"Jack's Big Music Show"
If the season two opener of "Jack's Big Music Show" is any indication you and your toddler will be tapping your feet, bobbing your heads and fighting the urge to get up and dance around the living room.

Blackberry Harvest Dollhouse Museum Shoppe
This little museum/store filled with miniatures was a bit of heaven to my 8-year-old daughter who loves everything to do with dollhouses. Owner Collette McCree Renfro opened the museum in downtown Homewood 15 years ago so she would have a place to house her own extensive dollhouse collection. Along the way, she began selling dollhouses and accessories to other miniature lovers who came to visit.

"Seussical the Musical"
Where else can you see an irritable kangaroo with an absolutely stunning voice demand "R-E-S-P-E-C-T," a compassionate elephant do nest duty for a pretty bird with wanderlust, and really, really big hair, all in the same place? The Emerald City Theater Company at the Apollo Theater in Lincoln Park, that's where. This time the folks at Emerald City, Chicago's largest professional theater devoted entirely to families, are celebrating The Cat in the Hat's 50th birthday with "Seussical the Musical," directed by Ernie Nolan.

Public schools that overcome the colossal odds that go hand in hand with extreme poverty must have a number of things working in their favor. Five things, to be exact, as has been proven time and time again by research and experience. Among them are parent and community partners that rally around efforts to improve the school and a faculty of qualified teachers who have a can-do attitude.  Read more...

Reader Essay
The older we get, I suspect we marvel at how profoundly beliefs we once held so firmly shift and change with time. One important thing I no longer believe is that I am in control of my future or the future of my family.  Read more...

Dear Editor of Chicago Parent
Please save the Smart Love column
Dear Ms. Tamara L. O'Shaughnessy,
Dear Mrs. Tamara L. O'Shaughnessy:
Dear Ms. O'Shaughnessy,
I am a regular reader of Chicago Parent
Dear Tamara:
Dear Mrs. Tamara L. O'Shaughnessy:
Dear Mrs. Tamara L. O'Shaughnessy:
Dear Ms. O'Shaughnessy,
Dear Mrs. O'Shaughnessy,
Dear Tamara:
Dear Mrs. Tamara L. O'Shaughnessy:
Jill Browning is more rude, than pragmatic
Dear Mrs. Tamara L. O'Shaughnessy  Read more...

It was an uneventful Sunday afternoon when the knock came at the door. Dove, our 5-year-old neighbor, was standing with her grandpa and a Spider-Man scooter.  Read more...

Jacob Spenadel arrived Dec. 29, 1998, a special 6-pound, 10-ounce delivery for parents Joel and Beth.  Read more...

Voices needed on obesity
Cloth diapers not so bad
Star struck
Smart Love fan
Likes being in the know  Read more...

What's in your neighborhood?  Read more...

South suburban focus
Most of my friends have two or three kids and wonder how I manage four. Sometimes I wonder, too.  Read more...

"Japan and Nature: Spirits of the Season" at Kohl Children's Museum
Kohl Children's Museum's new "Japan and Nature: Spirits of the Season" exhibit takes a delightful spin on many classic kids' activities. The richly interactive presentation lets children explore Japanese culture by playing dress up with kimonos, having a tea party with sushi and chopsticks and learning kanji letter-writing with paint brushes dipped in water.  Read more...

Here's a scary thought: Some public health experts claim our kids could have a life expectancy shorter than ours if something isn't done to battle their bulge.  Read more...

'But I don't have time!" pleads my 14-year-old daughter when I remind her that today is her turn to walk the dog. "Tough. Do it anyway," is what I mean to say. Instead, as my current parenting style has degenerated from firm but flexible to limp yet ineffectual, I skulk off to the kitchen, where I reflect on my own high school relationship with time.  Read more...

Body Worlds 2
Body Worlds 2 was an eye popping experience for my family and me. In 2005, during Body World's first tour through Chicago, nearly 800,000 guests visited the controversial exhibit.  Read more...