadarOnline

Brett Singer — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 15:00:00 GMT

I don't want to be mean here. I really don't. But I'm starting to feel sorry for Nadya Suleman and her children.

I really think she needs help. I don't mean financial help. Help from a doctor not named Phil.

In a new video blog posted exclusively at RadarOnline, she says "I want to be private." She means that she doesn't want people to know where she lives, because clearly she doesn't want to be, you know, actually private. "Being in the field I'm in, I know there's a lot of emotionally disturbed people in the world…I have trust issues."

She's not worried about anything, she's not overwhelmed. She's hiring help. The other moms are supportive, everything is FINE.

What?

You see her interacting with her children, who don't seem all that happy. The tape feels like an audition reel for a reality show.

Other highlights, in case you can't bear to watch the video:

-   New house, a rental. "I'm doing it myself," meaning no help from anyone. Unclear how it's possible to rent a 2800 square foot house with no job.
-    MSNBC says that the video "shows Suleman struggling to speak as one of her older six kids bites her, pulls her hair and slaps her in the face," but I didn't see anything terribly unusual. I mean, the kids don't look thrilled by the camera and are eventually ushered out of the room (presumably to a very weary grandmother, but you don't see that). Still, the kids' behavior looks like a kid trying to get mommy's attention.
-   This part I will just quote: "Suleman said her older children are already jealous of the octuplets. When a friend showed the kids a picture of their new siblings, 'they hit the picture,' Suleman said." Oy vey.

Also bizarre are her hand-written blog entries. In this one she talks about meeting Dr. Phil. (Because that's really what a mother of 14 should be thinking about.) By not typing her entries for her, Radar clearly wants us to see Nadya's nutty side. (Read the PDF file here.)

It's all fairly disturbing, actually. Hard to look, hard to look away.

Source: MSNBC, RadarOnline

OctoMom Says Denis Beaudoin is Not OctoDad

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

Really Wanna Let Octomom Have it? Leave Her Alone

"Angels in Waiting" Apparently Still Waiting

OctoMom Loathes Being Pregnant

TV Is Neither Good Nor Bad For Babies

Brett Singer — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 02:20:00 GMT

Cross the great TV debate off your parental worry list.

According to a new study from the Center on Media and Child Health at Children's Hospital Boston, television "doesn't seem to have an influence on cognition at age 3." This is despite the fact that 30 percent of parents surveyed believe that watching TV actually helps babies get smarter.

Yes, you read that correctly. Almost one third of the parents in this study believe that planting kids in front of the device formerly known as "the idiot box" can actually make their kids smarter. Provided the right programs are on, of course.

I'm not against kids watching television. I watch television, I grew up watching television, and I'm (mostly) fine. (The parts that aren't fine are not due to excessive TV watching.) But I have no illusions that watching TV is going to make my kids smarter. Dumber, maybe. But not smarter.

Marie Evans Schmidt, a research associate at the Center, said that parents probably think the so-called "educational" programs are beneficial because of "the way those products have been marketed." Baby Einstein, we're looking at you. We liked your videos anyway, but we never really believed that they were adding points to our baby's IQ.

To me, the best news is that the study found that there is no harm in kids watching TV. Still, Schmidt warned that "parents should be aware that infants watching TV may be at risk of obesity, sleep disturbances and possibly attention problems. We don't want this study to be viewed as a license for babies to watch TV because they won't be harmed. It might be that the effects don't show up until children are older." What a wet blanket those science-types are.

Do the results of this study surprise you? That is, did you think that you were doing your kids a favor by making them watch TV? Or are you more surprised to find that people actually thought that having babies watch lots of TV was a good thing?

Source: ABC

Image: Amazon

Woman Trades Two Kids For Bird

OctoMom Loathes Being Pregnant

Bad Parent: My daughter watches up to six hours of TV a day

OctoMom Rejects Angels In Waiting Offer

Brett Singer — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 21:05:00 GMT

According to RadarOnline, Nadya OctoMom Suleman has rejected an offer from the group Angels In Waiting to "provide her with a temporary new home for six months."

Angels offer was pretty sweet. According to Radar: "around the clock individualized care by pediatric nurses and other early intervention professionals for her octuplets and their six other siblings." This is in addition to giving them A PLACE TO LIVE. Remember that the house she currently lives in -- her parents' -- is facing foreclosure.

Gloria Allred is all red with frustration -- actually, I don't know if that's true but I wanted to write that. Sorry. We'll learn how she feels later today when the attorney to the weird gives a press conference.

I can understand not accepting help from people for various reasons. In this case, I think Suleman should take what she can get, especially since she's already asking for help from anyone who is willing. So why turn this one down? Is it that she doesn't like Allred? She also seems to be rejecting offers of help from Denis Beaudoin, who said he'd give Nadya some money even if he wasn't the father. Can she really afford to be so, you know, choosy?

Commenter FoxyMoxie (thanks for the tip!) says that Allred will discuss the "'disturbing' phone conversations" she has had with the OctoMom. I mean, will this thing ever end?

Source: RadarOnline

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

Really Wanna Let Octomom Have it? Leave Her Alone

"Angels in Waiting" Apparently Still Waiting

OctoMom Loathes Being Pregnant

Brett Singer — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 18:00:00 GMT

When lawyers represent mostly accident victims, we call them ambulance chasers. What about a shrink who only wants to talk to screwed up people who get lots of media coverage? We need a name for them. Oh wait -- there is one. Dr. Phil.

Yes, the man that Oprah unleashed on the world is at it again. This time he's chatting with Nadya Suleman. You know. The OctoMom! Where ya been, people? This is the only important news story in the world right now. Pay attention.

Here's a little video to whet your appetite:

Doesn't she sound like a delusional 'American Idol' contestant? It's not that you're single. It's that you're single, intentionally had TONS of babies, and have no way to support them. It's irresponsible. How much time could you possibly be spending with any of your kids, the six you already had or the octuplets, if you're always out doing interviews?

This quote was the one that got me:

When Dr. Phil asked her if she was addicted to being pregnant, Nadya responding [sic] saying, no, she absolutely loathes being pregnant and she looked into adoption after her third pregnancy.

She LOATHES being pregnant. So…why do it again? And again? (Reminds me of another Dr. Phil 'patient', Britney Spears -- 'Oops, I did it again / I had 8 more kids…')

And by the way. Of course you loathed being pregnant. You were pregnant with eight babies! That's like carrying around a Humvee in your stomach!

Having never been pregnant, I can safely say that I have no idea how it feels. But many of the women I've spoken to say that they do love it, at least at times. The baby kicking, the life growing inside of you -- that sort of thing.

Since I have no idea, I'll ask the moms out there -- did you "loathe" being pregnant like Nadya?

Source: EverythingOprah

Image: Me

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

OctoMom Receives Death Threats

VIDEO-OctoMom And Doctor From Two Years Ago

UPDATE: GMA Snags an Interview with The Octuplet’s Baby Daddy!

Really Wanna Let Octomom Have it? Leave Her Alone

VIDEO-Octo Mom Publicist On GMA

What Octo-Mom Is Spending The Money On

Octuplet Mom Wants TV Career

OctoMom Says Denis Beaudoin is Not OctoDad

Brett Singer — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 19:00:00 GMT

So you know that interview with Denis Beaudoin where he claimed to be the OctoDad? Nadya Suleman says that his pants, they are on fire. By that I mean he's lying, according to OctoMom. Suleman's new spokesperson Victor Munoz says that "Denis is definitely not the father."

What nobody is denying is that Denis donated sperm to Suleman on three different occasions. According to OctoPublicist Munoz, Denis twice "gave Suleman a sperm sample at home, which she held between her breasts to keep warm." Then a THIRD time, Denis "was brought to a fertility clinic after Suleman told him she had cancer and they were going to see a doctor." The sperm was placed directly into her womb, there were no embryos created, aaaaand… that's it. I'm done.

OK, one more detail. David Solomon is listed as the father of the oldest of Nadya's first 6 children, and Munoz says that there is one father for all 14 kids. But he won't confirm or deny that said father is Solomon.

Oh, and the hospital might not release the octuplets to Nadya. Seems they're concerned that she won't be able to care for them properly. So she called Dr. Phil. No. Really.

AHHHH!!!!

I'd call this a train wreck, but that's insulting because I kind of like trains. But I have to admit that I'm fascinated because there seem to be more details every other minute. It truly is… the never ending story.

Too much drama. Having kids is dramatic enough. Why include all of this other crap?

Source: ABC News

Image: Me, using Photoshop, using this from Amazon

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

OctoMom Receives Death Threats

VIDEO-OctoMom And Doctor From Two Years Ago

UPDATE: GMA Snags an Interview with The Octuplet’s Baby Daddy!

Really Wanna Let Octomom Have it? Leave Her Alone

VIDEO-Octo Mom Publicist On GMA

What Octo-Mom Is Spending The Money On

Octuplet Mom Wants TV Career

Gloria Allred Offers To Help OctoMom

Brett Singer — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 19:47:00 GMT

Remember Gloria Allred? No? Lucky you.

She's an attorney with a knack for representing clients involved with high-profile cases, such as Amber Frey (Scott Peterson), and the family of Nicole Brown Simpson (O.J.). She also made headlines when she took the controversial stance of questioning Michael Jackson's parenting skills. (That was sarcasm.) She actually went so far as to request that California Child Protective Services investigate how he treats his kids. (That, unfortunately, is true.)

Well, the media-loving lawyer is back and she wants to help out OctoMom Nadya Suleman's kids. MomLogic reports that Allred has a "plan to 'provide for the medical and emotional needs'" of all 14 members of her brood.

Through the charity Angels In Waiting, Allred says that the family can receive the help that they need without relying on public funds, although they will need private donations.

While it's obvious that Allred is a publicity hound (there are other, less polite words one could use, of course), Angels In Waiting seems to be a worthy organization. (Note: I haven't done a lot of research into the group, just a cursory skimming of their web site.) So in theory there is a positive outcome from Allred's actions. Still, why not be a champion for children all the time? Why does it only matter when there's a camera around? The OctoMom story is fascinating, but it's also very sad. The last thing those kids need is someone else trying to get famous off of them.

What do you think – is Allred legit? Or should she, you know, quit? (Apologies for the extremely dated reference.)

Image/Source: MomLogic

OctoMom Receives Death Threats

VIDEO-OctoMom And Doctor From Two Years Ago

Really Wanna Let Octomom Have it? Leave Her Alone

VIDEO-Octo Mom Publicist On GMA

What Octo-Mom Is Spending The Money On

Octuplet Mom Wants TV Career

OctoMom Says No Dating For Her

Brett Singer — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 18:00:00 GMT

Remember the movie "The Neverending Story"? Nadya Suleman is starring in a real-life version.

Every day, heck, every hour, there a new detail emerges. I have two kids and never have enough time to do the things I need to do. Suleman, with six at home and eight more in the hospital, seems to have plenty of time to do interviews with anyone who wants her. (Maybe we should take Shannon's advice.)

ParentDish reports that the OctoMom told British newspaper The Sun that she will not date anyone until her youngest child turns 18. (Does that mean all eight of the new ones? Or just the kid that came out last? The mind boggles.)

She also said that she "can't remember" the last time she went on a date. Um, Nadya? You've said that you met the father/donor of your numerous offspring at a nightclub. Did that not count as a date? Maybe it was Girls' Night Out. ("Let's go, GNO…" – or should that be GYNO? G'night, ladies and gentlemen.)

So no hanky-panky for OctoMom for the next 18 years, adding to the 8 years that she has already done without. I guess The Bachlorette will have to look elsewhere for their next star.

Her reasoning is equally bizarre. "Boyfriends? I think I'd have to be extremely selfish. I cannot maintain a social life and be a mother. To even take one percent of every night and devote it to someone else, a stranger, would be wrong. I have to wait for that until my youngest have left school."

Is there a point when a journalist is going to ask Nadya about the charges leveled against her by, you know, her own mom and dad? That whole "she doesn't take care of the six kids she already has" thing? I guess not.

Source: ParentDish

Image

VIDEO-OctoMom And Doctor From Two Years Ago

Really Wanna Let Octomom Have it? Leave Her Alone

VIDEO-Octo Mom Publicist On GMA

What Octo-Mom Is Spending The Money On

Octuplet Mom Wants TV Career

OctoMom Receives Death Threats

Brett Singer — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 16:00:00 GMT

I'm no fan of Nadya "OctoMom" Suleman, the OctoDoc, and I particularly dislike her publicists.

But death threats?

According to ETOnline (and every other news outlet on the planet, because there is NOTHING ELSE HAPPENING IN THE WORLD), OctoMom and her kids have gone into hiding because of "several hostile telephone and email messages." The octuplets are still in the hospital.

Publicist Michael Furtney actually uses the term "undisclosed location" when describing where Suleman is. We don't like him.

Bottom line: I think that people who send a threatening emails or makes hostile phone calls to Nadya, or anyone else, are reprehensible and should be arrested (assuming those threats are illegal; I'm not a lawyer, although I have played one on TV, sort of – long story). At the same time, I imagine Suleman could have cut down on the number of hateful messages she is receiving by not doing national television interviews. Setting up a web site didn't help either. Just a thought.

SOURCE

The Poor Man's Angelina Jolie?

Ann Curry Scores Interview with Octuplet's Mom

VIDEO-Octo Mom Publicist On GMA

Octuplet Mom Wants TV Career

Octuplet Mom Launches Donation Website

Octomom and Her Bulging Pregnant Belly – Photos!

Only Child Syndrome Doesn't Explain Octo-Mom

OctoDoc Under Investigation

Brett Singer — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 17:00:00 GMT

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine is investigating Dr. Michael Kamrava for implanting a heckuva lot of embryos into Nadya "OctoMom" Suleman.

The California Medical Board was already investigating the OctoDoc, and they had not made his name public. But as we pointed out yesterday, local news outlet KTLA interviewed Kamrava and his baby-loving patient in 2006. In her interview with Ann Curry, Suleman said that the same doc performed all of her IVF procedures. Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner!

Dr. Kamrava allegedly implanted eight embryos into Suleman. According to reports, "No more than three embryos are considered the norm for a woman her age." So OctoDoc may have done something very naughty.

Is anyone else a little stunned at the speed this story is happening? It really feels like every day a couple of new details emerge. Sorry to be catty but I bet Nadya is loving every minute of it. Sad.

Source: ThisIsLondon

Image: SpiderVillian.com

The Poor Man's Angelina Jolie?

Ann Curry Scores Interview with Octuplet's Mom

VIDEO-Octo Mom Publicist On GMA

Octuplet Mom Wants TV Career

VIDEO-OctoMom And Doctor From Two Years Ago

Brett Singer — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 16:30:00 GMT

Turns out Ann Curry didn't get the first interview with Nadya Suleman, the OctoMom.

KTLA (Fox TV in Los Angeles) interviewed the alleged Angelina Jolie wanna-be two and a half years ago, back in 2006. They also spoke to the man who performed the IVF, one Dr. Michael Kamrava of the West Coast IVF Clinic in Beverly Hills.

The doctor's name hadn't yet been released since the California Medical Board doesn't identify sawbones that are under investigation. So while it's not confirmed that Kamrava performed the most recent IVF on Suleman, she told Ann Curry that she used the same doctor for each of her in vitro pregnancies. It's a "do the math" kind of thing.

More details:

- One of her publicists (she appears to have at least two although I can't quite tell) says that she receives about $500 per month in food stamps despite saying that she is not "on welfare." Suleman also gets federal assistance for three of her pre-octuplet children who are disabled. (One is autistic, according to a former nanny.) Of those payments, Michael Furtney says, "They are part of programs designed to help people with need, and she does not see that as welfare." Somewhere spinmeister general Sidney Falco is laughing. Hey, at least Furtney is getting his client some decent media coverage.

- KTLA has the names of her other six children: 7-year-old Elijah Makai Solomon (boy), 6-year-old Amerah Yasmeen Solomon (girl), 5-year-old Joshua Jacob Solomon (boy), 3-year-old Aidan Solomon (boy), 2-year-old Calyssa Arielle Solomon (girl, twin), 2-year-old Caleb Kai Solomon (boy, twin)

- Why is their last name Solomon? Because that's who the donor father is.

- Angela Suleman, Nadya's mom (OctoGranny, anyone?) told RadarOnline that "David Solomon was the biological father of all 14 children, but that [Nadya] refused to marry him," although David wanted to marry Nadya. Hey, why not? They have very similar names.

There are too many tidbits to include. For now, watch the video from 2006. There will be more to come, I'm sure.

Source/Video link: KTLA

Image

Ann Curry Scores Interview with Octuplet's Mom

VIDEO-Octo Mom Publicist On GMA

Octuplet Mom Wants TV Career

Former Foster Care Kid Adopted At 36

JeanneSager — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 17:31:00 GMT

I may be totally ripping off Grace Slick, but everybody wants somebody to love, right? Even if it's been eighteen years since you aged out of the foster care system and gave up your dreams of one day finding a mom?

Alice Jones spent sixteen years in the foster care system, and she's been out of it for eighteen. But last week, Jones finally got adopted.

The thirty-six-year-old computer programmer entered a Texas courtroom with friend Kate Held, a fifty-year-old mentor and mother figures of sorts who officially became her mom during a short ceremony complete with "It's a Girl" balloons.

Are you crying yet? Just wait.

Alice Jones was abandoned by her biological mother as a baby, by her biological father at two. Until she was eighteen, she spent her life in foster care - but her foster family opted against adoption. She went on to college and began a successful career as a programmer. At a fundraiser for a Texas charity that helps low-income kids last spring, Jones was paired with one of the organizers, Tracy Eilers, executive director of the Adoption Coalition of Central Texas, for a special meet-and-greet section of the program. She told Eilers she'd been in foster care, and though she never asked for it, Eilers hatched a plan to get Jones adopted.

Eilers told the Austin-American Statesman. “It was very hurtful to her. The pain doesn’t go away at some miraculous age.”

Eilers convinced Jones to talk to Held, and voila . . . instant-family.

My hat's off to all involved - Eilers for realizing adults who have aged out of the foster system are still in need of family support, Held for opening her heart, and Jones for keeping her heart open. But for all the good in this story, I'm still angered by the fact that it had to happen.

She spent sixteen years in the foster system, and no one stepped forward. There is still too much emphasis put on adopting babies in this country - and out of this country. I'm not against international adoption, but I find it hard to sympathize with people who say they could have adopted domestically, but they would have had to "sacrifice" their dreams of adopting a baby. Parenting means parenting kids - period. If you can't have your own - or decide not to - turning to adoption is supposed to be a mission of helping a child as much as that child will help your family.

Babies, people say, are easier. They don't come with baggage. Not true, actually, when you talk about a baby born addicted to drugs or you're dealing with an open adoption (a wonderful thing for parents to opt for, I might add). Kids don't come in neat little packages at any age.

Adopting babies is a wonderful gesture. There are hundreds of thousands of kids who come into this world in need of a Mom or Dad, and adoption will change their lives. It will prevent them from ever ending up in a foster system, it will give them a chance they likely wouldn't have had with their birth mother. But it shouldn't be the only option for new parents.

Consider when you're planning to expand your family - do you want a baby because a baby is cute and cuddly? Do you want a baby because it's a fresh start? Do you want a baby because you think it will be easier? Or do you just want to give a kid a chance at a better life, and let them enrich your family with all they can offer?

If your real desire is the latter - keep your options open. You may find an Alice Jones, two and just abandoned by the only parent she had left, waiting to come home with you.

Image: Yell

VIDEO-Octo Mom Publicist On GMA

Brett Singer — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 23:00:00 GMT

In an interview on Good Morning America, Nadya Suleman's publicist Joann Killeen proved something. Namely, that if you want someone to say something nice about you, you need to pay them.

Killeen appeared on Good Morning America on Tuesday, and she had nothing but praise for the mother of 14.

"My client is a wonderful woman. She's smart, she's bright, she's articulate, she's well-educated and she has a wonderful sense of humor."

Of course, Killeen might make some money out of this whole thing. Unlike Suleman's parents, who reportedly had to file for bankruptcy because of they are raising the six kids that Suleman already had. Suleman's own mother says she's a little loopy. (I'm paraphrasing.)

The babies have been named but "we are not revealing that yet," says Killeen. Killeen says that Nadya is "working professional", which contradicts every other report that has been published so far. (Diane Sawyer doesn't ask what that job is, which seems like a missed opportunity.) Sawyer's first question is about whether or not Suleman has held the babies and, of course, is she breast-feeding yet? Sawyer also wonders how it can be that Suleman has no negative feelings about this whole experience, she's just "happy and joyful for the miracle of life." It's not exactly a hard-hitting interview, but it's not horrible. It's definitely worth watching if you can manage to get through it without screaming at your computer screen.

In The Whittier Daily News, Suleman's local newspaper, Killeen denies that Suleman is asking for $2 million for her first interview and wants it to be with Diane Sawyer or Oprah Winfrey. The exact quote actually isn't exactly a denial: "That's pure speculation." That doesn't mean it isn't true.

Also from the local paper: the publicist "pointed out that the week-old babies are now the longest surviving octuplets in the world." Meaning that most of the time, octuplets don't survive. So transferring that many embryos is a good idea? (Thanks to Sheri for the correction.)

This is the key detail to take away from this story: Nadya Suleman "is now the mother of 10 boys and four girls younger than 8. All were born by in vitro fertilization." She lives with her parents. What the hell?

Is it fair for us to judge Suleman? Or is everyone entitled to have as many babies as they want, regardless of the reason and method?

Sources: ABC News, Whittier Daily News

Britney Spears Will Cancel Tour If Kids Can't Come

Bart Simpson-Scientologist

Do Your Kids Watch The Super Bowl?

Babble Podcast for January 26, 2009 (now with a working player)

Pregnant Tenant Evicted For Criticizing Landlord Online?

Morning News - Obama, Limbaugh, Cheese

Why You Should Check Even Little Kids Homework

As the Cookie Crumbles: Losing the Baby Weight is Easy, Fun!

Why the Octuplets Mom Went For It

Octuplet Mom Wants TV Career

Brett Singer — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 18:00:00 GMT

The amazing thing about "Octuplet Mom" Nadya Suleman is not that she wants to be on television. It's that she has OFFERED her services to Oprah and Diane Sawyer. As ParentDish puts it, "the opportunity to tap her parental wisdom."

What could she possibly have to offer? How to have an irresponsible number of children via IVF? How to get your parents to raise the kids for you while you stay in school? She's 33 years old and still a "full-time student." Her own mother thinks that she is "obsessed with babies."

UPDATE: Watch Nadya Suleman's publicist get interviewed by Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America.

It's all bad. I'm not saying that all mothers have to be married. But how is it responsible to go to a fertility clinic to have more children when you already have six that you can't support? And then spend time trying to get famous?

(Aside: the word "octuplets" doesn't appear in my spell check dictionary. Just saying.)

Ugh. I'm sorry to get all high handed but just… ugh.

Sources: NYPost, ParentDish

Image: crosswords.ryanfacestheworld.com

Britney Spears Will Cancel Tour If Kids Can't Come

Bart Simpson-Scientologist

Do Your Kids Watch The Super Bowl?

Babble Podcast for January 26, 2009 (now with a working player)

Pregnant Tenant Evicted For Criticizing Landlord Online?

Morning News - Obama, Limbaugh, Cheese

Why You Should Check Even Little Kids Homework

As the Cookie Crumbles: Losing the Baby Weight is Easy, Fun!

Why the Octuplets Mom Went For It

Newborn Baby Pics: Cute Little Aliens

JeanneSager — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 17:07:00 GMT

I didn't wait long after they'd rolled my newborn daughter off to the nursery to give my husband the "tell me the truth" look.

"Is she really beautiful, or do I just think that because I'm her mother?"

Face it - newborns look like aliens.

Before you get your maternity panties in a bunch, keep reading. No one ever said aliens weren't cute!

Newborns have flaking skin, pruney fingers and surprised looks. Those delivered vaginally often have coneheads from all the pushing and stretching.

Proving my point quite nicely, Just Cute Pics put up a collection of newborn baby pictures that will force you to put on that high pitched "aww, wook at the wickle widdle nooooose" voice. From the tongue stuck out to the pursed lips, they're the ultimate in ugly cute (and I mean that with pure love - my kid was ugly cute too).

A few of my favorites:

Want more? Check out Just Cute Pics, and just try to tell me you didn't get a little "wooga, wooga" in your voice.

Images: Just Cute Pics

Mom Says Hospital Fouled Childbirth - Twice

Famed Child Killer Mary Bell is Now a Granny

Cops End Search for Baby Thrown in Hospital Trash

Kid and Kangaroo Best of Friends

Chances Are, You Don't Know Jack

Amy Kuras — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 21:30:00 GMT

Hi! You’re an idiot – at parenting at least. And so am I!

That seems to be the upshot of this study authored by Dr. Heather Paradis, a pediatric fellow at the University of Rochester Medical Center, in New York state. Paradis’ study found that parents have a surprisingly low level of knowledge about child development and what’s normal for children at different phases of life.

More than 10,000 parents – more than 98 percent of whom were mothers – of nine-month-old infants were asked a series of 11 questions about children’s development. One-thirds answered four or more wrong. For example, many mothers didn’t know that one-year-olds often don't share or cooperate when playing with other children, and that an 18-month-old’s natural curiosity leads him or her to have a hard time sitting quietly and still for long periods of time.

The risk is that parents will respond to normal behavior with harsh discipline and withdrawal of affection, setting up negative patterns in their relationships with their children.

Two questions on the survey were: "Should a 1-year-old child be able to tell between right from wrong?" and "Should a 1-year-old child be ready to begin toilet-training?"

(both no, FYI).

There was a strong correlation between parents of lower education and income and lack of parenting knowledge; however, even adjusted for those factors and the mother’s mental state, knowledge levels were still lower than expected.

Paradis suggests that making sure parents keep their child’s schedule of well-baby appointments is key to helping parents find out information. I think all parents should also get some kind of good, simple, parenting book before they give birth with no “philosophy du jour,” just straight-up information. After all, parenting is hard and knowledge is power.

British Moms Ditch Lullabies for Pop Songs

Kate Tuttle — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 15:30:00 GMT

According to a new (non-scientific!) survey, more British mothers are singing pop songs to their babies than traditional lullabies. Two thirds of the moms who responded said the modern tunes worked better than older ones for soothing their kids to sleep. One in ten said they could never remember the words to the old songs.

The BBC reported the top ten songs moms mentioned as effective baby-soothers in their homes, including the ubiquitous "I Kissed a Girl," by Katy Perry and "You're Beautiful," by James Blunt, as well as older hits (Oasis' "Wonderwall" and Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful") and flat-out headscratchers (Guns 'n' Roses' "Sweet Child O Mine").

We go in for the traditional lullabies in our house, though mostly of the American variety ("Oh Susannah," "Home on the Range"), mixed in with a lot of Sesame Street and Dan Zanes, but we've been known to modify a Ramones song or two when the purpose is not sleep-inducing but diaper-change-cooperation. What songs work in your house? And what classics have you re-worded to fit your own infant or toddler's name, looks, or personality?

More by this author:

Baby Nearly Starves to Death, Diluted Formula to Blame
Grandmother’s Right? Or Totally Obnoxious?
Health Scam: Crisis Pregnancy Centers
Mama’s Got a Brand New Bag

They Say: Prenatal Folic Acid Not So Good After All

JeanneSager — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 17:57:00 GMT

Am I the only one who is starting to feel like scientists flip a coin every day to decide what's good for our kids? The latest flip flop hits those prenatal ~~horse pills~~ vitamins every mother tries to force down throughout her pregnancy.

Turns out that folic acid we always thought was so necessary for their development? This week, they're saying we probably should hold off about three months. Stay tuned (these things are subject to change).

The study out of Norway has some heft to it. Researchers followed thirty-two thousand kids over a period of three years and found moms who took folic acid during the first three months of gestation were more likely to have a baby with respiratory issues all the way up to the eighteen-month mark. The kids were also twenty-four percent more likely to land in the hospital because of their wheezing.

Over the years, folic acid intake by pregnant moms has been liked to everything from a decrease in the incidence of spina bifida to a possible decrease in cancer in kids. I've known moms who started taking prenatal vites months before they even began TRYING for a baby because they wanted to have a healthy folic acid build-up in the body. And I'd imagine you'd be hard-pressed these days to find a prenatal vitamin that DOESN'T have folic acid built in (thank you March of Dimes).

So what's a mom to do? Would you say the benefits outweigh the risks? Or should we just stay tuned for the other flip flop to drop?

Image: MLive