Our Favorite Parenting Stories Of The Week

In a city with an endless amount of extracurricular options it’s easy to fill every moment of your children’s day, but what about down-time? The knowledge and social skills children gain from enrichment activities are invaluable, but they also need time to decompress and just hang-out. (The New York Times)

Don’t let pregnancy put a damper on your Halloween celebration. Check out these creative couples’ costumes for expectant mothers and dads-to-be! (The Huffington Post)

Think chickenpox is a harmless rite of passage? One mom thinks otherwise and speaks out in favor of vaccinating little ones against this often-underestimated ailment. (Mommyish)

NYC style and business maven (oh, and daughter-of-the-Donald) Ivanka Trump and her husband welcomed a healthy baby boy this week. Congrats to the happy family. (Elizabeth Street)

Research shows that kids are not receptive to tutors on television. The screen is not the issue, but rather, the unreliability of the speaker. Children need connectedness to learn. They know when someone is speaking to them or when they’re hearing pre-recorded material. (Baby Center)

Planning a baby shower? Get inspired by Jennifer Love Hewitt’s gender-neutral shower, which was planned by celebrity party planner Mindy Weiss. At the Hotel Bel-Air this past weekend in Los Angeles, Hewitt’s guests got to create their own fragrance and enjoy baby themed cupcakes! (Parents)

Kids in Virginia are rebelling against healthier food. A school district’s transition from serving 27-ingredient “meat” burgers to serving all beef burgers was not well received by its students. (The Washington Post)

Many parents strive to teach their children empathy, but these 8-year-old boys are coming out ahead of the curve. This band of North Dakota kids headed to the salon to have their hair dyed hot pink in support of breast cancer awareness. (CBS)

Pumpkin carving is a fun fall activity, but when kids are involved, it’s typically not a safe one! These playful no-carve pumpkins are a great knife-free alternative for little ones. (Mommyish)

Worried about incurring the wrath of safety-conscious parents, the US Postal Service puts a stop to the “Just Move” campaign’s stamp designs. Why? Depictions of seemingly dangerous activities and helmet-free headstands. What do you think? (Motherload)

Relevant Directory Listings

See More

USC Gymnastics & Baseball Training Facility

<p><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;" data-sheets-value="{" data-sheets-userformat="{">We offer sports activities, after school programs, birthday parties & private lessons for kids ages 3–13 years! Our gymnastics classes are a great way to keep your child active and healthy. We strive to empower and challenge children through the sport of gymnastics.</span></p>

Super Soccer Stars

<p>Soccer Stars is New York’s most popular youth educational soccer program! With 24 years of experience under our cleats, we have positively impacted over one million kids in our local community by putting the FUN in FUNdamentals in our weekly classes and camps.</p> <p>At Soccer Stars, we use the soccer ball as a vehicle to help children not only improve their soccer skills, but develop self-confidence and physical literacy, improve gross motor skills, build teamwork, and hone socialization skills. Our highly trained coaches and early childhood experts lead an age-specific curriculum with a low kid-to-coach ratio so every child gets individual attention and can grow at their own pace.</p> <p>Kids ages 1-12+ can join our seasonal programs, including Parent & Me, FUNdamentals, Development Training, and Travel Soccer. Join us at one of over 80 locations in neighborhoods across across Westchester County, Connecticut and New York, available 7 days-a-week:</p> <p><strong>Connecticut:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Cos Cob</li> <li>Greenwich</li> <li>Port Chester</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p><strong>Westchester:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Briarcliff</li> <li>Eastchester</li> <li>Mt. Kisco</li> <li>New Rochelle</li> <li>Ridgefield</li> <li>Scarsdale</li> <li>White Plains</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p><strong>New York City:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Bronx</li> <li>Inwood</li> <li>Upper West Side</li> <li>Upper East Side</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p>Can’t find a class or location that fits your schedule? Soccer Stars also offers private classes for small groups or individual training. Let our coaches come to you with a completely customizable program, anytime, anywhere. Birthday parties are also available! </p>

Cucu's PlayHouse

<div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;">Interactive, live-streaming music and movement class in Spanish for babies, toddlers and preschoolers!<br />Join us every day from Monday through Saturday at 1:30 pm EST to sing, dance and play together while learning Spanish from your home.</div> <div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;"> </div> <div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;">This class is part of a Spanish Immersion Program where your child will be introduced to basic concepts like the animals, colors, numbers and letters. All of these through the universal language of Music. Each session is fun, interactive and engaging.<br />A selection of Children Songs in Spanish guides the class from start to finish. Activities are related to the lyrics, in order to familiarize the children with the words and their meanings. Some of the songs encourage the children to dance. Nilda uses puppets, musical instruments, and props to teach children basic vocabulary through action and interaction, rather than through translation.</div> <div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;"><br />The classes are streamed on Zoom's webinar platform. Participants (children, parents, nannies) are able to join the video from their homes and interact with us in real-time, it is a fun and engaging experience.</div>