Last week, my three oldest kids and I had a date night. We went to a 50s style diner, had hamburgers, fries and milkshakes, and headed to the 7:30 PM show. Not having read any reviews prior, I purchased tickets for Pixar's "Up" fully expecting that I was in for predictable kid's movie fare – you know, sassy animal sidekicks, inside adult jokes that (we hope) go over the kids' heads, and, of course, the prerequisite potty humor.
What I got was a more than a pleasant surprise. "Up" is a rare find. A diamond in a pile of cultural rubbish served up to kids these days. Stripped of much of the cynicism and reliance on bodily functions of so many modern animated films, "Up" is written to respect kids' intelligence and sense of humor. Just as important, it is a first-rate commercial movie that isn't afraid to be wholesome - evidence that films for kids can be highly entertaining and simultaneously reinforce virtues such as love, kindness, empathy, and courage.
Earth Disney's first nature film follows three animal families -- polar bears, elephants, and humpback whales -- on their journey across the planet. And for every ticket sold during the film's opening week, Disney will plant a tree in your family's honor. Have fun and do good.
Disney
Hannah Montana: The Movie If you have a tween girl in your house, you've probably known about this movie for months. It's essentially a longer version of the Disney Channel TV show, but with new songs and a slightly more complex plot. Your daughter will love it, and you'll be happy you took her. We promise.
Disney
Up The latest in this year's crop of 3D movies is the improbable story of a crotchety old man and an excitable little boy who fall into the adventure of a lifetime. Kids will love the 3D technology, and parents will appreciate the humor and fast-moving plot.
Disney/Pixar
Coraline Newbery Award winner Neil Gaiman's magic realist novella comes to the big screen in a mesmerizing, scary adaptation. Coraline's new flat has a secret door in it; on the other side is a world just like hers but seemingly so much better -- until she discovers it's frightening secrets. This is definitely a big kids movie.
Focus Features
Hotel for Dogs What happens when you combine kindhearted siblings, and empty house, and a pack of stray dogs? Why, the Hotel for Dogs, of course! The perfect film for kids who love dogs (but be prepared for post-movies pleas for a puppy).
Nickelodeon
Inkheart Meggie's father has a magical power: when he reads aloud, stories come to life. Now Meggie must rescue him from a fictional villain come to life. Brendan Fraser stars as the supercool bibliophile dad in a film guaranteed to get kids interested in reading.
New Line Cinema
Pink Panther Deux While most parents will roll their eyes at the thought of another Pink Panther Movie, kids will love Steve Martin's slapstick humor and funny mispronunciations. Take the kids and try to remember what it was like to watch the original Pink Panther movies -- you might find yourself laughing at the pratfalls, too.
Sony Pictures
Under the Sea The first in the year's crop of 3D movies for kids, Under the Sea is a documentary about the costal regions of Southern Australia, New Guinea and the Indo-Pacific. Narrated by Jim Carrey, this is a movie that will thrill and educate the kids.
IMAX
Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience Not willing to take your tween to a Jonas Brothers concert? How about the next best thing -- the 3D concert movie! Earplugs recommended if you're over 16.
Walt Disney Pictures
Race to Witch Mountain Remember back when kids movies were smart and funny and exciting, like Escape to Witch Mountain? Here's hoping that the sequel will be all of that. But really, any story about a UFO expert and two kids with paranormal powers is the perfect Saturday afternoon matinee, for kids and parents.
Blogger Rebecca Beushausen lied about her terminally ill baby. Source: David Pierini, Chicago Tribune / MCT.
Imagine finding out that the baby you are carrying is terminally ill. Now imagine choosing to carry that baby to term, knowing she will not live. That's exactly what one Chicago area mom blogger recently went through. She chronicled her doomed pregnancy and home birth, and then told her readers that her baby girl had died a few hours after she delivered.
Heartbreaking, right? Here's the most heartbreaking part: The entire story was a lie.
Twenty-six-year-old Beccah Beushausen had captivated readers with her story of a single mother facing a difficult pregnancy. Her blog, Little One April, drew thousands of readers, who offered prayers and support and help. On June 7, when she posted about her baby's birth and subsequent death hours later, her site had nearly a million hits.
But when Beushausen posted a photo of Baby April, readers got suspicious -- the baby wasn't a baby at all, but a Reborn doll, a baby doll made to look exactly like a newborn. And that's when Beushausen's story began to unravel.
Click above to watch a video report of this story. Screengrab courtesy of ABC.
Pregnant teens are new reality show stars. Image: sxc.hu
Back in December, an MTV executive promised viewers a kinder, gentler MTV. The network responsible for such gems as the vapid pseudo-reality show "The Hills" and the nauseating "My Super Sweet Sixteen" was planning to scale back on the sensationalism and offer up some programming with a heart.
"Our new shows will feature themes of affirmation and accomplishment," said Brian Graden, president of entertainment at MTV Networks music channels and president of Logo. "Our shows are going to focus less on loud and silly hooks and more on young people proving themselves. These are themes that are consistent with the Obama generation."
Technically, I guess their soon-to-premiere reality show "16 & Pregnant" fits the bill. Starring real-life pregnant teenagers, the show will document the challenges these girl face as they come to terms with their forever-changed lives.
Annie Leonard explains how stuff is made, and soon tossed. Image via storyofstuff.com.
"The Story of Stuff" is the stuff of legend in classrooms across the country -- and now, my small town in Maine. This short film by activist Annie Leonard documents the travels of stuff -- the consumer goods we buy and use and toss -- and their impact on the environment. The free 20-minute video was the subject of a New York Times story that documented how its anti-materialistic message has taken classrooms by storm. That's because teachers itching to explain climate change can't find more than a passing explanation in their traditional textbooks. The Times reports that some 6 million people have viewed the movie on the Web, millions more on YouTube, and more than 7,000 schools, churches and people have ordered DVDs.
Last night, I talked a handful of my girlfriends into watching it with me so we could see why teachers everywhere are using it get teens talking about the plague of our consumer culture. Seems that if we buy less, we might just save the world.
Here's why: Annie Leonard, a former Greenpeace employee, wrote the film after spending years investigating the travels of trash across the globe. Leonard also narrates the story of "stuff" (depicted as line-drawn cartoons); she's clear and often funny, the way people who really know what they're talking about often are. It doesn't hurt that the film was produced by Free Range Studios, the group behind socially minded, web-based films like "The Meatrix" and "Grocery Store Wars." (The project was bankrolled by The Sustainability Funders and Tides Foundation.)
Disney's selling fruits and veggies to kids, but should they be selling food at all? Photo courtesy of sxc.hu.
Got a picky eater in your house? Disney wants to help. Tired of being called out for shilling sugary cereals and fast food meals to kids, Disney hatched a plan -- they'd sell eggs instead. Disney eggs are ... well ... just eggs, only each one has a different Disney character stamped on the outside. And it's only the beginning.
Disney Garden is a new line of fruits and vegetables, all marketed toward kids, all with a favorite character attached. Finding Nemo oranges, High School Musical baby cucumbers, Mickey Mouse apple slices ... you name it, Disney will be happy to slap a licensed character on it.
Disney knows parents are concerned about childhood obesity, that they think their kids don't eat enough fresh foods. But they also know how to sell to kids. They're counting on the "nag" factor to work: Kids beg to buy their favorite characters, parents see a fruit or vegetable and think, "Why not? At least it's healthy."
When it comes to Disney Princesses, I've got an "if you can't beat 'em, join em" attitude. And it's really hard to beat 'em when you've got two small girls in the house. But as much as I've come to accept sharing my home with Princess Aurora and her buddies, I also have my guard up. I know that Disney is a company that's more than happy to take things a little too far.
Case in point: "Princess Style" magazines. Okay, so they aren't real magazines. They're actually wall decorations, presumably for a young girl's room. If Ariel's impossibly tiny waist and come hither look aren't painful enough, check out the headlines:
My husband and I both feel there are a lot of shows aimed at our 8-year-old that are not necessarily appropriate. The boyfriend/girlfriend story lines on the popular tween shows make us cringe and we both dislike the bad behavior many of the characters exhibit in the name of comedy.
We monitor what she watches pretty closely and are in complete agreement that she should not be exposed to mature content until she herself is mature. At least I thought we were in complete agreement until he came home with the entire "Star Wars" DVD collection and suggested we all watch it together.
Needless to say, she was thrilled. I was horrified. The same child who couldn't sleep for two days after reading "Coraline" is going to be okay with watching "Star Wars"? I loudly protested but his assurances and her pleas eventually wore me down. If he thought it was okay, then perhaps I was overreacting. After all, I lost interest in "Star Wars" after seeing the first movie in 1977 -- maybe it wasn't that bad. With my finger ready on the stop button, we settled in for a marathon "Star Wars" adventure.
Hotel for Dogs What happens when you combine kindhearted siblings, and empty house, and a pack of stray dogs? Why, the Hotel for Dogs, of course! The perfect film for kids who love dogs (but be prepared for post-movies pleas for a puppy).
Nickelodeon
Inkheart Meggie's father has a magical power: when he reads aloud, stories come to life. Now Meggie must rescue him from a fictional villain come to life. Brendan Fraser stars as the supercool bibliophile dad in a film guaranteed to get kids interested in reading.
New Line Cinema
Coraline Newbery Award winner Neil Gaiman's magic realist novella comes to the big screen in a mesmerizing, scary adaptation. Coraline's new flat has a secret door in it; on the other side is a world just like hers but seemingly so much better -- until she discovers it's frightening secrets. This is definitely a big kids movie.
Focus Features
Pink Panther Deux While most parents will roll their eyes at the thought of another Pink Panther Movie, kids will love Steve Martin's slapstick humor and funny mispronunciations. Take the kids and try to remember what it was like to watch the original Pink Panther movies -- you might find yourself laughing at the pratfalls, too.
Sony Pictures
Under the Sea The first in the year's crop of 3D movies for kids, Under the Sea is a documentary about the costal regions of Southern Australia, New Guinea and the Indo-Pacific. Narrated by Jim Carrey, this is a movie that will thrill and educate the kids.
IMAX
Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience Not willing to take your tween to a Jonas Brothers concert? How about the next best thing -- the 3D concert movie! Earplugs recommended if you're over 16.
Walt Disney Pictures
Race to Witch Mountain Remember back when kids movies were smart and funny and exciting, like Escape to Witch Mountain? Here's hoping that the sequel will be all of that. But really, any story about a UFO expert and two kids with paranormal powers is the perfect Saturday afternoon matinee, for kids and parents.
Walt Disney Pictures
Monsters Vs. Aliens From the quirky minds of DreamWorks animation (the people who brought us Madagascar and Kung Fu Panda) comes Monsters Vs. Aliens, about, well, monsters who battle aliens. Guaranteed to make kids and parents howl with laughter (but not necessarily at the same jokes).
Posted Apr 17th 2009 2:00PM by Amy Hatch Filed under: Media
Research asserting that social-media platforms erode our moral values was roundly proven wrong last week, after thousands of Twitter members rallied around two mothers whose children unexpectedly passed away.
Heather Spohr of Los Angeles and Shana Myers of Edmon, Okla. are bloggers and frequent Twitter users, and when the terrible news about their children became public, their readers and followers reacted instantly and with enormous generosity of spirit and wallet.
Spohr, 29, chronicled her challenging pregnancy and the life of her daughter, Madeline Alice, who was born 11 weeks premature, on her blog, "The Spohrs Are Multiplying." Twitter, a natural extension of blogging, became a place where Spohr could interact with women she calls her "mommy co-workers."
Many of Spohr's followers knew 17-month-old Madeline was in the hospital, being treated for respiratory problems exacerbated by the prematurity of her lungs, because she tweeted about the experience in real time -- and then she posted notice of Maddie's passing.
Traditionally, Webby Award winners are only allowed a five word acceptance speech, so here's ours. It's riffed, of course, off typical parent-speak:
Someday, you will thank me.*
But today, ParentDish readers, we thank you. We thank you for reading, for commenting, for lively discussions, and for stopping by every day. We promise to keep on doing what we do best, offering you fresh, funny, honest commentary on the latest in parenting news, issues, and advice.
*(Official Acceptance Speech Honorees include: It's for your own good; Because I am the mom; and Please don't touch the poop. Share your favorite parent line with us in comments!)
Twitter is currently enjoying a surge in popularity and it seems that everyone is doing it. But while the social networking tool, and other fast-paced information sources, are designed to allow users to connect in real-time, a new University of Southern California study reveals that the rapidity of such connections could actually harm the emotional development of young people.
Twitter, the new Facebook, and the crawl at the bottom of the screen on cable news shows bombard us with a constant stream of information that, according to experts, is too fast for our brains to digest.
"If things are happening too fast, you may not ever fully experience emotions about other people's psychological states and that would have implications for your morality," says researcher Mary Helen Immordino-Yang.
A deadly allergy that could cause death or at the very least severe health issues is nothing to laugh at -- unless you send your child to school with an Epi pen just in case he might spontaneously develop a sensitivity to peanuts.
That's what Laura Bennett says in her latest piece at the Daily Beast -- that a new breed of "alpha parent" is so determined to have a child that is somehow exceptional that they will take dramatic, unnecessary measures to ward off an ailment their offspring doesn't even have.
Bennett describes an encounter with a fellow preschool parent, in which the mother castigates her for sending her son to school with cookies that might have contained a trace of the evil nut. The child carries an Epi pen in his backpack at his mother's insistence:
"I'm sorry. I didn't realize Blakely was allergic to nuts."
"He carries an EpiPen."
I needed some clarification. "He carries an EpiPen because he has been tested and found to be allergic?"
"Well no, but nut allergies are life-threatening and can develop at any time."
Just when did nuts become Public Enemy No. 1, Bennett asks, and just why are parents lining up to engage in "Munchausen's by Peanut?"
If you've seen this new Burger King ad, nobody could blame you for being confused. Are they trying to sell phone books or sponges or what? And did the King just mention something about booty?
The ad is actually pushing a new Sponge Bob kid's meal, but some parents aren't buying it. "It was funny at first, but it is a little graphic for kids," says Kassandra Jackson, a mom in Boise, Idaho.
I've watched it several times now and the only thing I can find to complain about is the fact that the King is rapping about squares when the shapes are actually rectangles. Other than that, I think I am too confused to be offended.
The New Easy Bake Oven New, and unfortunately not-so-improved, the oven caused 77 burns, 16 of them second or third-degree, and one that resulted in a partial finger amputation.
CPSC
Aquadots When you add water to these little plastic balls, the coating produces effects similar to GHB -- the date rape drug. Pleasant. Thankfully they were recalled.
Aquadots
Lead paint Speaking of things you shouldn't put in your mouth, how about any toy from China? Hundreds have been recalled thanks to the high levels of lead in the paint used to coat these toys
sensoryedge.com
Magnetic toys Particularly magnets that are small enough to swallow. When positive and negative magnets are floating around your digestive tract, they're drawn to one another, which can do some serious, life-threatening damage.
amazon.com
Snack time Cabbage Patch This little doll was so hungry, it had a habit of chewing little kids' fingers, hair, and whatever else was unfortunate enough to get stuck in its mouth. It was quickly recalled.
strawberrybonkers.com
Mini-hammock According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission: "the mini-hammock can twist around a child's neck as he/she is getting into or out of the mini-hammock, resulting in strangulation and death." All 3 million were recalled.
CPSC
Lawn Darts These have been banned for years in the US, as they had a tendency to wind up stuck in kids, not the ground.
gardengames.co.uk
Johnny Reb Cannon This bad boy fired plastic cannon balls up to 35 feet. Even a pellet gun would be less dangerous -- at least you can aim a gun.
Johnny Reb Cannon
Atomic Energy Lab Good thing this atomic energy set only came with "very low-level" radioactive sources, because that's not dangerous. Oh wait -- yes, yes it is.
americanmemorabilia.com
Water Yo-Yo Balls Speaking of getting strangled to death, these yo-yo balls came under scrutiny after the stringy cord got wrapped around children's necks. They've been banned in Illinois, but have yet to be recalled by the CPSC.
Picture this: It's Friday night and a Netflix movie just arrived yesterday. You settle into your couch with a big glass of wine, ready to enjoy a movie of your choosing. But instead of finding "Marley and Me" or "Milk" when you open that slim little red envelope, you find "Bolt." And it dawns on you that you've lost control of your Netflix queue.
My friend Melissa looked into Netflix a few weeks ago when she was considering cutting cable. "It's filled with family-friendly movies," she said, "And Andy (her 10-year-old daughter) couldn't wait to start adding movies to the queue. But as she started scrolling through the lists, squealing every time she found something she wanted to see, I realized that I'd never get see any movies of my own."
According to a dad in Des Moines, vampires are to blame for his son's recent misbehavior. Specifically, he says his 13-year-old son went on a biting spree at his middle school because of the movie "Twilight". Yes, that's right. Dad says his boy didn't mean to hurt anyone, he just bit 11 students because he saw some actors in a movie do it.
For those who haven't seen it, the film is based on the series of novels by Stephenie Meyer. Popular with tweens and teens, the movie's plot centers around a beautiful high school girl who falls in love with a handsome boy who happens to be a vampire.
Amy Fisher Dubbed the "Long Island Lolita," Amy Fisher, then 16, began a affair with a married auto mechanic, Joey Buttafuoco. Fisher demanded her lover leave his wife, but he refused. In response, a 17-year-old Fisher shot Mary Jo Buttafuoco in the head. She spent nearly seven years in prison -- and Mr. Buttafuoco served six months for statutory rape.
Bill Sikes, AP
Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold This pair of high-school seniors enacted an all-out assault on Columbine High School during a normal school day, April 20, 1999. At the end of the day, 12 students and one teacher were dead, and 24 people. were injured. Harris, 18, and Klebold, 17, committed suicide after the killings.
Getty Images
Robert Thompson Along with his schoolmate, Jon Venables, also age 10, Thompson kidnapped two-year-old James Bulger in Liverpool in 1993. Surveillance cameras filmed Thompson and Venables leading James out of a shopping center; the toddler's lifeless, battered body was discovered on train tracks.
Getty Images
Jon Venables Along with Robert Thompson, Venables was released in 2001 after spending eight years in prison. Their current identities and whereabouts are unknown.
Getty Images
Malcolm Shabazz A 12-year-old grandson of Malcolm X pled guilty to setting a blaze that killed his grandmother, Dr. Betty Shabazz, in 1997. After his release from prison, he was later arrested for attempted robbery and marijuana possession, among other charges.
Kathy Willens, AP
Willie Bosket At the age of 15, Willie Bosket shot dead a man on the NYC subway. Eight days later, he shot dead another man in another attempted robbery. The Bosket case -- he was convicted as a murderer while still a minor -- led to a change in state law so that children as young as thirteen could be tried as an adult for murder.
Getty Images
Mukesh Prasad Quite possibly the youngest criminal in the world (cue Keith Olbermann), a 3-year-old boy in India was arrested for criminal mischief earlier this year, according to Hindu.com. Days after he was arrested, the cops who put the toddler behind bars were suspended. Now that's justice.
Getty Images
Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme The 1994 film "Heavenly Creatures," starring Kate Winslet, is based on the true story of two New Zealand girls, ages 16 and 15, who murdered Parker's mother when she tried to end their intense and obsessive relationship.
Zuma Press
The unidentified boy's bid to be the vampire of McCombs Middle School came to an abrupt end when he chomped on the hand of a 13-year-old girl at a track meet. She took her complaint to the principal, who discovered a trail of bite marks inflicted by the boy since mid February. Fortunately, none of the victims were rendered undead. The boy, however, was given a delayed referral to juvenile court on an assault charge.
Texting naked photos of yourself is stupid, but it's not the most problematic thing kids are doing online. For most teens, cyberbullying is a far bigger problem.
When I was a teenager, our parents worried that we were having sex, but they didn't think about whether or not we were taking nude photos of ourselves and passing them around at school. These days, though, kids are having cybersex at an alarming rate -- or so the media would have you believe. One recent study found that 20 percent of teens admit to texting racy photos of themselves to friends and classmates. School administrators argue that the numbers are far higher than that.
"Sexting" is a terrible idea, clearly, but is it really dangerous, or just stupid? Concerned parents and teachers say it is incredibly dangerous, putting kids at risk for all kinds of sexual attacks. That photo your daughter takes for her boyfriend could easily find its way onto the Internet, where crafty pedophiles have access to it -- and to your daughter.
Attack Recorded on Cellphone, Posted to Facebook These middle school students shared their violent video with some online buddies, and wound up suspended.
Investigators Posing as Teens Propositioned for Sex Staff members of the New York Attorney General signed up for Facebook pretending to be teens and were repeatedly asked if they had any "nude pics" to share -- and it gets worse.
The Real Threat Might Surprise You According to a new report, your kids are in greater danger from cyberbullying than they are from online sexual predators.
Predators Aren't Who You Think Worried about adults with foul intentions posing as teens online? Chances are they're not the ones hitting your kids up for sex -- but the real culprits are even worse.
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My husband and I both feel there are a lot of shows aimed at our 8-year-old that are not necessarily appropriate. 
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The 
Twitter is currently enjoying a surge in popularity and it seems that everyone is doing it. But while the social networking tool, and other fast-paced information sources, are designed to allow users to connect in real-time, a new 
According to a dad in Des Moines, vampires are to blame for his son's recent misbehavior. Specifically, he says his 13-year-old son went on a biting spree at his middle school because of the movie "
